What Candidates Respond Well to During the Interview Process

Feb 19, 2016 | IT

You’re recruiting for a new employee and you want to really get the most out of the process and hire the best candidate in the most effective and efficient way. You have your hiring goals and business objectives in mind and obviously want to do what’s best for your organisation. However, it’s important to remember that your candidates are interviewing you too. They’re testing out whether your company is a good fit for them and whether the role you’re offering matches their expectations. To help you attract the best and keep the attention of the best candidates, we’ve suggested a few pointers.

Good Communication
One of the frustrations of candidates during the hiring process is the lack of communication from employers. Spending time perfecting a CV, completing an application form and particularly preparing for an interview takes time and effort, so if they’re not successful or there is a hold-up of any kind, keep them updated and offer a proper explanation. Once you have selected your interview hopefuls, providing them with adequate information to allow them to prepare is only fair. Do you have any further resources that would allow your candidates to swot up about your organisation? Or could you provide details on what to expect during the interview?

Make Them Feel Comfortable
Your interview candidates are your guests, so making them feel comfortable in a situation where they’re likely to be nervous should allow them to open up and enjoy the experience as much as possible. A friendly tone and attention to the small things can make all the difference; for example offering candidates a drink or explaining what’s going to happen next should help to put them at ease. Initial icebreaker conversations and chit-chat are another way to help your candidates settle in, offer introductions to everyone they will be meeting that day, don’t rush and try to minimise distractions.

Show Them You’re Interested
Treat each candidate like they’re you’re best candidate. If a candidate has a bad experience at an interview or is not made to feel welcome or valued they’re less likely to want the job, but also less likely to speak positively about the company to others.  So do your research, read their CV or application form and don’t duplicate this information when asking questions; if you ask what university they went to, they’ll know you haven’t done your research.

Provide a Realistic Job Preview
The interview is a great time to show candidates around, allow them to meet the team and get a real feel for your business culture. So as well as going into detail about the role and its requirements so candidates know what they can expect if successful, it’s a time to really sell your organisation.

Ask Open Questions
The kind of interview questions you ask will depend entirely on the role you’re recruiting for, however open questions that encourage candidates to tell a bit of a story are often well received. Questions such as “what is something you’d be happy doing every single day for the rest of your career?” or “what’s the biggest decision you’ve had to make in the past year and why was it so big?” give candidates an opportunity to talk about something they’re passionate about. Their answers may also give you a good feel for their personality and charisma.

For support and advice during your organisation’s interview process contact Langley James’s recruiting experts who are available to help you every step of the way.

Women in Technology: Tackling the Skills Gap

Feb 15, 2016 | IT

It was reported last week that a recent study showed that women are better at coding than men. It comes from a study into the service GitHub – an online software building service of which over 12-million people use to “discover, fork, and contribute to over 31 million projects.” (GitHub, 2016). The study suggested that pull requests – or suggested code changes – made by women were more likely to be accepted, with a 78.6% rate, than those made by men, with a mere 74.6% rate. Gender information is not requested, and often unidentifiable, however was identified for the study through profile information or email addresses cross matched with Google+. The study suggested that there may be a bias when it comes to gender. Women’s acceptance rates were higher than men’s, however only when using gender neutral profiles within the developer community of GitHub. The figures dropped drastically to 62.5% when their gender is identifiable.

This mirrors the current employment climate. Huffington Post Tech UK, 2015 reported that only 17% of the IT industry is made up by women. This is an unsurprising figure, given than women reportedly earn around 25% less than men in the IT industry. Pair these stats to the fact that the current skills gap is due to increase to 745,000 by 2017, and 1-million by 2020, it becomes appallingly evident that this is not just a diversity issue, but an economic one too.

