Graduate talent: Why attitude beats degrees

Late June and early July mark the moment of truth for thousands of new graduates. Exams are done, results are out, and a fresh crop of talent is stepping into the job market. If you’re a founder-CEO of a growing company, this is a window of opportunity. Wait too long and larger companies – with their well-oiled graduate recruitment schemes – will snap up the brightest and best. 

Don’t let them. 

Right now, those grads are weighing their options, and many haven’t yet committed. Some big firms made offers months ago, but plenty of savvy graduates held out, looking for the right opportunity. This is your chance to swoop in. In fact, some forward-thinking companies don’t even wait until graduation – Macquarie Technology Group, for example, hires students before they finish university, offering two-year contracts starting from their penultimate year. 

At Rackspace, we even got creative by widening our reach internationally – leveraging our South African employee base to interview and hire engineering grads from South Africa who had UK working rights, before they’d even thought about leaving home. It was all about catching talent others overlooked or hadn’t reached yet. Speed and creativity in graduate hiring give you a real edge.

The message is clear: move early, or miss out.

Hire for values and attitude, not just qualifications

When you do engage these graduates, remember this golden rule: attitude beats aptitude. Yes, they’ve got shiny new degrees, but what really matters is who they are as people. In my hiring days, I learned to focus on values alignment and mindset over specific skills or grades. You can teach a smart recruit the technical stuff; you can’t teach drive or character. It’s far better to bring in someone with the right outlook even if they lack some experience, than a seasoned candidate with a stellar CV who doesn’t fit your culture. In fact, I advise clients to broaden their criteria and recruit for attitude and culture fit rather than rigid experience requirements. A graduate who lives and breathes your core values will outperform an “experienced” hire who quietly poisons your culture.

How do you spot the right attitude? One approach I’ve used is the Gallup CliftonStrengths assessment to reveal a person’s innate talents. Two strengths I love to see in graduates are Achiever and Learner. An Achiever is exactly what it sounds like – someone who works hard, has stamina, and loves being productive. A Learner is driven by a constant desire to learn and improve, excited more by the learning process than by any diploma or end result. Imagine a young hire who’s naturally hard-working and endlessly curious – that’s gold for a growing business. Those are the kind of traits that don’t always show up on a CV but they make all the difference on the job. So dig for them. During interviews, ask questions that reveal how candidates approach challenges, how hungry they are to grow, what gets them out of bed in the morning. Look for that spark of passion and a values match with your company’s DNA.

At Rackspace, we actively tested for enthusiasm and cultural fit. We prioritised finding people who exuded positivity and drive. If someone was lukewarm or ego-driven, it didn’t matter how perfect their grades were – they weren’t for us. On the flip side, when we found a candidate who was values-aligned and eager, we’d figure out a role for them, even if their CV wasn’t a traditional fit. That philosophy paid off in spades with a team of motivated, culturally unified A-players.

Spot grit, not just grades

A big part of assessing attitude is looking beyond the degree to the person’s life experience. When I review graduate candidates, I’m hunting for signs of grit, initiative and commitment. Did this person hold a part-time job waiting tables or working in retail during uni? Were they part of a sports team, or deeply involved in a student society or volunteer project? These are green flags. Graduates who have juggled academics with other responsibilities have already proven they possess something extra – resilience, work ethic, time management, people skills. They’ve shown up to training on a wet Tuesday night in February, or dealt with angry customers at 9pm on a Saturday night. That stuff builds character in a way no coursework can. There’s a reason former athletes often shine in the workplace: they’re goal-driven, disciplined, and know how to perform under pressure. Similarly, a graduate who stuck with a demanding part-time job or a long-term team commitment demonstrates consistency and perseverance. Don’t get me wrong – academic achievement is fine. But when it comes to predicting success in my company, grit and attitude win every time.

While I’m at it, if you want to know a personal red flag, anyone who puts ‘socialising’ as a hobby won’t make any shortlist with my name at the top of it. You may as well put down ‘breathing’ as a skill. People who don’t have hobbies or interests that develop them as rounded humans are a worry. Avoid them.

Hire the person, not the paper. If their past shows signs of perseverance and teamwork, that’s a strong indicator they’ll thrive and grow in a challenging role with you.

Get creative in how you hire

Testing for these intangibles sometimes means going beyond the standard interview script. Be creative. One technique I’ve used (which raised a few eyebrows but proved incredibly useful) is asking candidates to draw something. Yes, literally: hand them a set of pencils and say, “Sketch a picture that represents what motivates you, what gets you out of bed.” It’s amazing to see how people react. Some light up and dive in; others freeze. The drawing itself isn’t the key (in my entire career I’ve only ever seen one candidate produce anything of any ACTUAL artistic merit). What matters is the conversation and insight that follows. 

We piloted this at Peer 1 in Southampton as part of an innovative hiring process. The final call on hiring was made based on cultural fit evidence, not just technical ability. We deliberately took the “gut feel” out of it and focused on tangible indicators of who this person really was. If they didn’t appear likely to live our values and uplift our culture, we wouldn’t hire them – no matter how impressive their credentials. As I often say, don’t hire anyone who isn’t going to raise the average of your team.

