Recruiter - June 2017

www.recruiter.co.uk

Business intelligence for recruitment and resourcing professionals

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June 2017

INCORPORATING Recruitment Matters

In association with:

AWARDS 17/05/2017 14:34

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C R ONT ENT S 50

INCORPORATING Recruitment Matters

A

NEWS

05 And the winners are...

The full list of recipients of the Recruiter Awards 2O17 06 Joking in the same Wehn Germany’s unofficial comedy ambassador entertains the Recruiter Awards audience

D

18 THE BIG STORY The best of the best

Full coverage of the Recruiter Awards 2O17, sponsored by Anderson Group

36 Above board

07 Star recruit: Brendan Foster, GB athlete who is retiring from sports commentating 08 This was the month that was...

10 Contracts & Deals

B

TRENDS

12 Insight Reinventing the interview: has the time come to change?

15

Tech & Tools Removing bias from the recruitment process

C 16

17

36

Job boards go beyond their traditional remit

07 Celebratory tweets The Recruiter Awards Twitterfeed kept people up to date, while those who were there tweeted away merrily...

FEATURES

E COMMUNITY 43 44 45 47 48 50

Social Network The Workplace In-House Careers Business Advice Employability My brilliant recruitment career: Jennifer Letchet, The Montgomery Partnership 51 Recruitment Advertising 56 Movers & Shakers 57 Recruiter Contacts 58 The Last Word: Anna-Jane Niznikowska

58

INTERACTION Viewpoint Saif Nabih, managing director of Harvey Chase Soundbites

I M AG E S | I KO N / ISTO C K / RAFA BASTOS

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18/05/2017 15:21

Driving your success

by Microdec

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Winner Best Recruitment CRM

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16/05/2017 10:21

N E WS

UPDATE

WE LCO M E

LEADER

W

hen will a computer select a

Taking home the trophies

better candidate than a human?”

That question came up last week at an invigorating event I attended about Artificial Intelligence (AI). An eclectic

line-up of speakers contended, to an equally eclectic audience, that the capability for this scenario is already there. And it’s not only an issue of whether an AI-infused machine can make a better choice for a particular vacancy; in fact, even some very high-profile ‘slebs’ should be looking over

“Results for a given project are better when AI complements human efforts instead of replacing them”

their shoulders in connection with their own places in life. “[F1 driver] Lewis Hamilton’s job is potentially up for grabs,” warned Andy Campbell, Oracle’s EMEA strategy director at the event, held by professional

services and technical recruiter Rullion at LinkedIn’s London offices.

However, one speaker pointed out during the lively dialogue that research so far suggests that the results for a given project are better when AI complements human efforts instead of totally replacing them.

That makes sense, doesn’t it?

A look at our Recruiter Awards 2017

THIS YEAR’S RECRUITER AWARDS, sponsored by Anderson Group, saw 32 trophies handed out by the evening’s host, Germany’s (unofficial) comedy ambassador to the UK Henning Wehn (see overleaf for more on him). The following pages also give just a flavour of the night, as we share a few of the myriad tweets we received from the winners and attendees.

RECRUITER IMPACT AWARD WINNER: Rosaleen Blair, Founder and CEO, Alexander Mann Solutions BEST NEW AGENCY Sponsored by: Bishopsgate Pay WINNER: Primary Care People BEST JOB/CAREERS BOARD WINNER: CareersinAudit.com MOST EFFECTIVE BACK OFFICE OPERATION Sponsored by: Camino Partners HIGHLY COMMENDED: Nicoll Curtin WINNER: Gravitas Recruitment Group MOST EFFECTIVE RECRUITMENT MARKETING CAMPAIGN WINNER: IMPACT – Police Now in partnership with Tonic

winners in this issue reinforces the gut feeling that technology can’t completely replace the ‘wild card’ idiosyncrasies and empathy of humankind – and we’re all better for it. Congratulations to the 2017 winners.

MOST EFFECTIVE COMPLIANCE OPERATION Sponsored by: Itris WINNER: Charles Hunter Associates BEST RECRUITMENT AGENCY MARKETING TEAM WINNER: Fircroft BEST PUBLIC/THIRD SECTOR RECRUITMENT AGENCY Sponsored by: PF Jobs HIGHLY COMMENDED: Caritas Recruitment WINNER: Sanctuary Personnel

DeeDee Doke, Editor

BEST GRADUATE RECRUITMENT STRATEGY Sponsored by: FM World Jobs WINNER: Lloyds Banking Group with Capp & Co IM AGE | RAFA BASTOS

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Harmonic Group @HarmonicGroupHQ May 3 Thanks for a great night @RecruiterMag @RecruiterAwards & congrats to the winners!

BEST APPRENTICE/SCHOOL LEAVER RECRUITMENT STRATEGY HIGHLY COMMENDED: EGGER UK WINNER: Go North East with Gateshead College BEST CANDIDATE CARE WINNER: Recruiter Republic BEST CLIENT SERVICE Sponsored by: The Recruitment & Employment Confederation HIGHLY COMMENDED: Elements Talent Solutions WINNER: Sanctuary Personnel BEST CANDIDATE EXPERIENCE WINNER: SAP in partnership with The Chemistry Group and GameSparks BEST BANKING/FINANCIAL SERVICES RECRUITMENT AGENCY Sponsored by: RBS WINNER: Kite Consulting Group BEST CONSTRUCTION & ENGINEERING RECRUITMENT AGENCY Sponsored by: CIBSE Jobs WINNER: CarmichaelUK BEST INTERNATIONAL RECRUITMENT AGENCY Sponsored by: Squire Patton Boggs WINNER: ICP Search BEST IT/TECHNOLOGY RECRUITMENT AGENCY Sponsored by: QX Recruitment Services WINNER: Annapurna Recruitment BEST PROFESSIONAL SERVICES RECRUITMENT AGENCY WINNER: TTM Healthcare continued on p6 WWW.RECRUITER.CO.UK 5

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UPDATE

BEST TEMPORARY RECRUITMENT AGENCY HIGHLY COMMENDED: Gap Personnel Holdings WINNER: Sanctuary Personnel MOST EFFECTIVE EMPLOYER BRAND DEVELOPMENT WINNER: LV= in partnership with ThirtyThree RECRUITMENT TECHNOLOGY INNOVATION OF THE YEAR HIGHLY COMMENDED: SAP WINNER: Unilever in partnership with Amberjack IN-HOUSE INNOVATION IN RECRUITMENT WINNER: SAP’s Innovative Assessment Strategy – SAP in partnership with The Chemistry Group and GameSparks OUTSTANDING OUTSOURCED RECRUITMENT ORGANISATION WINNER: Pertemps RECRUITMENT AGENCY OF THE YEAR MICRO (UP TO 10 EMPLOYEES) HIGHLY COMMENDED: Venari Partners WINNER: JDR Energy RECRUITMENT AGENCY OF THE YEAR SMALL (11-49 EMPLOYEES) Sponsored by: Anderson Choice HIGHLY COMMENDED: Green Park WINNER: Kite Consulting Group

Volcanic @volcanicuk May 3 WOW! Our CEO @ robert_wilde wins recruitment industry entrepreneur of the year at the @ RecruiterAwards 2017!

RECRUITMENT AGENCY OF THE YEAR MEDIUM (50 - 249 EMPLOYEES) Sponsored by: CV Library HIGHLY COMMENDED: Goodman Masson WINNER: Investigo RECRUITMENT AGENCY OF THE YEAR MEDIUM (250+ EMPLOYEES) WINNER: Search Consultancy RECRUITMENT INDUSTRY SUPPLIER OF THE YEAR WINNER: Amberjack

AGENCY RECRUITMENT LEADER OF THE YEAR Sponsored by: The Planner Jobs HIGHLY COMMENDED: James Gorfin – G2V WINNER: Leon Howgill – Advanced Resource Managers

34,812 FOLLOWERS AS OF 18 MAY 2017

Carrying on in Wehn

BY GRAHAM SIMONS

HENNING WEHN – the self-styled ‘German comedy ambassador’ – has told Recruiter he is resentful of German comedians coming over to the UK taking over British people’s observational comedy jobs.

Speaking ahead of his set immediately before presenting the Recruiter Awards 2017, Wehn joked: “From a foreign perspective – I think it’s outrageous! Coming over here, taking our observational comedy jobs – terrible!”

Wehn’s surprising attitude to his fellow Germans may stem from fact he has been in the UK for a decade and a half, and he is proud of the way he has successfully integrated into British life, citing a recent set in Bolton as an example of this.

“Recently I did a gig ‘oop North’ and I got heckled with a wonderful line – ‘[head] off back to London’,” Wehn told the Grosvenor House Hotel audience.

“The exact words were – ‘[go] back to London you cockney w**ker’. I’ve arrived – all of that listening to Chas ‘n’ Dave finally paid off !”

But while confident in his Britishness, Wehn cannot say the same about the precariousness of his livelihood, revealing as he is self-employed, he has no guaranteed income.

“It’s all going very well – I’m a little bit on the radio – I’m a little bit on the telly – I’ve been asked to perform here this evening, so it’s all going incredibly well at the moment.

“But I’m fully aware that it only takes one, misguided [faux pas] on live television and whoo! Right down the pole again. It’s a very fickle business this – a very fickle business!”

IN-HOUSE RECRUITMENT LEADER OF THE YEAR Sponsored by: APM Careers HIGHLY COMMENDED: Matthew Jeffery – SAP WINNER: Kesh Ladwa – Warwickshire Police and West Mercia Police RECRUITMENT INDUSTRY ENTREPRENEUR OF THE YEAR HIGHLY COMMENDED: Brian Crowley - TTM Healthcare WINNER: Rob Wilde – Volcanic BEST IN-HOUSE RECRUITMENT TEAM Sponsored by: Recruiter Jobs HIGHLY COMMENDED: SAP – SAP Employment Brand and Sourcing Team WINNER: KIMS Hospital

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IMAG ES | RAFA BASTOS

Find more daily news stories at recruiter.co.uk/news 18/05/2017 15:35

N E WS

UPDATE TWEETS ON THE AWARDS

James Ballard @JamesAnnapurna May 2 The night before the @recruiterawards is like a Xmas eve for grown ups.

Really looking forward to tomorrow’s celebration of excellence!

Amberjack @weareamberjack May 4 Amberjack Triumphs at Recruiter Awards 2017 Wins for Supplier of the Year and Technology Innovation of the Year.

Search Consultancy @SearchRecruits May 3 WE WON! Search Consultancy is Best Recruitment Agency of the Year (Large) at the #recruiterawards. YEAH! Jodie Rafferty @RaffertyRes May 4 @editordeedee & her #Trailblazers! Thank you for inviting me, it truly was an honour to be your guest. Thank you so much #recruiterawards

Energize @Energize_Rec May 4 Fantastic evening @ RecruiterAwards congratulations to @ InvestigoLtd and @ RecRepublic on their well-deserved success! #recruiterawards

Tonic @TonicTweeting May 3 High five @Police_Now Most Effective Recruitment Campaign at the @RecruiterAwards 2017

Leon Howgill @leondonhowgill May 3 Can’t believe I’ve won Recruitment Leader of the year! Couldn’t have done it without amazing support from @kelleehowgill and the ARM team Sanctuary Personnel @SanctuaryLtd May 3 What an unbelievable treble at the #RecruiterAwards Best public sector agency Best client service Best temporary agency

Jo Finnerty Recruit @JoanneFinnerty May 3 @henningwehn great to meet you at the awards tonight, good job! @ editordeedee #recruiterawards

I M AG E / G E T TY

STA R RECRUIT STUART HATTON, MANAGING DIRECTOR AT THE CREWING COMPANY, GIVES A FEW POTENTIAL JOB ROLES SUITED TO BRENDAN FOSTER, WHO RECENTLY ANNOUNCED HIS RETIREMENT FROM ATHLETICS COMMENTARY. “Brendan ‘Big Bren’ Foster is most famous for his gold and bronze medal winning long-distance running career, followed by almost 40 years as a BBC Sport commentator.

His success in the Olympics

and Commonwealth Games, and European Championships cemented his standing in the sports community, leading him to become one of the most recognisable voices in the industry.

“As a diehard Newcastle United fan, Brendan could put his sporting knowledge to use at St James’ Park, stomping ground of The Magpies.

With rich experience in the commentating and presenting world of sport,

we could see him taking over United’s popular digital home for content – NUFC TV. “Alternatively, Big Bren could put his lesser-known talents to use in the world of chemistry. Before his sports career took off, he was a chemistry teacher, and even taught former Hull FC boss Phil Brown! We think he would be fantastic teaching the periodic table, as he is familiar with the elements for gold (Au) and silver (Ag)!”

FalconGreen @FalconGreenUK May 3 Europe’s fastest growing recruiter @FalconGreenUK having a fabulous night @ RecruiterAwards congrats all!!

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THIS WAS THE MONTH THAT WAS… Here is a round-up of some of the most popular news stories we have brought you on recruiter.co.uk since the May issue of Recruiter was published A P R I L •‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒‒→

FRI, 21 APRIL 2017

T H U, 2 7 A P R I L 2 0 1 7

DP CONNECT IN MBO

SPORTS DIRECT STAFFING SUPPLIER TRANSLINE FACES ADMINISTRATION

Technology sector recruitment and outsourced IT specialist DP Connect has undergone a management buy-out.

The Bromley-headquartered agency, which also has operations in Cambridge and Edinburgh, has been acquired by current managing director Aidan Anglin from founder Toni Cocozza.

Anglin, who joined five years ago as an adviser to the board, subsequently becoming MD, will work with DP Connect’s existing management team, with support from Cocozza in an advisory capacity, to further develop and scale-up the business.

Anglin told Recruiter in a statement: “We intend to use this new investment to accelerate our existing growth plans in the years to come to ensure we can maximise our geographic reach and stay at the forefront of the advances in technology and skills that will benefit our clients.

“This will provide a stronger platform for our outstanding team, which we aim to grow in line with our continual development, and fulfil their potential,” he added.

More: http://bit.ly/2qitBtx

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TUE, 25 APRIL 2017

RECRUITMENT IS MOST CONNECTED INDUSTRY ON LINKEDIN

Labour procurer Transline has filed a notice of intention to appoint administrators.