There is no easy solution for the issue. Gender imbalance is one that has been ongoing for centuries, and unfortunately the commendable efforts and initiatives aimed at tackling bias seems to be failing to reduce these gaps. In a bid to close inequalities, encouraging women into technology from an early age is crucial. Egnyte CSO Isabelle Guis commented on education, “I believe a major reason that we are seeing more men than women working in the technology industry is education. There are fewer women in technology graduate programmes and in the marketplace because STEM subjects are still perceived by some to be ‘male’ subjects.”

Although the figures may appear disheartening, the discussion of women in technology has been far more prevalent in recent months, and the skills gap has truly brought to life the urgency of encouraging people of all ages and genders into the tech industry. These figures certainly give women wanting to pursue a career in tech the push they may need, and the technology industry reason to open doors for women, whilst contributing to narrowing the ever growing skills gap. Could 2016 see a boom in women in technology?

4 Reasons Why CIOS Must Look Past Dated, Legacy Systems

Feb 9, 2016 | IT

The core challenge of business intelligence has always revolved around a debate of holding onto centralised IT systems that deliver complete control and governance, and the solutions of tomorrow that can deliver better intelligence, although requiring a release of the typical governance control that older systems provide. This choice is then a stark one, yet these four reasons make the case all the stronger for moving away from legacy systems.

1. Businesses will outgrow their systems

The pace of change within the modern business is only becoming ever faster; manufacturing departments can require the processing of thousands of parts, components and materials, dealing with an innumerable amount of suppliers; this department is supported by logistics planning that depends upon supplies where commodities fluctuate hour by hour, and HR departments need to account for millennials and the younger generations who are entering the jobs marketing and contributing to higher rates of employee churn. The strain of all this upon IT systems of old is unbearable, with these old school solutions failing to deliver the complex analytics that such business operations command.

2. The analytic capacities of desktop tools that work alongside legacy systems are not only lacking, but leading to potential business disasters

The analytics solutions that have been tacked onto legacy systems have been designed to meet the needs of varying departments, however such systems have placed the importance of speed over and above accuracy, as well as aesthetics and ease of use over capability. Quite simply put this will lead to intelligence that is incorrect, resulting in business decisions where the incorrect choices are made.

3. Legacy systems are simply throwing good money after bad

Legacy systems are inherently difficult to maintain and manage, and whilst transferring to a modern business intelligent solution comes along with what can be an intimidating price tag (as well as extensive soft costs, most significance of which is training) the eventual costs, both in terms of implementation, as well as the implication upon business decisions, come in far below the option of continuing with an outdated alternative.

4. CIOS have the chance to opt for a data-driven culture, rather than data that lacks integrity

CIOs have a chance to truly drive for change, they can drive down cost whilst investing in BI solutions that deliver value; this compares to continuing with legacy systems that will only continue to provide ever less accurate data, leading to their companies falling behind within the commercial world. What’s more within this newly established data-driven culture, and with the right platform, the previous pressure placed upon systems by reports and analytics can achieve saved resources that may be better spent upon other projects.

James Langley are the go-to recruitment specialists for IT talent that delivers the business intelligence solutions tomorrow, today; through the right people, placed within the right positions, they are helping their clients ensure that dated IT systems are a thing of the past.

HR Manager Voted One of the Best Jobs in the UK – Are You Feeling The Rewards?

Jan 29, 2016 | IT

Glassdoor recently ranked ‘HR Manager’ forth in a list of the UK’s 25 best jobs. Based on the number of job openings, career opportunities and earning potential, HR Manager may not seem the glamorous or high-flying role you’d expect to see near the top of this list but there’s more to working in human resources than is often given credit for. Generally a stable profession with an average base salary of £50,000 for HR Managers the human resources department is often overlooked by other members of the workforce. A CIPD survey reported that a quarter of employees ‘don’t know’ what the department really does – a surprising figure considering the function is so central to so many business decisions. However, it’s time HR stands firmly in the limelight – it’s not only an essential piece of the organisational jigsaw, but some would argue it’s the most rewarding.