The bottom line: think beyond competency. Use your hiring process to answer the real question, “Does this person’s character and energy align with what we’re building here?”

Plan for post-hire growth (and retention)

Bringing great graduates through the door is only half the battle – you also need to keep them engaged and growing once they’re on the team. One reality of hiring fresh grads is that many see their first job as exactly that: a first job, not necessarily a forever job. Gone are the days when a graduate joined a company for life. They crave learning experiences and then often plan to move on, travel, try something new. As an employer, you have two choices: accept that some churn is inevitable and make the absolute most of the 1-2 years you might have them, or give them such a rich growth path that they choose to stay longer. Ideally, do both – maximise their contribution short-term and entice the best to stick around.

How? By offering structured development and rapid progression. If there’s one thing that will keep an ambitious young person engaged, it’s the feeling that they’re advancing quickly. Take a page from Macquarie’s playbook: their graduate programme is a masterclass in this. They bring students in on a two-year fixed contract and load those years with training and certification opportunities. Every time a grad passes a new industry exam or accreditation, they get an automatic pay rise – essentially a micro-promotion. It’s brilliant; you’re rewarding growth in real time. 

Over two years, a grad there might rack up 16 certifications and a string of small promotions. The result? They’re constantly challenged, recognised, and never feel stuck in a dead-end. As Tony Pandher from Macquarie told me on one of my podcasts, this approach of continual development and reward has been hugely powerful in attracting the right young talent and keeping them fired up. People who love to learn (there’s that Learner trait again) thrive in that environment, and the business reaps the benefits of a more skilled, motivated workforce.

Even if you can’t offer a formal program as extensive as Macquarie’s, you can still mimic the principles. Think in terms of micro-upgrades for your grads. Can you give them new responsibilities or a title bump after a few months of excellent performance? Can you map out a clear pathway of skills to acquire, and celebrate each milestone? Maybe it’s sending them to an industry conference after 6 months, making them a team lead on a small project at 9 months, etc. The key is to show them a future in your company – a series of stepping stones, not a flat road. Do this, and you’ll stand a much better chance of retaining your rising stars beyond that typical 1-2 year itch. 

Consider second-job graduates – the hidden gems

While we’re talking talent, let’s not forget another pool of candidates around this time: those who graduated a year or two ago and are now disillusioned in their first jobs. Every year, a wave of last year’s grads quit their initial employer, realising that the fancy grad scheme or corporate role wasn’t what they hoped for. These folks are gold for a scale-up. They’ve got a bit of real-world work experience (and maybe some training under their belt), but they’re still early in their career, hungry and open-minded. Importantly, they’ve had a taste of corporate life and many don’t like the flavour – which means they could be especially excited about a more entrepreneurial, values-driven company like yours. In my experience, some of the best young hires come from this “second-job” category. They arrive with realistic expectations and ready to prove themselves, often with the fire of someone who’s determined to find work they actually care about. They’re also less of a flight risk than brand-new grads because the grass-is-greener curiosity has been tempered; they already know the grass on the other side (BigCo Inc.) might be AstroTurf.

So as you build your team this summer, cast the net a little wider than just the brand new grads. Look at candidates one or two years out of uni as well. They often have a strong foundation (the big firms see to that with training) and are eager to take on more responsibility fast – an opportunity your company can give them. I’ve seen scaling businesses scoop up these second-job refugees and be amazed at how quickly they flourish when given freedom and a supportive culture. One word of caution: just like with fresh graduates, still hire for attitude and values here. A poor-fit personality doesn’t improve with a year of experience. But if they check the culture boxes, you might find a real star who just needed the right environment to shine.

Seize the moment

The weeks ahead are critical in talent terms. Whether it’s the fresh graduate brimming with potential or the early-career professional looking for a more fulfilling second gig, now is the time to act. Don’t let bureaucratic hiring processes or hesitation slow you down. Get out there and engage with graduates while they’re making up their minds about their futures. Be bold and personable – attend virtual career fairs, post that enthusiastic LinkedIn update that you’re hiring, tap up your team for referrals. And when you do bring candidates in, assess them smartly: weigh their character and cultural fit at least as much as their credentials. Remember, a degree is a starting point, not a guarantee of success. You’re looking for self-starters who align with your values and will bring energy to your business. Those are the people who will become your future A-players, the ones who lift your company to new heights.

As I often remind my clients and podcast listeners, top talent isn’t solely found through fat salaries or fancy schemes. It’s attracted by vision, values, and the promise of growth. So make your move. The graduate talent rush is on – go out and grab the standouts before someone else does. And once you’ve got them, invest in them and inspire them. Do this right, and you won’t just have a new employee; you’ll have a passionate team member who shares your values and is ready to grow with your company for years to come. 

The moment is now – don’t miss it.

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Written by business coach and leadership coaching expert Dominic Monkhouse. Contact him to schedule a call here. You can order your free copy of his book, Mind Your F**king Business here.