Explaining the reason for the move, Transline said the notice had been filed to protect the business, while it is seeking to secure inward investment to enable it to continue operations.

In a company statement, Transline said: “The company has suffered as a result of a continued move to tighter margins in the recruitment industry. We are close to securing inward investment that will allow us to drive forward with continued growth and infrastructure development, and have lodged the Notice of Intention to protect the business, our employees and our customers as we complete this process.

Recruitment professionals are more connected on LinkedIn than people working in any other industry sector, according to data from the professional network.

At the end of April, LinkedIn announced it had reached 500m members worldwide, including 23m in the UK, while London is the most connected city worldwide.

But data, released to Recruiter, also confirms the staffing and recruiting sector is the most connected industry on LinkedIn, with recruitment professionals boasting 702 connections on average, followed by venture capital and private equity professionals with 423 connections, and HR with 380 connections on average.

“The welfare of our staff and our relationships with our customers are of paramount importance, and we are continuing our service and operations as normal. We expect to hear more regarding potential trading investments imminently.”

The BBC reports the move gives Transline 10 days to find a solution to its funding problems.

More: http://bit.ly/2ozzy5B

More: http://bit.ly/2qImQSK

IM AGES | GET T Y / ISTOCK / RO B C L AY TO N

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Winners of the 2017 Recruiter Awards revealed

The winners of the 2017 Recruiter Awards, sponsored by Anderson Group, can now be revealed, following the gala awards evening at London’s Grosvenor House Hotel on 3 May. The evening, hosted by German comedian Henning Wehn, saw a total of 31 awards taken home by individuals and organisations operating across all areas of recruitment.

Rosaleen Blair (right), founder and CEO of Alexander Mann Solutions, won the inaugural Recruiter Impact Award, while multiple award winners included Amberjack, Sanctuary Personnel and SAP. (See the full list of winners on p5-6.)

More: http://bit.ly/2qiryp9

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DAYS

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TUE, 9 MAY 2017

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ASPERGER’S EMPLOYMENT CASE HIGHLIGHTS CAUTION WITH MULTIPLE-CHOICE TESTING

RECRUITER CONVICTED FOR SELLING DRUGS TO FRIENDS TO FUND HABIT

A new wrinkle has occurred in the ongoing legal saga of Healthcare Locums founder Kate Bleasdale.

A judge has extended the period of bankruptcy of Kate Bleasdale, founder of healthcare recruiter Healthcare Locums and her husband John Cariss, citing their failure to co-operate with the trustee appointed by the official receiver to take control of their assets and make payments to creditors.

Saying that Bleasdale was having “difficulty adjusting her lifestyle” in light of “straitened circumstances”, Deputy District Court Judge McConnell cited privately obtained cosmetic dental work and monthly rent of nearly £5k as concerns raised by trustees as evidence that further investigations were warranted.

It also emerged in Kingston County Court on Thursday that Bleasdale is suffering from a brain tumour.

Handing down his judgement to give the trustee in bankruptcy Joanne Milner a further 18 months to look into the couple’s financial circumstances and business affairs at Kingston County Court, Judge McConnell said: “The trustee had not received the type of co-operation they were entitled to expect.”

He added: “The approach of the respondents should change.”

In delivering his judgement at Kingston County Court to extend the period of bankruptcy for a further 18 months (although it could end earlier if Bleasdale and Cariss co-operate), Judge McConnell, said: “The respondents say ‘There is no money’ but I am satisfied that further investigations [by the trustee] are warranted.”

Recruiters have been warned to tread carefully if using multiple-choice testing when hiring, so as not to discriminate against candidates with autism.

The warning follows a recent tribunal ruling involving a woman with Asperger’s syndrome, who was found to have been discriminated against during the recruitment process for the Government Legal Service (GLS).

The candidate – Terri Brookes, who represented herself – was asked to take a situational judgement test as part of the initial stage of her application. Brookes asked to be allowed to submit short written answers to the questions as she claimed the multiple-choice format of the test placed her at a disadvantage.

While the GLS made time allowances for Brookes, she was not provided with an alternative test format, with the GLS arguing that the testing was a proportionate method for determining the best candidates for the position.

Brookes subsequently took the multiple-choice test in July 2015 but scored 12 out of a possible 22, two less than the passing mark of 14, and her application failed. Evidence provided to the tribunal showed that of the small number of applicants to have declared themselves as having Asperger’s and taken the test, just one had passed.

An employment tribunal ruled last year ruled there was no other identifiable reason to explain why Brookes had failed the test, other than her disability, and by being asked to take the test as it stood, the GLS had indirectly discriminated against her.

A recruitment consultant, who admitted in court to supplying cocaine to friends to help fund his own drug habit, has been fired after going AWOL, according to his former boss.

As reported by the Bristol Post, Bristol Crown Court heard that Charles Godsell, who according to his LinkedIn profile was most recently a senior recruitment consultant at Opus Recruitment Solutions, was arrested after police received a tip-off and knocked on his door in North Street, Nailsea, South-West of Bristol.

He pleaded guilty to possessing cocaine with intent to supply and possessing the prescription tranquiliser

More: http://bit.ly/2pTgYpd

More: http://bit.ly/2r94j1v

More: http://bit.ly/2qjLmbi

TUE, 2 MAY 2017

‘FURTHER INVESTIGATIONS WARRANTED’ IN LATEST BLEASDALE COURT ISSUE

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diazepam. Godsell was given a two-year suspended jail sentence.

Commenting on Godsell’s conviction, Opus CEO Darren Ryemill told Recruiter Godsell had only worked at the agency for around a week and had failed to disclose he was facing an impending court case when he was hired.

“He was with us for such a short period of time. None of this happened while he was with Opus. We have a ‘no tolerance’ policy of drugs within the business.”

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CONTRACTS

CONTRACTS & DEALS Workday Construction and concession company Eiffage has chosen to deploy enterprise cloud applications provider Workday’s Workday Human Capital Management (HCM) software. Using the system, Eiffage will have one cloudbased HR system that will aim to help streamline business processes, drive efficiencies, and enable more informed decision-making based on real-time data.

BIE Executive The executive leadership team of interim management specialist BIE Executive has completed a management buyout of the business. The MBO, led by CEO Rob Walker, sees the agency buy out the shares previously held by banking giant Barclays.

Affecto Recruitment Yorkshire-based technology recruiter Affecto Recruitment has agreed a deal to help telematics company The Floow double its technical workforce over the coming months, adding an additional 40-60 new technical hires.

Hydrogen Global specialist recruitment group Hydrogen has merged with international multifunctional specialist recruiter Argyll Scott. Hydrogen revealed it has entered into a conditional agreement to complete the acquisition via the issue of 9m consideration shares, or roughly 27% of its enlarged share capital, in a bid to create a “multi-brand recruitment group” operating across multiple functions, industries and countries. The deal also sees Argyll Scott CEO John Hunter join the board of the enlarged group as executive director responsible for further developing the group’s businesses in APAC and the US. Hydrogen Group CEO Ian Temple continues as CEO of the enlarged group, with primary responsibility for defining the group’s strategy.

Positive Recruitment Solutions (PRS) Warrington-based industrial, logistics, marketing and public relations recruiter Positive Recruitment Solutions (PRS) has its sights set on expansion following the agreement of a new finance facility worth £650k with specialist bank Aldermore. The firm, founded three years ago, which also has offices in Warrington, Rugby and Bristol, says the funding facility would enable it to maintain its early growth by enabling it to expand into new industries.

Staffline Staffing services, outsourcing, training and employability organisation Staffline has acquired Scottish-based drinks, warehousing, manufacturing and distribution sector staffing specialist Brightwork. Staffline says it expects the acquisition to be earnings neutral in the current year and funded out of existing resources. Brightwork CEO Derek May will continue in his role.

Vacancy Filler North Essex’s Felsted School has chosen Vacancy Filler’s cloudbased online recruitment software as its applicant tracking system in a bid to streamline its recruitment and selection process. Felsted, a day and boarding school for boys and girls, needed a more efficient method of recruiting rather than the manual system. The school employs around 600 members of staff and recruits more than 90 times a year.

DEAL OF THE MONTH

Change Recruitment Specialist international recruiter Change Recruitment has been acquired by recruitment business The Head Group, owned by venture capitalist and investor Paul Atkinson, for an undisclosed sum.

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The firm revealed the transaction would see all staff retained, bringing together four recruitment names in one business.

The Head Group will now comprise four distinct

businesses: Head Resourcing, Head Medical, Atkinson MacLeod Executive Search (formed earlier this year) and Change Recruitment, each of which will continue to operate under its own brand.

The deal also sees Atkinson take the role of group executive chairman, while Head Group financial director Callum Lyle assumes the role of chief operating officer at The Head Group.

More contract news at recruiter.co.uk/news 18/05/2017 14:06

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TRE NDS

INSIGHT

REINVENTING INTERVIEWING To recruit exceptional talent, employers have to challenge both their assumptions and established recruitment norms – and the interview itself needs significant reinvention

BY MERVYN DINNEN AND MATT ALDER

T

organisations and normally involves inviting the candidate into their office to take part in an interview with a hiring manager or recruiter who is at another of the company’s office locations. The interview is conducted via telepresence or similar. While there may be some time and cost benefits, this method is often more to do with the convenience of the employer than that of the candidate.

1. On-site video interviewing This technique is mainly used by larger

2. Live video interviewing This is popular with a lot of employers and is the technique most companies reference when asked for their definition of video interviewing.

The interviewer and the candidate take part in a two-way remote video conversation where physical location is unimportant. Mutual convenience is a key driver here. In most cases this doesn’t really represent any kind of significant disruption of the norm; it

he rise of video interviewing is an interesting example of the difficulties and advantages of disrupting long-entrenched recruiting behaviours.

The recruitment industry takes a while to embrace new technology and the idea of using video to enhance parts of the traditional interviewing process is certainly not new. In its annual member survey in late 2016, The Forum for In-house Recruitment Managers (The FIRM) revealed that the use of video interviewing among members had grown from 22% in 2014 to 31% in 2016.

The following three types of video interviewing represent the most popular applications of the technology among employers:

Video interviewing products are certainly not for every employer or every recruitment challenge – there are valid arguments why recruiters don’t want to implement this 12 RECRUITER

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is just taking the traditional face-toface interview and moving it to a new medium.

3. Asynchronous/on-demand/ recorded video interviewing This technique is the main source of the disruption we are seeing in established interviewing practice. As the products in this market segment mature, they are becoming more sophisticated and offer a number of additional associated automated assessment tools. This is such a key trend that market leader HireVue now refers to its product as ‘digital interviewing’ rather than ‘video interviewing’.

Asynchronous interviewing allows candidates to video themselves answering a list of recruiter-provided questions at a time that suits them.

From a recruiter’s point of view, they can watch, review and assess the videos whenever and however many times they want and share them internally.

Of members of The FIRM surveyed in late 2016, 12% were using asynchronous video interviewing as part of their strategy.

Not for everyone Although the speed of adoption of video interviewing among employers IM AGE | IKON

18/05/2017 14:07

And when it comes to assessment, challenges to traditional ways of recruitment thinking are being complemented by a potent mix of technology innovation, analytics and machine learning that is allowing companies to implement new thinking about assessment at scale in very interesting and effective ways.

One key emerging trend here is the analysis of micro expressions.

Micro expressions are fractional facial

KEY BENEFITS TO VIDEO INTERVIEWING

1

Better-quality candidates.

Video interviewing provides the opportunity to assess both hard and soft skills at a much earlier point of the process, which allows the best candidates to be put through to the next stage more quickly.

2

Time saving and efficiency.

There are enormous efficiency gains by having a video interview to view, instead of facing the hassle of co-ordinating diaries for interviews and dealing with no-shows. By speeding up the interviewing process, recruiters can be free to interview a higher number of candidates in less time, ensuring the right candidates are getting through to the next stage.

3

↗

Adding in assessment

movements that only last 1/15 to 1/25 of a second. They can be used to read the true emotions a person is feeling in terms of amusement, contempt, embarrassment, anxiety, guilt, pride, relief, contentment, pleasure and shame. As it is impossible to fake or alter micro expressions, they are seen as an effective way of judging personality.

The rise of video interviewing is giving companies the opportunity to develop software that analyses micro expressions to bring an extra data point to the assessment process. An example is Dutch company Clear Water Report, which has developed a machinelearning algorithm that analyses micro expressions quickly and at scale.

Video interviewing provider HireVue is combining micro expressions with team performance data to bring genuine predictive analytics to hiring.

It is evident that talent acquisition is evolving quickly, and well-established norms are under constant challenge. ●

Transparency and consistency in the recruitment process.

One of the most critical upsides for asynchronous video interviewing. The questions and process are the same for each candidate, providing a standardised, structured and transparent interview that ensures fairness.

This in turn provides an easier and fairer way to compare and score candidates.

MERVYN DINNEN is a talent analyst, advising recruitment and HR technology businesses on emerging trends affecting hiring, retention and engagement

This extract is adapted from Exceptional Talent by Mervyn Dinnen and Matt Alder © 2017 and is reproduced with permission from Kogan Page Ltd.

↗

is growing, it is still not a mainstream technique. Video interviewing products are certainly not for every employer or every recruitment challenge and there are many valid arguments as to why recruiters don’t want to implement this way of working. However, there are also objections based on misunderstanding or protectionism that are preventing some employers from reaping the benefits of this kind of approach.

This dichotomy encapsulates the challenge for companies recruiting exceptional talent: on the one hand, it is vitally important to question assumptions and recruiting norms to gain competitive advantage through technology; on the other, it is important to evaluate new approaches, technologies and products to ensure there is true benefit beyond the marketing spin. Either way, the companies that are experiencing the upside of video interviewing demonstrate the advantages that can be gained from challenging recruitment and assessment norms.

MATT ALDER is a strategic consultant focusing on recruitment marketing, employer branding and HR technology

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T R E N DS

TECH & TOOLS

Inclusive technology Removing bias from the recruitment process SUE WEEKES

Data collected during the recruitment process can play a central part in informing a diversity & inclusion (D&I) strategy, but too many organisations are still not exploiting this information.

According to Sandrine Cina, CEO and founder of the platform Includeed that aims to help improve D&I, 40% of companies do not collect diversity data for several reasons: because they believe it is too difficult to do so, they think it’s not necessary or they shouldn’t for ethical reasons.

