So what is the industry doing wrong – well according to the survey, end user clients want recruiters to:

• Provide innovative  pricing models
• Be more customer led
• Employ better people
• Provide technical solutions
• Be better communicators

That got me thinking – surely good recruiters would be doing all that anyway?  But this was 173 organisations –  a not insubstantial number.

The meeting then moved onto a client panel – and here’s where I got a real shock. The subject under discussion was:  ’How can recruiters help you attract and retain people with the right values and cultural fit for your business’.  The panel included Greg Allen Head of Recruitment for Nokia who said that when his organisation organised a briefing  session and round table discussion for all PSL agencies  on Nokia’s culture – what good looks like – what sort of  people they are looking for – in fact all the things that would make the recruiters job easier – half the agencies didn’t bother to show.  I was genuinely shocked.

What are you doing to enhance the client experience?

However, as someone who has been involved in recruiting for our own organisation over the past few weeks, I have been quite literally gobsmacked at the poor level of effort, courtesy and basic communication skills displayed by applicants.  We hear lots of stuff about how we need to really engage with Generation Y – but have we gone too far? Do Generation Y now  feel that they have to make no real effort?  And is that one of the reasons that graduate unemployment is currently so high? Are we creating a whole generation of people who think that they can just sit back and wait for the ever so eager employer to find them within their ‘talent communities’?

A few examples:

• The applicant that I interviewed– a good degree, good A level grades and relevant work placement experience. When asked what had appealed to her about the role, she answered: “Dunno really – I just thought I could do it!”
• The applicant who, during a telephone screening interview, asked our Account Manager:  ”How old are you? Yousound really young!”
• The graduate  applicants ( and I’m not talking about just a few) whose covering letters and CVs are so full of spelling mistakes it makes me want to throw my hands up in despair at the current state of our education system. One was actively seeking a “roll in pubic relations.”
• The applicant who e-mailed me to say that he thought his experience would be of interest to me and directed me to site where I could find out more about him. I didn’t bother – because he couldn’t be bothered to sell himself.

Am I just a grumpy old woman?  Is there something I’m missing? Is it too much to expect applicants to make some effort to engage with ME?  What do others think?

Some may say the headline did its job; it was attention grabbing and therefore drew me to the website.  Well yes it did make me read the article, but it also made me question the validity of the research, and the results. If we take a closer look at the article, we see that the study was carried out by two researchers at a University in the Netherlands. The findings suggest two things, firstly you will get paid more if you wear a designer label at an interview, and second that you will also perform better in the eyes of the interviewer if wearing a designer clothes.

I’m not one for dismissing genuine, accurate research. After all, my job frequently requires me to analyse data from clients and formulate it into a report or article for the press. However, I do find it hard to believe that the research in this article can be an accurate reflection of the way interviewers decide on who they recruit.  So for all those involved in recruitment, what’s your view on this research?

You may have read that we are currently looking for people to join us, for anyone that is on the hunt for a new exciting position, have a look at our previous post. And rest assured, we won’t be hiring someone based upon their designer wardrobe!

I was listening, as usual, to the Radio4 Today programme the other day as I was getting ready for work.  I had risen with a feeling of positive anticipation for the business year ahead.  We’d had to work harder than ever in 2010 but our turnover and profit were up on 09 and our work pipeline was looking good with a number of new retained contracts being signed.  And then on comes the grim reaper himself  Robert Peston ( who I am convinced really works for the CIPD).  There then  ensued a diatribe of  depressing predictions – pay squeezes, pay freezes, job losses, VAT rises, unemployment increases. Then I came into work and read the cheery  CIPD Annual Barometer Forecast and wondered if we should all just go home. I am so bloody bored of it all.

And do you know what? This sort of endless  banging on and on about the negative just breeds a what’s the point attitude.  I know personally of at least three graduates with good degrees who think it’s pointless looking for a job because they feel there arent any.  Makes my blood boil!