Creating Positivity and Changing Lives
A large part of your role as HR manager is to improve employee welfare, whether that’s sensitively managing a workplace dispute or ensuring everyone has the most appropriate equipment to do their job safely and comfortably. Constantly striving for a better, more positive environment for the organisation as a whole will help employees to enjoy their time at work as much as possible. HR teams may also be required to assist with more personal issues where the right help and advice could really play a part in changings someone’s life.

Long-term Opportunity 

As well as an above average salary, a career in HR will usually be a stable one that will see you through to retirement. There are many avenues to explore in the field of HR such as payroll, employee training and development, workforce planning or employee relations and there’s often the option to switch industries fairly easily too. Similarly, if you did ever fancy a change of career you’ll have built up many transferable skills that may allow for a step sideways. Companies will always need an HR department, and although there are continual technological advances in software and HR management tools this people-focussed role is by no means at risk of being taken over by the machines any time soon!

Being Involved

Although in some cases unfortunately HR is still hiding its light under a bushel, or more accurately sitting quietly in the corner of the office, if the function is running successfully you should be a truly integrated member of the whole team, at the heart of the employee hub. You’re involved in hiring and have an influence on who joins the organisation, as well as helping these new team members integrate and develop. You’re in a position of trust to many and will have the opportunity to speak to and work with employees from across the whole organisation. You may also be involved in the organisation of social activities and team building.

Of course, there’s the tough side to working in HR too, making decisions about redundancies and cutbacks will never be easy, and the profession can come under fire when it’s often the one handing out the bad news. However as a field, HR is constantly evolving not only technologically, but legally, economically and in terms of diversity and cultural awareness. This means you’ll handle issues, meet people and deal with situations you may never have expected, always learning and growing with the role and its responsibilities.

If you’re an HR manager and you’re looking to grow your HR team, we can help. We’re in contact with many HR professionals across the UK looking for new roles.

CRM Investment: This is the year of sales enablement

Jan 29, 2016 | IT

CRM systems have been around, in one form or another, since business began. In the pre-computerised world there were record cards and good old fashioned one-to-one interactions where personal relationships where built. However in the global operating world things are a whole lot more complex. The management of what may be millions of customers and prospects is tasked with the challenge of making marketing and trade personal, and as an answer to this has been an uprising of literally thousands of CRM options, each with something different to offer the company with a sales team that must perform in order to drive growth.

Recent research into this area found that a staggering 25.5% of companies have implemented a sales enablement department, with a further 6.7% planning to do so in 2016 (CSO Insights 2015). These figures give more than enough reason for businesses to take a look at just what sales enablement is and how it may be valuable to them in this, the year of CRM investment.

Defining sales enablement

Let’s begin by first defining what sales enablement is; first, it isn’t sales operations, and it may best be summarised by Tamara Schenk, of CSO Insights:

“Sales Force Enablement: A strategic, cross-functional discipline designed to increase sales results and productivity by providing integrated content, training, and coaching services for salespeople and front-line sales managers along the entire customer journey, powered by technology”.

This definition highlights just how tall a task sales enablement is, and as Jim Dickie reports on Destination CRM, companies almost universally recognise the need for technology in order to achieve sales enablement. Dickie then goes further to highlight the five core areas that will sort the wheat from the chaff when it comes to the choice of CRM and how effective they are within the modern world:

– Collaboration: This will demand the streamlining of sales enablement cross department, from sales operations onto training and product management and everything in between.

– Tech-enabled training: Training across the board, from those on the front sales line to those within social media marketing, should be delivered through e-learning solutions.

– Content management: Content management spans every form of internal sales tool, from account plans through to selling scripts, as well as the tools that are customer facing, such as proposals – all managed within a single CRM.

– Virtual coaching: For the large corporation virtual coaching is the cost effective solution to the one-to-one coaching that sales teams need.

– Analytics: The CRM of 2016 should provide for robust analytics that is produced from a variety of systems, from ERP, customer support and onto external sources, this will guide business plans and secure the growth of tomorrow.