“But how can we reach parity if we do not measure how far we are from it?” she says. A new generation of tools aim to help agency and direct recruiters remove bias from recruitment processes and, in doing so, add value to the service they provide to clients or their organisations, respectively.

WHAT DO YOU WANT TO DO? Unlike, say, candidate relationship management systems (CRMs) or applicant tracking systems (ATS), which have broadly similar functionality, platforms that focus on promoting diversity or removing bias don’t fall in one tidy category. They also will vary in terms of what they do and how they work (see below). So decide what you want to achieve, as there may be a particular D&I issue that the organisation wants to address. Undertake a broad survey of what is available as this may also spark ideas and alert you to something you didn’t know was possible.

Comparison articles are

unlikely to exist, so try to source case studies or talk to tools’ existing users. There is no substitute for thorough research.

THE BUSINESS CASE There is a growing body of research that demonstrates inclusive workforces deliver bottom line benefits.

Raphael Mokades is founder and managing director of Rare, developer of the Contextual Recruitment System (CRS) that aims to remove unconscious bias from recruitment practices.

Mokades says research shows that companies in the top quartile for racial and ethnic diversity produce better returns than their peers and believes this will increase investment in this field. “It is a high-growth,

high-demand area for City firms, with employers increasingly aware of the benefits of using big data in their hiring practices,” he says. “The law firms, in particular, are ahead of the curve in this area, with all of the Magic Circle signed up to Rare’s CRS.”

PRESERVE THE HUMAN TOUCH D&I can be surrounded by a host of sensitive issues.

Cina explains that while technology enables us to put distance between individuals in a way that can “protect us from biases”, it is a mistake to completely remove people from what is “intrinsically human”.

“We should not forget that at the end of the day, it is

HOW DOES TECHNOLOGY REMOVE BIAS AND INCREASE DIVERSITY? Data is typically captured from candidate or employee interviews or staff surveys and input into the system. Algorithms then analyse the data and provide information that will help organisations make better decisions when it comes to D&I. Business intelligence software can be programmed to provide such information but dedicated products such as Includeed and Rare have been designed from the ground up to tackle D&I issues.

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the human-to-human relationship that counts and that has to be bias-free and inclusive,” she says. “We won’t replace humans with robots, so we need to work hard on improving our people’s capacity to remove their biases and proactively create inclusive environments around them.”

CAN THE TECHNOLOGY BE TRUSTED? Yes, as long as you understand exactly what you are going to get from the platform. This means understanding what data it is measuring and analysing. For instance, Rare’s CRS uses two measures: academic outperformance (how well a person has outperformed others in their cohort) and disadvantage (such as whether a person is the first to go to university in their family). “AAB at

A Level is arguably not a meaningful data point on its own but the same grades from a school where the average grades were DDE, and from a postcode with high levels of deprivation, clearly is,” says Mokades.

“It means you’ve got a gritty, resilient over-achiever on your hands, who you probably want to interview.”

AVOID THE SILO APPROACH Understanding what technology is available and the importance of data can help recruiters take a much more proactive stance when it comes to D&I. However, Cina points out, there is a danger that D&I remains the responsibility of the diversity or HR department. She recommends infusing D&I into every department. “And start leveraging true ROI of your diversity investments,” she says. “An inclusive and transparent work culture and environment is key to 70% of jobseekers.

Communicate on your data to win talent over.”

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C

INTE R AC TIO N

VIEWPOINT

Reversing the negatives Bringing back the noble in recruitment

BY SAIF NABIH

hen you take recruitment, and look at it through a microscope, what you actually find is a very noble and altruistic profession, whereby a successful placement for you means somebody in a job they love and a person earning a living. They may have been out of work for a while, struggling financially, or looking for a break to get them into an industry they have a real passion for.

And you are the person that made that happen.

So, this begs the question: when a recruiter makes a call to a prospect [prospective client], why are they faced with such hostility and disdain? Why is the phrase “Are you a recruiter?” spewed so venomously back at them like a sip of spoiled milk?

Recruiters are often made to feel like criminals at the very mention of their profession. Something just doesn’t add up.

When I call a prospect, it means hours of work have selected them as the right company for my candidate, who has gone through a series of in-depth assessments and a CV analysis. The lucky company should be jumping for joy that I’ve saved them days of work searching for the perfect person to fill their vacancy.

What I face instead is the result of a legacy left by recruiters who don’t value candidates the same way I and

W

+ SAIF NABIH is managing director of recruitment firm Harvey Chase

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“Recruiters are made to feel like criminals at the very mention of their profession”

many others value them, but recruiters who deal with those looking for work like they are dispensable commodities for their own gain.

No wonder we have the dreaded gatekeepers with their bad attitudes and their PSLs [preferred supplier lists]. They’re only trying to protect their company’s time and money from being wasted. Endless calls offering barely suitable candidates for a 20% fee are bound to take their toll eventually.

So how do we change this? It all starts with examining the process. What is employment? Since it’s a place where you spend the majority of your waking life, it may as well be suited to your individual strengths and interests.

Just as the client has paper qualifications that they require from candidates, the candidate also requires a certain level of life satisfaction. Where we decide to place candidates could have the power to drastically alter their lives and levels of happiness, especially if they stay in that role for a while.

It’s proven that when people are happier at work, they perform better. Better performing employees mean higher profit margins, and in turn, repeat business for the recruiter.

It’s a positive cycle, and one that I think will transform our collective reputation for the better. Meeting candidates in person, asking probing questions and exploring their life ambitions are a few techniques we can all use to deliver impeccable pairings between companies and candidates.

The truth is, reversing negative associations of the industry will have positive effects on all of us, paving the road to a better future for everyone involved.

IMAGE | ISTOCK

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I N T E R AC T I O N

SOUNDBITES

WEB CH AT

LABOUR’S AMBIGUITY IN OVERSEAS HIRING I just read your story about recruiters’ responses to the leaking of the Labour manifesto (‘Recruiters voice concerns over leaked Labour Party Manifesto’, 12 May).

I thought it was interesting that the manifesto included a pledge to “stop employers recruiting only from overseas”.

In Labour’s manifesto for the 2015 general election (under Ed Miliband), the wording was: “We will ban recruitment agencies from hiring only from overseas.”

2015: emphasis on recruitment agencies. 2017: emphasis on employers.

Recruiters will understand this is an important difference.

Of course, it could simply be an issue of mistaken wording, given that the document is a draft. But it also might be deliberately ambiguous, especially as earlier this year, Jeremy Corbyn himself made negative references to ‘Agency Britain’.

CALUM ROBSON

LEAKED LABOUR MANIFESTO BAD FOR BUSINESS There is nothing in this leaked document that gives the recruitment industry any sign of a prosperous future under a Labour government. Higher personal and company tax will drive away business and talent meaning fewer jobs and therefore produce less tax income. Add that to a huge borrowing programme and you have a recipe for a very damaging few years for the UK. Labour has once again shown that they are not capable of governing the UK. Luckily, it would seem that even die-hard, traditional Labour supporters can see the madness in this Manifesto and therefore the chances of a Labour government being elected is very slim indeed.

But we do need a strong opposition and in that sense it is a shame to see what the strong far left is doing to the Labour Party. This is being driven by Corbyn and his left-wing supporters, and the unions that would like to see Corbyn in charge for obvious reasons.

Shame on them.

PHIL HARMSWORTH, DIRECTOR, THE WORK SHOP RECRUITMENT

Everyone knows recruitment is a stressful business, so what are your best stress busters?

GARETH JONES D IREC TOR , WAV E S EA RCH

“The team at Wave Search like to take full advantage of the fantastic Playroom on-site at Discovery Park [a science and technology space at Sandwich, Kent where Wave is situated]. We often have a competitive game of table tennis or pool, sink a few balls on the golf putting green or fly some cars around the Scalextric track! It’s a great way to unwind and release some of the stress that comes with the highs and lows in recruitment.

We also have some very cool pods to relax in, take a break from the phones and refocus for the rest of the day!”

STEVE O’BRIEN OP ER AT I ON S D I REC TOR , IN I VO

“Temporary recruitment is fast paced and can indeed be stressful at all levels. At Inivo, we believe in providing benefits that support the well-being of all our staff. This includes an extra week’s holiday, free gym membership and even free fruit in the office. These aren’t just perks, but part of our ethos to support a healthy team who will in turn reward us and our clients. In fact, it’s part of the reason why our average employee length of service is now over two and a half years and almost zero absence.”

PAUL RIDLEY S A L ES A N D OP ER AT ION S D I REC TOR , ORI O N G RO U P

“Stress affects people in various ways so it’s important we have a range of stress busters to cater for its diverse manifestations. We have a shower room, so staff can pound the pavements or take their bike for a spin at lunchtime before having a cool down. And the company has an open-door management policy so anyone can ‘let it all go’ and help bring logic back to the situation and an understanding management team that has been through the stress of running a desk and are able to listen, understand, empathise and support. If all else fails, a beer is not far away!”

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18/05/2017 14:13

THE BIG STORY

In association with:

AWARDS

CELEBRATING THE BEST OF THE BEST On 3 May, around 1,000 recruitment professionals and their guests headed for London’s Grosvenor House Hotel in Mayfair to be a part of the 2017 Recruiter Awards, sponsored by Anderson Group. Read on to see more details on some of the winners – and start getting your entries ready for 2018!

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IMAG ES | RAFA BASTOS

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RECRUITER AWARDS 2017

TAKING SANCTUARY IN SUCCESS Colin Cottell looks beneath the success of triple Recruiter Award winning public sector agency Sanctuary Personnel and delves into how the recruiter has achieved what it has thus far WITH THE PUBLIC SECTOR continuing to be hit hard by austerity you might expect James Rook, managing director of Sanctuary Personnel, to be despondent. “Any recruiter in health and social care would be lying if they said the last 12 months haven’t had real pressure,” he acknowledges.

However, he continues, “there is need in the market, we are still growing and very much enjoying it, and a lot of recruitment companies are doing well”.

And few are doing quite so well as Sanctuary Personnel itself, winner of not one but three accolades at the Recruiter Awards held in London recently. In addition to Best Client Service, the agency, headquartered in Ipswich, picked up Awards for Best Temporary Recruitment Agency and Best Public Sector/Third Sector Recruitment Agency.

“On a Sunday night I look forward

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Sanctuary’s MD James Rook (centre) picks up the award for Best Temporary Agency

JUNE 2017

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RECRUITER AWARDS 2017

James Rook (centre) collects another of three awards on the night, this time for Best Public Sector/Third Sector Agency

employee turnover, combined with treating and rewarding people as individuals. “The most exciting thing is seeing staff achieve things they thought they couldn’t achieve,” he says.

Client understanding

to coming to work. I work with great people, I enjoy it, I am passionate about it. I am a very lucky man,” says Rook, who joined Sanctuary Personnel in 2006 after a career that included stints at Allied Health Care and Pulse.

The phrase ‘you make your own luck’ seems to have escaped Rook’s notice, but there is no mistaking his passion and deep commitment to the health and social care sector. Not only is he involved in two charities, he says there are “many personal reasons” why the sector is “close to my heart”.

The company is comprised of three specialist public sector divisions: Sanctuary Social Care, which supplies social workers; Sanctuary Health, which provides health workers to the NHS; and Sanctuary Criminal Justice, which

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supplies people to work with offenders.

The company employs around 260 staff and in 2016 had a turnover of more than £110m.

“From a recruiter perspective, ask me what we are doing: we are protecting the most vulnerable in society and supporting some of the most needy.

It is incredibly rewarding to be doing something that has a real purpose and is benefiting everybody in society,” Rook continues.

Ultimately Rook says recruitment is “all about passion, energy and desire” and creating a company environment in which “everyone cares about performance”.

Rook says this comes from a combination of good staff recruitment, training and support, leading to low

Beyond committed, knowledgeable, well-motivated and experienced staff, Rook says what sets Sanctuary apart is its deep understanding of the sectors in which it operates, and the needs of its clients. Working closely with clients means Sanctuary is able to come up with new and innovative solutions to solve clients’ problems.

With shortages of staff across the public sector – particularly social workers – a persistent issue, these solutions will generally contain an element of resourcing. But often, he says, “there is lot more to it”.

Rook takes social work as a case in point: “The public sector has got some amazing practitioners with lots of knowledge and experience, but they can find themselves spending the majority of their time on administration. Spending their time in front of a computer screen is not why they chose to be a social worker and we realised that and have created some structures, which allow us to put in administrative support so that our social workers spend no time inputting.

“We deliver social work rather than just recruiting for it,” continues Rook, citing how when working with Lancashire County Council, Sanctuary’s team was accountable for the quality of the work of the social workers it recruited.

Working with another council, Sanctuary’s social work delivery

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RECRUITER AWARDS 2017

RECRUITERS’ ACHIEVEMENTS “SHOULD BE SHOUTED FROM THE ROOFTOPS”

arm Skylakes temporarily replaced the council’s in-house social worker team.

“We work with the public sector so closely that we are regarded more as a health and social care business than a recruitment company. We are that ‘critical friend’,” he says.

A further example is how Sanctuary responded to government-imposed caps on agency spend. The agency adapted its internal processes and procedures to be help clients be compliant, and then went further by introducing a new back office system to give NHS clients real-time access to management information to ensure they didn’t breach the cap.

ROSALEEN BLAIR, founder and CEO of Alexander Mann Solutions (AMS), winner of the first Recruiter Impact Award at the Recruiter Awards for her influence on the recruitment industry, has told Recruiter that whenever recruiters “do great things it should be celebrated and shouted from the rooftops”.

This would help counter some of the current negative publicity and perceptions of the industry in the media and in some sections of society, she said.

“Whether that is providing a great candidate or client experience, we need to have pride in what we do,” said Blair, who said she was “very flattered and very surprised” to receive the Award.

The judges recognised Blair’s key role as a pioneer of recruitment process outsourcing. Since she founded AMS in 1996, it has grown to deliver creative integrated talent acquisition and talent management solutions in over 82 countries. They also recognised her work in championing diversity and social mobility both within AMS and its client base. The judges recognised Blair as “a fantastic role model, and a great ambassador for the industry and the wider business arena also”.

