Enterprise Ireland Graduates for International Growth- G4IG

mary. · 30-09-2010 2:33pm #1

Hey all, Just wondering did anyone apply for the Enterprise Ireland Graduate for International Growth Programme? I applied and haven't heard anything back so was just wondering if anyone had????? Cheers

2010claire · 30-09-2010 6:21pm

Give Sonyia a call at 01 4853977, she's really helpful. You could also email her at G4IG@enterprise-ireland.com

Good luck with the application

NickDrake · 30-09-2010 7:16pm

I did the assessments tests this week. Waiting to hear now.

AARR · 01-10-2010 10:13am

What sort of tests did you take. Let us know when you get to the next stage. Best of luck, Tony.

NickDrake · 01-10-2010 1:15pm

AARR wrote: »

What sort of tests did you take. Let us know when you get to the next stage. Best of luck, Tony.

They were the online ones. Got the link pretty much straight away after applying. Did you get through to that?

Kaka86 · 01-10-2010 2:46pm

Just got an email saying application had been received and would be reviewed, they will be in contact over the month of October

NickDrake · 01-10-2010 3:26pm

Kaka86 wrote: »

Just got an email saying application had been received and would be reviewed, they will be in contact over the month of October

Got it too. fingers crossed. best of luck

Kaka86 · 02-10-2010 8:12am

Cheers dude ...same as!!!

temana · 02-10-2010 8:19pm

Same here, got a reply saying my application is being processed etc... How many questions did you guys manage to answer in the timed verbal and numerical aptitude tests? Good luck everyone!

Mike Tyson · 03-10-2010 4:33pm

Just got a call to do an assessment centre with them this week. Delighted to hear it but caught me a bit of guard.

Anyone have any tips on what to have prepared for it? Presume the G4IG assessment day is at least very similar to the EI grad program one so anyone that's done that before, information much appreciated!. Cheers

NickDrake · 03-10-2010 4:40pm

Mike Tyson wrote: »

Just got a call to do an assessment centre with them this week. Delighted to hear it but caught me a bit of guard.

Anyone have any tips on what to have prepared for it? Presume the G4IG assessment day is at least very similar to the EI grad program one so anyone that's done that before, information much appreciated!. Cheers

As in the online one? Did you do the online one already or is this a different one?

Mike Tyson · 03-10-2010 7:02pm

NickDrake wrote: »

As in the online one? Did you do the online one already or is this a different one?

Did the online ones a few weeks ago, this is the stage after that. Tuesday looks to be the first they're putting on of 7 (spread over the next 2 weeks).

NickDrake · 03-10-2010 10:09pm

Mike Tyson wrote: »

Did the online ones a few weeks ago, this is the stage after that. Tuesday looks to be the first they're putting on of 7 (spread over the next 2 weeks).

Cheers, will hopefully get the call this week. Best of luck

JoePie · 06-10-2010 1:03pm

Just got THE CALL. Going to Eastpoint on Friday. I assume everyone else is?

Mike Tyson wrote: »

Anyone have any tips on what to have prepared for it? Presume the G4IG assessment day is at least very similar to the EI grad program one so anyone that's done that before, information much appreciated!. Cheers

The email we got before we took the tests online said that we'd be retaking the tests there to make sure we weren't big fat cheaters. I'm assuming the numbers and verbal tests. We're hardly retaking the personality test. But you never know. They're probably looking for an informal chat as well. I guess the numbers are getting thinned out again for interviews.

Mike Tyson · 06-10-2010 2:00pm

Did the assessment day yesterday.

Basically 3 parts:

- Retake the tests, numerical/verbal.
- Group exercise, in a group of 8: given a few documents to read, and then as a group discuss some solutions to a few problems (40 minutes), then hand write 3 page personal opinion to be handed up (25 mins).
- 5-7 min presentation leading into the interview, interview all competency based questions.

And you're done.

Theres 30 people per day for 7 days, so roughly 210 for 50 jobs.

