What's my background?
I worked at Gradconsult from 2016 – 2019 and returned to the business as Head of Funded Projects in 2021 (just call me ‘boomerang’!). From 2019 to 2021 I was the Policy and Research Manager for the Association of Graduate Careers Advisory Services (AGCAS) and was responsible for managing large-scale careers and employability research projects and informing policy at an institutional and national level.
Research projects included a UKRI-funded longitudinal study into the employment experiences of graduates who entered the labour market during Covid-19 (highlights here) and ‘Supporting international graduate employability: Making good on the promise’, a project funded by UKCISA, UUKi and Coventry University.
I was also responsible for influencing policy on a number of AGCAS’s strategic themes, including international graduate employability, social mobility and regionalisation. This involved being the named AGCAS representative on cross-sector groups like the International Student Employability Group (ISEG), formulating the AGCAS response to consultations, researching and writing position statements and directly lobbying policy makers.
I’ve been a trustee for SAIL, a charity that provides support for survivors of sexual abuse, since 2016 and often get involved with funding bids and reviewing our policies and procedures. Find out more about my background on LinkedIn.
What do I do at Gradconsult?
I joined the business as a Summer Intern in 2016 and have never left! I worked as a Project Coordinator for 9 months, supporting Consultants with a range of projects before progressing into a Project Consultant role. Over the past two years I have gained varied experience in the wonderful world of graduate employability, from managing the RISE SCR recruitment scheme where I’ve helped place hundreds of graduates into SMEs across the entire Sheffield City Region, to spending 7 months seconded to Kingston University’s Careers Service as an Employability Consultant and Talent Preparation Officer.
Examples of recent things I’ve been working on include:
- Managing the recruitment and selection activities for a national graduate employer
- A series of needs-based talent consultancy projects with SMEs
- Researching coaching and mentoring activities and writing a mentoring framework
- Coaching students and graduates to develop their employability skills
- Designing and delivering development workshops to students from all degree disciplines
Life loves
- Making up stupid nicknames for my dogs
- A lot of coffee. It's all about quantity, not quality
- F1. It's the combination of engineering, strategy and fearlessness – I love it
- Anything adventurous – skiing, climbing, cross country (the horse kind), rollercoasters…
Pet peeves
- Mornings. Don't expect much sense from me until I've had at least three coffees
- Beige foods
- Judgemental people – not your life, not your business!
Get in touch
T: 0114 221 0242
M: 07826 304 497
LinkedIn: Gabi Binnie