Blair said it was vital that if recruitment wanted to continue to have a positive impact on people’s lives and on society, it needed to continue to make itself an attractive place for talent, where people can have “a really worthwhile career”.

“It is really important the industry continues to invest in learning and development and qualifications so people can understand they can have a career in the industry and can prosper,” said Blair.

“I think there has been progress, I genuinely do, but I think it is a constant challenge for all of us to try to ensure we create a profession that people aspire to be part of.”

Blair would like to continue her work on improving social mobility to help those people “who haven’t had the same opportunities or access to the same networks and education [as more the more fortunate in society]”, she said. “That is one area I would like to have an impact on.”

ON YT

Candidate care critical Alongside finding solutions to clients’ problems, candidate care is “absolutely critical”, says Rook, and there is a huge focus on educating them and giving them all the information they need – be that though webinars or through Sanctuary’s specialist social worker magazine, or a phone number they can call at any time of the day or night.

Rosaleen Blair was recognised as a pioneer of recruitment process outsourcing

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TH E B IG STO RY SAMANTHA R AMSAY

RECRUITER AWARDS 2017

Host Henning Wehn gave the audience a bit of his own life advice on the night

With April’s changes to IR35, which makes it less financially attractive for contractors to work in the public sector, as well as the agency cap, Rook says it is not an easy job. “We are often the bearer of news that is not good or exciting, which is why we give them as much information as possible, something that we have done from the beginning.”

Rook says the pressure on NHS budgets in particular means that Sanctuary “has got to be able to work for lower margins”.

“Everything we do is not just about customer service and going above and beyond, it is about having robust, effective and innovative systems to automate as much as possible to enable efficiencies that we can pass on.

“This is a high-volume, low-margin business, there is a huge cost of infrastructure and it is not easy but there are economies of scale.”

Rook says despite the constant desire of the NHS in particular to bear down

26 RECRUITER

Everything we do … is about having robust, effective and innovative systems on agency margins and reduce agency spend, he is confident that agencies will continue to play an important role. “It comes down to the concept of supply and demand,” he says, pointing to how the fall in the value of the pound makes the UK less attractive from a financial point of view for overseas staff to come here. This is on top of a shortage of candidates from

the Philippines, previously a happy hunting ground for the NHS. “There is a worldwide shortage, so there is always going to be a requirement for the expertise of an organisation that can help you engage permanent staff,” he says.

Rook goes on to warn of the danger of ‘false economies’ from not filling positions in the NHS. For example, not having a mammographer for a week might save money in the short term, but it means that millions of pounds worth of expensive medical equipment is not being used. Rook points out that whenever the terms ‘rip-off agencies’ and ‘agency spend’ are used, “what is ignored is the vast majority of the agency spend figure is staff wages and not the agency margin”.

Rook is clearly determined to play his part in arguing the case for agencies in the public sector, and he is not less forthright in his determination to see Sanctuary Personnel grow and prosper.

“We want to be recognised as the number one recruiter across the whole of health and social care,” he says.

This time next year, he expects staff numbers to have grown by between and 50 and 70.

Among the opportunities for growth he identifies are recruitment of doctors and international expansion. Three Awards or not, the passion and energy that drives Rook and have taken Sanctuary Personnel to the pinnacle of the recruitment world shows no sign of abating. As he says: “I think we can always improve everywhere.”

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RECRUITER AWARDS 2017

SERVICE AND INNOVATION KEY FOR AMBERJACK Overlaying innovation on top of excellence of service is behind double award winner Amberjack’s success.

SO SAYS AMBERJACK’S managing director of consulting solutions & strategic development Sophie Meaney, commenting on the future talent and volume recruitment outsourcing, technology and assessment expert’s award wins for Recruitment Industry Supplier of the Year and Recruitment Technology Innovation of the Year.

“We’ve gone from being a safe pair of hands to still being a safe pair of hands but pushing the envelope a little bit more,” Meaney told Recruiter.

“We have been recognised for innovation, as well as just for excellence this year and that’s been the evolution for us, whereas before we have been recognised for our excellence with our clients in our client relationship management and our candidate management. This year we have built on that with innovation recognition as well.”

That ability to innovate was helped by finding a willing partner

Amberjack was recognised for its work alongside Unilever with its innovative recruitment technology

organisation in global giant Unilever, with whom Amberjack worked to create Unilever’s Future Leaders Programme.

The programme has attracted 250,000 applications for 800 hires across 68 countries. Amberjack carried

out 250 job analysis interviews with future leaders already on the programme, business managers, senior stakeholders and board members to define talent behaviours and characteristics required in future leaders. Video and gaming

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18/05/2017 15:24

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T H E BI G STORY S A M A N T H A R A M S AY

elements were also added into the process to better engage millennials.

The programme has saved Unilever 50,000 recruiter hours and a cost saving of more than £1m despite all 250,000 candidates receiving personalised feedback after each stage of the hiring process.

The key to the success of the programme, Meaney says, was Unilever’s desire not just to innovate, but actively wanting to “pioneer”.

“We literally reimagined fundamentally the design principles and then looked at all the cutting edge practices Unilever were looking at in their commercial enterprises and pulling the two together – things like artificial intelligence, predictive analytics, immersion – all of that exciting stuff. We literally redefined candidate experience of graduate recruitment.”

But equally it helps to foster great client relations, Meaney adds. With global recruiter Atkins, Amberjack developed a video-based situational

judgement test (SJT) tool for Atkins.

That tool resulted in a cutting-edge platform providing realistic job scenarios by asking candidates how they would respond against a number of different multiple-choice options.

Amberjack also innovated Atkins’ assessment centre tool, resulting in assessments beings carried out in four months rather than six months previously.

“Our relationship with Atkins has been a pretty fabulous one. It’s been built on a really firm foundation,

which evolves year-on-year,” Meaney says. “We start on exceptional levels of trust and transparency on each side.

We genuinely operate as an extension of their team.

“We present with them at UK leadership level – HR leadership levels – every piece of pertinent information they share with us reinforms our solutions for them, and at every stage there is a degree of transparency that allows both sides to operate at best. We bring our expertise – and they open their doors.”

CARING ABOUT SUCCESS The Best In-House Recruitment Team award was picked up by the delighted resourcing team at KIMS Hospital in Maidstone, Kent

POSSIBLY THE MOST EXCITED RECRUITER WINNER OF THE NIGHT was Suzanne Stevens, recruitment manager at private hospital KIMS, who along with her team – recruitment administrators Hannah Sears and Lauren Cross – picked up the final honour of the evening, Best In-House Recruitment Team.

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RECRUITER AWARDS 2017

The glittering ballroom at the Grosvenor House Hotel was the setting once again for this year’s Recruiter Awards

The trio, with recent newcomer recruitment apprentice Lily Harris, work in a team that was praised by Recruiter’s judges for being integrated into each hospital department.

This way the team fully understand departmental objectives with regards to resourcing needs and aligning these requirements with the hospital’s overall business objectives.

“We’ve got main objectives for the entire hospital, which are providing safe, quality care for our patients first and foremost, and commercial success – we are there to generate a profit, although we do take NHS patients. We are looking to grow the private and self-paid side of the business but also making KIMS a great place to work,” Stevens told Recruiter. “What we’ve been able to do is align our process to those objectives by believing in them.”

Caring about the hospital’s success was a key component the judges picked out as having led to the team’s success, along with the support and collaborative working of the team and its flexibility and innovative working.

32 RECRUITER

Caring about the hospital’s success was a key component Autonomy, fantastic candidate relationship management, and a methodical, process-driven approach also stood out in the KIMS entry.

The KIMS team was praised for adapting their recruitment methods to attract permanent staff in a candidate-short market by working with universities and colleges, holding recruitment open days, increasing the hospital’s presence on social media, setting up an employee referral scheme, starting apprenticeships and taking part in an overseas recruitment campaign These methods have seen 187 permanent hires in the last 12 months,

a reduced agency spend of 62% and a growth in activity throughout the hospital.

And Stevens is keen to sing the praises of the team behind these achievements. Cross, who is responsible for managing KIMS’ candidate bank, has built up “phenomenal” relationships with her candidates.

Stevens says she is instrumental to co-ordinating, liaising with candidates and managing the expectations of candidates, agencies and hospital’s hiring managers. Key to all of this is Cross’s personality and her ability to build relationships ensuring quick candidate turnaround times.

“To give you an example of that, she’s got candidates sending her pictures of them on holiday and saying ‘oh – missing you!’ Not many people would necessarily have that level of relationship with candidates,” Steven says.

Sears, on the other hand, who has been there since the introduction of an in-house team in November 2015, brings a methodical, process-driven approach, Stevens adds.

“Setting up the processes, policies, structure of how the recruitment team are going to work, liaising with the hiring manager, training the hiring managers about what we are about, all of the forms that goes with that, the whole backbone of what we’ve been about – she’s been privy to that and part of setting that up. That was more her forte.”

And overseeing it all is Stevens, who gives her team the freedom to get on with their job and thrive.

“I give them the freedom to think about different ideas and if they want to implement them. If I think that that’s something that will work, I will then support that idea and push that through.”

JUNE 2017

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16/05/2017 16:31

Issue 50 June 2017

RECRUITMENT MATTERS The View and The Intelligence

Big Talking Point

Post-election jobs market p2-3

General Election

Legal Update p4

Recruitment and the ‘Gig Economy’ p6-7

RECRUITERS URGED TO HIGHLIGHT AGENCY WORKERS’ RIGHTS The REC is urging recruitment businesses to take the lead for informing agency workers of their rights.

It has produced a factsheet highlighting the rights all agency workers in the UK receive when assigned to a workplace.

Different rights originate from a range of different pieces of legislation and

@RECPress RM_JUNE_17-NEW.indd 1

regulations, enforced by a variety of different bodies The REC says too often the average person doesn’t understand their rights at work or when jobseeking.

It says when people don’t understand their rights it means they risk accepting inappropriate or even unlawful treatment at work and when work-seeking. Workers who

know their rights make for a more engaged, powerful and satisfied workforce.

The REC says the factsheet aims to inform key stakeholders of the rights agency workers have.

“We’ve seen too many politicians incorrectly state that agency workers don’t get pensions, holiday pay or sick pay,” it says.

Products and Training TREC 2017 - what’s new

p8

The REC has also worked with HMRC to produce a guide that sets out recruiters’ responsibilities for dealing with the new National Living and Minimum Wage increases.

The guide answers some of the questions posed to HMRC and the REC on how to calculate the National Minimum Wage, and tells recruiters where they can find more information.

The Agency Workers Rights factsheet can be downloaded for free at www.rec.uk.com/ rights

www.rec.uk.com 16/05/2017 17:07

Leading the Industry

THE VIEW

What opportunities does the election present recruiters, asks Tom Hadley, REC director of policy and professional services

TREC is the perfect chance to champion good recruitment, says Kevin Green, REC chief executive

Next month sees the arrival of TREC, the REC’s national conference and flagship event for the Good Recruitment Campaign (GRC).

As I travel the country talking to members it’s clear we need to champion good recruitment in all its guises.

As professional advisors, we should engage and educate our clients on issues such as diversity and inclusion, employer branding and the candidate experience. In this way we can reposition our industry, moving away from being providers of people, and towards becoming strategic workforce solution experts.

To increase margins, we need to provide more value.

This seems to me to be quite simple – if we can solve more problems for our clients, then they will value and pay more for our services.

The GRC provides our members with the resources to engage employers on a range of workforce issues and demonstrate additional value. The GRC has over 230 organisations signed up to our aspirational charter of good practice. These organisations employ well over 2 million

AFTER THE VOTE-RUSH

employees and include household names such as John Lewis, Kellogg’s, PepsiCo and Santander. We’re seeing more and more members train up their consultants so they’re able to talk to clients about the campaign and the business benefits to clients.

TREC on 21 June is a chance to listen and engage with over 200 clients as they talk about the talent issues they are facing every day. It’s an ideal opportunity for recruiters to learn about the challenges facing their clients, and to help develop their offering of creative solutions. The REC will launch new research at TREC about the cost to organisations of getting recruitment wrong – this data and insight will help you show employers why they need to improve the candidate experience and get it right first time every time.

I look forward to seeing many of you at TREC next month.

If you want to keep up to speed with all things recruitment then follow me on Twitter @kevingreenrec

“AS I TRAVEL THE COUNTRY, IT’S CLEAR THAT WE NEED TO CHAMPION GOOD RECRUITMENT IN ALL ITS GUISES” 2 RECRUITMENT MATTERS JUNE 2017

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As well as taking forward a number of snappy messages ahead of this snap election, we have been laying the groundwork for building our relationship with incoming MPs and the next government.

Skills, immigration and industrial strategy were just some of the labour market issues that the major parties picked up on during the pre-election rush for votes. Postelection, our approach is to provide practical solutions to some of the major challenges ahead. For example, embedding employability within the school curriculum and building a world-class careers information network that taps into the expertise of recruitment professionals is our solution for preparing future generations of workers for a rapidly evolving employment landscape.

A ‘country that works for everyone’ must entail a jobs market that works for everyone. Our industry will play its part in creating a tipping-point on the inclusion agenda by promoting innovative hiring practices and making change happen. A further solution is to evolve the Apprenticeship Levy into a ‘training levy’ that can meet broader training and re-training needs, and be accessed by workers in nonpermanent roles.

According to JobsOutlook, nearly half of employers (49%) expect to see an increasing shortage of candidates.

As well as radically ramping up the UK skills base, the next government must build an agile immigration strategy that reflects labour market needs. Our work with leading law firm Fragomen and immigration specialists MPI is aimed at informing the next government’s approach to this hugely sensitive issue.

Over the course of the Brexit negotiations, a core focus must be to protect the UK jobs market and ensure that the post-EU landscape is one in which both demand and supply of staff remains vibrant. The REC will feed into this through our Future of Work Commission, which is being chaired by former employment minister Esther McVey. In an age of accelerating change and disruption we need an agile and vibrant labour market that is underpinned by good hiring practices. Building the best jobs market in the world is an aspirational target but is one that must drive government policy over the next term.

You can follow Tom on Twitter nt @hadleyscomment

www.rec.uk.com

16/05/2017 17:08

87.7%

THE INTELLIGENCE WITH REC SENIOR RESEARCHER, MARK HARRISON The Prime Minister’s surprise announcement on 18 April to hold a general election means we are now less than a fortnight away from polling day.

