Scottish Government Advisor & AAI Champion Ross Martin gives his thoughts on how AAI fits in with wider economic goals as we celebrate 1500 interns.
In the current fractious political climate, and in the context of continuing economic uncertainty, there has been a lot of chat across my LinkedIn network about its impact on Scotland’s plans for inclusive growth.
My answer is always – focus on talent. Identify fresh talent, inject it into your organisation and take advantage of the opportunities for growth that it brings.
We have so much talent here in Scotland; our schools, colleges and universities are brimming full of energetic, enthusiastic young (and some older!) people, motivated by the opportunity to make a real, lasting difference to your organisation.
AAI has just celebrated placing its 1500th candidate into paid work. The team can help source brilliant talent, as it has already done for over 1000 organisations, working with all sectors of Scotland’s economy, across the country.
Joy and the team have been encouraging employers to invest in diverse talent since 2010. I’ve had the pleasure of supporting Joy from the start and, amongst my many activities supporting regional economies, that’s something that I take great pride in.
From driving economic growth to delivering social impact, AAI has the ability and experience to help strengthen your offer to clients and customers alike. They deliver results – for you and for their rapidly growing family of talented alumni.
As well as promoting a culture of paid internships, AAI now supports roles for women returners, maternity leave and permanent graduate roles. The team also offers social impact projects to support talented disabled graduates and minority ethnic women, which employers can get involved with on a CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) level.
Hiring for potential, investing in diverse talent and embracing marginalised and untapped groups, is key to overcoming perceived skills shortages and for delivering inclusive growth. The brain-drain is still an issue, so offering opportunities for graduates to grow and evolve in a role, here in Scotland, is hugely important.
It’s been my pleasure to watch this organisation develop and grow over its first 9 years, moving from a sole focus on internships, to inclusive recruitment as a whole, to creating social impact projects, e.g. with the Scottish Government and the private and third sectors.
I encourage all of you in my network, regardless of which sector you work in, or the size of your company/ organisation, to consider widening your graduate talent search by adopting potential, adopting diversity and adopting opportunity with AAI.
#EnjoyTheExperience
Originally published on Ross Martin’s Linkedin 16 August 2019.
