Only 25% of the firm's African Black bursary students from disadvantaged backgrounds were passing the National Board Exam (a prerequisite to becoming a trainee and an accountant). This meant the firm had to recruit up to 300% more students than they needed, simply to meet their recruitment targets.

The programme focused on equipping graduates with effective work readiness skills based on emotional intelligence, which transformed the graduate into an attractive employee. That resulted in a work ready talent pool. The Programme made use of a number of aids to assist in the preparation and participation in workshops. These included: Assessments; Workbooks (for each workshop); and Practical simulation games / exercises.

The workshops acted as an emotional journey and growth process for the graduate in preparation of the world of work. The programme consisted of 7 modules. Each of these modules represented a workshop theme. The workshop duration was 1.5 days per theme. A graduate completed the 7 modules over a period of 4 years, attending 2 workshops each year.

First, we conducted human capability research which enabled us to predict, with a high degree of probability, whether a student would pass the National Board Exam.

Next, we created a program of interventions and workshops. The interventions were designed to help students handle the social and emotional pressures of university. That's Year 11 students, not university students. We were able to predict five years in advance.

In only six years the National Board Exam pass rate among African Black bursary students rocketed from 25% to almost 80%.

• By addressing EQ in the development programme, graduates were better prepared for the world of work and therefore added value on completion of the graduate programme
• Research confirmed that graduates who attended the EQ development programme performed better during a professional qualifying exam than their counterparts who did not attend the programme (See detail below)
• The overall performance of graduates in the professional qualifying exam resulted in the firm ranking amongst the top in SA and driving the employer of choice strategy
• Better retention of graduates due to specific relationship maintenance strategies, specifically the EQ development programme, a sizable bursary budget and a strategy where all previously disadvantaged graduates received funding

Results from the professional qualifying exam

# of EQ workshops attended	Pass Rate
	**Total group	*Black (N=144)	*Coloured (N=33)	*Indian (N=85)	*White (N=209)
None (0) workshops attended	49%	57%	71%	52%	76%
Attended 6 workshops over a period of 3 years	93%	82%	100%	100%	96%

* Denotes students who passed the exam with a first attempt.
** Denotes first timers and repeat attempts at the exam.