Monthly Archives: November 2009

Careers, Corporate Culture, Employment, Headhunting, HR, HR Services, Human Resources, Jobs, Recruitment

Demand For HR Professionals Hits High

Joslin Rowe reports demand for HR professionals is steadily increasing with job vacancies in financial services currently at their highest levels of 2009. This shift in the market shows that employers now have the budget to recruit new employees and recognise that with expanding work loads, departments left under resourced by redundancy now need more support.

This turn in the market is highlighted in Joslin Rowe’s bi-annual salary survey, where the figures show that there has been a 4% increase in HR job volumes in the last 6 months for permanent recruitment and a massive 63% surge in temporary and contract jobs. The influx of temporary and contract HR job positions appears to be a short term remedy to ease pressure on under resourced HR departments with demand for analytical, compensation and benefits professionals hitting a high to meet the year end requirements.

“Whilst the job flow does lie heavily within temporary and contract recruitment, this increase is extremely positive in a market that has been relatively stagnant for the majority of 2009”, said Tara Ricks, Managing Director of Joslin Rowe. “While talk of a market turn becomes more commonplace, employers are awaiting clearer signs that we’re beginning to leave the recession, so they can plan for growth in 2010.”

Yet while demand for HR professionals is on the rise, there has been a drop in salaries. On the permanent side average earnings have fallen by 14% over the last 6 months. While decreases have also taken place on the temporary side, the scale of the drop hasn’t been mirrored, with an average cut of only 1.2%.

Whilst salaries have taken a dip, the outlook is a positive one. If the demand for HR temps and contractors continues, this should have a knock on effect on permanent recruitment and with an increase in job flow, along with an expected boost in salaries. Joslin Rowe has already started seeing a rise in permanent mid level positions.

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Careers, Employment, HR, HR Services, Human Resources, Jobs, Recruiter, Recruitment

The Return of Optimism for Finance Professionals

GREEN shoots, double-dips, doom and gloom, staggering unemployment figures – we’ve seen it all in the media this year, but finally there is some hope on the horizon, with 67% of accountants expecting a return to growth by June 2010.

It would be easy to assume that there is no recruitment activity out there at all. On the contrary, there have been some very credible reports on how finance departments have fared better than most other business functions.

There have been some significant changes to the role of an accountant but there’s never been a more exciting time to be part of the profession. There have certainly been some clear winners and losers as a result of the turbulent changes within 2009.

Within some sectors, finance professionals have experienced pay cuts of up to 20% of salary. Many Financial Directors have overseen reductions or removal of bonus schemes – including their own.

On a more positive note, there has been an increasing optimism amongst fast-growing, innovative and ambitious businesses – which are still prepared to pay competitive packages to secure the right talent. Interim and project professionals have had a busy year, with reports showing how the demand for interims has been consistent during this recession.

In fact, Reed Finance has never had more interims out working on assignments than they have currently. Just like in previous recessions, many organizations have made use of a more flexible workforce within their finance departments and turned to hr consulting and contracting services. Day rates for the most expert and specialist interim contractors have been resilient throughout the year.

Some industry sectors that have been regarded as being hit hardest by the market conditions have also been some of the most active recruiters. A number of organisations in financial services, manufacturing and the leisure sector have been using recruiting significantly – as a result of significant structural changes.

An entrepreneurial spirit and a sense of now-or-never amongst companies with aggressive expansion strategies, has definitely been noticed. This has all created an increased need for experienced finance professionals; with these employers looking for hands-on accountants who are interested in exciting, opportunistic projects.

Finance experts within the retail sector have survived the recession well, with recruitment levels maintained. Recruitment of senior finance posts within the Public and Third Sectors also remained constant in the first half of 2009.

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Careers, Employment, Employment Outsourcing, HR, HR Consulting, HR Services, Human Resources, Jobs, Networking, Recruitment

Employers On Look Out For Specialist Legal Skills

Hays, the world’s leading recruiting experts in qualified, professional and skilled people, has revealed that whilst it is premature to talk about a recovery in the legal market, signs are emerging that recruitment activity for certain niche skill sets has remained steady.

Hiring levels for transactional roles within private practice continue to remain static, but organisations are still keen to bring in specialist skills within certain sectors, such as professional indemnity, clinical negligence and insurance. Regulatory experience is also sought in both commerce and private practice, as employers continue to assess risk, particularly within the financial services sector.

