The Key Learning Points:

1.The role of data in enhancing recruitment practices 

2.A spotlight on the financial services sector and attracting more women 

3.What graduates want to see from companies regarding D&I

A couple of weeks ago we were joined by Anu Manthri, director of business development at Bright Network, and two graduates who spoke about their experiences starting in the world of work. Today we’re thrilled to welcome Anu back on the podcast to speak more about Bright Network and in particular the power of data in supporting companies to recruit in a more diverse and inclusive way.

We ask Anu what she’s passionate about. Starting out in teaching with Teach First and subsequently moving to the Bright Network, Anu says that “the key theme that runs between is passion about young people and opportunities - I just wanted to make a difference to as many people as possible!”

We then hear more about the Bright Network, which was launched by its founder when, in his final year of university, he thought “how does everyone know how to get an internship? How does everyone know even what career to go down?” For him, it was clear that networks play a key role: “How do we create a network that is free to access, available to all and really targets everyone, regardless of their background?” 10 years on and today Bright Network supports those pre, during, and post uni to make the best choice in the first step of their career. And what really sets them apart is their use of data to drive recruitment processes. 

The Bright Network membership currently sits at around 500,000 and employer partners can dive into the candidate database and segment across a huge number of data points: “We can pinpoint really bespoke segments to target on behalf of employers - it’s almost like Big Brother, but the less creepy version! Because our members know that we’re targeting them, they want to be targeted!”

A focus of Bright Network is diverse recruitment and improving social mobility. And currently around 45% of the membership are from ethnic minority backgrounds, 80% are state educated, 15% receive free school meals and 41% are the first in their family to go to university. 

We speak about recruitment in financial services and Anu explains that targeting women has always been at the forefront of the agenda. Employer partners want to encourage more female applicants and help them to feel more comfortable throughout the recruitment process. One of the biggest barriers Anu sees is female confidence: “My tips and my encouragement would be to the finance sector to think – we know the issue, we know the problem, but what can we put in as interventions now that we have the data?” It’s about using the data to really understand the issues and then implementing changes to address those issues. 

There’s been increased focus and energy around diversity and inclusion in recent years, especially in the wake of the Black Lives Matter movement. Anu explains that “92% of members will consider the diversity and inclusivity of an organisation before applying.” So it’s important for firms to show they’re passionate about diversity and be honest about any under-representation.

Finally, Anu tells us about Internship Experience UK they launched last year which, at the time, was the largest virtual internship in the world with 150k applicants! This was in response to employers being unable to offer standard insight days and experiences and generally, students feeling less prepared to enter the world of work.