JWU Hire Report

David Boronow
January 8th, 2016

(Edited to hide the company the report dealt with)

Who: Russell Morin Catering & Events

Johnson & Wales University students

What: A report detailing other companies experiences with Johnson & Wales students, student
expectations of companies, the issues Russell Morin has had with students and possible
solutions to avoid these issues in the future.

Why: To get an understanding of the experiences event and hospitality companies had when
working with Johnson & Wales students, while also looking for what students wanted from
companies.
Together, this information could help form solutions when combating the issues Russell Morin
has had with past Johnson & Wales students. Ultimately helping strengthen the relationship
between Russell Morin Catering & Events and the university.

Companies Experience with JWU Students

(Interviewed 10 Companies)

1. On average, how many JWU students do you employ or bring on as interns during the year?
Two students a year for many years
Approximately 40 students a year
2. How did you find these students? What tactics, sites or connections did you use?
Put an advertisement out for interns
Career fair, on site recruiting and applicant tracking system
3. What is the number one thing you looked for on their resumes?
Experience, volunteering opportunities if they do not have prior experience
Experience and a degree
4. How satisfied were you with their work? Unsatisfied, Satisfied, Very Satisfied? And Why?
Satisfied some students are energetic and self starters, others are not motivated. It
varies year to year.
N/A
5. Were the students eager to learn and easy to work with? Or were students hard to direct?
It really varies from student to student. Most are able to follow direction and interested
in how our area of the industry works.
N/A
6. Did the students have the level of experience and knowledge you expected? Explain.
This again varies, the past years we have liked the interns work and potential enough to
hire them to be part of our sales team.
When interviewing, they seem to have the knowledge and seem like qualified students

7. Would you bring on a JWU student to your organization again? Why?

Yes, we are vested in working with students to help them learn about our industry. JWU
students seem enthusiastic and that is a key quality for our internship and sales team.
Yes, I feel they have a good education and seem to be well prepared by the college.

JWU Students Job/Internship Questionnaire

(Interviewed 30 Students)

1. What is the most important part of an internship for you?

Experience
Possible Future Job
Pay
2. What is your ideal pay rate?
$10-$14 an hour
$15-$20 an hour
Minimum Wage ($9)
3. Are you more interested in an hourly pay rate or a salary? Why?
Salary
- Pays more in the long run
- is guaranteed pay
Hourly
- Has the possibility to be paid more for longer hours.
4. What benefits are you looking for at a company? Ex. Health & Dental, Paid vacation, etc.
Paid Vacation & Health Insurance
Health & Dental
Paid Vacation
Paid Vacation, Health & Dental, Maternity Leave
5. Would you rather start with a high paying job or a low paying job and work your way up?
Why?
Low Paying position with the ability to work your way up
- Learn appreciation for the job
- Prove self to the company
High Paying
6. After graduating college, what is your ideal position?
Mid-level position with mid-level pay
Entry level with minimum wage and the ability to rise in the ranks
Top level position with the highest pay
5. What do you look for in a company when applying for an internship?
Provides valuable experience
Has the ability to move up
Has a great company culture and ethics
Want to know that the company is stable
6. What do you look for in a company when applying for a job?
Has a great company culture and ethics
Has the ability to move up
Want to know the company is stable

The Issues At Hand

1. Poor JWU Hires/Interns: Russell Morins has had a less than desirable experience with
Johnson & Wales University students in recent times. Some of the students who have
interacted with the company have either not had enough experience or lacked a
professional work ethic.
a. A secondary issue that comes with a poor history with JWU students is a lack of
faith on the companys part with the University and other students who come
out of it.

2. Lack of JWU Advertisement: Currently, the University does not have any Russell Morins
positions posted. Experiential Education & Career Services has multiple platforms which
companies can use to promote the positions open within their organization. Russell
Morins currently does not have a posting on any of these platforms.
a. Subsequently, be it due to a lack of promotion or another issue all together, a
majority of students interviewed do not know about or even heard of Russell
Morins. Begin that Russell Morins is one of the most well-known catering and
event companies in New England, this should come as a shock.

3. No Interns: According to Ex. Ed, and career services at Johnson & Wales, there has been
a lack of students taking internships at Russell Morins in recent years. This does not
account for any students who have taken jobs at the company without doing so through
the school.

Over all Issue: The current relationship between Russell Morins and the students of
Johnson & Wales University is not in good standing. Some students who have worked
with the company have not met the standards or expectations that come with the
University. However, the lack of company promotion using university platforms
prevents possible suitable students from knowing or applying to Russell Morins.

Proposed Solutions
1. Work with Professors: Contact Sport, Entertainment & Event Management, Food Service
Management and Culinary professors. These professors can point out specific students
who are hard workers and meet, the professors, professional standards.
a. Work with SEE, FSM and Culinary department heads. The department heads will
work with professors to find students that meet your needs. This may be a better
alternative than working with Career Services since both the department heads
and professors are personally involved with the students.
b. Have company members who are Johnson & Wales alumni come in and talk to
classes. Speak about the events the company does, the positions available and
the amount of experience you are looking for.
2. Advertise open positions with the University:
a. Contact Sondra McRae at JWU Experiential Education & Career Services.
Experiential Education & Career Services has multiple platforms which
companies can use to promote the open positions within their organization.
Students can view all of these postings and apply to them online.
i. Submit open positions to career services and they will post it to their
student job search system. Any student can see these postings and apply
to the position.
ii. Attend both the Hospitality and Sport/Entertainment career fair at JWU.
3. Hold regular internship positions:
a. Hold office or day-of-event internship positions as a way to both screen potential
hires and promote awareness of the company with local college students and
alumni.
4. Make volunteer hours a requirement:
a. Students who spend their free time volunteering at events tend to have more
experience and are willing to work their way up. With this requirement, the
company may be able to narrow down applicants to those with better work
ethics.
i. This requirement may also help promote student memberships in
organizations such as the International Special Event Society and Johnson
& Wales Special Events Society

Report Outline
Attempted to get a understanding of what event and hospitality companies dealt with when
working with Johnson & Wales students while also looking for what students wanted from
companies.
Together, this information could help form solutions when dealing with the issues Russell
Morins has had in the past.
Russell Morins:
- Poor JWU hires: Attitudes, not enough experience
o Have seen this in students as well, has been backed up by professors
and other students
Other companies:
- Only had a limited amount of responses
- RMC is not the only company to mention this issue
Problem Solution:
- Based upon the issues Lizzy had mentioned in conversation.
- While the University has plenty of ways for companies to hire students, these
are non-personal ways to connect with students. Professors who interact
with the students on a daily basis can help pinpoint the hardest working and
most deserving students.
Ideas for advancement
Other than implementing the previously mentioned solutions:
- Interview a larger group of students
- Interview past JWU students who worked with Russell Morins
- Contact more companies, get a better understanding of their experiences
- SES & ISES: Student volunteers being introduced at meetings, get the
professionals to speak to them. Break down the barrier between student and
professional.