Interview and pres are completely grand; no serious curve balls. The group exercise knocked me out, hated it. Overall, go in with your head screwed on and you'll be grand. Any specific questions drop them here and I'll answer them, best of luck to anyone doing it

JoePie · 06-10-2010 4:24pm

Oh, I didn't think the interview would be here and now. Makes sense though. I was wondering what else, other than the tests and presentation, could take all day.

Did they give you any knid of indication as to how well you did or when you would hear from them, Mike?

scarface22 · 06-10-2010 5:30pm

@Mike Tyson

What type of question was asked in the group exercise? I presume the case was some hypothetical company was considering breaking into a market and you had to analyse why they should or shouldn't do it...?

Mike Tyson · 06-10-2010 5:45pm

Na no indication, presume some stage after the last assessment day is done on the 19th but not holding any hope.

Yeah the group exercise, never got to grips with it. It's an Irish company that has this process that turns sewage/waste into a fuel called fireblox that can then be burned in these boilers they also make. They operate in Ire/UK atm and are looking to enter the German market, are unsure whether to partner with a German firm or go alone.

You talk ****e as a group for 40 minutes then write up your own strategy, doesn't have to reflect the group consensus. Load of balls. Post about your experiences here when you're done!, best of luck

JoePie · 06-10-2010 5:53pm

Christ, I just want to be done with this now. Had to drop my suit in to get cleaned today, I probably should get a haircut tomorrow. Have to put this presentation together,blah, blah, blah. I wish I could've just given them my CV and said "job plz?" And they'd be all "Yeah, sure m8."

scarface22 · 06-10-2010 6:48pm

Mike Tyson wrote: »

Na no indication, presume some stage after the last assessment day is done on the 19th but not holding any hope.

Yeah the group exercise, never got to grips with it. It's an Irish company that has this process that turns sewage/waste into a fuel called fireblox that can then be burned in these boilers they also make. They operate in Ire/UK atm and are looking to enter the German market, are unsure whether to partner with a German firm or go alone.

You talk ****e as a group for 40 minutes then write up your own strategy, doesn't have to reflect the group consensus. Load of balls. Post about your experiences here when you're done!, best of luck

Cheers man. Thats great help. Case studies are definitely not my forté so this is badly badly needed.

JoePie · 07-10-2010 2:57pm

Having a hard time throwing this presentation together. I'm not outta college that long, like. Totally drawing a blank. I'll get there.

greenbrain · 09-10-2010 3:53pm

JoePie wrote: »

Having a hard time throwing this presentation together. I'm not outta college that long, like. Totally drawing a blank. I'll get there.

what kind of presentation are u throwing together?

JoePie · 09-10-2010 5:21pm

Just went on about a few challenges and opportunities facng SMEs, and then 3 ways I would achieve those opportunities for the SME I chose to talk about.

The whole day was long. Fell down a bit on the written part, but I feel I did pretty well everywhere else.

greenbrain · 09-10-2010 6:42pm

JoePie wrote: »

Just went on about a few challenges and opportunities facng SMEs, and then 3 ways I would achieve those opportunities for the SME I chose to talk about.

was it a powerpoint presentation?

what about the interview....how long was it? what kinds of questions did they ask you?

JoePie · 09-10-2010 7:19pm

No, you can't do a PowerPoint. You either bring in a flash card, learn it off, or freestyle it.

The interview lengths varied. Anything from half an hour to an hour and a half. Questions were competency based. As in, "Tell us about a time you showed X quality."

greenbrain · 09-10-2010 9:02pm

Ok thanks....the whole day sounds like tough going!

First you do the numerical/verbal tests...again.
The next is the 40 minute group discussion, followed by a hand written proposal of what you would advise the company to do.
Next is your 5 minute presentation.
And finally a 30-90 minute interview which is mostly based on competencies.

Is there anything else you think I would need to know about for the day?

What was the hardest part for you?

Cheers.

JoePie · 10-10-2010 2:28pm

You're given a timetable, and you'll see that things aren't necissarily in that order, if that makes any difference to you. The presentation and the interview will always be together. Just means that you could be done by 1pm, or you could be sitting around doing nothing for a few hours.

Nothing else you really need to know. Make sure to read the bottles of water. Got tricked by a bottle of sparkling water. Hate that stuff. You can't prepare for anything other than the presentation and the interview to an extent.

