Winter 2011
Inside the first ever Vanilla Magazine...
Getting Technical Vanilla’s NEW division
Top Tips
Create a great interview
Expert Advice
Law & Order from Black & White HR
Employer Focus
Infosystems the IT specialists
Plus much more...
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vanilla recruitment magazine - winter 2011
office • accounts call centre • managerial sales&marketing • industrial&technical
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Hello Hello and welcome to our new magazine! It’s a month of celebrations and bir thdays here at Vanilla Recruitment! Firstly, we are delighted to welcome you to the very first edition of Vanilla Magazine – a new quarterly e-magazine full of useful information, top tips and even the odd joke. The magazine launch is part of our 6th birthday celebrations and we hope that you find it an interesting read. The magazine is for you, so if you have any feedback or suggestions for future editions, we would love to hear them. Turning six is an exciting time for anyone – although it’s just a distant memory for most of us. It’s been a tough time for just about everyone over the past 12 months so we are delighted to announce a recent addition to the Vanilla family in the form of our Industrial and Technical division, headed up by our newest team member, Paul. Finally, I’d like to take this opportunity to thank all our clients and the dedicated and hard working staff at Vanilla who have all played such an important part in our success over the past six years. Thanks for being a part of Vanilla. We literally couldn't do it without you. We look forward to celebrating the next six years with you!
Eloise eshelton@vanillarecruitment.co.uk
Get in touch... Call us on 01858 898 058 or fax 01858 468 854 Email us at info@vanillarecruitment.co.uk or visit our website at www.vanillarecruitment.co.uk (you can also visit our blog by clicking the ‘news’ page on the site!) You can also follow us on twitter.com/vanilla_recruit or facebook.com/VanillaRecruitment and also linkedin.com/company/vanilla-recruitment-uk-ltd Please get in touch with your opinions, comments and general feedback. If you would like to contribute to future editions of the Vanilla Magazine we would love to hear from you.
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vanilla recruitment magazine - winter 2011
Inside the first ever Vanilla Magazine... Getting Technical Vanilla’s NEW division
Top Tips
Create a great interview
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Expert Advice
Law & Order from Black & White HR
Star Candidates
Our brightest and best
Employer Focus
Infosystems the IT specialists
Vanilla Notice Board What’s happening at Vanilla
Top Temps
Our great temps
Vanilla Lights
Bring a smile to your day Introducing Vanilla’s great team... Office Manager
Charlene Bennett
Office Support
Jackie Humphreys
cbennett@vanillarecruitment.co.uk
reception@vanillarecruitment.co.uk
Recruitment Manager Commercial Division
Senior Recruitment Consultant Commercial Division
Liz Seaton
Kathy Bakewell
lseaton@vanillarecruitment.co.uk
kbakewell@vanillarecruitment.co.uk
Recruitment Consultant Commercial Division
Recruitment Consultant Industrial & Technical Division
Sophie Rice
Paul Turner
srice@vanillarecruitment.co.uk Magazine Credits
pturner@vanillarecruitment.co.uk
All artwork, layout and design created by Nathan Shelton at Ant Creations Call 01858 462779 email nathan@antcreations.co.uk or visit www.antcreations.co.uk
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Going Technical Vanilla’s new division launched
2010 was a great year for Vanilla Recruitment which culminated with the launch of a new division last November headed by Paul Turner. As most of you will be aware we are based on St Mary’s Road in Market Harborough and currently specialise in commercial office based recruitment, including accounts, administration, call centre, sales and marketing and legal staff. However, the business has expanded to include recruitment in the industrial and technical sectors for the first time. Established in 2005, Vanilla was set up by Eloise Shelton following several years working in the recruitment industry in Leicester and Northampton. And, as our 6th anniversary of trading approached, we identified a need for a high quality recruitment service in the industrial and technical sector within Harborough and the surrounding areas.
With a high number of job losses and redundancies, the past year or two has been a tough time for the recruitment industry. However, we have managed to ride the storm and as the employment market has stabilised, Vanilla has gone from strength to strength. Now seems like the right time to expand into new recruitment sectors. The new industrial and technical division will be led by Paul Turner who has worked in this sector of recruitment since 2005. “I am really excited to be taking up a new position with such a forward thinking, independent company,” comments Paul. “With my experience in recruiting for jobs from warehouse staff and forklift drivers to logistic managers, I hope to bring something new to the team.” If you would like to lear n more about Vanilla’s Industrial and Technical division, including placing a job vacancy then please c a l l P a u l Tu r n e r o n 0 1 8 5 8 8 9 8 0 5 8 o r email pturner@vanillarecruitment.co.uk
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vanilla recruitment magazine - winter 2011
Making the most of the interview process Recruiting staff is a huge responsibility. The people who work in your organisation are central to its success - or failure. The interview is a key part of the selection process, but ultimately offers limited time to make such an important decision. So, how do you ensure that you use the time to make the right choice?