A huge amount can change in an election campaign in a very short space of time, but two of the key campaign themes that have emerged so far are (unsurprisingly) Brexit and the NHS. Whilst negotiating the UK’s exit from the EU and ensuring the population’s health both hold huge challenges in their own right, there is significant overlap in how the former could affect the latter when it comes to recruitment.

Whilst the majority of NHS staff employed by NHS trusts and CCGs are British, a significant minority come from the EU. According to an April

NDR/NFI % PER EMPLOYEE AND FEE EARNERS INCREASES YEAR-ON-YEAR Whilst both the average monthly turnover per employee and per fee earner declined in the year to February 2017, when compared to the 12 months to February 2016 – by 15.7% and 6.4% respectively – the median recruiter managed to increase its NDR/NFI/GP percentage for both cohorts over the same period.

The latest information from the RIB Index, sponsored by Bluestones Group, highlights that,

www.rec.uk.com

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2017 report produced by the House of Commons Library, 87.7% have UK nationality, with 5.5% of non-British staff coming from the EU. The proportion of staff from EU countries other than the UK is higher when looking at nurses and doctors specifically. EU workers make up 7.4% of nurses and 1 in 10 NHS doctors are from the EU. Before the EU referendum, attraction and retention figures suggested the percentage of EU workers in the NHS was only set to increase. When looking at the numbers that joined the NHS in 2016, there was a higher proportion of doctors and nurses amongst the new joiners than the proportion already in the NHS. 15% of new NHS nurses in 2016 were from the EU and 13% of new NHS doctors. Across the NHS, British workers were leaving at a higher rate than they were joining in 2016; the

ACCORDING TO AN APRIL 2017 REPORT PRODUCED BY THE HOUSE OF COMMONS LIBRARY, OF NHS STAFF 87.7% HAVE UK NATIONALITY, WITH 5.5% OF NON-BRITISH STAFF COMING FROM THE EU

percentage of current staff leaving who were British was higher than the percentage of new joiners who were British, while the opposite was true for EU nationals.

However, the EU referendum result and the subsequent fallout may end up pushing down the number of EU workers joining and staying in the NHS. A survey of doctors from the EEA by the General Medical Council found that over half were considering leaving the UK at some point in the future because of the UK’s decision to leave the EU. Due to a combination of new English language testing and the ‘Brexit’ effect, the number of EU nurses registered with the Nursing and Midwifery

Figure 1. Average monthly NDR/NFI per employee and fee earner (£ and %) for the median recruiter, years to February 2016 and 2017

■ Year to Feb 2016 ■ Year to Feb 2017 120,000 24.7%

26.7%

100,000 27.1%

80,000

27.4%

60,000 40,000 20,000 0 NDR per employee

when taken as a measure across all employees, the NDR/NFI/GP percentage rose from 24.7% to 26.7% year-on-year.

When looking at the

NDR per fee earner

performance of fee earners in isolation, the percentage rose from 27.1% to 27.4%.

As to what extent this improvement in NDR/NFI percentage was achieved

THERE WAS A HIGHER PROPORTION OF DOCTORS AND NURSES AMONGST THE NEW JOINERS IN 2016, THAN THE PROPORTION ALREADY IN THE NHS

15% 13%

OF NEW NHS NURSES IN 2016 WERE FROM THE EU AND

OF NEW NHS DOCTORS

Council dropped between September and December of 2016; in the six years prior to 2016 there had been a double digit percentage rises.

As well as a potential drop in the availability of EU medical staff, there was a 23% drop this year in the number of students in England applying to study nursing after the NHS bursary was abolished. Whoever forms the next government will need to ensure both immigration and domestic policy allows the NHS to recruit the staff it needs.

by trimming headcount in line with declining sales, headcount growth for the median recruiter slowed dramatically during 2017, moved into negative territory in Q4, before returning to marginal yearon-year growth in early 2017.

Belinda Johnson runs employment research consultancy Worklab, and is associate knowledge & insight director of Recruitment Industry Benchmarking (RIB) – part of the Bluestones Group. The RIB Index provides bespoke confidential reports on industry benchmarks and trends. See www.ribindex. com; info@ribindex.com: 020 8544 9807. The RIB is a strategic partner of the REC.

RECRUITMENT MATTERS JUNE 2017 3

16/05/2017 17:08

BIG TALKING POINT

GENERAL ELECTION

WITH THE GENERAL ELECTION LOOMING, RECRUITMENT MATTERS ASKS: WHAT DOES THE REC WANT TO SEE FROM THE NEXT GOVERNMENT? Although slightly unexpected, the general election on 8 June offers us an unrivalled opportunity to engage with and influence the political landscape on behalf of the recruitment industry.

It’s never easy, but we have one clear advantage in our locker: our ability to do business as an industry has a fundamental impact on the labour market. And it is jobs that transform lives and economies.

The UK jobs market is currently riding high, with more people in work than

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ever before. But there are a series of unknowns on the horizon that could impact this in the near to long term, and that the next government will have to take very

seriously. The most obvious of which is what sort of Brexit deal will the politicians be able to negotiate? This will influence not only future trading conditions but also our ability to access people and talent.

At the REC, we have set out our ‘asks’ of the next government, whatever its political persuasion, in an updated ‘Manifesto for Jobs’.

We believe the government’s ambition should be nothing short of building the best jobs market in the world.

GIVE EVERYONE THE CHANCE TO SUCCEED THROUGH WORK It is individuals who make our businesses thrive, so the first building block of creating the best jobs market in the world should be how we give everyone the chance to succeed through work.

www.rec.uk.com

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To do this, we need an education system that really supports young people to understand the world of work.

We think the government should ensure that there is enough time, space and resource in the school curriculum for careers advice and employability sessions, and all young people should be given work experience.

Careers advice shouldn’t stop the moment we leave fulltime education, especially as there is no such thing as a ‘job for life’ anymore.

Recruiters frequently cite labour and skills shortages as the biggest barrier to finding talent and so we need a government that is committed to social mobility by developing inclusive hiring practice.

And if the government is truly serious about getting more employers to invest in training, then they have to look at reforming the Apprenticeship Levy so it can be used to train the growing number of people who choose to work as a temp, contractor or freelancer.

by industry experts, rather than Whitehall mandarins.

A broad cross-section of industry representatives should be brought together in an advisory committee that reflects the dynamics of today’s modern labour market. In particular, we would like government to consider the needs of our flexible labour market.

Theresa May’s government made a start by commissioning Matthew Taylor’s Review into Modern Employment Practices, but if they really want to get to grips with the labour market, they have to start with our tax system. It is unlikely but due consideration has to be given to revising how income tax and national insurance contributions are collected, and a brave government would look at root and branch reform rather than more tweaks, which can have several unintended consequences. If you need evidence of this – just look at the successive reforms to IR35 and we would argue it still isn’t fit for purpose.

DRIVE BUSINESS GROWTH THROUGH SKILLS

BOOST LOCAL JOBS MARKETS THROUGH AN EFFECTIVE INDUSTRIAL STRATEGY

Changing workforce demographics and new technologies are already affecting the jobs market. This influence is likely to grow over the next Parliament.

To address this, we want to see the next government commit to a comprehensive industrial and skills strategy that is not only informed by business but devised and led

www.rec.uk.com

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An industrial strategy should consider not just different types of jobs and working, but the region in which those jobs are based.

Talk of a ‘northern powerhouse’ and the potential for IndyRef2 in Scotland

are strong indicators of the importance of ‘place’.

The next government should conduct a detailed review of how Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) are currently delivering, and then task each region with delivering local industry and skills needs.

Local politicians also have a role to play by actively championing good recruitment and inclusive hiring practices to improve workplace productivity.

We also want to see the public sector play a leadership role by promoting good practice in their supply chains.

We already have a strong partnership with Jobcentre Plus, and the next government should look to build on this to help local employers access the staff they need and local jobseekers access the jobs they want.

BOOST OVERSEAS OPPORTUNITIES AND MAINTAIN A STRONG GLOBAL VOICE ON LABOUR MARKET ISSUES Over the course of the Brexit negotiations, a focus for the next government must be to maintain the health of the UK jobs market and to ensure that the post-EU landscape is one in which both demand and supply of staff remains vibrant.

Boosting opportunities for UK firms to export goods and deliver services

in overseas markets will further accelerate business growth and fuel UK job creation. To do this, the next government should work with the recruitment industry and business to test any proposals for new trade deals and replacing free movement.

Shortly after the election, we will be publishing new, in-depth data analysis on how EU nationals participate in the UK labour market now and scenarios for a post-Brexit immigration system. Evidence like this should inform government’s approach to the Brexit negotiations and its next steps.

Maintaining and enhancing a strong jobs market should be front and centre when it comes to each political party setting out their manifesto promises. And if they take on board the suggestions in our Manifesto for Jobs, they will have done just that.

You can keep track of all the latest election news and what it means for recruiters by following the REC blog at www. rec.uk.com/ corporateblog

RECRUITMENT MATTERS JUNE 2017 5

16/05/2017 17:08

Legal update

SELF-EMPLOYMENT

RECRUITMENT AND THE ‘GIG ECONOMY’: WHAT HAVE WE LEARNT SO FAR?

By Abena Darko – Legal Advisor Self-employment is on the rise. The government estimates that as much as 15% of the UK workforce is now self-employed and it is almost impossible to escape the increasing scrutiny of employment status and the so-called ‘gig economy’: the term used to capture the prevalence of shortterm, individual pieces of work or ‘gigs’ carried out by individuals, often on a selfemployed basis.

For many, this type of work means freedom and flexibility – self-employed individuals can choose when and where to work and are not bound by minimum notice periods. But, unlike workers and employees, they are not subject to the National Minimum Wage and aren’t entitled to holiday pay, sick

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pay, statutory parental pay or leave, or to be automatically enrolled into a pension scheme. They also tend to pay less tax.

The Work and Pensions Select Committee recently found in their report into employment status and the gig economy that many selfemployed individuals are being left exposed to exploitation and poor working conditions, albeit by a small number of businesses. These alternative methods of working, they say, could also strain the public purse by reducing tax revenue and creating an over-reliance by self-employed individuals on the welfare state in place of income through suitable employment. The report also identified that many of these self-employment contracts fail to stand up in court, as we

have already seen in recent months with successful legal challenges of employment status by Uber drivers and a Pimlico Plumber. What is clear from all this is that businesses and individuals need greater clarity and guidance from government. Perhaps politicians could take a cue from the recruitment sector?

In contrast with other businesses, there are already clear rules in place for recruitment businesses that also provide flexible working solutions by engaging and supplying agency workers.

By definition, an agency worker is someone who has a contract of employment or worker contract and who is supplied to work under a hirer’s supervision and direction; therefore, under existing legislation they

cannot be self-employed for tax or employment law purposes. Additionally recruitment businesses are required to agree terms with agency workers, which set out whether they are an employee under a contract of employment or a worker under a contract for services – there should be no ambiguity as to their employment status. Where the terms are not an accurate reflection of the working arrangements, they risk being challenged in court.

That said, recruiters do need to be careful when it comes to engaging internal recruitment consultants on a ‘freelance’ basis.

Recruiters typically perform their services personally and cannot substitute their services with that of another individual. They are often presented to clients as internal staff members and subjected to control. As such, they are unlikely to be classed as genuinely selfemployed. At the very least they are likely to be workers and could even be regarded as employees if there is an obligation for them to accept work, restrictions on their ability to work for other recruitment businesses at the same and a liability to face disciplinary action or other sanctions if they refuse work.

www.rec.uk.com

16/05/2017 17:11

Inspiration

BEHIND THE SCENES AT THE INSTITUTE OF RECRUITMENT PROFESSIONALS

The View

Daniel Saddi is the manager of Contact R&D/ Engineering at Redline Group

WHAT I KNOW The key thing in a recruiter’s toolkit Having met with Redline’s talent acquisition manager to discuss the ‘key attributes’ individuals require for the next phase of Redline’s growth, this question is fresh in my mind.

I find that most managers look for ‘experienced’ recruiters because of their immediate knowledge to do the job. I tend to seek out a motivated attitude, intrinsic desire and true intent to succeed.

Attitude is everything You can teach anyone how to recruit (almost!), but it’s impossible to teach them to be consistently optimist, to get in early or stay late to fulfil that promise you made. Once you have that mind-set, you are well positioned to learn that which gives others the perception you are ‘experienced’.

Skill and will What I’m trying to describe is simply defined by Robin Fielder as skill and will. In order to be an effective recruiter you need to have a good mix of both. The skill to organise yourself in a highly complex multifaceted role, know what to say and when to say it, and the WILL to put in the hard yards and get back up when it all goes wrong.

So whether it’s your first day in recruitment or you’re a seasoned pro, you’ll probably realise that the people you find inspiration from balance aptitude and attitude with ease.

“I TEND TO SEEK OUT A MOTIVATED ATTITUDE, INTRINSIC DESIRE AND TRUE INTENT TO SUCCEED”

Jamie King is OEM sales & marketing manager at Redline Group

Q&A What is your background?

I came to technical recruitment from a background in management in the hospitality sector. I always had a natural affinity for sales and an ability with people that meant I could build rapport at all levels, I could empathise with the needs of client and candidate alike, and I could influence people from a position of knowledge.

What challenges did you face?

I won’t pretend to you that the concept of technical recruitment wasn’t daunting. I had no engineering background, no understanding of design or manufacturing methodology and frankly I was a bit of a dunce when it came to getting my head around why certain bits of technology even existed.

How did you overcome that?

I was tenacious in my approach. I told myself that I didn’t just need to understand technology to be good at my job – I genuinely wanted to know. I spoke to as many people as I could. Every conversation was like an hour in the classroom. I always had more questions. I always wanted to know more and I wanted to be recognised for that knowledge as an expert.

What would you say to yourself on your first day?

The most important message I would want to give myself on my first day is to relax a little! Recognise that while this job is hard work, it is hugely rewarding, and that it is just as important to enjoy it as it is to do well. It’s no real surprise to any of my colleagues, managers or directors that I started getting my best results when I took the pressure off myself and allowed myself to have some fun with it.