The writing part was the toughest for me. Just bottled it hard.

greenbrain · 10-10-2010 5:06pm

Make sure to read the bottles of water. Got tricked by a bottle of sparkling water.

What did they ask you about the water bottles? What other questions were there like that?

How many people were doing the interview?

Did they ask you much about your college course and work experience.......or was it all like, "tell us about a time you showed ______ skill"?

Thanks a million btw, your help is much appreciated.

JoePie · 10-10-2010 6:49pm

Haha, you've got the water thing wrong. There were bottles in the room we were waiting in. Drinking water, like. There was still and sparkling.

Two doing the interview.

They asked different people different things. I was asked all competency questions.

greenbrain · 10-10-2010 9:24pm

JoePie wrote: »

Haha, you've got the water thing wrong. There were bottles in the room we were waiting in. Drinking water, like. There was still and sparkling.

Hahaha, i get ya.

How did anyone else get on?

scarface22 · 10-10-2010 9:47pm

greenbrain wrote: »

Hahaha, i get ya.

How did anyone else get on?

Presentation was tricky given how little time I had to prepare but group exercise was ok. Written exercise was also a little tricky but aptitude test was a breeze

rivers · 11-10-2010 12:00pm

hey, I got invited to the assessment centre next week. I'm a little worried about the presentation and how to go about preparing for that...

which Irish company did you guys choose?
did they ask much about this company?
any idea where to research the 'key opportunities and challenges facing Irish SME's when selling into international markets' as well as the '3 ways will you assist your company in accessing these opportunities in a international market'.

i've been researching on the enterprise ireland website, but not much there to be honest. It's been a while since i graduated from college so not as prepared as i should be.

any help much appreciated...

KennoD · 11-10-2010 3:44pm

Hey guys,

I have the assessment centre on Wednesday, seems tricky enough especially as my academic background is not business/commerce etc. Anyone else in the same boat re academic qualifications? I wonder am I wasting my time going up!

scarface22 · 11-10-2010 4:57pm

KennoD wrote: »

Hey guys,

I have the assessment centre on Wednesday, seems tricky enough especially as my academic background is not business/commerce etc. Anyone else in the same boat re academic qualifications? I wonder am I wasting my time going up!

Not at all. I have a social science degree and think I did ok. There was also plenty of graduates with engineering and science degrees so it doesn't matter what your academic background is

KennoD · 11-10-2010 5:03pm

Cheers Scarface22, appreciate the reassurance! Good luck with the rest of the process

greenbrain · 11-10-2010 5:29pm

seems tricky enough especially as my academic background is not business/commerce etc. Anyone else in the same boat re academic qualifications? I wonder am I wasting my time going up!

I am wondering the same myself!!!

I did engineering so I have not got a clue what I'm gonna do for this presentation i.e. - "The challenges facing Irish SME's selling in international markets".

scarface22 · 11-10-2010 5:36pm

greenbrain wrote: »

I am wondering the same myself!!!

I did engineering so I have not got a clue what I'm gonna do for this presentation i.e. - "The challenges facing Irish SME's selling in international markets".

Come on! You don't need to be a rocket scientist or a straight-A business student to work this stuff out. Pick up a newspaper or watch the news...its pretty self-evident.

- Economic Uncertainty
- Currency Risks
- Language Barriers

That's just 3. I could go on...

Mike Tyson · 12-10-2010 10:09am

JoePie wrote: »

You're given a timetable, and you'll see that things aren't necissarily in that order, if that makes any difference to you. The presentation and the interview will always be together. Just means that you could be done by 1pm, or you could be sitting around doing nothing for a few hours.

Nothing else you really need to know. Make sure to read the bottles of water. Got tricked by a bottle of sparkling water. Hate that stuff. You can't prepare for anything other than the presentation and the interview to an extent.

The writing part was the toughest for me. Just bottled it hard.

My day went similar enough to JoePie. Bottled the written, had straight competency based questions. Loved the sparkling water though, always have

DaMagooster · 12-10-2010 11:07am

Hey everyone, I often look at boards but never post. I am sickened after finding this thread though. Been glued to my emails everyday waiting for an interview time. No joy. Does anyone know if everyone that is going to be interviewed has been called already??

