Innovation over Cocktails Nets the Young People

Looking to get younger accountants through your doors?

Try hosting a speed-dating event along with cocktails.

Sound ridiculous? It worked for one firm. Well, sort of.

Fuller Landau in Montreal didn't offer speed-dating (you didn't really think a firm did that, did you?) but they built on that concept of meeting multiple people in measured time in an effort to give college students an opportunity to get to know them better.

And yes, they did offer cocktails.

Jeff Stimpson, senior reporter of Practical Accountant, passed along this story from Fuller Landau, which wanted to identify individuals who matched the firm's values and culture.

A group of 21 students between the ages of 20 and 24 attended the event. The group was divided into three sections of seven. The first group was interviewed one-on-one by seven team members, ranging from junior staff to retired partners, including the firm's managing partner. Four team members asked the student questions related to work and education, extracurricular activities and interests, and behavioral and situational questions. The other team members spoke about the firm and answered the students' questions. Every interview lasted three minutes (hence the speed-dating vibe) until 21 minutes of interviewing was completed. Meanwhile, the other two groups of students were enjoying a cocktail with a handful of other team members before their interviews started.

After the students left the office, the participating team members were able to debrief and decided to present offers to a selected eight students. And get this – seven out of the eight accepted.