To keep up to date with everything the Institute of Recruitment Professionals is doing, please visit www.rec-irp.uk.com

www.rec.uk.com

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Products and training

TREC 2017 – WHAT’S NEW FOR 2017?

The Talent, Recruitment and Employment Conference (TREC) takes place on 21 June in London.

Recruitment Matters spoke to REC head of HR & projects Steve Othen about the agenda for this year WHAT’S DIFFERENT ABOUT TREC THIS YEAR? TREC is even bigger and better this year. In terms of keynotes, we are happy to welcome back Matthew Syed, as the feedback we got on his talk at last year’s event was phenomenal.

The Good Recruitment Campaign now has more than 230 signatories, so it’s going to be great to meet with HR, talent acquisition and recruitment professionals from companies of all shapes, sizes and sectors.

WHAT HOT TOPICS ARE ON THIS YEAR’S AGENDA? We’re going to be talking about emerging talent (including apprenticeships), wellbeing, candidate experience, workforce

planning, flexible hiring, employer brand, social sourcing as so much more all under one roof.

The other big thing about this year is that we will be launching our new research Getting it Right, which will be looking at how you can avoid the cost of bad recruitment. This report will be available free to all delegates on the day.

WHAT SETS TREC APART FROM OTHER HR CONFERENCES? The main thing that differentiates TREC is that it’s practitioner-led – which means the takeaways are real and practical, it’s engaging. This means you’ll get to have your say and have your questions answered. In addition, we

have a mix of established speakers and people that you rarely see speak anywhere else, which is a great balance.

WHO ARE YOU LOOKING FORWARD TO HEARING FROM? I am really looking forward to hearing from Dave Coplin (our second keynote) about technology. When we asked our GRC Advisory Panel for speaker recommendations, Dave was mentioned by at least three people, so we were delighted when we were able to arrange to get him to speak.

HOW CAN DELEGATES MAKE THE MOST OUT OF TREC? Choose your roundtable topics: With so much to

discuss on the day, make sure you chose your topics as early as possible to avoid disappointment.

Network: TREC is the only time we bring the membership of REC and GRC together under one roof, make sure you make the most of it Engage: The big thing about TREC is the opportunity to engage, get involved in the conversations throughout the day to make sure you don’t go home without getting your questions answered Feedback: Every year we adapt TREC based on common feedback that we receive, make sure you complete the feedback forms so we can keep making the event even better Bring your clients: The topics at TREC not only allow you to hear client challenges first hand, but also allow you to bring clients to a truly relevant event at a great price. Plus, if they sign up to the GRC beforehand, they may be entitled to a free place too.

There is still time to register for TREC 2017. Visit www.rec.uk.com/TREC17 or call 0207 009 2100 to book.

RECRUITMENT MATTERS

Membership Department: Membership: 020 7009 2100, Customer Services: 020 7009 2100 Publishers: Redactive Publishing Ltd, 17 Britton Street, London EC1M 5TP. Tel: 020 7880 6200. www.redactive.co.uk Editorial: Editor Michael Oliver michael.oliver@redactive.co.uk. Production Editor: Vanessa Townsend Production: Production Executive: Rachel Young rachel.young@redactive.co.uk Tel: 020 7880 6209 Printing: Printed by Precision Colour Printing

The official magazine of The Recruitment & Employment Confederation Dorset House, 1st Floor, 27-45 Stamford Street, London SE1 9NT Tel: 020 7009 2100 www.rec.uk.com

© 2017 Recruitment Matters. Although every effort is made to ensure accuracy, neither REC, Redactive Publishing Ltd nor the authors can accept liability for errors or omissions. Views expressed in the magazine are not necessarily those of the REC or Redactive Publishing Ltd. No responsibility can be accepted for unsolicited manuscripts or transparencies. No reproduction in whole or part without written permission.

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JO B B OARDS

ABOVE BOARD 36 RECRUITER

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JUNE 2017

18/05/2017 14:14

Matching candidates with jobs is still the aim but, as Sue Weekes discovers, job boards are gradually stepping beyond that remit to meet the new demands of jobseekers TECHNOLOGY IS INCREASINGLY INFLUENCING our behaviour even though we might not always notice it.

To give an example, Monster managing director Andy Sumner would choose a supermarket with contactless payments over one that simply offered chip and pin every time. “It is only a few seconds saved but my expectation is to be able to just wave my card and go,” he says.

Sumner believes job board owners must similarly be alert to these subtle changes in expectations that dictate a candidate’s actions. “Technology changes I M AGE | IKON

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behaviour and while it might be an unconscious decision, it is a decision that matters,” he adds.

While the traditional job board model continues to face competition from social media and aggregators, as well as corporate career sites, it is still an enduring one, built on the simple premise of matching candidates with employers and jobs. While the proposition has stayed the same, the technology delivering it has changed dramatically. Moreover, candidates have become more tech-savvy and used to

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JO B B OARDS

the level of simplicity and seamless experience in the online world afforded by the likes of Google and Amazon.

Mobile matters With the vast majority of job searches beginning on a smartphone, the mobile space is the next battleground for candidate attention. As evidence of job boards’ desire to be in line with other consumer online experiences, both Monster and Reed.co.uk are offering ‘swipe left to apply, swipe right to move on’ mobile apps akin to the approach used by the dominant dating site Tinder.

Monster hopes its new app will get around the “painful” apply process in the mobile space by allowing candidates to swipe and apply with a CV if it is already loaded on to its database. It is also offering a “lighter” profile that can serve as an introduction to an employer. Sumner claims tests have shown the new app achieves nine times the ‘apply’ rate.

Reed.co.uk’s mobile app has been available for around 12 months and MD Martin Warnes reckons it is driving 20% of all traffic. Significantly, it has also launched an app for agency recruiters. Consultants can advertise jobs, manage job applications and search the CV database via the app. “We’ve seen some changes in behaviour. Usage has gone up earlier in the morning and goes on until later in the evening,” he says.

“Not that we are encouraging recruiters to work for longer

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but we are empowering them to get to candidates earlier.”

Mobile is also a priority for CV-Library but founder and MD Lee Biggins says that not all candidates are as wellinformed about uploading their CVs to DropBox or cloud-based drives as they could be so there are still some challenges around helping them use

With the majority of job searches beginning on a smartphone, the mobile space is the next battleground documentation when they apply. It is one of the organisations chosen by Google to beta test new technology that effectively turns a bookmark into a mobile app. “It means a lot of work for us in the background but it is leading-edge technology and will help jobseekers apply for jobs on their mobile,” he says.

challenge cited by job boards. Better integration with applicant tracking systems (ATSs) is also high on the agenda.

According to Biggins, this has become a priority as more corporates want to track where applicants are coming from.

“Many ATSs don’t understand the needs of the candidate,” he says. “Their job is to weed out lower quality candidates but what they tend to do is give a poor UX [user experience] and drive away good quality candidates who don’t have time in their day to go through 10-page forms.

This can lead to a 40% drop-out rate in applications.”

To address this, CV-Library is building a piece of technology that locks into the ATS and pre-fills forms with the necessary data, as well as carries through the CV into the mobile space (as long as the candidate is registered with the job board).

“Corporates are starting to understand the loss of application traffic at this stage. Some of smaller ATSs are waking up to it and integrating with us but unfortunately some of the bigger ones don’t think it’s a necessity,” he says.

Totaljobs has also undertaken a great deal of work in this area with its ATS Apply (ATSi) technology. John Salt, group sales and marketing director, says that some companies were seeing a 90% drop-out rate in applications between job board and ATS because candidates

ATS agenda Ensuring a seamless experience in the mobile space isn’t the only

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18/05/2017 14:14

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were having to jump through hoops and use “ancient” technology.

“Clients were spending a lot of money on attracting talent and we were spending money on delivering it, and then candidates would get into a system that was impassable,” he said. Totaljobs, which is part of the Totaljobs Group owned by StepStone that also includes Jobsite, invested heavily in research and development in this area to “mend this part of the funnel”. “ATS providers didn’t see the need to integrate with us, just with the client’s HR system,” he adds.

“ATSi has seen application drop-out rates go down to 4% in some cases. So that’s nine times more people applying.

It might not be sexy or glamorous technology but it is something you have to focus on.”

Winning websites Integration with ATS providers such as Taleo is also in high demand from its clients, reports 4MAT, which builds sites for employers and recruiters. It looks as if job boards will face more competition from the career site as direct employers recognise the benefit of spending their money on building and communicating their employer brand, as well as having control over the candidate experience.

“Overall it seems job boards are being squeezed by better careers websites and the rise of the job aggregators,” says Warren Davidson, 4MAT’s head of digital marketing. “Many aggregators openly share the fact that job boards use them to generate applications and so many organisation take the view ‘why not go direct to the aggregators?’. That said, with all advertising it’s about testing what works for you and your business, and I’d always recommend a blend of advertising channels.”

Job boards do, however, have some clear advantages over corporate career sites and aggregators. A corporate site can’t give the visibility over a range of vacancies from a range of employers, while aggregators don’t have the same scope for building communities and delivering tailored content and careers advice to candidates. Specialist or niche job boards, in particular, have become expert in the latter.

CareersinAudit.com, which won the

Job boards to have some clear advantages over career sites best job board/careers board category in the Recruiter Awards 2017, is one of the best examples of community building.

It features almost 300 career advice articles, boasts its own ‘Audit Agony Aunt’ and even cares about its 191,000 registered candidates’ work-life balance and emotional wellbeing.

Recruiter’s owner, Redactive Media Group, runs more than 20 niche job boards in sectors such as actuarial, midwifery and project management, as well as rec-to-rec recruitment.

“Whatever the sector we try to make sure our content is as unique and fresh as possible,” says Emma Phillips, recruitment sales manager at Redactive.

“All focus on one market and we see different trends across each of them but when we talk about the importance of employer brand, content and thought leadership, that applies to every market.”

In the real world And while job boards were born and grew up in the online world and many

steadfastly remain purely digital businesses, some have recognised the importance of spreading their tentacles in the real world. Francesca Parkinson from the student and graduate site Milkround.com explains that it has built an offline events proposition within the market that includes its After School Options fairs, which take place in March and October, with over 7,000 school leavers attending.

“This development not only helps to educate young people on how to best network and approach employers, but allows the employers to showcase their schemes to top talent,” she says, adding that the job board as a largely transactional model has to evolve. “We will see jobs boards becoming more competitive and diverse in their offering.

There is a lot of opportunity to support employers in their attraction strategies where new challenges are presenting themselves.”

As another mark of job board sector’s evolution, CV-Library has opened three new bricks and mortar regional offices this year in Birmingham, London and Manchester. “E-commerce is a very big part of our business and many SMEs just want the 360-product service online but our bigger corporates want to understand how they can attract and engage candidates so going out and meeting them face-to-face is very important,” says Biggins. “It’s quite ironic that I started the company in 2000 thinking I could work on a laptop anywhere in the world on a beach.”

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A DV E RTO RIA L

Legislation Brought to you by

LIABILITY AND INSURANCE IN RECRUITMENT - ARE YOU COVERED? When undertaking reviews of hirer drafted contracts for recruiters, we are often asked to review their insurance policies in tandem, to check that the liabilities arising under the contract are covered by insurance.

Ignorance is bliss?

Recruiters often seem blasé about the risks that they have taken on, dismissing concerns about wide indemnities and uncapped liabilities with “Don’t worry - we’re insured!”

The agency may well have insurance in place, but may still not be covered for many common recruitment situations.

Employers’ liability and professional indemnity policies, for example, often cover the agency’s ‘vicarious liability’ for the negligent acts and omissions of its own employees, but exclude the acts and omissions of ‘deemed employees’, such as agency workers or contractors.

Therefore an agency may spend a fortune on insurance premiums each year in the belief that it will cover the actions of the thousands of contractors that it supplies, when in fact it only covers the actions of the handful of internal staff it employs directly.

How much?!

The potential losses caused by a contractor’s negligence, particularly in sectors such as engineering or construction, could easily run to significant sums. Even recruiters in apparently less risky sectors, such as IT, could still be potentially liable for high losses, for example through corrupted or leaked personal data.

Liability for employment status, discrimination or tax claims are often outside the scope of, or excluded from, the cover provided by standard insurance policies.

Where the assumption of a risk is unavoidable, that risk can (at least in theory), be insured.

All too often, however, one party to a contract is able to shift unacceptable risk on to the other purely because the other party has not taken the time to understand the terms of the contract and their implications.

So what can you do to protect your business?

It may seem obvious, but first and foremost you should assume as little risk as possible when entering into agreements. Where risks are unavoidable, you should limit them as far as possible.

Make sure that you fully understand the risks being taken on, and what insurance cover is needed to offset the liability.

You should check that both the type of liability is covered by your insurance, and also that the maximum liability is at, or below, the level of cover.

If your policy does not cover situations where losses are likely to occur, then you should try to extend it, or switch to a more appropriate policy.

Any liabilities outside the scope of your insurance, or over and above the level of cover, will be uninsured, and you must decide whether such a risk is acceptable from a commercial point of view.

As a result, recruiters with insurance policies that are not specific to the recruitment sector, and that have not been carefully checked, could be exposed to potentially large uninsured losses.

Help is at hand

Not many recruitment businesses could survive making such a big pay-out, yet many risk ruin by assuming unnecessary or avoidable liabilities and failing to ensure that appropriate insurance cover is in place.

At Lawspeed we review commercial recruitment contracts on a daily basis, and with 20 years’ experience as leading compliance and legal experts in the recruitment sector, we can spot unacceptable risks, potential liabilities and areas which might leave you exposed.

Minimising liability When negotiating terms, each party to a contract should try to minimise its potential liabilities under the contract, and to shift liability on to the other party, wherever possible.

The legal terminology in contractual terms and jargon in insurance policies means that those without a legal or insurance background can find them difficult to understand.

We also have expertise in reviewing insurance policies to highlight areas of concern.

Contact us on 01273 236236 at info@lawspeed.com ●

How much risk each party is willing to accept will depend upon the realities of the situation, the likelihood of the liability crystallising, the relative bargaining powers of the parties, and how far the risks are within each party’s control.

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CO M M U N I T Y

SOCIAL NETWORK WHAT HAVE YOU BEEN UP TO? GET IN TOUCH!