“Although we cannot say with any degree of certainty that the market has turned the corner, we are experiencing signs of cautious optimism. Private practice firms are recruiting, particularly if they have a commercial and strategic reason to do so, for example senior level partners who have a following of clients,” said Helen Godwin, Regional Director at Hays Legal.

Demand for in-house roles has risen within the banking and financial services sectors, particularly in the derivatives, funds and asset management sectors. Organisations in the public sector are, however, beginning to be more cautious, “Although activity in the sector as a whole has slowed, given that organisations are wary of the political landscape and spending cuts, opportunities in niche areas such as childcare still exist, as councils seek to enhance their childcare legal teams,” affirmed Godwin.

The economic climate means that employers are still being very specific about their skills and experience requirements, thereby prolonging the recruitment cycle. “Firms are looking for individuals who tick all the competency boxes and can demonstrate a combination of technical skills and specialist knowledge. A track record in business development and a deep understanding of the commercial drivers of running a business are a definite plus,” continued Godwin.

For junior lawyers, conditions are the toughest for a decade – the number of training contracts has fallen and with trainees doing paralegal work, it has become even harder for qualified lawyers to find work. Adopting a flexible approach is very important, “My advice is to think strategically about the area of law you want to go into as some areas, such as clinical negligence, insurance and employment, are more recession proof than their more ‘glamorous’ counterparts,” noted Godwin.

The message for jobseekers is that they must be supremely well prepared given the intense competition to ensure they give themselves the best chance of securing a role. “I cannot stress enough the importance of researching the organisation and preparing for competency based interviews,” continued Godwin.

Ensuring that skills are kept updated is another important factor to help boost the chances of employability, “We would encourage young lawyers to take advantage of any networking opportunities and attend any relevant legal courses. Brushing up on areas such as employment law, restructuring and insolvency is a smart strategy, as recruitment for these skills will pick up in 2010,” concluded Godwin.

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Careers, Employment, Employment Outsourcing, HR, HR Consulting, HR Services, Human Resources, Jobs, Networking, Recruitment

Steady Growth In Demand For Retail Banking Roles

Hays, the world’s leading recruitment experts in qualified, professional and skilled people, has reported that despite difficult trading conditions, there has been a steady growth in demand for retail banking roles.

Signs are emerging that the market is starting to pick up, with organisations starting to prioritise recruitment. Tessa Hollingworth, Operations Director at Hays Banking, explained: “Clearly, we’re not out of the woods yet by any stretch of the imagination, but we are experiencing an increase in the demand for a variety of banking roles, particularly within the major retail banks and building societies.”

Building societies are looking to fill variouis banking jobs, from cashiers and customer service advisers through to assistant managers, senior branch managers and regional managers. “Recruitment is taking place across the board with these organisations looking for a mix of junior candidates and for those with managerial experience,” added Hollingworth. “Organisations will look carefully at an individual’s work history – evidence of loyalty to an employer is advantageous. Prior experience is preferred for more senior roles although for the more junior roles the right attitude is just as important.”

Recruitment in corporate banking jobs and commercial banking jobs has also picked up momentum, with a demand for restructuring and recovery roles in particular. These are challenging roles and individuals need to be excellent problem solvers and have first-class communication skills. Distressed debt is one of the key issues in today’s market and specialists with this specific experience remain highly sought after in the current market, given the requirement for strong credit, risk and accounting knowledge. “Employers are keen to hire individuals with excellent relationship management skills and strong credit skills,” added Hollingworth.

Business development also remains a focal point for retail banks and building societies with a strong track record in sales being one of the key competencies sought after by employers in the field of business banking jobs. Professionals can use their transferable skills from the wider retail environment to put them at an advantage when applying for jobs in this sector. Qualified financial advisers who are able to achieve targets consistently are also highly sought after, relevant industry qualifications such as FPC/CeFA are essential.

Professionals looking for retail banking jobs need to differentiate themselves in the current market and this means being thorough with CV preparation.

“With competition for roles extremely high, it is in the interests of every individual to spend as much time as possible refining their CVs. Candidates also need to work on their interview technique and be aware of competency based interviews and what employers are expecting,” continued Hollingworth. “For all roles, providing clear examples of past achievements and the impact they have had on the bottom line is particularly important. Specialist recruiters can provide tailored advice to help candidates in all aspects of the recruitment process.”

