Support the Midlands' creative talent, says entrepreneur
The managing director of Birmingham- based travel company Click Travel is calling for businesses to support more creative graduate talent or risk losing out to other major cities. Simon McLean, Midlands Business Insider’s reigning Entrepreneur of the Year, spoke to Insider about the launch of the company’s intern recruitment programme and the difficulties of finding the region’s best employees.
McLean said: “As a region, we have a wealth of high ranking universities, colleges and schools, not to mention a hotbed of IT businesses.”
“The Midlands produces around 35,000 graduates per year with a multitude of skills who can really add to our business offering. The reality is, if we don’t nurture the talent we have on our doorstep, we’ll lose it to competitor city regions like Manchester or London.”
Click Travel provides travel solutions for businesses across the UK, and has announced the launch of its active intern recruitment program to find the region’s prime creative and IT talent.
McLean said that the company would set up links with universities across the country, with a special focus on institutions in the Midlands.
He added: “Internships are great for employers, as you can see how a person adapts to the company and gets on with the job, and it’s a brilliant opportunity for the student to experience the world of work.
“I’ve witnessed many successes from intern recruitment programs in the past and plan to make the best of the scheme we’re launching at Click Travel.”
McLean said that the first position the company would recruit for would be a software engineer intern “to add some fresh ideas to our online presence”. He said he was “confident” that the company would find an apprentice from the West Midlands.
In 2010, McLean was named Midlands Business Insider’s Entrepreneur of the Year. He said that the company had a busy year ahead, with several announcements in the pipeline.
“We will be launching two new projects – which can’t be revealed yet – in the next few weeks,” he said.
Click Travel has expanded recently by moving to considerably larger premises in Birmingham’s Alpha Tower.
McLean said that having a business which was focused entirely online had kept costs down over the past two years and allowed it to thrive during the peak of the recession.
“People still need to travel and we provide people with simple and concise online services,” he said. “We have considered opening up new offices across the UK, but our customers want cost saving packages – one way of doing that is keeping one, central base.”