JoePie · 12-10-2010 12:47pm

No idea. They're going on this week anyway. Some people got the call days before, some only seemed to get it the day before.

Mike Tyson · 12-10-2010 2:30pm

DaMagooster wrote: »

Hey everyone, I often look at boards but never post. I am sickened after finding this thread though. Been glued to my emails everyday waiting for an interview time. No joy. Does anyone know if everyone that is going to be interviewed has been called already??

No idea, I got call Sunday evening for an interview Tuesday

scarface22 · 12-10-2010 4:28pm

DaMagooster wrote: »

Hey everyone, I often look at boards but never post. I am sickened after finding this thread though. Been glued to my emails everyday waiting for an interview time. No joy. Does anyone know if everyone that is going to be interviewed has been called already??

Last interview is the 18th I think. Some people got calls on the day before so I wouldn't rule it out just yet.

Has anybody applied to the Famleigh Fellowship as well?

sb88 · 13-10-2010 12:19am

Received an invitation to the assessment centre this week but like some of the earlier posters do not have a commerce/business background (civil engineering). I had assumed that there would be positions of various types in the companies involved - emailed G4IG today to ask if there were technical/non-business roles but was only told that the companies wanted persons with mixed skills. Not sure that its worth continuing with the application if the job would be completely unrelated to my degree - the presentation topic has highlighted that for me. Are we supposed to assume that we would work for any existing Irish company or give examples of an Irish company that has taken advantage of international opportunities using particular methods? The whole brief seems vague to me!

2010claire · 13-10-2010 7:03pm

Hi sc, All the roles are related to business development though people with lots of different degrees at the assessment centre. The key thing is you need to be willing and prepared to train to take a business role (so not a technical role). If you get in you also do a Diploma in Business Development. So you going for it?

greenbrain · 14-10-2010 11:38am

Is the Presentation based on a hypothetical scenario or do you present opportunities for a specific company.

CathalThomas · 14-10-2010 11:46am

From what I know, you have to interpret the question as you see it. So basically could be either way if that helps. Dont think there is a right/wrong way to answer it.

Just wondering does every group get the same topic to discuss and to detail your own strategy, or are there numerous topics? Any help on this would be appreciated.

DaMagooster · 14-10-2010 4:07pm

scarface22 wrote: »

Last interview is the 18th I think. Some people got calls on the day before so I wouldn't rule it out just yet.

Has anybody applied to the Famleigh Fellowship as well?

Cheers for the info. Still no word so looks bad. Ah well on to the next thing! I am accepted for the EOP too. Differed it last year to do my masters.

rivers · 14-10-2010 10:10pm

Hey,

Just a quick question about choosing an existing Irish company as an example for the presentation. I'm sure this is not a really important part of it, but how did it figure into your presentation? was it a major part and were many questions asked about the company/sector? as in is research required, or just mention a company in this regard?

thanks

Mike Tyson · 15-10-2010 12:14am

rivers wrote: »

Hey,

Just a quick question about choosing an existing Irish company as an example for the presentation. I'm sure this is not a really important part of it, but how did it figure into your presentation? was it a major part and were many questions asked about the company/sector? as in is research required, or just mention a company in this regard?

thanks

Up to you really, they didn't grill me on my company at all but were very sure to note it

rivers · 15-10-2010 9:49am

ok, thanks for the reply

brenyes · 16-10-2010 12:43pm

:-)

I just saw this whole thread now! ...after doing the assessment centre already. Sad times.

The advice and details of what happens though are very accurate so anyone who finds this thread before their interview will find it a big help.

And I wouldn't worry about degree background...
Mine is in Textile Design... a lot of people seemed to be people working in graduate jobs with masters and even in come case, second masters... but like, i think if they call us to interview they're happy enough with our background and it's more about how you perform on the day that matters so don't be intimidated by what other people have academically, and at the same time, don't think that having a strong academic background will make it any easier for you. :-)

Enterprise Ireland Graduates for International Growth- G4IG

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