CI Projects Director, Kiran Kachela is passionate about education and empowerment so it was no surprise that she accepted the invitation to speak to Change Management students at St Mary’s University in November 2018.
She was invited by Merlin Stone, an innovative Professor of Marketing & Strategy who focuses on practical outcomes such as preparing his students for the real business world by engaging them with business professionals.
Some of his current research areas include investigating the relationship between student employability & different aspects of university. He is a champion of the idea that soft skills are key not just to good management but also to continuous personal/professional growth and to open up more job opportunities. An idea that resonates well with CI Projects.
Following Kiran’s well received lecture on the organisational culture, management competencies and change, a student placement role opportunity was created for Sujatha Prabhu, one of Merlin Stone’s final year students. Sujatha is completing a Bachelor’s degree in Business Management following an earlier career as a radio presenter. Due to her interest in HR, her placement focused on the people aspects of the company.
She was able to understand the company’s values, its team components client base, services and delivery model. She also gained practical insights into some of the HR challenges that exist in the workplace. She participated in other projects including the supporting the development of a training programme tracker and the development of a change management programme for youth and business professionals.
Sujatha’s experience with the company gave her increased confidence about her chosen degree and career path into HR. She summed up her placement as “…a wonderful exposure to real world business… “
CI Projects’ first foray into undergraduate student placements not only provided a high quality additional resource but also offered the chance to invest in local students – the future of business. Student placements and other similar opportunities look set to become a regular part of CI Projects recruitment strategy.