All in all these five investment areas each serve as significant costs to a business, even when taken on singularly. However the ROI from such an investment is simply staggering, as the SPO study found that such companies that had already forged ahead with these plans had achieved revenue performance attainment rates of 10.2% higher than those who hadn’t.

Langley James is the answer to sourcing the right people to harness the most innovative of technology; from creating the right digital content and training for the business challenges of today, to harnessing all that CRM analytics can deliver – we have the right people for the most demanding of positions.

The Urgency and Importance of New Technologies in the Workplace

Jan 28, 2016 | IT

Over 80% of IT professionals place high importance on companies investing in the latest releases of technologies. With the current jobs market far more stable than previous years, UK workers ultimately have a far greater choice over where they work, who they work for; and have a greater level of trust in their future in employment. Employer branding is a phenomenon becoming ever more prevalent as the job market continues to grow. When we talk about retention strategies, we usually place a high emphasis on the main components that contribute to retention such as reward, L&D, engagement and satisfaction. But we often fail to recognise the relevance of technology in relation to employee retention.

Having seen a significant rise in the number of IT professionals looking to move on from their current role, it became clear that the reasoning for this was more than just the annual January trend. It is no secret that out of date technology impacts heavily on workflow, productivity and results, but it seems that these issues are beginning to take its toll on workers, and they have had enough. It has become evident that a significantly large number of workers in the IT sector want to leave their current position because they are using old technology at their place of work. This may appear extreme, but with technology playing such an integral part in modern society, people are consequently relying more on efficient technologies demand the most effective processes, and this is swiftly beginning to filter into the workplace.

With technology growing and evolving at such a phenomenal rate, it is unsurprising that technology is now establishing its role in contributing to both retention and employer branding. Investing in the most current technologies will certainly give you a competitive edge, and will undoubtedly enhance your employer branding. A large majority of IT professionals have stated that they will “lose their value in the marketplace if they don’t keep up to date with the latest releases”. The benefits in utilising the latest technologies are endless, and if you fail to move with the times, you will fail revolutionise.

Do you agree that technology now has a far greater input into retention levels?

Do you value companies more if they invest in the latest technologies?

Let us know your thoughts on this issue.

Nurturing your businesses starts with developing the health of your organisation. Through solid processes and up-to-date technology, you can create an efficient and well-constructed working environment. If you need to recruit a BI expert to help in BI solutions, contact Mark or Dave at mark@langleyjames.com or dave@langleyjames.com; or call us on 0207 788 6600.

Amazon and Uber – Market Disruptors Through Customer Focused Digital Strategies

Jan 25, 2016 | IT

Uber: It is the digital taxi platform that has sparked London cabbie revolts and calls upon the Government to crack down on a business that has disrupted the market so much that their hundred-year-old industry is under threat.

Amazon: This is a company that has been built up from a humble online book store and is now a global company; today turning over almost $89 billion [Business Wire 2014]), having acquired a staggering array of businesses and investments and, as of 2015, became the US’s most valuable retailer (New York Times 2015).

These two global giants have well and truly shaken up a digital revolutionising within their markets. So it seems more than pertinent question to ask: just how did these two once fledgling start-ups do it?

Amazon and Uber: Two completely different powerhouses – one solid strategical approach

The staggering successes of Amazon and Uber have actually been built upon one pretty simple strategical notion – having a solid understanding of their customer, and harnessing the right digital tools for a truly customised experience. Sounds simple, right? Well perhaps not so much, as this process requires a solid CRM to feedback all-important customer information for the eventual optimisation of sales, marketing and service processes. What’s more even a comprehensive grasp upon this isn’t enough, and as Amazon an Uber so adeptly demonstrate, there must be customer experience management (CXM) that goes far beyond any CRM exercise.

