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September 1999
1. PARKING A PROBLEM
Tried to shoehorn you SUV (sport utility vehicle), wide-load pick-up, or extended mini-van into a "traditional" parking space lately? You've probably found that the white lines serve as a corset, too small to comfortably accommodate
today's popular vehicles. It's just one of the reasons international transportation researcher and Ohio Eminent Scholar David
Gosling 'hates those SUVs.' "I've definitely noticed [the constricted parking caused by the size of SUVs] every time I
step out of my car," notes Gosling. He said that open-air parking lots can change to fit today's new large-sized vehicles (all you need is a can of paint) even though that means fewer overall parking spaces -- a definite minus for businesses, restaurants, retailers, residents and others in high-congestion cities. However, public garages and car washes built during the energy crisis of the 1970s and early 1980s cannot be altered so easily. The same is true for garages in some older homes.
University of Cincinnati faculty below comment on the safety, sense and aesthetics of the SUV.
2. FLOOD OF OPPORTUNITIES (AND RECRUITERS) SWAMPING COLLEGE STUDENTS
What a year! That's what recruiters on college campuses said last fall as they found that attracting candidates, let alone top-choice candidates, was a real struggle due to the strong economy and snug labor market. Recruiters were out on the beaches, wooing candidates from volleyball games into interviews. Well, this year the employer recruiting scene on campus has gone beyond snug. It's downright boa-constricting. By way of example: the employer recruiting season doesn't open until Oct. 11 on the University of Cincinnati campus, and employers are already "heavy into pre-recruiting," according to Katrina Jordan, Career Development Center associate director. The numbers prove it. Already, 345 local, regional and national firms have signed on to interview at UC between Oct. 11-Dec. 3. That's up from 273 companies last year, and that 1998 figure represents a 44 percent jump from the fall of 1996 when 113 employers came recruiting...and a 65 percent jump
over fall 1994 when less than a hundred employers visited campus.
1. Parking a problem
A. SUVs not as safe, see virtual crash simulations
B. Fuel prices to rise
C. No way to make a graceful entrance/exit
D. A product without a need
E. People buy to feel like a sports celebrity
2. Flood of opportunities swamping college students
A. CEOs networking with college placment personnel
B. Career fairs open to students from other institutions
C. Six positions for every student
D. Recruiting is, literally, a pizza party
E. Prizes for faculty who make interview referrals
F. Old-style recruiting is dying
G. To stand out, employer sponsors campus remote-controlled car races
H. Everyone in the company must focus on recruiting
I. Money booth, a draw for students
J. What the wooing is like
K. Student feels complacent
L. Monte Carlo nights and Tom Petty concerts
1. PARKING A PROBLEM
A. SUVs NOT AS SAFE
Ala Tabiei, assistant professor of aerospace engineering and engineering mechanics, uses supercomputer models to predict what will happen when SUVs and light trucks crash into guardrails on the highway. His early work was supported by what was seen in actual crash testing current guardrail systems aren't strong enough to protect those inside a larger and heavier vehicle. To make matters worse, the larger vehicles such as SUVs tend to flip over on impact. To view one of Tabiei's guardrail crash simulations,
go to http://www.ase.uc.edu/~atabiei/truk2.mpg. More information is available at http://www.ase.uc.edu/~atabiei/center.html. contact: 513-556-3367
B. FUEL PRICES TO RISE
Ohio Eminent Scholar David Gosling: "The owners of the SUVs and vans will deeply regret it. Gas prices are up 30 percent this year over last. They could double within a couple of years because oil-producing nations are restricting production. The sale of SUVs will decline sharply. They're silly vehicles. You shouldn't have one unless you fish, hunt or go mountain climbing...They're ungainly, and aging baby boomers aren't going to buy something that hard to climb in and out of." contact: 513-751-7376
C. NO WAY TO MAKE A GRACEFUL ENTRANCE/EXIT
Margie Voelker-Ferrier, associate professor of fashion design: "I hate wearing a dress and climbing in and out. You can't do it without 'flashing.' You practically need a ladder. There's something about a sports utility vehicle that just doesn't go
with evening and elegance...I hate being behind one on the road because you can't see ahead, and I simply won't park between
them because of their high, wide, swinging doors." contact: 513-556-5041
D. A PRODUCT WITHOUT A NEED
Gerald Michaud, associate professor of industrial design, who leads UC's best design students in pioneering car-design studios sponsored by General Motors Corporation and DaimlerChrysler: "They're funny. They're a product without a need. It's a
triumph of democratic will...because automakers build 'em only because people buy 'em." contact: 513-556-0295
E. PEOPLE BUY TO FEEL LIKE A SPORTS CELEBRITY
Michael Porte, a UC expert on popular culture: "It's not rational to buy and drive a sports utility vehicle unless you need traction like a jeep...People buy SUVs to associate themselves with sports celebrities. It makes people see themselves as a sports figure, and in their own mind, it communicates status, but they're paying for it with extra gas consumption." contact: 513-556-4473
2. FLOOD OF OPPORTUNITY SWAMPS COLLEGE STUDENTS
A. CEOs NETWORKING WITH COLLEGE PLACEMENT PERSONNEL
Katrina Jordan, associate director, UC's Career Development Center, quipped: "We'll be adding a night shift to keep up with it all." On a more serious note, she said, "For the first time ever this year, I had a CEO take out time and meet with college placement directors, talking about where his firm is headed and what their employment needs will be." contact: 513-556-0318
B. CAREER FAIRS OPEN UP TO STUDENTS FROM OTHER INSTITUTIONS
Because of the tight job market, UC's College of Applied Science is holding its first-ever career fair Oct. 22. Richard Abel, department head, CAS professional practice & career placement: "We're doing this because employers requested it. About half the
companies coming are construction firms as our construction management program has one of the best reputations in the
nation. Each firm is vying for an edge in hiring because commercial construction is so hot...there are plenty of jobs to go around so I've invited students to come from another university's construction management program as well." contact: 513-556-6571
