BusinessWeek Logo
Cover Story September 3, 2009, 5:00PM EST

The Best Places to Launch a Career

Graduates lucky enough to land a job may find the prospect of responsibility and rapid advancement surprisingly strong. But don't count on bigger salaries

By Lindsey Gerdes

Miranda Azzam's title at Aflac's (AFL) Columbus (Ga.) headquarters is college recruiter, but that doesn't begin to describe what she does for the $16.6 billion insurer. Like all recruiters, she spends a lot of time talking to students and running career fairs. But she also manages a new Web ad campaign and tracks everything from how long it takes to fill each opening to what it costs to bring new employees on board. In fact, she heads the insurance company's entire campus recruiting effort. And, oh yes—she just turned 26.

Oddly enough, Azzam has the recession to thank for her success. She landed a job at Aflac after graduating from the business program at the University of Texas at Tyler in 2006, long before the economy began unraveling. But she assumed her new supervisory responsibilities in March, when her boss moved to another position within Aflac and the company chose not to hire a replacement. Without the downturn, Azzam might have waited much longer for her big break. "We're operating very lean," says Azzam. "When we had a supervisor over our team, she made the final decisions. Learning to lead people and delegate is something I've never been able to do until now."

With the economy shedding 6.7 million jobs since the recession began in December 2007 and college graduates facing the most difficult labor market in many years, it's easy to conclude that for many young people this is the worst of times. But for those like Azzam who are already employed and for any young graduate who manages to beat the odds and follow her into the labor force this year, it could well be the best of times. With companies everywhere trimming payrolls to cut costs, many new grads will likely find themselves filling the shoes of the recently departed and taking on bigger responsibilities faster than they ever imagined. Most will not get big raises or fancy new titles as a result. But when the recovery comes, those same grads will be well positioned for promotions, as boomer retirements create openings in middle management. It's a recession dividend that can be found at many of the employers in BusinessWeek's fourth annual Best Places to Launch a Career ranking. "There are more opportunities than there were a few years ago," says Craig A. Johnson, president of Philip Morris USA/Altria. "Many companies have streamlined their operations, so there's a greater chance for people to stand out."

And standing out may be the only chance they have to get ahead. The time-honored method for reaching the second rung on the career ladder—switching employers—will be difficult. Going back to school piles debt on top of debt and offers no guarantees. "The voluntary mobility they expected is not there now, and it's not going to happen for the next few years," says Edward E. Lawler III, director of the Center for Effective Organizations at the University of Southern California's Marshall School of Business. "[Work] is about battling and hunkering down and trying to hang on."

All well and good for the gainfully employed, but getting a job in the first place is no slam dunk. Many companies have been cutting back on entry-level hiring—one survey of 2009 college grads found that only 1 out of 5 who applied for a job succeeded in landing one—and the employers in our ranking are no different. Entry-level hiring in the first half of the year was down across the board, with at least 50 of the 69 employers who took part in our survey reporting an average decrease of more than 20%. At many companies, including AT&T (T), Macy's (M), and Microsoft (MSFT), the employment picture was far worse, with entry-level hiring down well more than 50%.

Reader Discussion

 

BW Mall - Sponsored Links

Buy a link now!