CXM – The key to digital strategies such as Amazon’s and Uber’s

CXM must factor into any businesses digital strategy when it comes to replicating the Amazon/Uber model. It is the experience beyond, or before, consumers use your services – where they journey through the sales funnel, where they interact with your social media and wherever they externally come across your brand. The key to success here is being able to seamlessly integrate this in a way that provides for a coherent plan.

Goldenberg from Destination CRM puts forward a strong case for employing the hub and spoke model here in order to achieve this. He argues that the hub should be the customer profile, which feeds back relevant information in, ideally, real time. The CXM then serves as the spokes, which include social media, next-best offer deals, customer journey and mobile apps. Each of these spokes is fed with data from the CRM in order to enhance, streamline and ultimately make for the most effective customer engagement rates. The system is then completed with the spokes acting as data senders themselves, where information can be learned upon social media and fed back to the CRM’s consumer profile. This holistic approach is defined by its duel information sharing, and it is very much what Amazon and Uber have been empowered by.

At Langley James we have an unshakable grasp upon how businesses can be empowered with the right IT staff, in the right positions. We know of the solid business growth that can be achieved through innovative digital tools and technology. And we’re the right partner for those who, like Amazon and Uber, seek to harness the world of IT to supercharge their business growth.

Are Your Employees Up To Date With Emergency and Bad Weather Policies?

Jan 25, 2016 | IT

The recent floods that devastated much of the UK just after Christmas turned lives and businesses upside down, and goes to show that this kind of extreme weather can strike at any time. In order to try and prevent and minimise damage, having policies and procedures in place and ensuring all your employees are aware of them could make the world of difference when faced with emergencies like the weather-induced chaos of storm Desmond, Eva and Frank.

Bad Weather Policies

Having an official bad weather policy in place ensures everyone knows where they stand. It may seem like you’re stating the obvious by telling staff what they need to do if the weather takes a turn for the worst, but unusual circumstances may leave employees not knowing what to do for the best.

Your employee’s safety is your number one priority. If the weather means it’s too dangerous for them to travel to work they need to know who they need to contact and by what time. Travel disruptions might also cause employees to be late or stranded elsewhere. There is no obligation for an employer to pay an employee who does not turn in, so consider how you want to handle this.

One option in situations like this is to allow your staff to work from home where possible. Of course in industries like distribution and manufacturing this won’t work, but for IT and other office based professions cloud-based software makes it possible.

Common Sense Prevails

Sensible HR advice and a flexible approach will usually help you through difficult times. If it’s going to take an employee hours to get into work and they’ll have to leave early to travel home again, this is wasted time with the chance of them becoming stranded somewhere, so working from home seems sensible. If you’re allowing home working you’ll need to be clear about the practicalities. The likes of Dropbox and Google Drive make things considerably easier, but there is also equipment to think about. Do employees have work laptops or will they need to use their own? You just need to make sure all systems and equipment have the right security requirements for your business.

Being Prepared

Some severe weather events can be forecast hours before they arrive, allowing time to prepare and advise, but sometimes there is no warning. In either case being prepared, even if the worst happens, will help to keep everyone safe and hopefully minimise damage. Conduct a risk assessment, educate employees and update plans and procedures based on the lessons you’ve learned previously.  Circulate the policies when you update them or perhaps at the start of winter if it looks like snow is on the way, ask for feedback and keep your employees involved.

An Update On SME Cyber Security

Jan 25, 2016 | IT

It’s no doubt that awareness of cyber security is increasing. More people now know more about the risks, or at least the basic steps they need to take to cover themselves and their organisations. However, as the world becomes more connected than ever, hackers are becoming more inventive and more sophisticated in their attacks. It’s important that companies can move with these developments and changes to create a culture that adopts an up to date, risk-based, multi-layer defence framework.

Attacks on the Sonys and Experians of the world may seem far away from small start-up firms or even more established SMEs, but the potential for a disastrous attack or breach of security is only clicks away. Over 30,000 websites are being compromised by hackers every day according to figures from Sophos and can cost smaller firms a considerable amount of money, not to mention stress.

