Computer science graduates rotate through four different IT assignments during a two-year program at General Electric.
Finding and retaining tech pros is a perennial problem for many IT departments. At GE, a global recruiting program helps bring entry-level IT workers into the company, expose them to different parts of the business, and if all goes according to plan, entice the young talent to stay.
The Information Technology Leadership Program (ITLP) spans multiple business units inside GE, which employs nearly 10,000 IT workers in 50 countries. Recent computer science graduates rotate through four different IT assignments during a two-year period. ITLP participants also receive 12 weeks of technical, project management, and leadership training during their two years of rotating assignments.
“It offers new graduates — those who have a real passion for information technology — the opportunity to grow their leadership skills, grow their business acumen, and really deepen their technical aptitude,” says Julie Stansbury, CIO of GE Capital Treasury, a division within the financial services arm of GE. “And from an IT leadership perspective, it’s a way for us to build incredibly strong IT teams.”
In today’s market, that’s not always easy. Staffing specialist Robert Half Technology recently polled 2,300 U.S. CIOs, and 63% said it’s somewhat or very challenging to find skilled IT professionals today.
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To maintain a steady pipeline of fresh IT talent, GE partners with universities to recruit future ITLP candidates. Roughly 50 to 60 new graduates participate in the program each year. It’s a selective process. Among the criteria for acceptance are: a bachelor’s or master’s degree in computer science, information systems, computer engineering or information assurance; minimum 3.0 GPA; and geographic mobility.
“We want to see people who have a passion for technology and technical aptitude, people who have demonstrated — either through college or work experience — leadership skills and leadership potential,” Stansbury says. “We have a high bar in terms of what we’re looking for. It’s competitive.”
The program sparks competition among senior managers inside GE, too. When ITLP participants finish their four job rotations, IT leaders vie to hire them. That’s incentive for department CIOs to ensure the new graduates work on interesting and challenging projects during their job rotations. They want to be able to woo them back.
“I’m trying to market Treasury, within the Capital IT world, as a great place for ITLPs to help grow their careers. And I’m not the only one. My peers are doing the same thing,” Stansbury says.
“Personally, I ensure that I spend time with the ITLPs when they’re doing rotations here at Treasury. I do a one-on-one with each of them when they’re starting an assignment at Treasury, I’ll do a roundtable midway, and I’ll find ways to connect with them throughout, so I’m getting to know them and they’re getting to know me.”
ITLP participants have the opportunity to travel to different GE sites and work with people around the world. They’re placed in GE businesses across the U.S. and overseas, including its aviation, financial services, healthcare, energy management, and transportation divisions.
They have a say in each of their four assignments, and they’re encouraged to aim for variety. One rotation might involve working as a data analyst, the next might be working on mobile app, and the next might take them to GE’s tech center in New Orleans, where they might be ScrumMaster on an agile software development project.
“We always try to make sure that we’re providing really great assignments for the ITLPs,” Stansbury says of the ITLP program, which has been part of GE’s IT setup for more than 32 years. “We have them doing important things. They won’t run a whole program, but they might run a piece of it.”
Within IT, running the ITLP program requires commitment not only from division CIOs, but also from the more senior IT staff members who define the assignments, sponsor the rotations, and work with the young talent.
For these assignment leaders, it’s an opportunity to fine-tune their own management skills. “How do you scope an assignment? How do you make sure that the assignment is clear, the roles and responsibilities are defined in such a way that there are deliverables that can be executed and accomplished within a six-month timeframe?” Stansbury says. “We take that seriously. We think about who would be a good assignment leader.”
At the end of the two years, the exposure to different roles and technologies can be a big plus for IT pros at the start of their working life. “I think they’re more informed, and they can be more thoughtful about what they’re trying to accomplish in their careers,” Stansbury says.
It doesn’t hurt with retention, either. “They’re motivated, ambitious young individuals, and I think that translates into people who really want to build strong careers at Capital IT.”