E

From pounding the streets of London to putting those quizzing brain cells to use, here’s what you’ve been up to outside recruiting…

Pictured from left to right are: Louise Barker, Johannes Steltner, Charlie Appleyard (joint founder of Annapurna Recruitment Group), Uli Haeusler and Philip Roberts

ANNAPURNA TEAM RUN MARATHON FOR PARKINSON’S UK VIA A team of four from Annapurna Recruitment ran this year’s Virgin Money London Marathon on 23 April, raising an impressive £12k for Parkinson’s UK. All four completed the gruelling 26.2 mile challenge in under five hours. Louise Barker, Philip Roberts and Johannes Steltner from the London office finished in 4 hours 20 mins, 4 hours 7 mins and 4 hours 23 mins respectively. And coming over to London all the way from the Munich office, Uli Haeusler completed the course in 4 hours 47 mins.

£12k WENT TO PARKINSON’S UK

BLUE ARROW GROUP SMASHES CRUK FUNDRAISING TARGET VIA

Colin the Quizmaster hosted iMultiply’s Big Quiz for Maggie’s

Blue Arrow Group’s Employee Council visited Cancer Research UK’s Barts Centre in London, following two years of fundraising for the organisation.

The Blue Arrow team presented CRUK with a cheque for £64,322.25, smashing its original £60k target.

WORKFORCE EVENT RAISES £3K FOR PRIMROSE HOSPICE VIA

TW I TT E R

Worcestershire-based recruitment and training firm Workforce Recruitment and Training sponsored a business lunch to raise money for a local hospice.

At the event, where 120 guests packed into the Grafton Manor at Bromsgrove, a total of £3k was raised for Primrose Hospice, with the recruitment firm donating £1k.

When DeeDee met Henning…

IMULTIPLY RAISES £3K FOR MAGGIE’S VIA Finance and executive search recruiter iMultiply’s annual charity quiz raised more than £3k for Maggie’s Centres, thanks to all those who supported, attended and donated prizes for the event. Big thanks to Colin the quizmaster who delivered yet another well thought-out and engaging quiz in his rather natty blazer.

Jo Finnerty Recruit @JoanneFinnerty @henningwehn great to meet you at the awards tonight, good job! @editordeedee #recruiterawards

@RecruiterMag instagram.com/recruitermagazine/ recruitermagazine.tumblr.com/

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E CAREERS CO M M UNITY

The Workplace

BY GUY HAYWARD

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and yes, seriously, these do exist – with the buzz of such perks soon wearing off. Even when an office shows such extravagance, it’s the little things that people crave, such as boxes of cereal in the morning, a day off on their birthday or an email/phone call from a senior manager thanking them for their contribution. Why? Because they feel valued and they had been thought about.

Those that stated their work had no perks at all, rated the lowest when asked how much they enjoyed going to work, not because they needed access to a pool table to do their job but because they felt less like their time was of interest to their employer.

And of course with technology we can work anywhere, anytime now.

This is changing workplace patterns, although for many this still remains a figment of their imagination because the companies they work for don’t allow it. As our survey results point out, the ability to work flexi hours or from home needs to become the norm, not a taboo subject.

Above all else that emerged was the feeling they wanted to work for a company that allowed them to work to the best of their ability. What would make a difference? An environment in which their voices were heard, as they were then more likely to share new ideas and demonstrate a willingness to push extra

“As recruiters we know what candidates want when seeking opportunities” boundaries. Being heard would suggest regular one-to-one time with their manager that led to the creation of challenging objectives.

It shouldn’t be any great surprise that we are now seeking a new type of engagement and reward from work. As recruiters across our various markets we all see thousands of employees unhappy with work (they tell us that when they are moving jobs) and a very long list of companies and line managers who are getting it wrong.

It shouldn’t be any great surprise that we are now seeking a new type of engagement and reward from work… people are demanding

↗

THE TIME HAS ARRIVED when people are expecting more from their employer. When work isn’t a place that inspires, we find ourselves actively seeking it elsewhere, and I believe you should.

As an employee, we should find a company that invests in our working experience; and as employers we should find ways of making every possible improvement to keep our people.

The warning signs of not doing so are as obvious as the rewards gained from modernising your workplace.

Whether you’re an employee or an employer, it’s easy to get carried away in the flow of the working week, without stopping to evaluate whether the routine is really working. Like watching Die Hard day after day and never discovering the delights of a [Martin] Scorsese film, following the status quo means you’re missing out on parts of work that could make you and your company a little bit brighter every day. We spend 57% of our waking time at work, so why shouldn’t we challenge conventional wisdom in our pursuit of creating a modern workplace?

I ran a small survey recently, asking 100 candidates to tell me the little things they wanted from their jobs. The answers were surprisingly simple.

They didn’t want benefits straight out of a kid’s dream – think ball pits and slides,

GUY HAYWARD – redefining the modern workplace CEO, Goodman Masson

this change to their working experience. If a survey of 100 candidates can produce such commonalities, why are we not trying to make this happen?

We are best placed to do so; as recruiters we know what candidates want when seeking opportunities and why they are pushed from their employers. And we should share these stories with our clients with a desire to help businesses modernise their very own workplace. ●

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CO M M U N I T Y

CAREERS

Start-ups lead the way for growth, challenge, uncertainty and risk

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Find your next move in recruitment on jobs.recruiter. co.uk

BY ANDREW MOUNTNEY

↗ ANDREW MOUNTNEY is founding partner at in-house recruitment specialist Aspen InHouse

ONE OF THE BIGGEST CHALLENGES for the experienced in-house recruiter is getting the opportunity to do something new – a theme I’ve written about before.

A starkly different experience can be gained in the start-up world. It brings few guarantees, plenty of challenge and risk, but if an organisation has not done something before, it may just ask you to do it.

What do start-ups look for? ● Often, everything in one.

Your specialism may be important in helping you get the job, but you’re likely to be hiring for everything going and doing some things that have nothing to do with recruitment. ● A love of their product.

Enthusiasm is a key requirement. If you are going to report to a founder and be their ‘face’ in the market, you’d better want to sell that business enthusiastically. ● A natural adopter of technology. You’ll have an interest in choosing and adapting an ATS [applicant tracking system], you’ll use data well to make decisions, you’ll like to try new products. ● Urgency. Decisions are made quickly in many startups that will include ‘can

you start quickly and get on with the job?’. Do you have a sense of urgency to your work, are you happy to be a decision maker?

How much money is at stake?

We have all heard the story of the recruitment expert picking up a small fortune from a recently funded start-up or that software engineering recruiter on the crazy salary at that secretive start-up no one has heard of – but what is the reality?

Typically, rather different.

While funding can change the picture, many start-ups spend carefully and are hiring a recruiter primarily to save cash with limited experience of the recruitment market. It’s not unusual for us to hear about ‘heads of talent’ in a start-up being paid less than £40k.

We’d recommend you start the financial conversation early,

“You'll be moved well out of your comfort zone and asked to take part in broader talent initiatives”

as roles can be great but well under the market rate.

What are the risks?

Start-ups often have small hiring volumes. Once your work is done, remaining a relevant employee is important; the risk of redundancy due to a drop in requirements is there and needs to be balanced with opportunity.

What’s the upside?

You can get the opportunity to be exposed to more in a year in a start-up than many years elsewhere. You’ll often be moved well out of your comfort zone and asked to take part in broader talent initiatives.

You’re likely to learn how to sell better, you’ll be close to the product and founders, and you’ll understand what excites candidates and how to pitch it when brand has less impact.

You’ll probably become more technically savvy, using technology to cheaply and effectively deliver your recruitment solutions. You’ll also move into being a decision maker, making the call on what is best from a recruiting perspective where previously others made those decisions for you.

There is that small chance that you strike it rich. Those start-up shares can amount to something if you pick the right employer. ●

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Re

s to ason

coun

17 am: # e r t S ay t on P

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CO M M U N I T Y

CAREERS

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ASK THE EXPERT Q1: How can I increase my jobs taken to filled ratio?

Jobs taken vs jobs filled is a great ratio to monitor.

The most effective way to improving your ratio is to cherry-pick your clients. Good clients enable you to be efficient – exclusivity on roles (reducing competition), short PSLs [preferred supplier lists], they pay fair rates on fair terms, they embed you in their business and trust your judgement, and the roles they offer dovetail with your expertise.

Of the numerous tactics that will enable you to cherry-pick the best clients with the most interesting roles, the most important one is to always be chasing new business. If you have more clients than you can service then you can choose who you work with. As soon as you settle for having ‘enough’ work the client can dictate terms.

Of almost equal importance is creating longterm relationships. A strong relationship should also result in longer to fill a role with no or limited competition. Meeting expectations is often about perceptions so communication can be as important as performance.

Finally, deepen your relationships with the client.

A broad relationship base (ie. multiple contacts) will make using your company the path of least resistance as well as protecting you if a key contact moves to a new organisation.

The great news is that a good jobs taken vs jobs filled ratio is a virtuous circle. Better quality clients will engage better candidates making it easier for you to attract more, better clients and roles.

Q2: How do I avoid our growth creating chronic cashflow issues?

The SME Coach quicker your business gains critical mass the more secure it is.

In terms of de-risking the process of achieving critical mass: • Plan your growth – growth without a plan is rarely successful. Work backwards from your vision of what the company will look like in three years time, then two years time and then every month.

• Create cashflow forecasts – consultants start to cover their costs after between two and six months. Bear this in mind when creating your monthly cashflow projections of costs vs revenues.

• Set triggers for new hires – there is no point in hiring if you aren’t hitting revenue targets, so link your hiring charts to revenue numbers rather than dates.

• Cut driftwood away quickly – if somebody isn’t going to deliver what the business needs then be decisive.

It is fairer to everyone.

• Be smart with your cash management – ignore spontaneous ideas and opportunities, only invest in delivering against your plan. Make sure your credit control is efficient and look at factoring and invoice discounting to free up cash when things are tight or to further accelerate growth.

Congratulations on your ambition and the best of luck.

↗

The potential for rapid growth to create cashflow problems is important but should be balanced against the security of achieving scale.

A seven-consultant strong recruitment business will lose between 10% and 30% of revenue if a consultant resigns – that is a big loss. A 25-strong business will lose between 1% and 8% of revenue – painful but not business critical. In many ways the

Alex Arnot

ALEX ARNOT is a non-executive adviser to more than 20 recruitment companies.

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E EMPLOYABILITY CO M M UNITY

ASPIRO-ING TO WORK WITH MENTAL HEALTH

BY COLIN COTTELL

P

rince Harry’s admission recently, that he had problems dealing with the death of his mother Diana, Princess of Wales, has given the work of Peter Smith and his colleagues at Aspiro a boost. “It is very positive in the sense that it will inform employers. It will almost normalise mental health. It shows that mental health problems can affect anybody from any walk of life, and at any point in their career,” says Smith, Aspiro’s managing director, who founded the Leicester-based not-for-profit social enterprise based six years ago.

However, even without the Prince’s intervention, Smith and his 15 staff and 10 volunteers have established an enviable record. With only around 20% of people of working age with mental health problems in employment, compared to 47% of those with a physical disability, Smith is rightly proud that 72% of those it has helped through its Mental Health Employment Service that has been running for three-and-a-half years are still in employment after six months.

What is even more impressive is that, according to Smith, Aspiro’s customers generally come from “the tougher end of the scale” and will have seen a psychiatrist, and been referred to Aspiro with some sort of serious mental illness or personality disorder.

Smith says the key to Aspiro’s success is its personal approach. Whereas the very large targetdriven contracts often commissioned by the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) “involve getting people into work as soon as possible and into any work, our targets are not ridiculously high, so it enables us to work with people as individuals”, Smith explains.

“We try to find out what their aspirations are, and to find them work that is satisfying and will benefit

“We try to find out what their aspirations are and find them work that is satisfying” 48 RECRUITER

Aspiro holds coaching sessions where the aim is to boost customers' confidence to find work

their mental health recovery.

We often ask ‘what did you want to do when you were growing up?’. To sustain a person in work it needs to be something they are interested in.”

Smith recognises that people with mental health problems face significant barriers to employment.

“Employers worry that the people will have excessive periods of time off work with their mental illness.”

Also, that “they haven’t got the relevant skills, qualifications and experience. Employers work on the premise that the people will be low skilled”.

The lack of a recent work reference and gaps in employment history also can put employers off.

However, Smith says the evidence is that people who have mental health issues have a lower absence rate than their colleagues. And far from not having the skills, qualifications and experience, he says “more often than not the people coming do, as well as having the ability to do an interview, albeit with some coaching from us”.

Where Aspiro helps is by boosting customers’ confidence, which has often been dented by periods out of work, as well as by their own negative

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the efficient way of working of a recruitment agency to what we do, then it could be of benefit not only to our customers and clients but also to both our businesses”, he says.

Among the 25 or so employers that use Aspiro’s Mental Health Employment Service are local NHS Trusts, local authorities and charities, as well as the Co-op.

Aspiro’s employment advisers also coach customers in the best way to disclose their mental health problems to employers. Smith says they are advised not to use ‘loaded terms’ such as psychosis on application forms that “put the fear of God into employers unnecessarily”. Rather than disclosing it up front, “we would always encourage customers to say ‘recovering from mental issues we will discuss it at interview’ ”.

“It is not minimising a person’s mental health but it is getting the timing right so they do a great application and interview and it’s in that context they see their mental health problems, as opposed to it being the first thing they learn about an individual,” he continues.

After a customer gets a job, Aspiro provides ongoing support with monthly phone calls to see how they are getting on, with any difficulties referred to its employment advisers.

Employers also receive ongoing on-going support and advice. One area where employers welcome advice is on making “reasonable adjustments”, he says. While this is relatively well understood when it comes to physical disabilities, for example by providing a wheelchair ramp, this is not so much the case with mental health. Smith says examples could include allowing someone to start work later, and giving them regular time away from their desk.

Aspiro can also provide individual recovery plans, which include tell-tale signs to help an employer recognise that the individual is becoming unwell.

Smith, a former social worker before mental illness forced him to give up his career, leaving him out of work for five-and-a-half years, says another factor in Aspiro’s success is that 18 of Aspiro’s staff and volunteers have used mental health services themselves. “It gives us a degree of empathy and understanding, and we have had the experience of trying to get work with a mental health problem.”