Support is Out There

Following our article last year ‘SMEs Urged to Take Cyber Attacks Seriously’ where we looked into the Government’s plea for SMEs to train, educate, review and prevent risks, it seems many organisations are stepping up to the challenge. With the help of the Government and their 10 steps programme that emphasises basic good practice, as well as many experts raising awareness of threats, those in the know are keeping ahead of the game.

However, Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales recently warned Sky News that cyber security is ‘incredibly important’ and explained that governments sometimes don’t understand IT enough to fully interpret the risks. He explained that governments need to strike a balance when considering their desire to monitor information.

Predictions for 2016

Cyber security predictions for this year include attacks through aps. Aps can access your emails, contacts and more, so attackers are exploiting this as best they can. Also, as the internet of things continues to grow, so do the amount and type of threats to our mobile devices. Some also predict phishing attacks will worsen and get more personal.  In the majority of cases the goal of the cyber hacker is to steal or exploit sensitive data such as personal information or credit card details, yet this year experts predict more destructive, cyber-terrorism type attacks, aiming mainly to threaten.

A Continued Threat

Although many firms are taking positive steps to secure themselves, the fact is smaller firms have less to spend on security, they’re also busy with the day to day of keeping customers happy and dealing with admin.  The most recent government figures suggest SMEs with over 100 employees spend around £10,000 per year on IT security and that the smallest firms, with less than 20 employees, spend around £200.

The installation and regular upkeep of anti-virus software, firewalls, spam filters and keeping devices up to date should defeat the majority of the low level threats. It’s also important for organisations to have a good knowledge of where their data is going and who uses it – this can significantly help to limit any damage. Following the Government’s guidelines and keeping up to date about new threats and challenges will continue to keep you ahead of the game.

Attention To Detail- Why It Pays To Pay Attention

Jan 22, 2016 | IT

Gov.uk were recently left red-faced when an embarrassing spelling blunder- tweeted out to over 1 million followers- highlighted to everyone not only the importance of attention to detail, but that unfortunately this can happen to the largest of organisations. This got us talking about how attention to detail can create great success, or prompt dangerous pitfalls that will cause your business to suffer.

Attention to detail is a prime characteristic of high-performing organisations. Careful management in detail is sure to improve accuracy in performance, and will contribute to overall efficiency and success. Creating positive impressions and proving your corporate competence is key.

It doesn’t stop at spelling and grammar. Historically, the most successful people have an extraordinary ability to notice the most minute of details. Apple is the perfect example of how a fierce attention to detail can bring the greatest amount of success. They will spend days discussing pixel position- details that other companies may overlook as unimportant. They have a desire to create computers that look beautiful on the inside- even though they don’t get seen. This just shows that paying attention pays!

According to Michael Levine- author and media expert, ignoring the smallest of details causes the biggest problems in business. Gov.uk certainly are not the first company to have been subject to an embarrassing, or indeed detrimental blunder that could have been avoided. In 1999 a simple school-level math error caused a Mars orbiter, designed by Lockheed Martin for NASA, to be lost in space when Engineers at Lockheed used English measurements while the NASA team used metric ones. This costed NASA $125million. This could have been easily avoided and it was reported that there were numerous opportunities for this error to be caught before it was too late. Don’t let simple attention to detail cause you the most destructive results.

We can help you recruit someone- bringing a fresh pair of eyes to the business. If you are struggling with staff who lack an attention to detail, we will help you hire a IT or HR specialist, sure to maintain a high level of professionalism and diligence. Call us on 0207 788 6600 to speak with one of our expert consultants today.

