FIRMS AND BUSINESS GRADUATES: EXPLORING CAREER DEVELOPMENT, TALENT ACQUISITION, AND PERCEPTIONS ON EMPLOYABILITY SOFT SKILLS

Abstract: Purpose:                            To explore how firms attract and develop newly graduated business students and review the different marketing strategies that firms use to promote different career paths to newly graduated business students. Additionally, the paper aims to examine the soft skills that hiring firms consider important and explore the perceptions of recent business graduates regarding soft skills and employability. Method:                             The research takes on a deductive approach to explore the two research questions and uses qualitative primary data in the form of interviews as the main data collection method. Other complementary methods included looking at job descriptions to identify the most desirable soft skills and also the use of secondary data sources. The sampling methods included convenience, purposive and snowball sampling. The method of analysis was implemented using thematic analysis by colour coding based on the different themes presented in the theoretical framework.  Conclusion:                       The firms attract talent by refining their job descriptions (e.g., using neutral language), campus recruitment, attending career fairs, employing those with similar values, etc. They also offer a variety of career development opportunities, and each person’s career path depends more on their interest and drive. Regarding the soft skills important for employment, achievement orientation and communication skills were among those mainly emphasised by both firms and graduates.