Online fashion retailer woos IT graduates

Net-a-porter extols the virtue of nurturing IT talent

Online fashion retailer Net-a-Porter is set to embark on a new IT graduate training scheme, as it looks to strengthen its team of internal developers.

The group will look to recruit 10 graduates by April 2012, who will then embark on an 18-month programme to learn a variety of programming languages, as well as participating in an project based on agile development.

The trainees will also join non-software development teams, such as its project management, business analytics or testing teams.

"We're really pleased to be able to offer this chance to young people, particularly given the current challenges they face when entering the employment market," said Naomi Hewitt, HR director at Net-a-Porter.

The scheme forms part of Net-a-Porter's strategy to invest in the development of a highly-skilled IT workforce, reflecting the importance of technology to its business.

The scheme reflects a growing trend among leading UK organisations, such as British Gas and Asda, to step up their development programmes for IT graduates.