Future proof your business by developing a graduate programme. You gain access to a pool of talent with up-to-date skills who are eager to progress their careers. Getting a graduate programme off the ground requires expertise and knowledge that your organisation may not have at the moment. GHI can develop and manage your graduate programme.
As your chosen graduate programme consultants we can advise you on timelines, selection criteria, training and development plans and where to publicise your programme. We’ll screen applicants and even help you with onboarding if needed.
If you already have a graduate programme have you reviewed how it’s working? GHI can assess it to identify opportunities for improvement.
Ireland has become a global hub for pharmaceutical companies and medical device firms thanks to our educated, skilled workforce and easy transport connections to the rest of the world. In 2020 a medical device business came to us when they were setting up a manufacturing site here to service their European and US markets.
Already established in Hong Kong and China, the organisation needed Irish-based professionals with specialist knowledge to get things up and running here. GHI found a Project Engineer and Administration Manager to progressively upgrade the plant to meet the strict industry requirements.
We also helped them with other challenges including sourcing general operatives through our specialist partners. As the business was new to Ireland, we were happy to connect them with our network of trusted professionals to provide all the services they needed to make their Irish operation successful. This included specialist hygiene services, pension, health insurance and commercial insurance. Through GHI, they connected with an Irish-based but internationally focused business consultancy concentrating on business process design. This connection helped with costings and budgets and supported them to go from scoping pre-startup to full rollout.
So while recruiting top talent is our main service, we understand that this is just one of many daily challenges our clients face to develop their businesses. We’re happy to identify trusted, qualified service providers and answers to other business problems within your broader organisation. So, if you need broader support in one of these areas, or would welcome another point of view, let’s talk.
GHI introduced Mark to a major fruit distribution business and he was selected to join their International Graduate Management programme after completing his BAgSc in Food and Agribusiness management.
He spent three months in Costa Rica learning Spanish and getting to grips with the basics of banana and pineapple production. From there he relocated to the company’s head office in Florida, where he worked on customer care services and tracked the distribution of imported melons from Central America to major US clients. The company’s sub-brand keeps melons on the menu year-round in the US by importing them during the off-season.
When the local melon season began Mark was on the move once again. Now in his second year of the graduate programme, he moved even further north, to a mushroom production site in Canada. Mark’s career has continued to grow there, at the largest mushroom growers in Canada. He was promoted twice in a short period, first to Interim Manager of a farm in Alberta and then to Farm Manager. He is now responsible for managing a second farm which uses AI-driven machinery to harvest a substantial portion of the mushrooms. Mark manages hundreds of people on both farms and ensures things run smoothly and profitably. GHI is proud to have played a part in helping launch Mark’s career and we’re excited to follow his rapid progression since.
A biotechnology company based in Malvern, UK, came to GHI with a challenge. Their CEO was planning to retire and finding a replacement with the right combination of industry-specific experience and broader skills needed could be a challenge.
The company registers a strain of lactic acid bacteria to incorporate into their products, along with a range of chemical preservatives. They had been impressed by GHI’s involvement in the wider company group in sourcing an MD Designate and a CEO.
GHI began the international search to find a suitable successor for the CEO. With a PhD in Animal Nutrition and experience in the feed ingredient space, Marc was an excellent candidate. Before being selected as CEO, Marc was a Global Sales & Business Development Director in a business that used bioactive ingredients from seaweed varieties in its products. His unique combination of C-suite level experience, leadership skills and technical expertise made him a great fit. The company is now moving to a new stage of European and global expansion with Marc at the helm.
A science-driven organisation that provides knowledge, education and coordination to livestock producers and processors came to GHI looking for help. Their organisation’s expertise is essential to establishing effective herd health control programmes for non- regulated diseases of livestock to an international best practice level.
A year after starting the business, the management needed to find a Biosecure Disease Programme Manager. GHI connected them with David who has a PhD in Veterinary Medicine. He is a globally renowned specialist in both fish and livestock diseases. Unsurprisingly, David’s career flourished. He quickly became deputy CEO and subsequently CEO.
The organisation’s goal was to develop a range of programmes to both contain and eradicate livestock diseases. If not tightly controlled these diseases could have extremely serious impacts on local and export markets. Since David’s hiring when the organisation was still in its infancy, the business returned to GHI for help sourcing other specialist vets. GHI has filled roles with specialisms in such areas as BVD, Johne’s disease and pig health. On at least two occasions we’ve found candidates outside of Ireland through our connections with Australia and Portugal. We’ve also helped them to find the qualified support staff needed as the organisation grew.
Today it is a mature organisation successfully representing the interests of livestock producers, processors, animal health advisers and the Irish government. GHI are proud to have played a key role in their development by finding the talent that was instrumental to their achievements.
As a strategy to extend its global market an Irish-based food business wanted to develop its reach in the North African market. They sought GHI’s help.
With the ideal candidate profile in mind, GHI searched our strong regional and local connections in Africa. Through this search, we connected the organisation with Saliha. Saliha’s Algerian base made her a strong contender for the role, as Algeria is one of the business’s largest and most strategic markets.
Besides being in the right place Saliha also had the right experience: a strong background in international dairy ingredients. Her fluent English, Arabic and French tipped the scales in her favour too! Since taking up the role of developing and managing this dairy ingredients business she has grown their market in Africa significantly. At GHI we pride ourselves on the ability to use our local and international networks to find better than ideal candidates for strategic development roles.
A farm in Sligo is about as far removed from a 230 acre banana plantation as it gets. Conor’s first horticultural experience was on his family’s farm which had a mix of vegetables, forestry, and beef cattle. In 2016 a multinational fruit producer and distributor sought candidates for their International Graduate Management Programme. GHI shared Conor’s profile with the company’s Head of HR.
He was the perfect candidate with his Masters in Horticulture and excellent soft skills, and the company chose Conor following a competitive selection process. He spent the next five years in Central America where he learned all about banana growth, harvesting and distribution. Conor is particularly proud of his role in establishing the business’s first-ever organic banana plantation in Columbia.
Following the death of one of his parents, Conor returned to Ireland and decided to remain on home soil, to be closer to his family. GHI spoke to Conor about his career goals in Ireland. We suggested him for the role of Operations Manager with an Irish nursery business. A client of GHI, this innovative nursery based in Leinster produces ornamental plants and food crops and exports to over 35 countries. Conor’s experience in international distribution secured his new role. These days Conor manages all the nursery operations and is learning new skills in propagation and micropropagation of a range of flowers and plants.
Conor’s journey may seem unusual: from Sligo to Colombia and then Ireland’s south-east; from beef to bananas and then botany. However, GHI has a track record of establishing unlikely connections like this. We go to the ends of the earth to match candidate skills and business needs. In doing so we bring strategic value to businesses.
