- Just a third (35%) of young people leaving education in 2018 want to work for an SME (small and medium-sized business)
- 鈥楪en Z鈥 and Millennials do not believe SMEs offer the same job security or salary as large businesses
- Yet SMEs make up 99% of private sector companies and 70% are actively recruiting for entry level roles
Those leaving education and looking for work may be missing out on potential employment opportunities simply by failing to consider Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and the advantages they offer, new research from Santander UK reveals.
Just a third (35%) of Generation Z and Millennials1听leaving full time education, whether that be school, college or university, say they wish to work for an SME. An even smaller proportion, just one in six (18%), want to work for a start-up or micro business. Instead, the most popular career aspirations for Generation Z and Millennials are to work for a large firm (51%), the public sector (51%) or a global multinational (49%).
The main reason Generation Z and Millennials say they would not want to work for an SME is because of a perceived lack of job security (56%). There is also the belief that SMEs offer a lower salary (46%) and fewer opportunities for progression than large companies (33%).
Yet by choosing to ignore SMEs, young people are missing out on a vast number of opportunities, given that over 99% of businesses are SMEs2. The majority (70%) of SMEs3听are actively recruiting for entry level roles, whether that be graduates (43%), further education leavers (36%) or school leavers (35%).
Sue Douthwaite, Managing Director of Santander Business, said:听鈥淪MEs are the backbone of the UK economy, making up the overwhelming majority of private sector businesses. While there are fantastic opportunities working for large companies or the public sector, anyone about to leave education should not discount the huge range of exciting career opportunities offered by the nation鈥檚 SMEs. SMEs offer huge opportunities for growth and many are at the forefront of British innovation and exports.鈥
Graduate recruitment in particular is still at the top of the SME hiring agenda, with nearly a third (30%) of businesses having hired a graduate in the last 12 months and a similar number (32%) planning to do so in the next 12 months.
To help connect graduates with SMEs, Santander runs a UK-wide Universities SME Internship Programme which matches up SMEs with interns at one of its 84 partner universities. SMEs can contact one of Santander鈥檚 partner Universities to find an intern who matches the needs of their business and are eager to begin their new career. Santander will then contribute funding of up to 拢1,500 to each SME per intern towards a placement of 1-10 weeks.
Lack of interest among young people in SME careers may, in part, be due to lack of exposure to them. SMEs tend to be less visible at careers fairs, with a third (33%) admitting that they do not engage directly with education providers, so graduates and school leavers may need to be more proactive in reaching out to them in comparison to the big businesses and public sector which often exhibit at careers events.
Matt Hutnell, Director of Santander Universities UK, commented:听"SMEs may not be as visible in education institutions as larger businesses or the public sector as they may not have the same level of resources or just historically haven鈥檛 worked as closely with schools and universities. An internship is a fantastic way to get to know a business so anyone who isn鈥檛 sure what they would like to do, or who is and would just like some experience, should consider speaking to the careers department at their school, college and university and finding out what opportunities there are."
For more information about the Santander Universities SME Internship Programme please visit听
鈥 Ends 鈥
The information contained in our press releases is intended solely for journalists and should not be used by consumers to make financial decisions.听
Table one: Aspirations for those leaving full time education
Aspiration for after education | Percentage who aspire to this after leaving full time education |
听Work for a large firm | 51% |
听Work in the public sector | 51% |
听Work for a global multinational company | 49% |
听Don鈥檛 know | 48% |
听Continue my education | 45% |
听Set up my own business | 40% |
听Be self employed | 36% |
听Work for a small to medium sized business (SME) | 35% |
听Work for a charity | 29% |
听Work for the family business | 23% |
听Work in the gig economy | 22% |
听Work for a start-up / micro business | 18% |
听翱迟丑别谤 | 25% |
听
Table two: Reasons millennials and Gen Z do not want to work for SMEs
听Reason for not working in an SME | Percentage who believe this |
听Lack of job security | 56% |
听Poor salary | 46% |
听Lack of career path / progression | 33% |
听Lack of funding | 30% |
听Lack of training opportunities | 28% |
听Not aware of the opportunities for working for a small company | 19% |
听Lack of a clear business plan | 18% |
听It would not look as good on my CV as a bigger organisation or well-known brand | 17% |
听Lack of ability to work abroad | 17% |
听Friends / family have had bad experiences | 7% |
Notes to Editors
1听Research conducted by Youthsight between 22nd June - 10th听July 2018 among 1,574 16-25 year olds who have just left education or are planning to leave education in 2018听
2听EU definition of SMEs:听听
3听Research conducted by Opinium among 500 SME decision makers between 14th听- 20th听June 2018听
4听Santander Universities SME Internship Programme -听听
Santander UK听is a financial services provider in the UK that offers a wide range of personal and commercial financial products and services. It has brought real competition to the UK, through its innovative products for retail customers and relationship banking model for UK SMEs. At 30 June 2018, the bank has c24,200 employees.听 It serves around 15 million active customers, via a nationwide branch network, telephone, mobile and online banking; and 64 regional Corporate Business Centres. Santander UK is subject to the full supervision of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) in the UK. Santander UK plc customers are protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) in the UK.听
About Us
Banco Santander听(SAN SM, STD US, BNC LN) is a leading retail and commercial bank, founded in 1857 and headquartered in Spain. It has a meaningful market share in 10 core markets in Europe and the Americas, and is the largest bank in the euro zone by market capitalization. At the end of June 2018, Banco Santander had EUR 981 billion in customer funds (deposits and mutual funds), 140 million customers, 13,500 branches and 200,000 employees. Banco Santander made attributable profit of EUR 3,752 million in the first half of 2018, an increase of 4% compared to the same period last year.听
Media Enquiries
Adam Williams听听听T: 020 7756 5533听听M:听07711 783 118 听听听听E:听adam.r.williams@santander.co.uk
Lara Lipsey 听听听听听 听T: 020 7756 4518听听听听M: 07713 560 209 听听E:听lara.lipsey@santander.co.uk听听
Follow @santanderuknews on Twitter听
The Santander press office operates from 8.00am to 6.00pm. Outside of these hours please call 0800 5877708.