Partner Article

Gen Y Graduates as Digital Marketing Employees: How good are they?

When speaking to small business owners there is often an expectation that most recent graduates are here to solve all their digital marketing problems. Don’t know Facebook? Get a graduate in. Can’t fathom SEO? Recruit a graduate. Some alterations needed for the website? The graduate trainee will do it.

It’s true that for many graduates these digital marketing skills and experiences are second nature. In fact as these skills have become so entrenched in their lives they often don’t realise that they are skills at all.

The very best graduates understand the value of generic digital marketing skills and keep up to date with the changes in technology to keep pace with industry. This is often regardless of degree background. However industry still seems to find graduates who don’t seem to really grasp the importance of digital marketing at all.

Yesterday I watched some interviews of undergraduate students being asked about their knowledge of social media, and in particular its importance to small business. I was left almost dumbfounded at the lack of understanding on the subject.

As I look to the future of industry and recruitment I see ‘Digital Marketing skills’ becoming engrained in a person specification as you would currently find ‘Organisational skills’ or ‘Teamworking skills’; another competency.

At the interview yesterday, and on many times previously, the point that was made went along the lines of “It’s almost not worth hiring graduates, you are often better off recruiting school leavers who can be moulded into the company way. Besides graduates often leave university with bad habits.”

Of course I am personally a huge advocate for the hiring of graduates, not least because of the commitment they have shown for personal development by undertaking a degree. That said, and perhaps it’s a university issue, quite often graduates are not entering the labour market with relevant skills, particularly in digital marketing.

I invite comments below on this subject. I’d like to hear from stakeholders from all backgrounds; from industry, from students & graduates and from higher education staff. Is there an issue with the level of digital marketing skills from Generation Y Graduates? What are your experiences of this?

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Daniel Knowles .