Yes it’s tough out there but what are we supposed to do – just go back to bed and put our heads under the covers?  

And then a little ray of sunshine  poured into my black day – another prediction and this time positive – and from a group of people who hopefully do really have their  fingers on the pulse – and the evidence at their fingertips –  the holders of the purse strings – Finance Directors. 

In my job search experience I have come across some great consultants – they have listened and understood exactly what I want, then fixed me up with a good interview. However, the majority I have encountered, in both small and large agencies have been terrible. Without naming names, I have found some consultants to be rude and pushy.  They haven’t read my CV properly and they don’t listen which results in them contacting me about jobs that are of absolutely no interest to me and completely unsuitable. Here are just a few examples:

• ‘The salary is £10k less than your current wage – I think you should go for it anyway.’
• ‘The job is in Norwich – I think you’d be great for it – would you relocate from Aylesbury?’
• ‘The job is for a finance officer, I know you have a degree in marketing and pr, but I’d like to put you forward for it.’

Since leaving university, I’ve never been without a job and I’ve never been desperate enough to take any old position. So  the number of inappropriate opportunities I’ve received along the way has got me quite used to saying ‘no’, which I have found out is not a word accepted by all recruiters. One wanted to put me forward for an interview, ‘an opportunity I’d regret if missed’. The role wasn’t for me so I said no… several times. After speaking to a pushy consultant I was passed onto an even more relentless manager who informed me that if I didn’t go they wouldn’t help me in my search any more. I’ve never spoken to them since!

And it’s not just me – a colleague of mine relayed the sorry tale of a consultant asking her to change her CV so that her skills would fit a position they were trying to fill! The consultant guaranteed the interview, but the fact that my colleague didn’t have the required skills and wouldn’t be able to do the job didn’t even cross their mind!

This is why I get wound up with some recruiters; do they really realise what they are doing or how they are coming across to candidates and clients? In my experience, I can only think of 1 or 2 consultants out of about 10 who were professional and really had my interests at heart.

If I’ve had a bad experience with a recruiter then I will tell others not to use them. I’m sure that goes for a lot of people, including clients. Word of mouth is a very powerful tool, and now with social media you can reach millions!

I know you shouldn’t tar all recruiters with the same brush, and I know there are some good recruiters out there; this is just the view I have gained from my experience over the years.  And having got stuck into reading various recruitment blogs since I have started at BlueSky, it seems I am not on my own.  Andy Headworth in his recent blog post advises recruiters to:  ‘Look back at yourself through the eyes of your candidates’

Wise words indeed!

And why are we so interested in journalists? Because much of our time is spent in taking the knowledge inside our clients’ heads and turning it into written interesting, authoritative material for publications, both print and online, around the globe – precisely what you’ve been doing in your career to date.

We work hard and we deliver a great service (or at least that’s what our clients tell us). But we also believe in work/life balance. Which is why we prefer to be based in rural Hertfordshire than the middle of the big city down the road.

Ok that’s enough rambling. Why not tell us more about yourself and what you’re looking to do? Simply email a short summary and some examples of your work to Adrian Barrett at adrian@bluesky-pr.net.

We look forward to hearing from you!

I recently spent the day with Twenty Recruitment at a vision and values day they were holding for their most recent hires.  I have to say it was really refreshing to see a recruitment firm not just talking the talk and paying lip service to the notion of values – but really living them. The firm has three values Life’s Short; Be Eclectic and Crystal Clear. Through the facilitator Rafe Offer, a marketing and branding expert, the new consultants talked about how those values related to themselves, their clients and their candidates.  

 Looking at  ’Life’s Short’ drove a discussion around daring to be different, embracing change, and being brave enough to take calculated risks. ‘Crystal Clear threw up phrases such as transparency, honesty, no spin and clear objectives; while ‘Be Eclectic’ explored ideas such as ‘there is no box’, solutions driven, differentiation and ‘there’s no such thing as a problem – only an opportunity for a solution’.

