Like most companies, OMD is often approached to host transition year (TY) students for a week of work experience. For many companies, students can be seen as a hindrance, as apart from photocopying, filing and sealing envelopes, it can be seen as a fruitless time investment in students that will spend such a short stay in a company. Over ten years ago, OMD decided to take a different approach to TY students that would benefit the agency, the students, clients, media owners and the wider advertising industry.
Oilbhe Doyle (above), account director, OMD, says the aim of the agency’s TY programme is to mimic the actual real working environment and to ensure the students get a tangible insight into the media industry. Secondary to this would be developing team work and encouraging creativity in the wannabes. Every year, OMD takes in 40 students (20 at a time) to participate in a structured and somewhat pressurised work experience. The students are divided into four groups (media agencies) and each group is assigned an OMD mentor.
The programme starts on a Monday, when the students are given a live brief from an OMD client for which they must run with ‘apprentice-style’ and develop a full response. Over the last decade, clients that have embraced this initiative include McDonald’s, Vodafone, Avonmore, Club Orange, Pot Noodle, Sony PlayStation, Eason and PepsiCo. This year it is turn of Coty to invite students to develop a media strategy.
During the week they follow a diverse timetable as they meet with such media brands as FM104, 98FM, Newstalk, Spin 103.8, RTE, Kinetic, Carlton Screen, Irish Daily Star, Irish Daily Mail, The Irish Times, Irish Sun and Facebook. They outline their medium’s benefits and help students find solutions to briefs. The students produce a TV and radio ad and get an in-depth understanding of the industry and team work.
The week reaches a climax on the final day as the teams, OMD mentors and media owners compete for a prize. Doyle says in preparation for the big day, many students on the course pull all-nighters to hone their presentations. Each team presents to judges and an audience of around 100 with teachers, parents, mentors and some of the media owners, – in readiness for what happens in the real world.
