Lisa Sundström, global research manager of Universum in Philadelphia, says the role banks played in the financial crisis and the environmental and economic consequences of the BP oil spill disaster in the Gulf of Mexico, may have played a role. For starters, banks, oil companies, and the Big Four accounting firms lost some of their luster among business students. Looking beyond Google, the 2011 list of most attractive employers has its share of surprises.
Well-known for its unique employee benefits, such as the ability to bring your dog to work and free meals, Google wants to be recognized for more than its perks, says Ewing. And she says that graduates who majored in all sorts of subjects are regularly welcomed at Google.īusinessweek: For college grads, A-list employers While Ewing said she could not make hiring projections, she could confirm that Google expected to hire more employees than it did in 2007, its previous biggest hiring season, when it brought in 6,000 new people. Opportunity might also have something to do with it, says Ewing, who adds that the company is anticipating its biggest hiring year ever, with the most openings for entry-level jobs in sales and engineering. But it is the challenging work that attracts so many people to Google." That means hiring those with a diversity of thought, background, beliefs, and ethnicity. "Diversity is critical to our business and culture," says Kyle Ewing, talent and outreach programs manager at Google in Mountain View, Calif. Nearly one of five business students told Universum they wanted to work for Google, up from 16.6 percent in 2010. On the overall list of most desirable employers for business students, who made up about 36 percent of respondents and included about 6,000 MBA students, Google, Apple, Disney, Ernst & Young, and PricewaterhouseCoopers, respectively, made up the top five. To better visualize the Universum findings and map the popularity profile of dozens of companies, check out our interactive graphic.
Apple is in the top three with six of the personality types, and Disney is in the top three for five, including idealists, who ranked it No. 1 spot in five of the personality types and taking a top-three spot in all seven.
Universum didn't designate an overall winner, but Google - which took the top spot in each of the past four years - is still the big favorite, taking the No. Universum then asked the students to identify the five employers they would most like to work for.
Careerists are looking for a prestigious brand name and employers who recruit only the best and brightest entrepreneurs want to work for fast-growing companies with a creative work environment explorers are looking for challenging work and a variety of assignments harmonizers are seeking work/life balance and secure employment hunters are attracted by competitive base salaries and good prospects for future earnings idealists are drawn to friendly work environments and high ethical standards and leaders want leadership opportunities and mentors.īusinessweek: 50 top employers for college grads