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An interview is an artificial situation and can be daunting for both interviewer and interviewee. Your aim is to get to know as much about the candidate as possible and this is most easily achieved if they feel comfor table and at ease. Give some thought to aspects of the interview prior to the process i.e. greeting the candidate, how you will set the tone and where they will wait.
We tend to talk more than we listen... Aim for the 80/20 principle:
80% listening 20% talking
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Getting the room layout right is crucial to creating an atmosphere of trust and openness. Interviewing from behind a desk can create a barrier so think carefully about where all parties will sit to create the environment that you want. Don’t forget to switch off phones or anything else that could be a d i s t ra c t i o n . Ensure that the room has some privacy as being interviewed in full view of an open office is disconcerting, even behind closed doors.
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The interview is one part of the process, but you have other tools at your disposal to help you get to know the candidate and plan the interview. One such tool is the CV. Don’t just use it for short listing. Re-read it prior to the interview and use it to help you formulate relevant questions.
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Getting the questions right is crucial and these should be planned carefully in advance. Make them relevant. Think about the skills, experience and aptitudes that you are looking for and structure your questions accordingly. Include open ended questions so the candidate can extend their answers.
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We tend to talk more than we listen, so try to rein this natural inclination in when interviewing. Aim for the 80/20 principle: 80% listening and 20% talking. Give the candidate the opportunity to demonstrate what they know and what they can bring to the role. If you want to take notes it is helpful to clarify this at the start of the interview.
Getting the questions right is crucial...these should be planned carefully in advance.
If you would like Vanilla to help with your interview process then please call us on 01858 898058. We can help with everything from advising on the right interview questions, to actually conducting the interviews on your behalf or alongside you. We can be there every step of the way if you need us.
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vanilla recruitment magazine - winter 2011
Expert advice from Black & White HR Avoiding Communications Breakdown When individuals take their employers to court they often do so because of broken down or weak communications. Their claims can seem irritating, opportunistic, or even fictitious - but at the hear t of them will be a fundamental breach of understanding between the parties. Whatever the outcome at court, the cost to an employer can be exorbitant, both from a financial point of view and in terms of impact on the morale of the whole business. An employer’s best defence - and one which serves a higher purpose in terms of employee engagement - is a performance framework which clarifies goals and expectations, identifies desirable outputs and behaviours, and captures objective appraisal from multiple sources. A framework like this demonstrates that the organisation really knows - and cares - how its people work and behave. It identifies areas of strength (which can be nurtured) and weakness (which can be addressed). It helps to promote equity and trust across the business. It also provides a complete record of diligent management which is something that the courts favour and view as consistent with good employment practice. Black & White HR work with companies to create performance frameworks that reflect the values and culture of the organisation. These frameworks are designed to motivate employees and to raise the bar on performance. A critical by-product of the frameworks is that they reduce the incidence of conflict and dispute and, accordingly, the likelihood of litigation. Contact us if you’d like to know more about how a performance framework can increase your organisational wellbeing. Ruth Johnson is MD of Black & White HR For more information and a great deal of other useful advice you can visit the website at w w w. b l a c k a n dwh i t e h r. c o m
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Vanilla have helped thousands of candidates over the years. That’s thousands of happy people who have hopefully landed their dream job! But we still have many, many great candidates who have registered with Vanilla and are still looking for the role that’s right for them. We think all our candidates are ‘stars’, but some stars shine that little brighter! Here are a few of the ‘brightest stars’ currently looking for work through Vanilla. If you think they could find their dream job within your company please get in touch and we will do our best to make it happen!
Janis
• Secretary/Administrator • Very quick at picking up new systems • Fast typist, Word and Excel Michael
• Administrator / Data Entry • Extremely accurate, great attention to detail • Fantastic telephone manner Marion
• PA / Secretary • Flexible and dedicated • Available immediately either full or part time To learn more about Vanilla’s ‘star candidates’ then please call Liz Seaton on 01858 898058 or email lseaton@vanillarecruitment.co.uk
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vanilla recruitment magazine - winter 2011
Employer Focus...
Infosystems The IT experts
Vanilla Recruitment work with companies across Northamptonshire, Leicestershire and Warwickshire. One of the great companies we work with is Infosystems.