Then the real fun began with role plays where consultants had to pitch to clients and potential employees – and integrate some of the ideas around the values. I had great fun playing a client!

OK, I hear you say.  So what stops the consultants enjoying their day away from the office and then forgetting all about values when they walk out of the door?  Well, because how they live the values in the business is part of their performance appraisal – and it’s also linked to their bonus.  There was a great discussion around how the consultants felt that they could be judged around those values with some real measurable metrics.  And what’s more – to ensure that there isn’t a disconnect between how the values are perceived internally – and how they are perceived externally – there is going to be ongoing research with clients and candidates around whether the values are being demonstrated.

Recruitment is an industry where sometimes the egos of the founders can suffocate any attempt at creativity or originality.  It was great to see a company where the employees are really driving the vision and the values.

So what do you think?  Comments welcome!

We’ve all been sitting at our desks well into the evening trying to finish bits and pieces and plenty of people work well over seven hours every day whether it be in the office, or at home . Does this mean they are destined for health problems? Possibly they are but there are plenty of other activities that we undertake that are equally as bad – smoking, drinking and even eating that can also contribute to heart – related illness.

This got me thinking – was this just another study undertaken by health professionals attempting to scaremonger us or should organisations take note of this and encourage their employees to not do overtime or if they do, in moderation?

Let’s look at the recruitment sector where a typical consultant works from 8am-6pm – that’s already a nine hour day (if we suppose that people actually take a full lunch break these days!) before any overtime is started! Going by this study all recruiters are faced with the prospect of health issues! I tend to believe that we simply cannot go about life worrying about every snappy headline we see telling us that something we are doing in life is going to result in future health issues – if we did our lives would be somewhat nonexistent!

I for one am not about to demand from my employer that I never work longer than a seven hour day and I suspect most organisations will take this study with a pinch of salt!

Apologies readers for the lack of BlueSky blogging of late – BS HQ has been very busy! Not that we are complaining – it’s good news both for us but for the recruitment sector too. As more recruiters invest in PR it’s a sure sign that conditions are on the up! So as it’s 4.30pm on a Friday and my brain is slowing down so I thought I would use the time productively and ramble a little bit about this…

As we blogged about a few weeks ago we’re recruiting at the moment – due to aforementioned busy-ness we’re keen to take someone on. This is where we are put in our clients’ shoes and have to put all that recruiting knowledge we have gained to the test! I’ve written various pieces on how to write a good CV and the likes over the last couple of years, but I guess I have always assumed that people know the basics. It turns out that many don’t. We have had spelling mistakes, sentences that don’t make sense, photos, applicants from 200 miles away and people with completely irrelevant experience with no mention of a desire to work in PR. It’s a shame because what if that person with mistakes on their CV was perfect for the job? They could be losing out on opportunities because of something so simple. Although saying that they did provide us with a few chuckles too…

This got me thinking – who is to blame for this? The obvious answer is the candidate – sometimes mistakes can be solved by something as simple as proofreading the document . And if you don’t know how to put a CV together then do some research – the internet is home to loads of tips on these subjects. At a time where there is lots of competition for jobs shouldn’t this be crucial? However should schools play more of a part in teaching these skills? Learning about the periodic table and the Battle of Hastings obviously is all part of the education process but isn’t the point of school to prepare you for the workplace? I can’t think of much more relevant than knowing how to write a good CV.

So, my top CV tips are: check for spelling, grammatical and other simple errors, make sure you’ve read the job description thoroughly and that your CV relates to that position – detail your relevant experience and interest in the job. In other words put yourself in the employer’s shoes – what would you want to hear? Make it clear, concise and easy to read and don’t worry about including photos, date of birth or anything else that is not needed.

Saying this, all is not lost! We did also receive a handful of CVs from promising candidates, so hopefully the next BlueSky blogger will be with us soon. Watch this space!