For Smith, the work that Aspiro does is about normalising mental health. “I often say to employers ‘one in four adults will have a mental health problem at one point’; you will probably be employing someone who had or has a mental health problem.

“Our customers are just ordinary people who just happen to have a mental health problems. And you wouldn’t necessarily know they had a problem when you first meet them.” ●

“Our customers are just ordinary people”

perceptions of how employers see them. “They think employers will never employ someone with a mental health problem like me, therefore there is no point in trying, or it is going to be an uphill struggle,” says Smith.

Customers also receive practical help and advice on making a good job application and on interview technique. Ann Merrick, area manager of City Catering (part of Leicester City Council), who took on one of Aspiro’s customers Shirley as a school catering assistant, says: “Employing Shirley has been a largely positive experience… she is very switched on.” She continues: “Aspiro must have prepared Shirley well, as she was confident in training. In fact, Shirley’s mental health has not really been an issue.”

Smith says he admires the way that recruitment agencies work, highlighting “their hunger” and “their keen eye for business”. A partnership with a multi-sector recruiter with headquarters in Leicester to co-deliver support to people with mental health problems as part of the government’s Work Programme, with Aspiro as a sub-contractor, didn’t result in Aspiro getting any business. But Smith says this hasn’t put him off the idea of working with another recruiter.

In addition to the attraction of “a massive range of employers … if we could employ the resources and

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E CAREERS CO M M UNITY

‘When I completed my Master’s r’s in 2011 – that was a real personal ambition’ ition’ MY BRILLIANT RECRUITMENT CAREER

↗

What was your earliest dream job?

When I was four, I wanted to be a hairdresser.

What was your first job ob in recruitment and how w did you come into it?

This is my first job in recruitment. itment.

I was previously with Couttss in the wealth management side. e.

When I left there, I was looking ng at something in a similar industry try and came across Montgomery Partnership.

Who is your role model – in life and in art?

In life, it would be my dad. He’s very clever and very witty. In his professional life he’s always been very dignified and very professional. His competitiveness and drive is what pushed me as well. In art – probably English artist Bridget Riley. I really like her paintings – they’re very abstract. She is just a really crazy character.

What do you love most about your current role?

Definitely the people – we’ve got a really good team here. We are really close knit. If it weren’t for the people, I wouldn’t be here. We meet different people every day, it’s so varied and interesting – it’s different each day.

What would you consider to be the most brilliant moment 50 RECRUITER

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JENNIFER LETCHET, recruitment consultant and artist, The Montgomery Partnership

Jennifer Letchet of your career, iin recruitment and in art?

In the world of recruitment, when you fill a placement, come to the end of a project – that’s a great high; when you get to that point when you feel that you’re adding value. In art, when I completed my Master’s in 2011 – that was a real personal ambition to do that.

What’s your top job to fill at the moment?

Head of distribution.

What is your signature dish?

Lasagne or fish pie – something you can prepare in advance.

Laugh or cry, what did your most memorable candidate make you want to do and why?

and all of their personal problems.

We have never got a role for her and it’s just ‘God – every Monday’ – you bang your head against the desk.

Has your career as an artist ever helped you in your recruitment career?

Not really but it’s always an interesting topic to throw into conversation. In this industry people go and see art shows and talk about other stuff. But also the things that have got me through in art – the motivation and being self-sufficient and being organised – are definitely useful in my current job.

What’s the best or worst interview question you’ve ever heard?

What’s your star sign?

There’s one candidate who normally rings up, although she hasn’t done it for a month. She rings up every Monday about 11am and rants about all of the other recruiters she knows

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Search is an ambitious business and we want ambitious staff who want to develop and grow with us. If you’re interested in joining the team, email your CV to recruiterwinner@search.co.uk

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Recruiter Jobs helping you to attract the best candidates for your vacancies.

Jude Rosset

jude.rosset@redactive.co.uk +44 (0)20 7880 7621

Recruiter Jobs is the online recruitment site for Recruiter magazine, the prin principal magazine for recruiting and resourcing professionals. You can search through a wide range of roles; from recruitment consultants to in-house recruitment, based in both the UK and International markets.

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17/05/2017 10:52

E CAREERS CO M M UNITY

5 1 JOB: The provider of integrated HR services in China has accepted the resignation of Kazumasa Watanabe due to a change in his professional responsibilities at Recruit Holdings, a principal shareholder of 51job. Junichi Arai is also appointed as a director.

A D EC C O : The recruitment giant has elected members of its board of directors at its annual general meeting.

The following members serve for a further term of one year: Rolf Dörig (chairman), Jean-Christophe Deslarzes, Alexander Gut, Didier Lamouche, David Prince, Wanda Rapaczynski, Kathleen Taylor and Ariane Gorin; Thomas O’Neill and Dominique-Jean Chertier did not stand for re-election.

Dixons Carphone and ASK Restaurants.

DP CON N E CT: The tech recruiter and outsourced IT specialist has promoted two senior managers. Izzy Brown, previously head of the Edinburgh operation, is now client services director, and Andrew Bowie succeeds Brown as head of Edinburgh.

Kellogg’s has appointed Samantha Thomas Berry as vice president, human resources for EMEA. The cereal company revealed Thomas Berry will now take charge of leading its EMEA HR team through a period of transformation and support the delivery of organisational objectives.

Thomas Berry, who started her career in HR with Marconi Telecoms, later moving to HR lead with British Aerospace, joined Kellogg’s in 2005 as HR manager in the Wrexham plant, and has since held a number of senior roles within the business.

F E DE RGON : The Belgian federation of HR service providers has appointed Herman Nijns, recruitment giant Randstad’s CEO for Belgium and Luxembourg, president.

F OX RODN E Y SEARCH: The legal recruiter has appointed Jonathan Fort as director.

FRAZ ER JOHN RECRUIT MENT: The Manchester-based recruiter has promoted four staff: Anna Chenery, senior partner client services; John Mackey, managing partner for Manchester; Oliver Matthews, finance director; and Nathan Jones, billing partner.

CAST U K : Jack Rogers joins the management and executive recruiter as logistics and supply chain specialist.

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HARVEY NASH: The professional services staffing group has appointed Mark Garratt as group finance director.

Richard Ashcroft steps down as group FD.

HEIDRICK & STRU G G L E S :

D EB EN HA MS : The retail giant welcomes Sally Hyndman as HR director. Hyndman is a former group HR director at

firm welcomes Mathew Armstrong as managing director to lead preemployment screening and background checking provider giant screening.

F RAN KL I N BAT ES: Kiren Sidhu joins the IT recruiter as client services manager.

GIANT GROUP: The professional services

Elizabeth Simpson is the global executive search firm’s head of New York City financial services in the US. Expanding on her current role as a partner in the firm’s financial

Email people moves for use online and in print, including a short 18/05/2017 15:43

services practice, Simpson is now responsible for driving business development in the region, collaborating across the firm’s complementary lines of business, and mentoring and developing talent internally. Bo Herbst joins in the expanded role of global practice managing partner, leading the firm’s industrial practice worldwide.

for managing the firm’s technical and professional freelance business across central Scotland.

Redactive Publishing Ltd 17 Britton Street, London EC1M 5TP 020 7880 6200

P HE N OM P EOPLE:

CONTACTS

Jeff Carey joins the US-based talent relationship marketing specialist as vice president of international sales and strategic partnerships.

P OL I CE S COT LAND: Jude Helliker as joins as director of people and development.

THE RE C2 REC CLINIC:

IS OUR C E G ROUP : The IT, digital and change staffing specialist has appointed Dan Mills as digital practice director.

LOMBA R D I N TE RN ATI ON AL : Sandra Locke joins the wealth structuring solutions provider as executive vice president, global director of HR.

Business partners Nick Langley and Sarah Bennett have launched the new recruitment-to-recruitment agency.

P EA C E R EC RUI TME N T: The construction and property specialists welcomes Alison Blake as manager responsible

The multi-sector recruiter has appointed Adam Zdravkovic as divisional manager for its legal recruitment team in Manchester.

YOU R NE X T M OV E

HH-Recruiting Project administrator Seoul, South Korea Automotive $100k + bens Recruiter Republic Recruitment consultant London Financial services £24k-£30k + good comms

jude.rosset@redactive.co.uk

Reporters Colin Cottell, Graham Simons colin.cottell@recruiter.co.uk graham.simons@recruiter.co.uk

Contributing writer Sue Weekes Production editor Vanessa Townsend vanessa.townsend@recruiter.co.uk

Senior designer Craig Bowyer Picture editor Akin Falope

PRODUCTION +44 (0)20 7880 6209 Production executive Rachel Young rachel.young@redactive.co.uk

PUBLISHING +44 (0)20 7880 8547 Publishing director Aaron Nicholls aaron.nicholls@redactive.co.uk

ADVERTISING +44 (0)20 7880 6220 Senior sales executive Josh Hannagan

RECRUITER AWARDS/ INVESTING IN TALENT AWARDS +44 (0)20 7324 2771 Events eventsteam@redactive.co.uk

CIRCULATION and SUBSCRIPTIONS To receive a regular copy of Recruiter, the leading magazine for recruitment and resourcing professionals, telephone +44 (0)20 8950 9117 or email redactive@abacusemedia.com • Recruiter is also available to people who do not meet our terms of control: Annual subscription rate for 12 issues: £35 UK; £45 Europe and £50 Rest of the World • To purchase reprints or multiple copies of the magazine, contact Abacus e-Media T: +44 (0)20 8950 9117 or email redactive@abacusemedia.com CONTRIBUTIONS Contributions are invited, but when not accepted will be returned only if accompanied by a fully stamped and addressed envelope. Articles should be emailed. No responsibility can be taken for drawings, photographs or literary contributions during delivery, transmission or in the editor’s hands. © 2017 Redactive Media Group. All rights reserved. This publication (and any part thereof) may not be reproduced, transmitted or stored in print or electronic format (including but not limited to any online service, any database or any part of the internet) or in any other format in any media whatsoever, without the prior written permission of Redactive Media Group.

Redactive Media Group accepts no liability for the accuracy of the contents or any opinions expressed herein. The publishers cannot accept liability for any loss arising from the late appearance or non-publication of any advertisement for any reason whatsoever. ISSN 1475-7478

Total average net circulation between 1 July 2014 & 30 June 2015 – 18,667. is also sent to all REC members

For more jobs, people moves and career advice go to ● recruiter.co.uk/jobs ● inhouserecruiterjobs.co.uk ● internationalrecruiterjobs.com

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deedee.doke@recruiter.co.uk

josh.hannagan@recruiter.co.uk

Recruiter Republic Senior recruitment consultant London £27k-£35k

The international executive search firm has appointed Mutlu Eroğlu principal in its Istanbul team in Turkey.

RECRUITMENT ADVERTISING +44 (0)20 7880 7553 Jude Rosset

S E ARCH CO NSULTANCY:

A selection of vacancies from recruiter.co.uk

P ED ER S EN & PARTN E RS :

EDITORIAL +44 (0)20 7880 7606 Editor DeeDee Doke

Scan here to get your own copy of

18/05/2017 15:23

E THE LAST WORD CO M M UNITY

Anna-Jane Niznikowska Look to Glastonbury for good staff

You will be an excellent project manager and strategist. You will have to communicate with your team on a regular basis and facilitate a constant flow of information between all team members. You will have to ensure that appropriate logistics and reliable technology is in place. You have to be able to remain calm under pressure and not allow your accuracy to suffer, as you will be handling sensitive data.

Is that a job description for a City job? No, it’s a description of a successful Glastonbury fan in possession of a ticket for the upcoming 21-25 June festival.

Last 9 October, over 2m people tried to get their hands on the 135,000 available Glastonbury tickets, which sold out in 50 minutes. For prospective buyers, it was a carefully prepared operation.

Obtaining Glastonbury tickets is more than a race for tickets. It also becomes a demonstration of the qualities employers seek.

A few such qualities are:

1. Project management Buying a Glastonbury ticket requires good project management skills such as figuring out how many laptops, tablets and smart phones are available to you, and making sure they don’t fail at a critical moment. You

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must organise your team, then check they’re awake and ready for the 9am Sunday start. A seasoned Glasto fan will also make sure that Mother Nature doesn’t get in the way between 9am and 10am. When you buy those tickets, every second matters.

2. Work in remote teams Most Glastonbury teams work remotely so all team members exchange certain pieces of information in advance (eg. postcodes and registration numbers). During the ‘marathon’ they must keep one another up-todate via Skype, WhatsApp, Facebook, Facetime or phone, as conditions could change at any moment. They have to share information whilst also continually refreshing the tickets’ website because you never know when you will get in.

3. Patience and persistence They say that most young people of today are after instant gratification and lack the necessary grit to

accomplish a challenging feat. You might change your mind if you sit down next to a Glasto enthusiast when the tickets go on sale. Does a person who spends an hour refreshing a blank page over and over again, hoping that with the next click they will get through to the registration page, lack focus and patience? Do you think that a person who accurately enters registration numbers, postcodes and credit card details on a website that could crash any moment cannot perform under pressure?

4. Teamwork and inclusion To get tickets for everyone, each individual has to keep trying. Teamwork is power.

The more people try to get tickets, the more likely they are to succeed. However, if for some reason someone ends up going on their own, they don’t need to fret. They are likely to know someone else who has managed to get a ticket and will gladly ‘adopt’ them, even though they might not have spoken in years. For Glastonbury fans

Anna-Jane Niznikowska is a career coach and leadership development consultant, who likes to inject fun and creativity into her work.

Visit www.anna-jane.com

‘the more the merrier’ is not just an empty expression – it’s common practice.

5. Knowing when to stop and move on It’s always good to know when you’re fighting for a lost cause, ie. the page has never loaded properly. While it’s heartbreaking for a Glasto enthusiast, they surf through the stages of grief at the speed of light. The whole process lasts roughly five minutes and is sometimes accompanied by a therapeutic Facebook status update, expressing their disdain for those who have succeeded in obtaining tickets. After that they might, as a consolation prize, buy a ticket for the Reading Festival.

If you’re a fan and get confused whenever employers mention ‘soft skills’, now you know (I’d think of a professional example for a job interview, though, if I were you). If you’re a recruiter or a hiring manager and think that most job applicants lack ‘commitment’ and ‘results focus’, start sourcing staff at Glastonbury. ●

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