Steps to boosting confidence in a job search

Job hunting – we’ve all been there at some point. It’s time consuming, scary, exciting,  in fact a roller coaster of a ride that can leave many with  their confidence in tatters. BUT – it doesn’t have to be!

Follow our five steps and you’ll find your confidence will soon be soaring again.

1. Write down your achievements.

Seeing what you’ve achieved in ‘black and white’ is a hugely positive boost, it’s so easy to forget the steps we’ve made  and what’s more you’ll be able to use them in your CV or interview.

2. Make connections

Don’t be afraid to use all the contacts in your armoury to open doors or provide references. At the same time never forget to reciprocate – ask them if there’s anything you can do to help them (it helps to nurture relationships).

3. Stay focused

If you’re out of work it can be easy to fall out of a routine. Make sure you don’t fall into this trap by setting yourself goals in relation to your job hunt each day. Manage your time just as you would in work and you’ll be far more productive.

4. Don’t get lost in the search

Pouring over your CV, job sites and newspapers everyday can eventually become boring and demoralising. Keep your brain active by learning a new skill, language or hobby. You get the benefit of learning something new, keeping active and feeling positive and to potential employers it shows you’ve used your time in between jobs to improve yourself.

5. It’s ok to have bad days

Everyone does, we’re only human. By recognising a bad day, accepting it and then moving on you won’t get pulled down further and you’ll start to see the good days far outweigh the bad.

Believe  in your self and your abilities and you will find a job that’s right for you. If you want extra help speak to an agency like Network Recruitment Partnership. Consultants can have a huge impact on your search and give you the support you want, when you need it most.

Get the job you would love to have

Today, people everywhere will be declaring their love for each other.

In honour of this Network Recruitment has put together their top tips to help you get the job you’re passionate about..

Be pro-active – seek out those who can help you to achieve your goals whether that’s professional recruiters or even business contacts and friends.

Be inspired – Make sure your CV stands out, be articulate and passionate about your work. A good CV will inspire the person reading it and should make them want to call you!

Be enthusiastic – It may be hard to keep positive when you’ve been job hunting for some time but enthusiasm for the role can be the clincher when employers decide who to hire.

Believe in yourself – Be confident in your ability to do the job.

 

So next time you apply for your dream job, bear these tips in mind and the job you would love may be just around the corner.

Happy Valentines Day from Network!

Ensuring success in your recruitment campaign

You’ve just received notice that one of your employees has decided to up sticks and move to pastures new, leaving you with a vacancy to fill. What do you do – panic? – scream at HR to get the job in the paper quick? – call the agency down the road and wait for the long stream of unsuitable candidates? Well…if you want your recruitment campaign to be successful you won’t do any of the above.

So what’s the secret to a successful recruitment campaign?

With more than 25 years in the niche recruitment sector, we’ve learnt a thing or two and know what makes a campaign a success. We’ve put together a list of tips to help you on your way.

Plan your recruitment campaign

1. Plan, plan and plan again

Sounds obvious, but you’d be surprised how many people fail to plan their recruitment campaign.

Things like:

 i). Budget – both for the campaign and the cost of training a new recruit and paying their salary

ii). Timeframe – when do you need the new recruit to start? How much time can you personally spend on the campaign? Do you have any time away planned that may delay the process? When do you plan to hold interviews? More campaigns fail due to delayed recruitment, missed/re-arranged interviews, and bad time management than any other single factor. iii). Administration – who needs to be involved and how will it affect their work stream?

2. Determine the correct selection criteria

Job Description and Person specification. Don’t just rely on the job description that has been on file for years make sure its up to date – think about asking the person who is leaving to look at it and rewrite if necessary.

Advertise your vacancy in the right places

3. Develop an advertising strategy

Which media is right for the role you want to advertise? You wouldn’t advertise for a brain surgeon in Mechanics Weekly would you? Advertising is very much a horses for courses item so find out what publications are read by your target audience and also which internet job boards they would consult. There’s a lot to consider and that’s before you’ve even written the ad, which needs to not only attract the right candidates but also show your company in its best light.

 

 

4. Managing response

Dependent on the position/s you are advertising think – can you or your support staff handle 500 or more replies? Decide what amount of replies you can logistically manage without your business suffering. If you feel the response will be more than you can handle, it may be time to consider outside help.

Think about your selection process

5. The selection process

One interview or two? Informal/formal, panel interview? References before or after? Do you want to use psychometric or aptitude testing? The selection process can be a minefield so take time to plan this at the start so candidates, you and your staff are well prepared. What about feedback – who will be responsible for informing interviewees?

