International Events Management student plays key role in successful LinkedIn group
A GCU student has helped launch a LinkedIn group that’s helping support more than 250 people find jobs in the events industry.
Final year International Events Management student, Ellie Logan, played her part in creating Event Jobs Scotland, after teaming up with GCU graduates Naomi Hollas and Donna Venman. The trio are also supported by former Edinburgh Napier student, Cameron Hughes.
Ellie explained more about the idea behind the initiative. She said: “Naomi had originally started a Facebook group during the pandemic, which was basically a community and support network for graduates across the UK navigating the events industry. From that, we thought a Scottish specific version would be beneficial, so that’s how Event Jobs Scotland was born!”
The group originally started out as a jobs board but has continued to develop both in offering and membership since it first started last summer.
Ellie said: “After initially sharing jobs we saw on LinkedIn, we began to include general employability resources like CV advice and interview tips. The idea is basically to have it as a go-to place for anyone within the events industry, particularly for those at junior/entry level.”
She added: “We were actually very surprised to hit 250 members recently! We’ve really got a niche market, so to get that number is just fantastic and it’s growing everyday – I think we’re near 275 now.
There’s students from Napier and UWS on it, along with recruitment agencies who have also been joining to post opportunities. We’ve also got lecturers who have been great at passing on anything they come across.”
As someone who has benefitted first-hand from networking, Ellie insists it makes sense for the group to be hosted on LinkedIn.
She explained: “We felt it was the best platform to go for because people who are already on LinkedIn will already be career-focused. It’s a really great way for people to connect with individuals in their industry because it’s so career specific.
We also thought it could be used to draw people towards LinkedIn, for example introducing first and second years to it through this group. As a young events professional, it’s important to create a brand for yourself and I think it’s a fantastic tool to show your proactive and engaged within your industry. It means that employers might see your CV on their desk and think ‘oh, I think I saw them on LinkedIn’.”
After a tough couple of years for her profession, Ellie is delighted that normality is once again returning and believes the future is bright for events and the further development of the group.
She said: “It was a bit touch and go with the events industry for a while but, if anything, it’s back bigger than ever because people have realised the true value of events. During the pandemic, we couldn’t gather with friends and do these things and I think we all now really appreciate the importance of connecting with other people - which is essentially what events is all about.”
Ellie added: “The return of events also provides us with new opportunities. At some point in the future, we’d like to hold group meetings in-person for Event Jobs Scotland. The dream would be to have some kind of jobs-fair but for now we’re just trying to spread the word and get the numbers up; the more people that are in it, the more people we can help.”
By Ross Clark
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