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Careers, Executive Search, Human Resources, Leadership, Management

Promethean Group Announces New Board Appointments

Promethean Group, a global leader in interactive classroom solutions, and its principal company, Chalkfree Limited, has announced the appointment of two new, non-executive directors, namely Dante Roscini and Philip Rowley.

Mr. Roscini, age 51, serves as a senior lecturer in the Business, Government and the International Economy Unit at Harvard Business School. Prior to joining Harvard in 2008, he was the Country Head of Italy and Chairman of European Capital Markets for Morgan Stanley, as well as the board director of Morgan Stanley International Bank, In 1999, Mr. Roscini joined Merrill Lynch as Head of Global Equity Capital Markets and, f r o m 1988 to 1998, he was the Head of European Capital Markets for Goldman Sachs. Dante holds a summa cum laude Laurea degree in nuclear engineering f r o m  the University of Rome and an MBA f r o m Harvard.

Mr. Rowley, age 57, currently is a non executive director of ARM Holdings plc, HMV Group plc and Misys plc and has previously served a non executive director at Tradus plc. F r o m 2001 to 2007, Mr. Rowley was with AOL Europe, where he became Chairman and CEO. In 1998, Mr. Rowley joined Kingfisher plc as Group Finance Director. Prior to relocating to England, he held the posts of Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer at EMI Music Worldwide and was the COO and CFO of Golden Books. Mr. Rowley holds a degree in chemical engineering f r o m Imperial College, London, and qualified as a chartered accountant with Peat Marwick in 1976.

“We are delighted to welcome Philip and Dante to the board,” said Graham Howe, Chairman of Chalkfree Limited. “Their impressive track records and experience will strengthen our Board and are highly relevant as we plan our continued expansion and as more and more countries turn their attention to bringing interactive learning technology to their classrooms.”

Additionally, Promethean’s CEO, Jean-Yves Charlier has also been recognized for his significant accomplishments in driving the company forward over the past year when he accepted the British Venture Capital Association (BVCA) Award for the best CEO of private equity backed companies in the UK. The award recognises the achievements of CEOs throughout 2008 and nominees selected f r o m across the UK were judged on their company’s performance.

Mr. Charlier was recognized for his leadership, further consolidating Promethean’s strong market position across the 90 countries in which it operates and for driving the company’s revenue growth up 49% in 2008, following a 25% growth the previous year. This growth can be linked to key initiatives instigated by Mr. Charlier in 2008 included focusing the business solely on the education software sector, adopting a global indirect sales model and accelerating new product development investment.

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Careers, Employment, Employment Investigation, HR Services, HR Solutions, Human Resources, Jobs, Management, Resume

Barrett Group Fields Complaints of Employee Internet Job Screening

Businesses spend a great deal of time and energy to develop strong reputations in their industries. As a result, employers are conscientious about the types of individuals they employ as their reputation may have an impact on the reputation of the business. Among others, The Barrett Group, a career management service, has witnessed a shift in job screening. It used to be that prospective employers would have a cover letter, a resume, references, and letters of recommendation that essentially encapsulated the candidate for hire.

With the ease of information access, more and more employers are using the Internet to screen potential employees. As a result, career management service businesses like Barrett Group llc. are becoming more mainstream and more valuable than ever. Studies have shown that 66% of hiring professionals use the Internet as a first screening and 50% report they disqualified a candidate based on the discovered data. As a result, it is becoming more and more important to be aware of one’s Internet presence.

Text-based media is notorious for miscommunication. Oftentimes comments and information found on Facebook, MySpace, or Twitter may be damaging to a job seeker when discovered by prospective employers. Frequently, the damaging Internet data is a mistaken use of words or information that is completely unknown to the job seeker. As a result, Waffles Natusch, President of The Barrett Group recommended on an NECN TV interview that their clients ‘google’ themselves annually under normal circumstances. “If you are in a job search, we recommend our clients check every single week.”

During the NECN TV interview, Waffles Natusch, discussed ways in which individuals can, “Remove the ‘derogatories’ or things you don’t want people to see or that are erroneous.” Many individuals are amazed as to how many people have their same name, which can create additional problems for one’s reputation. There are methods to resolve these issues. The three recommended steps are:

1. Search for one’s name, its variances, and nicknames on various search engines and remove unflattering content,
2. Click on and place positive content on the Internet through Twitter, blogs and circulating articles
3. Setup google alerts so that an email notification is sent when new content is placed on the Internet.

