UpStarter: a tech talent search that puts you face-to-face with potential candidates

Investigating the employment market can leave many jobseekers fraught with anxiety, but if you could evaluate opportunities in your sector in a relaxed setting, without the pressure of committing to a change in jobs, the fear of taking the leap might be minimised.

That’s exactly what UpStarter, a casual networking event geared towards the technology sector, hopes to achieve. Taking place in the Mansion House on October 3rd, up to 1,500 attendees in the tech industry will attend on the night.

Register here for the event - tickets are free

The event’s main sponsor, Accenture, will have a team of people on hand to discuss the many digital and technology job opportunities they have available in Ireland at the moment and Vicky Godolphin is eager to chat to lots of attendees.

“UpStarter is a great way for people and talent to meet face-to-face. The fact that it is a casual networking event is really going to help us connect with people who may not necessarily be there thinking, ‘I’m definitely looking for another job’, but still be interested in hearing about the different opportunities and roles that are out there at the moment”.

This will take place in a relaxed atmosphere to encourage people to be themselves

“While I think we have great ways to attract and find talent, I think this is an additional, exciting way to do it and it’s at a good time when people can come after work”.

“A really good element to UpStarter is the fact that it’s bridging the corporate side of the fence with the entrepreneurial and start-up side and I think the more opportunities we get to blend those two areas, when we’re looking and talking to talent, is great,” she says.

Godolphin says candidates should not exclude themselves from potential roles just because they feel they may not be a good fit.

“When you’re having a conversation with someone, you may not feel you have all the skills that role might require but that’s not the main thing to think about – it’s ‘is this organisation a fit for me and am I a fit for them’. Having that conversation in a casual setting can be really enlightening.”

UpStarter was launched by entrepreneur Sean Judge. Currently Entrepreneur in Residence at Accenture, Judge has "gone on to do amazing things" she says, and he supports Accenture in its innovation work through its global multi-disciplinary research and incubation hub, The Dock.

“We have nearly 2,500 employees in Ireland and we have a lot of things we can be inspired by and learn from. We support the start-up community here so being in that partnership is really important to us and that’s one of the reasons why we are delighted to work with Sean,” she says.

Godolphin says candidates looking at Accenture as an employer should know it is first and foremost about its people. Its brand campaign tagline is “be yourself, make a difference”.

“This is directed at every person that works with Accenture. You come to work with a purpose and with like-minded people who, at the very heart of what they do, have a passion and commitment to solving problems and making opportunities. We have real diversity of talent that makes it a very exciting place to come and work.”

“We work across digital, technology, strategy, operations and consulting. There are so many different dimensions across many industries, and with the biggest brands in Ireland and globally, it  offers such an amazing variety of work. Not every day is going to be the same when you’re working here and hopefully we’re creating a great career for people”.

Godolphin says Ireland has an excellent reputation for developing talent in the digital space. For Accenture, digital is a growing business and for that reason they hope to fill a number of digital and tech roles on the night, including the following opportunities across Accenture Ireland and The Dock:

Solution architect: Godolphin says the successful candidate for this post will develop and create plans around how to deliver complicated solutions, bringing the Internet of Things and artificial intelligence into play, as well as working with stakeholders to make sure all requirements are put together, planned out and resourced effectively in order to deliver on the promise of innovation.

[ View this position on Irish Times Executive Jobs ]

Visual design lead: The candidate will be responsible for leading a team of visual designers in developing creative visual design, helping to bring concepts to life through the use of this. An ability to work with clients in order to translate those concepts and thoughts into tangible innovations is a must.

[ View this position on Irish Times Executive Jobs ]

Analytics senior principal: Someone who has experience working with large data set, enterprise grade data and has leadership experience in managing projects through to delivery is required for this role.

[ View this position on Irish Times Executive Jobs ]

A Technical Architect and Data Architect are just two other roles candidates can discuss with Accenture on the night. Attendees can also find out more about Accenture's 2018 graduate and internships programmes.

Godolphin says she is keen to interact with potential employees at UpStarter in order to get a sense of their aspirations.

The kinds of conversations she hopes to have with attendees include asking “What do you want to get from a role, what are the things that excite you and what are you curious about? Where do you think you can apply your skills and experience?  It could be in a very niche technical area or something that’s slightly more left of centre. Don’t shut off any of those job opportunities. Come and have a conversation with us about you. Given the scale of what we do, if you are excited and passionate about solving problems and coming up with solutions, then we want to talk to you,” she says.

For more see upstarter.ie Tickets: Upstarter runs from 5pm on Tuesday October 3rd at The Mansion House Dublin. Register for free tickets here