I shan't bang on about the RADs. There's been plenty of coverage on Ri5, Digital Recruiting and MyLongLunch, etc. I shall, however, briefly cast an eye over the winning entry from Work Communications for the National Graduate Development Programme (NGDP).
It's a pretty parable, with much to recommend it. The voiceover is by Josh, a management trainee himself, and is, given his amateur theatrical status, surprisingly un-selfconscious. The sound - often overlooked with this kind of thing - is thoughtful and well-produced. The animation itself is witty and zippy throughout. (I particularly enjoyed the neighbours resignedly tossing their speech-bubbles in with the rubbish, and the way the little fellow goes all cross-eyed when the tenders go into his head.)
Admittedly, parts might not be to everyone's taste - I didn't really need the 'war' footage metaphor and the site beyond the film seems a little sparse.
Looking at it from a wider perspective, I also believe that this film is representative of a new (ish) trend in employment. To borrow a phrase from a commentator referring to - what else? - the Obama era, this trend might be might be called a 'return to the real'.
What does that mean? That the new vogue in employment will be for jobs which employees understand, and can properly comprehend the positive consequences of. In other words, jobs where you fiddle around with obscure financial or technical products, and can't really explain to your grandmother, will be out of fashion.
Carpentry and child-minding, for example, will be the new bond trading and systems integration. People will more happily embrace occupations which are lower-tech, more local and have more of an obvious, tangible benefit to their communities.
Why? A host of well-documented reasons. Environmentalism says we shouldn't travel too much. Threats of global terrorism suggest we should enjoy our families and communities while we can. The recession has brought with it distrust for the people who invent spurious, almost meaningless products for personal gain, the effects of which have blighted entire industries.
To bring it back to NGDP, hedge funds will be less important than hedges on bin-yards.
'Real' has long been one of the most abused words in the employment marketing lexicon. 'You'll get real responsibility from day one', 'a chance to make a real difference' - have all made us want to upchuck at one time or another. Perhaps with the NGDP and their 'Real Life, Real Work' camapign the word is beginning to be rehabilitated.
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