"Myth: a graduate will be too expensive; they will expect a high salary; I can't afford that. Fact: A graduate knows that a small company can't afford high salaries; they want a good job with variety; money isn't the only thing they are interested in."

These words open a new brochure from Bretton Hall College designed to take owners and managers in small and medium-sized companies through the process of employing graduates in their business.

As well as dispelling myths, the brochure also gives positive comments from the graduates themselves, such as: "I would prefer a position in a small company. The opportunity to improve my skills and personal development would be invaluable, I would generally feel more fulfilled."

The rest of the brochure looks at the implications for smaller companies of employing graduates. It looks at the sort of training which may be implemented, and the trend away from formal graduate training schemes towards mentoring and other forms of development which can have benefits for the company as well.

One barrier for small firms is the fear that a graduate will not stay long with them, seeing them as a platform to a better job in a bigger firm. The brochure gives guidelines for retaining graduates, recognising that a firm wants some return on the investment it makes in training.

Finally, the brochure gives a number of case studies highlighting different ways in which graduates have been introduced into business. Granted, these have been major nationals like Asda and Next, but some of the training and development process discussed could easily be used in smaller firms, and there are several examples of good practice for smaller companies as well.

Paul Twiddy is an Information Manager at Business Link Bradford & District

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.