The bottom line is that there may be erroneous or misleading information on the Internet that can have a negative effect on one’s ability to find employment. Waffles Natusch explained that “…somebody may indeed post malicious things about you.” which may, “…interfere with career aspirations.” Many individuals can manage their reputation themselves and for others it is advantageous to seek out professional assistance.

The Barrett group serves a broad spectrum of business professionals by providing premier career management consulting. With a proven track record of success since 1990, Barrett Group clients receive professional career management services by engaging and highly experienced consultants that produce results.

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Careers, Employment, Employment Outsourcing, HR, HR Consulting, HR Services, Human Resources, Jobs, Networking, Recruitment

Hays Reports Energy And Sustainably Skills Required For Building Services

Hays, the world’s leading recruiting experts in qualified, professional and skilled people, is reporting that despite difficult trading conditions employers’ confidence is improving with positive signs for recruitment activity in the building services sector, especially for candidates with specialist skills, such as sustainability and energy efficiency experience.

Recruitment activity for jobs that require energy and sustainability expertise has remained steady across the public and private sectors, with employers particularly keen to attract individuals with a track record in implementing policies to reduce the carbon footprint and emissions of buildings.

Meeting efficiency targets is high on the agenda of most organisations and if a candidate can demonstrate experience in this field, this is a definite advantage and will improve the chances of being shortlisted.

“We have noticed that there are a range of permanent, temporary and interim opportunities for those individuals with energy efficiency experience. The types of role that employers are looking for include energy managers and facilities managers,” commented Mike McNally, Business Director at Hays Building Services.

Experience of Display Energy Certificates (DECs) and Advisory Reports is a fundamental requirement. “The requirement for DECs only came into effect towards the end of 2008 and these need to be renewed every 12 months, therefore local authorities and institutions need specialists in this field to ensure that targets are being met and that they conform to the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD),” continued McNally.

The equivalent for commercial and private buildings is Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs). Low Carbon Consultants advise on the design and operation of commercial buildings to meet the highest energy efficiency standards complying with Part L (Conservation of Fuel and Power) of the Energy Performance in Buildings Directive (EPB) and can subsequently qualify and attain the Low Carbon Energy Assessor (LCEA) grade.

These skills and qualifications can be easily transferred from the private to the public sector, which increases an individual’s employability and can make a significant difference to those looking for building services jobs, particularly during the current downturn. “Achieving LCC status not only means that individuals can command better salaries but these specialists can make a real difference to consultancies and bring in much-needed project work,” added McNally.

The competitive recruitment market means that jobseekers with senior strategic project management skills and evidence of cost savings on projects will clearly hold the upper hand. Delivering cost effective solutions and adding value are very much the order of the day. “It is imperative that individuals spend sufficient time on their CVs and quantify their achievements, carefully detailing all the projects they’ve worked on and the impact this has had on the bottom line. Prior experience of the implementation of energy saving technology should always be included when applying for building services jobs,” explained McNally.

Chartership, qualifications and a solid Continuing Professional Development (CPD) record are all important considerations. “Individuals need to focus on career development and networking is a major part of this. Organizations such as the CIBSE, HVCA and the ECA hold numerous monthly meetings across the UK and are free to attend,” concluded McNally.

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Careers, Employment, HR, HR Services, Human Resources, Jobs, Recruiter, Recruiting & Retention, Recruitment

Medical Sales Connection Offers Outplacement Services Program Specifically Designed For Displaced Medical And Pharmaceutical Sales Professionals

Global Edge Recruiting announces a new outplacement services division, Medical Sales Connection. Medical Sales Connection provides outplacement career consultation services designed to assist displaced medical and pharmaceutical sales professionals.

The statistics are staggering. Challenger, Grey & Christmas employment tracking service reported in the year 2000 that 2453 employees were downsized from pharmaceutical companies. By the year 2008, that number had reached over 24,880.

However in 2009, it has almost doubled to more than 53,000 eliminated jobs. According to Denise Wilkerson, Director of Executives Search, “With lay-offs on the rise, our clients needed our assistance to make career transitions smoother for displaced employees. As a leader in the recruitment industry, we feel outplacement services go hand in hand with recruiting services. We want to assist our clients during the difficult times, as well as the times of growth.”