Today’s Socially Supercharged E-Commerce

Jan 20, 2016 | IT

Traditionally the art of trading online successfully very much rested upon the placement of talented developers, designers and online marketing specialists; however, with the explosion that has been seen within the world of social media, the ways in which consumers shop, review products and even interact with the companies they purchase from, has been irrevocably transformed. Here we take a look at just what this means for the modern business that seeks to secure a future of boosted e-commerce trade, empowered by social media.

The power of peer to peer advocacy

Word of mouth has arguably always been the most powerful form of marketing there is, and with the unstoppable growth of social media this medium has been digitally supercharged. In fact, so powerful is it that consumer-to-consumer word of mouth has been found to generate twice as much business as compared to paid advertising (BRANDERATI 2013); its little wonder then, that this social media age has often even referred to as the Age of Advocacy and Influence.

E-Commerce becomes one with social media

As of August 2015 Salesforce.com announced the ability for their users to embed a Buy Now button within their social media communities; this, coupled with SAP’s October expansion into e-commerce alongside Jam Communities for SAP hybrids Commerce, has truly realised the ability of sophisticated embedding of e-commerce capabilities upon social media platforms.

As with many things within the social media realm, it seems to be the blue-chip giant of Facebook that is leading the way. For years Facebook has featured the business page ‘Shop Tab’ ability through the good old fashioned, yet pretty mobile unfriendly iframe. Today however, as with all things that this social media giant does, things are altogether rather different, as well as a whole lot more advanced, allowing for the actual upload of products directly onto the platform, and the integrating of payment systems to seamlessly manage the entire process.

Content, community building and solid sales funnels

Adding value to your offering, and to your target market, has always lay at the core of content marketing. Online social communicates can drive business growth, acting as an essential tool for the robust management of your sales funnel. However, whilst many advocates of merging e-commerce and social media have heralded the moves towards a singular online social/shopping destination, others disagree. These particular industry experts argue that such a move is clouding the essential information gathering that is so vital within a community (and where an image of relative impartiality is beneficial).

Beyond social eCommerce onto social customer service

As social media has become increasingly ingrained within the everyday lives of the consumer many have come to expect customer services to be naturally forthcoming upon the platforms they use day in, day out. And where complaints, and perhaps more importantly – the way such complaints are handled – can be placed upon the world’s stage the issue of solid social customer service becomes ever more important. When harnessed in the right way it can lead to companies that are considered to have outstanding service levels, as well as delivering vital savings upon traditional support mediums.

However, it seems that few are embracing social media in this way, with recent research showing that less than 30% of companies on Twitter responded to questions (Social Bakers 2015).

Social media is not only transforming the expertise required within the modern business’s IT departments, but is extending to effect customer services as well as marketing. For the company truly seeking a holistic approach to e-commerce it seems that these three once separate realms within the average business are looking set only to have more and more in common.

The IT Skills Gap: How the UK is being left behind

Jan 18, 2016 | IT

The IT industry is furiously fast paced – accounting for an ever more significant driving force behind many a business’s bottom line. For those companies that harness the right technology and employ the most talented of IT workers there exists a bright future propelled through innovation. Yet it seems that the UK is seriously suffering from the side effects of being dangerously understaffed when it comes to the IT industry. So here we take a look at just what this means for the jobs market for forward thinking businesses, as well as for the wider UK economy as a whole.

The all-together rather gloomy UK graduate jobs market

For graduates it seems that there is barely a day that goes by that doesn’t report ever more depressing figures. From the fact that more than 50% of graduates are working within non-graduate jobs (CIPD 2015) through to the fact that every graduate position has, on average, 39 applicants (High Fliers 2014).

Add to this the typical student debt bill, which has sky rocketed to £44,000 (The Independent 2014) and you’d be forgiven for thinking that UK Graduates have never had it so bad.

The IT Graduate: Seriously hot property for the trading landscape of tomorrow

For the IT graduate the outlook is positively glorious, and is far from reflective of the seriously saturated market that many other industries are suffering from.

