Blog: IT can be HR’s best friend
The IT organization and HR have always had a mostly adversarial relationship as IT rarely sees HR as a true IT consumer, more as a clueless and demanding relative. Most HR departments for their part are usually very under informed when it comes to HR and IT’s role in supporting the business. But listen up it’s time […]
Analysis: First three UK employers accredited for inclusive recruitment practices
Some 18% of working age people are disabled, yet only 48% of disabled people are employed as opposed to 78% of those without a disability. Despite some really well-intentioned employers working hard to attract and retain disabled people, research has revealed that, among the 220 or organisations questioned, there were still barriers to inclusion, primarily […]
Talent Spot: Michael Stirrup, head of HR at Waterstons
Stepping into an HR director’s shoes for the first time is a steep learning curve for anyone, but for Michael Stirrup, it has been more precipitous than most. For this is his first HR position and it supplements his usual day job of finance director. Over the five years that Stirrup has been employed […]
Blog: I was a vampire HR manager – does it matter?
A while ago I recorded some webinars for a training company, for their YouTube page. When they posted the videos, they told me that they were unable to use my name on the clips, because YouTube automatically puts related video clips on the same page. Why was this a problem? Well, mainly because the majority […]
Engineering suffers from lack of jobs not skills, says study
Claims that there is a shortage of graduates with the engineering skills required to drive economic growth may be overstated, according to research from Birmingham University. Researchers at the institution say that fewer than half of graduates who leave university with a degree in engineering are actually still working in the field six months later. […]
CEO Insight: Company Shortcuts’ Lara Morgan on the importance of recruiting the right people
I only made it where I am today because of the people I surrounded myself with. I have not always known what exactly I wanted to achieve, but I have known that I did not have all the right skills and expertise, says Lara Morgan, entrepreneur and co-founder of Company Shortcuts, a firm that provides […]
Employers could pay millions in extra VAT recruitment charges for temp staff
Housing associations, charities and financial services companies that rely on temporary staff could pay millions of pounds more in VAT charges to recruitment agencies, after HMRC said it would disregard a tribunal ruling on how much VAT should be applied to the supply of temporary workers. In March, the First-Tier tribunal hearing involving Reed Employment […]
Colt saves £300,000 on recruitment costs by consolidating systems
Colt Technology Services has saved £300,000 on recruitment costs alone this year by replacing a hotchpotch of recruitment systems with a single Software-as-a-Service-based offering. Telecoms and IT services specialist Colt operates in 13 countries and is expanding rapidly. Because it is currently hiring about 600 new staff a year, the company was keen to apply […]
Digital and social media specialists’ wages soar 70% in three years
Senior digital and social media specialists have seen an explosion in pay over the last three years as companies increasingly divert marketing budgets to online campaigns. Wages have soared by almost 70% over the last three years, according to recruitment company, ReThink Recruitment. ‘Head of Search’ jobs, responsible for managing a company’s Search Engine Optimisation […]
Ask the Expert: Can I reject candidates due to their visa status?
The Question I’ve had applications for full-time permanent positions from applicants who are on a Post Study Work (PSW) Visa and so only eligible to work for two years before they would have to change status. I’m assuming that there is no guarantee that new visas would be granted, so is this a valid […]
Demand for temporary and migrant labour is on the up
Demand for both temporary and migrant workers is on the up as employers focus on maintaining flexibility and filling skills gaps during the uncertain economic times ahead. According to the Recruitment and Employment Confederation’s latest JobsOutlook survey of 600 employers, 83% expect that their use of agency workers will either increase or stay the same […]
RBS pay details exposed in Hays email
Recruitment specialist Hays has launched an internal investigation after one of its employees forwarded on an email revealing the pay of thousands of contractors who work for the Royal Bank of Scotland. According to Sky News, the message, which disclosed the pay of about 3,000 contract and temporary staff employed in areas such as HR […]
Sponsoring A level leavers – finders, keepers?
The latest round of A-level results last week highlighted a growing trend. Employers are progressively not only ‘acquiring’ talent among A-level students, but also influencing the content of some degree courses. So what can they do to ensure that they are in the best position to attract – and retain – this talent that has […]
Blog: “But what if they cry…?” How to handle interviewees from hell
You may be a great interviewer, but what if the other person isn’t a great interviewee – in fact they’re an interviewer’s worst nightmare! How you deal with difficult interviewees will depend on the circumstances of the interview – e.g. whether it is a recruitment interview, a disciplinary, grievance or investigation interview etc. – but […]
Identifying the leaders of tomorrow
It’s that time of year again. The process of graduate recruitment begins and, once again, we find ourselves with mountains of CVs from the would-be leaders of tomorrow, professing great interest in a career in…oh the virtues of the Find & Replace function! With more graduates on the market than ever before, all with a […]
School leavers lack necessary workplace skills
Whether school leavers obtain the A-Level results they hope for today or not, almost half of employers do not believe that they have the necessary skills to work in a business environment. A survey of 2,000 micro-companies undertaken by the British Chambers of Commerce revealed that 47% would be ‘fairly’ or ‘very nervous’ of hiring […]
Service Birmingham aims to hire city’s disadvantaged
Service Birmingham claims it is on target to recruit 720 people from "some of the most disadvantaged communities in the city” by 1 April 2013 – 126 of them this year alone. According to our sister site www.publictechnology.net, in sharp contrast to now cancelled plans to offshore staff, the joint venture between the UK’s biggest […]
Benefits must be tailored to age to attract top talent
Benefits must be tailored to workers’ age profile if such packages are to help employers attract and retain top talent effectively, a study has shown. According to a survey among 2,000 UK adults undertaken by YouGov and commissioned by workplace consultancy Croner, issues such as flexible working, company reputation and workplace culture were highly valued […]
Falling employer confidence leads to sharp hiring slowdown
The employment recovery is set to slow sharply over the year ahead as fears over the global economic outlook lead to falling confidence among private sector employers, particularly in manufacturing. Such a situation is likely to be of concern to the coalition government, which has the stated aim of trying to rebalance the economy towards […]
BA and Oracle launch social media-based recruitment campaigns
British Airways and Oracle are both using social media as key planks of new recruitment drives that are being described as among their biggest ever. The UK’s flag carrier airline is using YouTube to promote three new hiring schemes that will comprise its biggest pilot recruitment drive in 10 years. It plans to […]
