D2C B-School Employer Branding Report 2020: Voice of students!

In recent times, companies are looking at lucrative ways of reaching out to B-School students to build and enhance their employer brand image. To stay in the league and occupy the best mind share, they conduct campus engagements, well before the commencement of the hiring process. This hiring pattern has been surveyed and recorded numerous times but it resonates only with the voice of the recruiters. Opinions of students, the ones getting hired, hasn’t been taken into consideration, until today.

Dare2Compete conducted a survey as a part of its annual Unstop (formerly Dare2Compete)Awards with CRISIL as the Knowledge Partner where students from premier B-Schools voiced out their opinions on the matter. With a detailed insight into the key aspects, the Employer Branding Report 2020 talks about the stakeholders that students want to interact with, the duration that they'd like to stick around in a company before making a shift, the number of interactions they'd like to have before closing-in on their next employer of choice and much more.

A comprehensive study, this report was assembled on the basis of 2619 student responses, collected majorly from the top 32 premier B-Schools across India, enrolled in the academic year of 2019-20. All the respondents have engaged with multiple brands on campus through quizzes, case study competitions, leadership talks, simulation games, etc.

Out of the total respondents, 73.7% (1930) were male and the remaining 26.3% (688) were female. This ratio was in line with the average gender diversity prevalent in B-Schools. In addition to that, 55.6% of respondents had work experience of more than a year while the other 44.4% were freshers.

In order to ensure that the survey is backed by relevant data and analysis, Unstop (formerly Dare2Compete)only considered responses from B-Schools where a significant number of students had completed the survey. The respective B-Schools were then tiered in accordance with the categories set by companies to conduct campus engagements for the academic year 2019-20. Premier 10 B-Schools comprised IIM A, IIM B, IIM C, IIM L, IIM K, IIM I, XLRI, FMS, MDI, and SPJIMR. An exhaustive list of which can be accessed in Appendix A of the report.

The results of the survey were surprising and proved to be an eye-opener for many. Some key aspects of the Employer Branding Report 2020 are as follows: 

• 79% of students consider having one or more interactions with a particular company in order to better understand it, before making the final decision of whether or not they would like to build a career in that company. 
• 32% of students are agnostic about the size of the company and do not worry about it being large or small, start-up or funded, etc. 
• 50% of respondents considered the company culture to be a crucial aspect for building the brand reputation in their minds.
• 65% of students are ready to spend 6 months to 2 years in a particular company to understand it better before making a switch to a different organization.
• Beyond salary, Roles and Profiles offered are valued more by students when selecting the employer of choice. Also, Excellent Training Programs are not considered. 
• The decision of students to join a particular company is backed by its Potential Growth followed by the industry’s stability and growth.  

The survey also brought to light the Dream organizations of B-School students. In the list of the top 25 dream companies, Hindustan Unilever Limited grabbed the first place which was followed by Google. Under the segment of Banking and Finance, Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase & Co. proved to be a popular choice.

In the Consulting domain, the famous MBB trio of McKinsey & Company, Boston Consulting Group and Bain & Company - held the top three places respectively, while Tata Administrative Services (TAS) and Aditya Birla Group were the most desirable companies under the General Management segment.

Hindustan Unilever Limited (HUL) and ITC Limited outshone as employers of choice in the FMCG/ Beverage sector. Finally, Amazon, Flipkart and Google held the top 3 positions for New-age Recruiters where students would like to work.

The detailed analysis and report of the conducted survey can be viewed on the Unstop (formerly Dare2Compete)website, here.