C. SIX POSITIONS FOR EVERY STUDENT
Bruce Evans, professor, UC's professional practice: "I spend most of my time talking to [co-op] employers who would like to have students, but there aren't enough to go around. There are maybe five or six positions for every [co-op] student [in architecture]." contact: 513-556-3061
D. RECRUITING IS, LITERALLY, A PIZZA PARTY
Cynthia Applin, director, Career Planning & Placement, Case Western Reserve University: "We've had employers throwing pizza parties for students and picnics on the quad with great prizes...to multiple information sessions with full-blown food service." contact: 216-368-4446
E. PRIZES FOR FACULTY
Neal Houze, director of cooperative educaiton, Purdue University, agrees that employers are very hungry. For instance, for the first time ever, Lockheed Martin Corporation came onto campus on Sept. 28 in force with 40 representatives, including senior executives. Among their activities, again a new effort, is a prize (probably computer software or hardware) to be given to the faculty member who refers the most students to the company for interviews. In addition, Purdue's student-sponsored career fair Sept. 15 set a record for
the number of employers attending, over 300. "In order to get to students early, I've seen dramatic increases in the number
of employers establishing cooperative education programs in the last two to three years." contact: 765-494-7430
F. OLD-STYLE RECRUITING IS DYING
Rosemary Hill, director of Engineering Career Services, Ohio State University: "They're in trouble! They really are." Hill is referring to companies that continue to recruit 'old-style,' arriving on campus and interviewing in an impersonal hit-and-then-skip-on-quickly style.
"Successful firms build partnerships through co-op...scholarships, special programs for students, sending speakers to campus...It's time consuming, but it's a vital investment in the future." This is especially true now as the recruiting rooms were booked to
capacity earlier than ever. Recruiting and relationship building she's witnessed recently: a trend that has more senior
executives visiting campus; automakers drawing crowds by parking their cars and trucks in front of a campus engineering building; and a $3.5 million grant from one employer to fund a living/learning center for top business and engineering students as well as scholarships, research and career services. contact: 614-292-1137
G. REMOTE-CONTROLLED CAR RACES
Employers are tapping creative ideas to stand out. For instance, on the first day of fall classes at UC (Sept. 22), Enterprise Rent-A-Car sponsored remote-control-car races through an obstacle course. Nichole Cross, human resources recruiter: "The idea was to draw a large crowd, and it worked. We gave t-shirts to the winners and raffled off the cars at the end. It gave me an opportunity to hand out materials and let people know they can apply on-line." Another first-time effort Enterprise is pursuing in order to attract management trainees: participating in cooperative education (the practice of co-op was founded at UC in 1906) in winter quarter. contact: 513-956-3810, x.101
H. EVERYONE IN THE COMPANY MUST FOCUS ON RECRUITING
As a supplier of automotive components and systems that spun off from General Motors Corporation, Delphi Automotive Systems has the challenge of building name recognition as it begins recruiting as a stand-alone company for the first time this year. Robert Chalker, sales manager and university relations team leader: "The employment market is very, very tight. There are definitely more opportunities than there are candidates...Everyone in the company has to be focused on people, not just the human resources professionals." contact: 248-813-2338
I. MONEY BOOTH DRAWS STUDENTS
Tracey Hilgeman, college relations recruiter, Fifth Third Bank, recently brought a money booth to UC which blew $5s, $10s, $20s and even a $100 bill with students trying to grab the money and run. She used the booth as a 'student draw' Sept. 22 at UC for
the first time but says she will continue using it on college campuses now that it has proven itself. contact: 513-579-4301
J. WHAT THE WOOING IS LIKE
Chad Russell, UC senior in accounting and president of university's accounting fraternity, who is actively being wooed by Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu. Since last spring, members of the firm have taken Chad and a handful of other top prospects to major
league baseball games, out for dinners and invited him for a week-long leadership conference in Detroit this summer. The company has also provided him with tickets to Cincinnati's top-drawing Tall Stacks, a celebration of the nation's steamboat era when riverboats from around the country steam into the city for a five-day festival. Firm personnel have also included him in dinner and reception events at upscale restaurants in the area. Russell has received an employment offer from Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu and from others. He's continuing his interviewing but seems hooked: "It's important to me that a prospective employer care about me as an
individual so that I can grow in my career, not just focusing on their needs. Deloitte Touche has taken a very personal interest. I
can call people at the firm at home if I want to or have questions."
K. STUDENT FEELS COMPLACENT
Ajay Kachwaha, UC finance major: "I'm a senior, but I haven't started my job hunt yet. I've gotten a little complacent [because of the tight market]. I don't fee the pressure that I need to really start to work to get a job. I've had internships at General Motors [Corporation]
in Detroit and with Morgan Stanley [Dean Witter], and those are helping me to better look around for what I might want to go into, go with a less formal company, one that's open to experimentation."
L. MONTE CARLO NIGHTS AND TOM PETTY CONCERTS
Jeff Schmiesing, UC accounting major, was heavily recruited by more than one firm and will start with Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu after he graduates this December. Recruiting methods he experienced since last spring: one firm invited about 30 UC accounting students to a Monte Carlo night with employees and gave the students pocket money to play the slot machines, dice, black jack and other games. (The winners used their profits to "purchase" chances for an end-of-the-night raffle of t-shirts and other items.) Another
recruiting "tool:" a Tom Petty concert which he attended with Deloitte Touche employees.
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