While searching for a job vacancy, you stumbled upon this concept by different terms; fast tracks, graduate programs or even talent acquisition before the term has been generalized to recruitment departments.
Simply a company selects graduates or entry level employees to join a preparatory program to qualify them to be managers after a certain period of time, so have you wondered why companies hire inexperienced employees to be managers on a medium term?!
First, it’s a simple investment in an intellectual capital, through calculated personal, technical, on-job and leadership training programs, etc, required to qualify the candidate to be a manager on the medium term, or even a top manager on the long one, the hardest part is to find the right caliber, with the ability to learn, process and innovate; this can be done through IQ tests, reasoning tests, problem solving group discussions, etc… Additionally a group of personality tests is done like MBTI or true colors for example to ensure that the candidate is fit for the position and its higher, or the business nature itself.
Second, adjusting the company’s employee’s turnover; an employee joining a managerial program is ensured a career path and security within the company due the kind of expenses invested in him, on the condition of being an achiever of what’s required, so eventually the probability of finding an outside career opportunity is neither low or less competitive.
Third, finger printing the company’s business culture; as a lot of companies have their own known business management mentality within the market, a fresh graduate is the perfect candidate; being an empty cup with no previous business experience that could conflict or be a great barrier to change or accepting the new culture or methodologies in the new workplace.
Fourth, financial wise; generally for each position there is a salary range with upper and lower limits, in such programs, salaries are near the lower limits in comparison to a manager at the same level with actual real years of work experience.
In a balanced view, you will find these kinds of programs a win-win deal for both the company as discussed and the fresh grad employee in which he will skip several years of his career, get paid a high salary relative to the age and secure a career with personal investment, so it’s a life time chance, and whoever gets it, shall simply grab it.
By: Ahmed Gawdat
