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With unemployment figures expecting to remain high, data from de Poel, the UK’s number one procurer of temporary agency labour, reveals that the use of temporary staff in the UK rose by 13% in January compared to the same period last year.
 
Figures from de Poel show that temporary workers are a popular choice as businesses continue to operate within an unstable and unpredictable economy.  Using temporary agency staff to supplement or up-skill a workforce enables businesses to respond quickly to market and seasonal shifts for competitive advantage without the commitment of using permanent staff. Read more »

We are in no doubt that social networking has become the phenomenon of the 21^st century and with over 326 million users Twitter has definitely proved itself as the social networking resource of today.

Some companies and in particular the larger financial houses prefer their prospective employees to upload a video, pitching as to why they are right for the job instead of sending a traditional CV.  This is seen as a bold move and certainly without social media this would not have been seen as a recruitment method however radical.

But in today’s high tech society social networking has taken hold of generations both young and old.  These days you need not leave the house to see your friends, you just need to log on and talk to then on line and you can literally spend hours doing so.  Why use your petrol travelling to see your friends when you can just use Skype, post a tweet or share your holiday photos on face book? Read more »

This week the government has given the green light to HS2 (High speed 2) a high-speed rail link between the country’s two biggest cities, London and Birmingham. With trains travelling at speeds of up to 250mph, passengers will be able to commute from Birmingham to London in 45 minutes, reducing the journey time by almost half from one hour and 24 minutes. Stage 2 will see services extend to Manchester, Liverpool, Leeds and Glasgow, substantially reducing journey times to the countries capital.

British commuters have the longest journeys to work in Europe with the average trip taking 47 minutes, according to a recent study. Does this mean that as of 2026 commuting from Birmingham to London on a daily basis, will be the norm? Read more »

Statistics show that in the year of 2012; there will be four Employment trends to watch out for! Nearly one-in-four hiring managers plan to hire full-time, permanent employees in 2012 and employment trends among SME’s are predicted to improve on that of last year! Many have reservations due to the economic climate and are waiting to hear the predictions for the economic forecast for the New Year. In my eyes – we are the people who can change the economy and if our businesses are in demand of more staff – don’t let the grass grow; consider it an investment into your company! After all – the more staff you have that are actually doing the job they were recruited for; the more income you will enjoy. Read more »

Social Media, Make It Work For You:

Over 250 million people are currently on Facebook and this is growing day by day. A close second is Twitter with 175 million users, and over 100 million are registered on LinkedIn.  Social Media is taking over as a modern means of communication, and as a tool for networking, news, and for reaching large volumes of people very quickly. Social media is also becoming a genuine and successful way for candidates to find prospective employers and employment.

How we portray ourselves within Social Media is very important, and for candidates looking for secure employment, it is vital that the correct information is available online.

Through thorough research, we have come up with some easy steps to improve your changes of success;

  Read more »

For top tips on interview and work atire…read Gay Richardson’s blog.

If you would like any business style advise please do get in touch with me Gay Richardson 01903 538774; www.stylemeconfident.co.uk gay@stylemeocnfident.co.uk

Strictly Come dancing is my all time favourite show because it embraces glamour, style, fun and a little bit of competition! It’s also about professional and, albeit celebrities, generally ordinary people of all ages, going out of their comfort zone and trying something new. And then of course there are THOSE dresses! What else do we talk about for the whole next week??! Read more »

January is often considered the key month in the recruitment calendar; with a noticeable increase in candidates on the market, making it the optimum time to hire staff. January will see people up and down the country commit to their New Year’s resolutions. Whether it be signing up to the gym, losing weight or searching for a new job – 2012 signals a fresh start for all. The developments of 2011, however, have changed this as we are now seeing the number of candidates available immediately increasing due to factors including the up rise in unemployment, redundancy and access to new job channels.

As a result, the benefits of bringing your hiring plans forward to December are stacking up fast!!! Here are the reasons why!!!

Snap up our STAR candidates………….fast

It has been shown by the Office of National statistics that 90% of people relevant and qualified for your role are in fact submissive; therefore in order to find these inactive candidates you should be looking all year round. Your ideal candidate may not even be on the market, so why not benefit from using our Recruitment Services to headhunt them for you? Why put it off for another month, start your search this December!

Less competition

As stated above, your competitors will see January as a great time to start afresh, and start their recruitment drive. If you wait to hire until this time you could see yourself in a battle for the candidate who is most relevant and qualified for your role.  You will also find that candidates are attending more and more interviews, showing interest in all parties rather than just your own, therefore starting your recruitment process earlier than your competitors will negate some of this risk.

Start 2012 with everything in place

There’s no doubt that 2012 is going to be a tough year, so why not hit the ground running with your team already in place for January 3^rd 2012.

December is the perfect time to start your recruitment process, so what are you waiting for? Call us today on 0800 3168699 for advice on your first step to securing your team for 2012 .

The much talked about AWR was finally launched on the 1^st October and forums, chat rooms and just about everybody went into overdrive thinking about the size of the impact on UK businesses.

From a recruiters point of view I see the AWR as extremely positive and wonder why the panic and trepidation.  Workers will only fall under the scope of the AWR after 12 weeks and at that point I actually agree that YES temporary workers should be able to claim the same pay and working conditions as their colleagues who are doing the same job.  After all 12 weeks is a very long time to work in one company and clearly the manpower is required in the first place!  Remember the comparable pay and benefits don’t have enhanced benefits just the same benefits of others doing that same job. Read more »

I can remember some time ago attending a workshop delivered by a qualified business coach. At one point I stretched my arms out over my head pushing back on my seat as I did so. The coach in her infinite wisdom decided to humiliate me in front of the delegates, interpreting my stretching as an indication of boredom. “Oh dear I am boring Dee Blick”, she announced. To which I replied “I have chronic repetitive strain injury in my upper body. I need to keep my shoulders mobilised at regular intervals by stretching or they seize up.”

Whoops.

It was not the reaction she had expected and it left her desperately trying to claw back her sarcasm. But do you know what, this experience also taught me a lesson; namely don’t be quick to jump to conclusions based on your narrow or prejudiced perception of a situation. Read more »