Creating a list

There are several ways to start your list of SMEs, building your awareness of this part of the North Yorkshire labour market.

Look for lists

Look for business lists of North Yorkshire SMEs and make a note of any that sound interesting. You might need to get creative here as some listings are only available if you pay for them. Some suggestions:

• Law firm Ward Haddaway, in partnership with the Yorkshire Post newspaper, publishes an annual list of the fastest growing companies in the region. The list can be searched for small, medium and large sized companies and when clicking on each entry – you can see what type of business it is, where it is based and click on a link to its website.
• North Yorkshire Council has a ‘Buy Local’ website that allows users to search under different business categories, refining by location and the product or service provided. Many of the businesses listed are SMEs.
• The Chamber of Commerce website for West and North Yorkshire offers a member directory searchable by sector. Clicking on the company name tells you the nature of their business and where in Yorkshire they are based. Many of the members are SMEs.

You could also apply this thinking to other regions in the country. For example, there are 52 UK Chambers of Commerce.

Look for conferences or trade events

If you do have a preferred sector in mind – you could investigate whether there are any conferences, events or exhibitions coming up in North Yorkshire (or elsewhere) that might give you access to small companies working in that field. For example, Harrogate Convention Centre, York Racecourse or Yorkshire Event Centre often host trade fairs or similar events. Look at their ‘What’s On?’ listings to explore further.

You can often access an exhibition website with a list of exhibitors.

‘Although I’m a scientist, I love wool and knitting! I knew I wanted to work in the wool industry, but didn’t know where to start. So I attended the Harrogate Knitting and Stitching show and spoke to loads of people on their stands – from larger scale suppliers to individual crafters. It gave me a really great overview that helped me decide where to start. I’m now working in a small wool shop, and building good links with the suppliers. I’ve got an interview next week for a sales job with a well-known brand!’ Rebekah, BSc Chemistry

Using an event ticketing platform like Eventbrite to explore events in North Yorkshire or to look at the organisations that are listed as ‘event organisers’ might also be a useful approach.

Talk to your contacts about small companies they know of in the local area

Local knowledge is always useful. If you studied in the region, your University Careers team will have some useful information.

Visit recruitment websites and job boards

There are several recruitment sites across the UK which allow you to focus on graduate jobs, searchable by region. However, there isn’t a standard way to filter this by SME jobs. Using search terms such as ‘small business’ or ‘SME’ might bring up some of them, but it will depend on the wording used in the job advertisement. In terms of websites to get you started indeed and Monster are both well know sites but there are many more. Charity Job is great for the charitable sector.

If you can identify recruitment agencies in your area that specialise in the sector(s) you are interested in – they are highly likely to be used by local SMEs. The Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC) provides a member directory. Search under North Yorkshire to find a list of local agencies. Click on each agency to find a list of the sectors they specialise in.

Over to you

Have a look at the various websites listed in this section and see if you can find anything that interests you. If you come across any others that you think might be useful to your fellow learners, share them in the comments below.

When you’ve done that – take a moment to reflect on whether this research approach could work for your job search.