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IFST
Apprenticeship Portal
Concept, build and launch a new market-leading apprenticeship portal in collaboration with the IFST, focused on providing pathways for the next generation to enter into the food science and technology sector.
As the UK’s leading professional body for those organisations covering aspects of food science and technology, the Institute of Food Science and Technology (IFST) contribute significant insight and support into the industry. With a mission of “inspiring excellence and trust in food”, they create a collaborative culture between food professionals to excel quality across the United Kingdom.
When examining the existing talent pipeline, IFST identified the need for better and more widespread exposure of the opportunities held in this sector for young people. By elevating awareness of the value held in pursuing a thriving career in the food sector, organisations (and their members) could equally benefit from an experienced and enthusiastic workforce that would proactively seek their roles out.
To achieve this goal, IFST partnered with TMC to develop a resource that aligned with their current platforms, values, and branding. This tool aimed to effectively reach and attract talent with a burgeoning interest in food science and technology, with the ultimate goal of improving the industry as a whole.
Our Solution
The project began with a comprehensive timeline and scope of work, centred on developing the main portal alongside a supportive omnichannel marketing strategy. Prior to creating the initial framework, a research phase was conducted to analyse other career portals aimed at young people and apprenticeships. This research provided a clear direction on how to engage with these audiences and the expectations for these platforms.
For this to drive the engagement required, outlining the key audiences was a priority. As such they were broken down into Principal and Secondary. Principal looked at Students aged between 16 and 24 across the UK, and Employers, as stakeholders. Secondary were Educators and Gatekeepers – teachers and parents who could influence the pathways students take. For the portal content to be as relevant and effective as possible, the digital platform used these audience types to define the navigation – effectively signposting users to the most appropriate resources and calls to action.
The digital platform itself was built with a simple, intuitive user journey, making it easily accessible for all and adopting a mobile-first methodology. The website navigation was personalised to the user, with an interface consisting of filters and questions, providing custom content based on their preferences.
Targeted User Experience
The portal would sit as a microsite within the IFST digital ecosystem, aligning with the current quality, branding, and communications, yet expanding the colour palette and fonts to directly reach the target users. To most effectively reach the intended audience, technical language and jargon would be minimalised, and take a positive, aspirational tone.
With personalisation built into its main framework, there was an opportunity to add further retention marketing within the functionality. This would include bespoke job ‘email alerts’ for those looking at specific roles and resources such as job role overviews for students, and inspiring articles for teachers, giving the site a greater level of value.
Beyond the live vacancies primarily aimed at students, teachers were given a space to learn more about the apprenticeship categories; from T Levels and Standard Courses, to Higher Education. This would enable greater choice for students based on their own personalities and learning behaviours. In line with this, the platform provides employers the opportunity to easily submit their vacancies through a responsive form, addressing the requirements and responsibilities. Submissions from this could then be moderated by the IFST team and published, removing unnecessary emails or additional admin for the team.
Now live and actively funnelling the next generation into inspiring careers, the IFST and TMC continue their collaboration in actively promoting the portal. TMC are enthusiastic about developing resources which create a positive impact, focusing on innovations which are incredibly beneficial to the processes of the communities around us.
What next?
Requiring an online platform for creating awareness of jobs or educational resources?
If you are interested in an obligation-free conversation about how we can build intuitive platforms which focus on giving a personal experience, please contact us on: +44 (0)1260 295700 or email hello@wearetmc.com.
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