6. Don’t be frightened of asking for help

So many people have gone through the whole campaign, only to ask for help at the final hurdle, it really is very common. As the process goes on, businesses realise that time spent by staff in recruiting could be more profitably and that using outside agencies to handle responses, feedback, organising interviews, pre-screening etc. would not only be more cost effective but usually results in a better selection of candidates.

So, if you think you could benefit from added support, make sure you choose wisely. You may think it’s best to use the local agency just around the corner but are they the specialists you need for this particular role? If you have an existing relationship with an agency who don’t specialise in the sector your recruiting for – speak to them, they should be more than happy to recommend someone that does specialise in the area you need.

Armed with these tips you can now be confident that your recruitment campaign will manageable, on budget, on time and ultimately a success!

Addressing the Aerospace Skills Gap

Network will be covering a guest blog each month, written by one of our knowledgeable consultants. This month it’s the turn of Aerospace Recruitment Specialist, Mark Smith.

Reports surrounding problems of youth unemployment in the UK fill our National press and television screens on a daily basis. With figures disclosed in January suggesting that unemployment amongst Britain’s youth grew by a further 52,000 to reach 1.4 million, equating to just over 22% of 16-24 year olds. 

However, in opposition to the  doom and gloom suggesting there aren’t suitable opportunities for young people in this latest recession; a recent report covering UK engineering in 2012 showed that 63% of UK employers in manufacturing are already experiencing difficulty recruiting individuals with science, technology, engineering & maths (STEM) skills and knowledge.

Following this current trend the replacement demand and recruitment in manufacturing is expected to rise in the UK by an estimated 29% in professional occupations and by 16% in skilled trades occupations by 2017.

By providing the right opportunities for young people there is an opportunity for them to take advantage of these recruitment demands, even in a slow economy.

What’s more challenging, is to encourage young people to study STEM subjects at A-Level and degrees, progressing into a career in engineering.

Interestingly, despite the varied careers on offer in the modern engineering sector, it has been disclosed in recent studies that over 40% of children described engineering as either ‘dirty’ or ‘smelly’ and nearly one in five said it was ‘boring”.

The UK is also experiencing similar issues more specifically within the aerospace sector, with just over half of those qualifying in aerospace engineering (57.6%) going on to employment in an engineering and technology occupation. Compare this with figures for other areas – nearly three-quarters (72.2%) who graduated in civil engineering went on to work within the civil engineering sector.

Overall, the skills gap within engineering sector seems obvious; making this sector in my opinion a rich opportunity for all who wish to pursue it. But, in order to fulfil the potential that the engineering sector could offer the UK in the coming years, there needs to be a drive to change the mindset of today’s students and a need to better promote the opportunities in the engineering sector as a whole.

Making The Most of January’s Transfer Window

Build your team…Maximise performance…score goals.

The transfer window…January rolls around and suddenly you find you’re missing a star player or due to injury a short-term fix is required to enhance your team’s performance. Sound familiar? It’s a common problem and not just one that Football Managers have to deal with.

Many businesses use the start of year to asses the strength of their team, which is why so often as consultants, we see a push towards recruitment at this time of the year. Employers realise that to make goals happen they need to maximise their performance through recruiting talented individuals or insure against loss by covering absences with contractors ‘on-loan’.

Thankfully, unlike the FA not all your recruitment has to be completed by January, imagine the sleepless nights, endless interviews and negotiations – perish the thought! But, that doesn’t mean it isn’t worth taking a look at the market now.

We help our clients looking to get in quick at the start of the year by planning ahead and mapping the current market. By doing this we’ve helped employers pinpoint that missing star player.

So, sure you stay ahead of the competition and make the most of the transfer window.

Birmingham’s job seekers to benefit from High Speed 2 rail link

By Ken Wood, Managing Director

The go ahead has been given by the Transport Secretary for the HS2, which will drastically reduce travelling time between Birmingham and London.

This is fantastic news for the Midlands which will see Birmingham become the hub of a network that will go on from Birmingham to Newcastle and beyond in the east and Manchester and beyond in the west.

I believe the Midlands and Birmingham in particular will benefit from the proposed plans as the increased ability to travel quickly between London and Birmingham brings growth into the region. We will see more companies willing to locate in the Midlands and don’t see it as some do – that is purely a way to get people to London quicker. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if there is greater volume of travel the other way.

Add to this that Birmingham has been voted one of the top 50 places to visit in the Universe and I all I can say is keep it coming!

Optimism in the job market

With all the doom and gloom that once again seems to be being proclaimed by the media at the moment you would think that the job market would be feeling the effects – but no it’s not.

A poll taken by Monster.com in December 2011 reveals that more people think their career situation or job will improve in 2012. It’s encouraging to see that following the recession and dips that followed, people seem to be (finally) believing in both, their own and the UK’s ability to recover from the downslide.