Their Story Infosystems was formed in 1996 by its current Managing Director, David Evans. They are one of the Midlands’ leading independent IT resellers, working with clients all over the UK and the rest of the world. “Our success is based on providing cost effective solutions using high quality products and experienced, knowledgeable staff” says David. The company lead the way in providing :
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Fixed response equipment maintenance Unlimited telephone support Remote server management and fault diagnosis Technical consultation and systems development Routine visits to carry out preventative maintenance Routine, scheduled visits for non-mission critical housekeeping procedures Inventory Control to help track equipment on site Offsite backup storage Sickness or vacation cover for your IT staff All members of the team from technicians to designers are in-house, or in-house managed; and they sell tried and tested products that they know and use themselves. They have been Microsoft Gold Partners for the last 5 years. David says “Providing the right IT and web solutions needn’t be a complex and long-winded process, so we make sure it isn’t. At Infosystems we have the knowledge, experience, and expertise to deliver innovative solutions on time, and within budget, and that’s what our clients can expect.”
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Future Infosystems is a progressive, forward thinking company, and in this industry you cannot afford to rest on past achievements. ”Technology is constantly altering and improving, and we are too. We continually change, grow, and develop our business in response to the changing needs of our clients. This has lead to twelve years of successful business so far, and hopefully there will be many more to come.”
Working with Vanilla Based near Market Harborough, the company was keen to support a local recruitment company and forge a longer term recruitment partnership. Following a successful first meeting, Vanilla have now been working alongside David and his team for the past couple of years and have helped place several members of staff within the company. “We were looking to work with a local recruitment partner,” explains David. “We had a very productive initial meeting with Kathy Bakewell from Vanilla. Kathy took time to find out what we wanted and understood our recruitment problems and needs.” The practical input from Vanilla has included advising on advertising different positions within the company. We’ve also helped with the interview process, including tips on carrying out a successful interview. David sums up by saying “Vanilla really know their stuff and are very easy to work with. We‘ve used various different recruitment companies in the past but Vanilla stand out for us. A lot of the other companies we have used don’t really listen to what we want or pay proper attention to the job spec. They seem to send anyone for an interview, which is a waste of everyone’s time. Vanilla are different: they take the time to listen to what we are looking for and screen out people who would not be suitable. This way, we know that a candidate has already been vetted by the time they sit in front of us.” For more information and to arrange a meeting to find out how Infosystems can help your business call David and the team on 01455 201000 or you can visit their website at www.infosystems.co.uk If you would like your business featured in a f u t u re e d i t i o n o f t h e m a g a z i n e t h e n please call Vanilla on 01858 898058
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vanilla recruitment magazine - winter 2011
d r a o B e c i t o N Vanilla ny If you have a s to news or event anilla add to the V t time board for nex ow! just let us kn
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get r o f t Don’ ck the e to ch blog! lla Vani
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emp? t a Need iz on
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vanilla recruitment magazine - winter 2011
We are very lucky at Vanilla to have worked with so many ‘top temps’ over the years. We like to reward our most terrific temps with the title of ‘Temp of the Month’. It’s awarded for outstanding performance within the individual’s role, including excellent reliability, punctuality, standards of work and for going the extra mile within the temporary contract. Nominations are taken from Line Managers and Consultants of the temporary workers. So, if you have a Vanilla temporary employee you would like to nominate as a ‘top temp’ please contact Liz at lseaton@vanillarecruitment.co.uk Here are some previous winners of Vanilla’s ‘Temp of the Month’...
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Bring a smile to your day Interviewing for a job can cause us to say and do things that we regret. In each edition of the magazine we’ll share a few (anonymous) examples that made us smile at the Vanilla offices of ‘how not to succeed in a job interview’.
Q : "What are your weaknesses, what are you worst at?" A : "Ice skating. Never take me ice skating, I'll make a complete fool of myself." When the applicant was asked to tell some of her positive traits she paused and then said, “The only time that I get drunk is on the weekends!”
Q : (from the interviewee to the interviewer just after they shook hands to break the ice) "So, when are you due?"
A : "I'm not pregnant."
The candidate was asked what the biggest misconception his boss had about him? He said, “That I actually work 8 hours a day, whereas I am really on the internet surfing the web all the time.”
Q : "What are your assets?” A : "Well, I do own a bike." The candidate was asked to “tell us about a problem you had with a co-worker and how you resolved it?” He answered "The resolution was we were both fired." If you have any funny stories to share about your work disasters or interview calamities then let us know and they might just appear in the next edition of Vanilla Lights.
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