The Hindu : Tamil Nadu / Chennai News : Good turnout of candidates with experience at fair

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Oct 01, 2007
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Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu - Chennai

Good turnout of candidates with experience at fair

Staff Reporter

Nearly 15,000 candidates attend The Hindu Opportunities Fair

— PHOTO: S.R. RAGHUNATHAN

Giving their best shot: Candidates taking a test to qualify for interviews at The Hindu Opportunities Fair in Chennai on Sunday.

CHENNAI: They were either seeking a change in company, job profile or sector. Candidates who attended day two of The Hindu Opportunities Fair here on Sunday were largely those with prior work experience.

Company spokespersons noted that a significant number of candidates came from varied backgrounds in the non-IT space, and were looking for openings in the IT sector. Nearly 15,000 candidates attended the Fair, at Chennai Trade Centre in Nandambakkam, on Sunday.

“Most of the candidates that we have recruited today were experienced,” said Shankar Balaji, talent acquisition manager of Cognizant. The company made 75 offers on day two.

It was not just the IT companies that saw good response, but also engineering companies and educational consultants. Structural engineering firm William Hare India had several interested candidates walking into their stall.

“We have met engineering graduates who specialised in mechanical or civil streams. They seem to be very interested in jobs in core areas,” said the company’s director M.R.Vasudevan.

Hundreds of candidates made enquiries at stalls put up by companies working in the areas of education, such as the British Institute of Technology & Ecommerce (BITE) and NIIT. Ford Business Services recruited 26 candidates on Sunday for its finance and accounting divisions.

The Fair also highlighted how relatively newer job-seeking avenues such as portals had gained popularity among candidates.

The portal www.plipl.com, which matches candidates’ profiles with vacancies in companies and facilitates employment, had several candidates registering with it.

“Besides posting an impressive resume on our portal, we encourage candidates to blog and showcase their skills to make an impression,” Samir Pershad, its director, said.

Matching expectations

Not all companies were equally impressed with candidates’ profiles. Sitel, operating in the BPO sector, made about 15 offers. “Yesterday we chose eight candidates, after screening nearly a 1,000. Since our BPO is voice-based, language skills and diction become vital. We found very few candidates who matched our expectations,” Dexter Almeida, assistant manager, HR, said.

On day two, Wipro had made 50 offers, Slash Support had made 15, Covansys selected 40 candidates and Patni, 46.

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