How Credit Agricole Reinvents Internships to Boost Employer Brand

In a competitive talent market, standing out as an employer requires more than job offers — innovation, empathy, and a deep understanding of your future workforce.

That’s precisely what Credit Agricole Ukraine achieved through the Credit Agricole Career Test Drive, a hybrid-format career initiative co-created with UGEN, designed to rethink the traditional internship model. Instead of offering a fixed path, the project invited students to help shape the experience — testing a brand-new online internship platform and interacting directly with top-level professionals.

This article explores the project’s unique approach to student engagement, employer branding, HR marketing, and its impact on participants, company culture, and long-term talent strategy.

The Credit Agricole Career Test Drive

Project Overview

1. About The Credit Agricole Career Test Drive

The Credit Agricole Career Test Drive is a hybrid career initiative co-created by Credit Agricole Ukraine and UGEN to empower students to rethink what internships can look like. Rather than offering a standard program, the project engaged participants as a focus group to test and help shape the bank’s new online internship platform — sharing feedback on what matters most to them regarding learning format, skills, and employer interaction.

2. Program overview:

• Hybrid format combining two interactive online webinars and one offline final event in Kyiv
• Talent-centered approach: participants shared their vision for internships and tested the bank’s new online internship platform
• Upskilling sessions tailored to junior candidates, including soft skills, career planning, and digital communication
• Networking and live discussions with top managers, including a Board Member of the Bank
• Group workshops, creative tasks, chats, and feedback loops to ensure deep engagement
• Finalists received certificates, and the best participants were fast-tracked to the final hiring stage.

3. Target audience:

• Third-year and above university students and recent graduates
• English language proficiency at Intermediate level or higher

Interview with Credit Agricole and UGEN

Collaboration of UGEN and Credit Agricole Ukraine

What was your goal in collaborating with UGEN for the Credit Agricole Career Test Drive? What made UGEN the right choice?

Credit Agricole:
"Credit Agricole Bank, as an employer, has had a long-standing collaboration with UGEN through career events and engagement with young people and students. Our employees take part in webinars as speakers and join various activities. We’ve always appreciated UGEN’s creative approach and engaging formats — both for employers and for students. So when we needed to organize a dedicated event at our bank, the choice of partner was obvious."

2. Uniqueness of the Format and Program

What are the advantages of the chosen format (online + offline) for the company as an employer? How does it help attract young professionals to the organization?

Credit Agricole:
"We’re a socially responsible company that strives to contribute to society and support youth development. Since 2021, the Bank has run a paid internship program — Young Professionals — with 50 participants.

We must offer students something genuinely relevant and valuable. We share our expertise, but most importantly — we try to hear them.

So, when we started developing an online internship format, we knew our best focus group would be the students themselves — our core audience.

The main goal of the Career Test Drive was to run a crash test of our new product — an online internship platform where any student can register and complete an internship — while also introducing the Bank and sharing potential career opportunities.

At our Bank, we say: 100% Human, 100% Digital. We’re actively developing both channels of communication. This combination helps us connect more effectively with our audience and makes participation more accessible — letting students choose the best format. That’s why they had the chance to join both online and offline sessions."

What made this program unique and compelling? How did you maintain participant interaction and foster networking between them and company representatives?

UGEN:
"The concept of the project was truly unique. Participants first completed an educational block and then passed a test. Based on their results, we selected students and invited them to the bank’s office to act as a focus group and test the new online internship platform.

There was no direct messaging like ‘apply and get hired.’ Instead, we focused on creating interest through workshops and an offline event with top management — so that students would want to join. And it worked: every selected participant showed up. The central location may have contributed, but the format generated strong engagement.

We built interactivity through live workshops, chat-based communication, feedback collection, a selection test for the offline phase, and certificates for participants."

Did participants enjoy the project? Were they active and engaged?

UGEN:
"Yes — students were genuinely interested because the format was new to the market. The project ran during a busy season of student events, yet we still saw registrations from a wide range of academic backgrounds. All selected participants attended the offline session, which confirms both the relevance of the topic and the quality of engagement."

3. Employee Involvement as a Company Strength

What feedback did representatives of the bank share about their involvement in the program? What were the benefits of engaging employees in the project?

Credit Agricole:
“A large number of employees from different departments were involved in the implementation of the project, including webinar speakers who covered topics selected by students as interesting and relevant.

A Member of the Management Board responsible for Proximity Banking and the Branch Network also joined the offline meeting and personally connected with the younger generation — sharing his career journey and answering their most pressing questions.

The live conversation and thoughtful questions from students left a very positive impression.

During the offline session, working groups were formed, guided by colleagues from the HR Department, who led the crash test of the online internship platform.”

4. Participant Selection Process

How were participants selected for the project? What was the format, and which criteria were the most important for you?

Credit Agricole:
“Together with UGEN, we approached the participant selection process very seriously, as it was important for us to engage proactive and creative young people who want to drive change. That’s why motivation and creativity were the key selection criteria. During the project, our colleagues noted the high level of engagement and initiative demonstrated by the students.”

5. Results and Effectiveness

How did the project impact the company’s employer brand or recruitment efforts? Do you plan to run similar initiatives to achieve future HR goals?

Key results:

• 117,800+ reach
• 1,449 clicks on the registration form
• 279 registrations
• 89 registered passed the selection test
• 45 participants attended the offline event

Credit Agricole:
“It’s difficult to quantify the outcomes of this project, as it’s an investment in long-term results. We are planning a series of activities moving forward. Our goal was not to fill many vacancies — first and foremost, we wanted to provide more information about the Bank, connect with students, and run a test drive of our online internship platform.

What was truly valuable for us was receiving feedback on what needs improvement and learning what students find helpful and necessary.

We received essential suggestions on how to enhance the online internship. For example, it became clear that one of their key preferences is receiving information in video format and that adding subtitles is essential.

Let’s be honest: students today have many options, as many companies compete for their attention. The employer landscape is highly competitive. So when we received feedback like ‘this was one of the best events we’ve ever attended,’ that was the highest reward for us — one that goes beyond numbers or analytics.”

What is your overall comment on the collaboration with UGEN? What aspects of this partnership were most valuable for your company?

Credit Agricole:
“We would especially like to highlight UGEN’s approach to working with both employers and students, specifically:

• an individual approach, taking into account the specifics of our company’s operations and finding the best solutions
• consistent support at every stage and assistance with organization
• clear, smooth, and effective communication with your team throughout the process.”