David Gordon recently took the plunge to become a full-time lecturer at De Montfort University Leicester (DMU), bringing with him 25 years’ of industry experience to help to boost students’ employability.
The Marketing academic, who has received three VCDTA (Vice-Chancellor Distinguished Teaching Awards) nominations for teaching, previously worked at IBM for fourteen years while lecturing part-time at DMU.
David said: “I decided the time was right to leave IBM and develop my academic career. With my experience of business, management, employability, and my passion for lecturing I know I can add significant value to DMU.”
His focus is on making academic subjects relevant to commerce and employability, explaining: “From my experience, there is a need for students who can do something, not just know something.”
Before he gained his industry experience David started his career at DMU with an undergraduate degree in Marketing and Computing.
“I did my undergraduate degree 20 years ago at DMU, before starting my own business and I spent three years growing that before selling it.”
David then completed his MSc in Strategic Marketing and then went on to work in marketing roles at Sage, Pegasus and most recently IBM, where he became the UK Divisional Marketing Head.
He teaches on Strategic Marketing Management, Principles of Marketing, International Marketing and Marketing Communications modules and the focus is firmly on employability.
As an accredited IBM Recruitment Assessor he is perfectly placed to help students take the next step in their career.
“I support workplace learning and placement year students because I know what they need to focus on to perform well at assessment days.
“I certainly can’t take full credit for their success, but I can coach students on what companies look for on these days, and it’s a lovely feeling even if I can give half a percent to help.”
As part of his focus on employability David also presents during DMU Employability Week and recruits guest lecturers who can give students a real-world view of the industry.
“Employability really is key.” David said. “I received an email from a student recently saying ‘I got my graduate job because of your lectures’, lecturers and academics strive for comments like that.”
DMU enjoys strong links with IBM, which has seen students given incredible placement opportunities, and the company recently launched a bespoke Leicester Experience, aimed at attracting graduates.
Posted on Tuesday 1 September 2015