Recruiting
UNIVERSITY STUDENTS
Talent pipelines that extend from best-in-class SCM programs to world-class corporations are the surest foundation for continue success in industry. In a disruptive age, where the battle will be fought with one’s competitors across a company’s supply chain, successful SCM talent acquisition will be the key determinant of power and capability in the next decade. SCM students at Bauer can be recruited by companies into one of three employment positions: Co-Ops, Internships, and Full-Time.
Students preparing to attend an SPO Career Mixer
Bauer SPO members Robert Houtmann and Erum Kader (1st and 2nd from right) during their summer internships at LyondellBasell.
INTERNSHIPS
Many of our best students compete for prestigious summer internships at some of the best corporations in the United States. These are classic summer internships, where the student works full-time for the corporation for the entire summer and then returns to school when the fall semester begins. Combining these classic summer internships with co-ops during the spring and fall semesters is the employment strategy whereby many of the best students have a year or even two years of experience by the time that they graduate. Most part-time SCM positions for Bauer students (co-op and internship) currently pay between $22-$28 per hour, given the value that these students bring to each firm.
CO-OPS
Because the Bauer College of Business (UH) resides in the 4th largest city in the United and is co-located with many large corporations, its students can work part-time for these companies, while continuing to progress through their degree plans. Working part-time, while concurrently continuing your education, is known as a co-op. These co-ops can technically start or finished at any time—they can run for a semester or for two years. They also provide the hiring company with a flexible workforce—the number of co-ops can go up or down very quickly depending on business conditions.
One additional advantage of a long-standing co-op is that the candidate soon becomes enculturated by their tenure with the sponsoring company. In time, the student feels like they are already apart of the organization—it has become their corporate home, making the odds of successfully hiring the candidate for a full-time opportunity much higher. The most successful companies recruit the very best students very early (sophomore/junior year) through co-op and internship opportunities, hoping to then hold on to them when other companies come calling during the student’s senior year. In most cases, this recruiting strategy is successful, even when the other companies are offering a higher starting salary.
FULL-TIME
The ultimate objective of an educational program is to produce graduates who can assume professional responsibilities in industry on a full-time basis. The average SCM graduate at Bauer now earns approximately $64,000, not including any signing bonus or relocation package. Our very best students are now commanding starting salaries between $70,000-$75,000. To provide a more positive and productive environment for recruiting Bauer SCM students, SPO utilizes two distinct formats: Career Fairs and Career Mixers.
Kaitlyn Dahlstrom with Dr. Wayhan after gaining her graduation. After almost two years of relevant SCM experience during her junior and senior year at UH, she began her full-time career at Occidental Petroleum (Denver) in January 2020.
Recruiting teams from Tenaris and LyondellBasell competing for SCM talent at an SPO Career Fair
CAREER FAIRS
SPO often holds two Career Fairs every semester: one in-person and the other in a virtual format (Brazen). Only SCM majors and other related majors (MIS or MS SCM) are allowed to attend. Our targeted recruiting model focuses on very specific technical majors, so that the number of students participating is significantly reduced (e.g., 200 vs. 2000). With approximately 25-30 companies attending our recruiting events, our students can typically interview with 10+ companies. Since we have two recruiting events each semester, the number of interviews can increase to approximately 20+. At a traditional career fair, the average number of interviews is approximately four because of the wait time (queue) is about one hour.
One additional advantage to this format is that the recruiter-student ratio is more productive. Instead of a 45 second “elevator pitch”, SCM students are afforded an opportunity to begin building a relationship with prospective firms during a 5-7 minutes initial interview. This increased interview time also allows the recruiting firms to get to know the prospective candidates better, thus making the subsequent selection process more effective.
CAREER MIXERS
SPO has pioneered a concept known as Career Mixers. In its most tradition format, a Career Mixer will have four companies participating, typically within one industry sector (e.g. Oilfield Services or Chemical Industry). Each company will occupy one of four tables in the ballroom. A total of 32 students are divided into four groups of eight students each and each of the groups starts the recruitment process at one of the four tables for the first half hour. With each subsequent half hour, the groups rotate through the four tables. In two hours, the four companies have interviewed 32 of our best SCM candidates. These companies can now move quickly to narrow their recruiting lists down to 8-10 candidates for subsequent follow-up interviews. An outstanding candidate or two can be selected within a few weeks utilizing this recruitment strategy. It should be noted that approximately 125 candidates apply for consideration for one of the 32 seats at each Career Mixer.