Enterprise Rent-A-Car won the Diversity Recruitment Award in the Mansion House at this year’s GradIreland Graduate Recruitment awards. Enterprise won the award due to a range of initiatives it has implemented, including a Female Leadership and Mentoring Programme.
Enterprise Rent-A-Car is fully committed to providing every employee with an inclusive workplace that offers the respect, training and opportunities to succeed, thus making Enterprise a highly sought after employer for graduates in Ireland.
In 2012, Enterprise Rent-A-Car arranged for three of its branch managers to attend a leadership development programme. On the back of that event, Enterprise launched a Female Leadership and Mentoring Programme in which five female managers were paired with senior members of their management team for a full 12 months to help them develop their leadership, communication and mentoring skills.
Enterprise also introduced an Alternative Work Arrangement Scheme so that employees would have more flexibility over their working week.
Michelle Power is one graduate trainee who has taken advantage of this scheme. She said: “As a new mum, returning to work not only made me feel anxious about leaving my child but apprehensive about working full stop. At Dublin Airport, Enterprise has enabled me to work an alternative working week that suits my needs, and having to take time off at short notice is not a problem. In short, Enterprise has made my entry back into work as easy and as seamless as possible.”
March 2013 was the start of Diversity and Philanthropy week for Enterprise, which dedicated an entire week showcasing and celebrating its diversity and philanthropy through a range of initiates and events that coincide with International Women’s Day. Tuesday 5th March was the start of ‘Job Shadow Day’ in which five female branch managers swapped jobs with five senior managers who are in revenue generating roles. This included the Managing Director of Enterprise Rent-A-Car in Ireland, George O’Connor, swapping jobs with Caragh O’Shea, Branch Manager of Limerick, and John Paul Denker, Group Rental Manager, swapping jobs with Ann Donohoe, Branch Manager of Drogheda and Cavan. The purpose of this initiative was to give these women a sense of what it will be like running the company and learning from the experience along the way. Job Shadow Day is a reflection of the commitment Enterprise Rent-A-Car has to increasing its female representation at senior levels in revenue generating roles and to stop the leakage in the female talent pool.
George O’Connor said: “We are very pleased to have won the Diversity Recruitment Award. It is testament to the hard work and innovation shown by my staff as we continue to strive to be the most diverse graduate recruiter in Ireland. Initiatives such as our Job Shadow Day and our female mentoring programme are just some of the ways in which Enterprise Rent-A-Car works to retain and develop a diverse work force. Enterprise is fully committed to ensuring that our female employees have every opportunity to develop the necessary skills to progress into senior leadership positions within the organisation.”