According to the results, when asked “Do you think 2012 will bring improvements to your job or employment situation?” 49% of respondents thought things would get better in 2012 up 7% from the same time the previous year.

Here at Network, we’ve definitely seen the effects of increased optimism and it’s not just job seekers. Employers too seem to be keen to ensure key roles are in place.

So what are your thoughts? Do you feel positive that 2012 will bring you a brighter future? We’d like to hear from you and about your expectations for 2012.

To view the results follow this link http://www.monsterworking.com/2012/01/04/more-people-think-their-job-or-career-situation-will-improve/

Make the most of 2012

Happy New Year!

For many people today is the first day back to work since the festive break and while most will be grateful for the return to routine and a fresh start to the year, some will have more than the daily commute on their minds.

The Christmas break allows all of us time to relax and assess our current positions. For some people it’s a time to re-evaluate their careers. Network, find many candidates approach them with a view to making a career change so how, given the competition, do candidates make themselves stand out from the crowd?

Well, by finding the right support for a start. Network Recruitment, specialise in helping candidates within the Engineering & Manufacturing, Automotive, Food & Drink, Technical and Professional industries and Housing and Public Sectors. Because we’re specialists, our candidates get one on one attention that helps them to shine.

What about employers? Given the amount of candidates on the market at this time of year, you would think it’s easy to recruit. Actually, this can be one of the more challenging times without the assistance of recruiters. Network build strong relationships with our candidates so we’re able to fill roles based on more than just a CV. To us, our candidate’s personality and approach to work is just as important in making a successful placement for the long term, which is why, so many of our clients approach us again and again for assistance.

With all this in mind it’s worth remembering that January can be one of the best times for job hunters to get their career on track and for employers to build their numbers in time to make the most of the year to come. So, if you’re thinking of applying or recruiting, make sure you get the assistance you need to make the right match.

To all our readers, candidates and clients we wish you a prosperous 2012.

Celebrating Christmas in the Office

With the imminent start of festivities for the annual Network Recruitment Staff party, this week we’re looking at the ways businesses celebrate Christmas.

The Christmas Party

Probably the most well known of all office celebrations and as varied as a box of allsorts, the office Christmas bash is obligatory for most businesses and while perhaps many offices have downsized their budget in recent times, the celebrations are still very much the core of team bonding and morale for the new year to come. In fact some companies have found that rather than the stress of large black tie events and partners invited, a more informal approach allows the team to relax more and enjoy the company of their colleagues, without the need to down 5 pints first!

Secret Santa

The stateside tradition has made its way across the pond and is now increasingly popular in offices up and down the country. A sensible approach is often the best, so a price limit and theme always works well. At Network we like a bit of a giggle so ours is a £5 limit and the gift has to be funny or amusing in some way for the recipient. Last years gift swapping led to a very enjoyable lunch playing games that we were no doubt much too old for, but none the less enjoyed immensely!

Office Nibbles

Everyone loves a buffet, right? Instead of the more expensive route of paying for a hired venue, many companies get the caterers in for nibbles in the office and host a Christmas soireé amongst the desks and photocopiers. The upside is you, as an employer save money, and appear like Father Christmas himself, giving your staff a few hours off work to socialise with their colleagues without the added pressure that a full blown bash can bring.

 Every office has its own way to celebrate Christmas and all I’m sure are appreciated by the people who work there. So however your business chooses to celebrate the festive season this year, all that’s left for me to say is may you have a very Merry Christmas and a peaceful and prosperous 2012.

From the whole team at Network – Happy Christmas!

To tinsel or not to tinsel…

That is the question. With Christmas fast approaching,  offices up and down the country are breaking out their boxes of decorations and bringing a little festive cheer to those drab corners by the water machine. Some offices no doubt have the professionals in to do it for them, but for the majority of us, it’s left to the team to do the honours and some people take it very seriously. Network Recruitment’s offices have been bedecked with tinsel, lights and shiny Christmas charaters and the mince pies have already taken a beating (we might regret that come January!). With our decorations up and seeing others doing the same, it got me thinking – how does everyone else keep the festive cheer going in their offices whilst still being able to reach their desk? So, just for fun I’ve picked some of the best (or worst – it depends how you view it) office decorations to inspire you to dust off the snowman and get busy with the tinsel and blue tack. Oh and if you’re particularly proud of yours, feel free to post here.

Enjoy!…

I wonder who the lucky person is that has to work with a HUGE Rudolph hanging overhead!

Without doubt this one, was a professional job. Festive none the less.

The obligatory tinsel round the monitor look.

There’s always one!

Inventive use of cotton wool…bet the cleaner wasn’t happy though!

Erm…

Very festive.