The one-on-one career consultation program is designed to support displaced employees. The program is offered to client companies at reasonable corporate rates.” The Personalized Program includes:

· Personalized Career Plan Consultation with a Career Transition Consultant
· Cover Letter and Resume Writing Assistance
· Assistance and instruction on job search techniques and networking
· Guidance and instruction during the interview process
· 24hour / 7 days a week online web based Career Center

For more information about this topic, please call 877-370-2462.

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Global Edge Recruiting Offers Career Information And Job Opportunities For Healthcare Professionals

Global Edge Recruiting announces the launch of their newly revised website. The updated website is based upon 13 years of successful web marketing experience in the medical sales recruiting marketplace. The new site allows individuals to access current information on how to succeed in today’s tough employment market in either a hiring or job-seeking role. Although designed for medical sales professionals, many of the tools and information are transferable to any sales or marketing discipline.

Global Edge Recruiting

Currently, Global Edge Recruiting.com has over 200,000 hits each month demonstrating the reach of it’s resources on the web. According to Director of Executive Search, Denise Wilkerson, “The Career Center has always been a popular destination on our site. It contains information to assist job seekers in learning how to develop their resume, enter into a job search and successfully interview for a medical or pharmaceutical sales job. It is our hope that the information we provide can help make the job search and interview process easier for those experiencing difficulty in this market.”

Company officials are also citing successes in outplacement services. These services benefit both candidates and clients (employers) by assisting the displaced. The new website offers ongoing career information to assist candidates through periods of career transitioning.

Denise Wilkerson adds, “With the changes in our website, we hope to continue to meet the needs and expectations of both our clients and candidates. The unique tools provided by the new site really help us understand the sales candidate so that we may match them with the appropriate job. Conversely, the site also helps the staff find the talented, competitive individuals that today’s top medical sales companies are seeking.”

The new website was converted from a static site to a dynamic site. This allows“real time” recruiter changes allowing for immediate job postings or changes. According to officials, this helps attract talent when timelines are short or assist in simply getting information out in a very timely manner. The updates also allow for a recruiter blog and question submission area.

For more information about this topic or to schedule an interview with Randy Wilkerson, please call 877-370-2462.

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Reed’s Research Highlights the Impact of Job Cuts

Reed has undergone an extensive research process in order to compare the reaction of recessionary pressures in 2009 to those of the 1992 recession. This comprehensive study is a part of the Keep Britain Working initiative, which was developed by the recruitment services provider.

From the very beginning of this research it is clear that today’s employers are responding very differently to recessionary pressures than those of 1992.

This is in spite of the fact that an identical percentage of organisations in both the 2009 and 1992 studies – 44% – said they had made redundancies as a direct response to the downturn.

Where organizations in early 1992 felt compelled to radically re-engineer their staffing structures, in 2009 something else is happening. In 1992 over 67% of organisations indicated that staffing structures had been changed by the recession. Managers were particularly hard hit by redundancies and were predicted to be least in demand in the upturn, as companies de-layered across the board. The multi-layered, hierarchical organisation was replaced by something much flatter and therefore more flexible.

Redundancies seemed to be imposed with what often sounded like brutal relish. They were characterised by phrases such as “stripping out the dead wood” or “cutting out anyone over the age of 50”, heralding the end of the “job for life”.

Two decades ago 40% of employers identified their most successful recession-driven change as “increasing central controls”. In contrast only 20% encouraged greater employee co-operation. This smaller group actively introduced higher levels of internal communications and staff training, multi-skilling workers to perform across previously rigidly demarcated roles. While it was feared at the time that mass redundancies would jeopardize what was known as the “psychological contract”, in retrospect the actions of this smaller group sowed the seeds of a new relationship between staff and managers which the best organisations appear to have built upon ever since.

In 2009, in contrast to 1992, redundancies have hit across the board, but have not changed the shape or staffing structure of organisations. In 1992 67% said a fundamental shift in staffing patterns occurred, today people are split 50/50. This report shows a different process is occurring, involving a more fundamental shift in attitudes amongst employers and workers.

Key findings for 2009 include the following:

Staff number changes within the organization since the down turn:

• Decreased: 44%
• No Change: 36%
• Increased: 20%

Effect of Recession on staffing patterns within the organization:

• No Change: 51%
• Change: 49%

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