Rather than there being 39 applicants for each IT position, there is instead 39% of UK companies struggling to fulfil their IT needs (BCS 2013) and with the current needs of UK businesses, as reported by E-Skills, requiring around 140,000 IT professionals each year, the current rate of 16,440 students enrolling upon computer science courses is woefully inadequate.

Of course this all contrasts against a backdrop of an ever more digitalised UK world, within which the IT industry is forecasted to expand five times over within the next ten years (CIO 2015). Companies today are then truly built upon solid social media strategies, ever evolving business apps and software that makes for the basis upon which businesses operate, market themselves and grow.

The outlook for the average UK business

As employers struggle to secure domestic IT workers, particularly within the software development realm, such businesses are turning to offshore positions within developing economies. Yet these companies are finding such an approach to be a seriously false economy where language, cultural and educational differences prove many a time to be insurmountable barriers.

A forecast for the UK economy

A little shining light for the UK IT jobs market comes in the form of recently announced plans by the Government to introduce core computing skills, such as coding, from Primary school age. However, for the time being, or rather the decade or so until these tiny, well trained coding digits enter the jobs market, it seems that UK employers may need to look to overseas graduates to fulfil their essential IT needs.

Langley James appreciate the challenges of today’s businesses in their quest to fulfil tomorrow’s IT positions today, going beyond the status quo to deliver superstar candidates for even the most demanding of IT job roles.

Implementing Career Development Programs

Jan 18, 2016 | IT

If you are not placing any importance on implementing career development programs in 2016, you are likely to regret it. According to research conducted by SHRM, career advancement opportunities are placed as high importance by employees, and by not investing as much into employee development as competitors are, you are at risk of losing your best talent.

Career Development Methods

There are various methods that you can utilise in order to implement employee development plans. Some companies choose to create mobility programs within the organisation, such as internal hiring, mentoring or leadership programs. Others choose to focus on professional development- providing the funding for employees to work towards certifications and degrees. Some more popular methods include company paid general training and tuition; and nurturing talents, skills and abilities in order to encourage employees to excel in tasks that they enjoy.

Why?

The Benefit to You

When creating a career development strategy, consider the benefit to both the employee, and the business. Implementing career development plans can be a great benefit to your company. In enhancing the knowledge and experience of staff, you can fill internal skill gaps, and in some cases, role gaps. An increase in knowledge about the job in hand will also highly increase engagement and productivity, and tasks will ultimately be completed to a higher standard. This contributes to instilling confidence in your employees, which in turn increases retention levels. The benefits are endless, implementing such a strategy is an investment to a business as opposed to a cost.

Retention

We are seeing a massive surge in people seeking new opportunities and moving on from their existing job role. With the current job market on the up, retention strategies are more invaluable to a business than ever. It may come as no surprise that a lack of career prospect will play a significant part in an employee wanting to move on to better things. Putting procedures, such as career development programs, in place to ensure higher levels employee satisfaction, will ultimately increase retention. Of course, it would be a task to attempt to cater to everyone’s needs and expectations, particularly when people have such different ideas about their career goals and ambitions. But discussing with your staff where they want to be and how they want to get there, gives you the opportunity to aid them in achieving their career development targets. Read more on employee retention.

Employer Branding

Developmental programs which enhance employee’s prospects, is a great way to promote your business and to show how great you are as a company. Implementing a career development program is something you should use to enhance your employer branding. The job market is becoming ever more stable, and people have far more faith in the current climate. There is a greater choice available to people now, and retention is a big issue that employers are currently facing. Clearly defined career paths will help you attract new hires. They will make you appear attractive to prospective employees, and will set you apart from competitors- so shout about it. Read more on employer branding.

When Implementing The Plan

Manage Expectations

The first thing to ensure when you begin to implement career development plans, is that all expectations meet the reality of the plan. Tackle any uncertainties the employee may have. You may find that some view these developmental plans as an added workload and a stress. Manage your employee’s expectations by maintaining that these types of programs are available to those who are willing to engage and that no pressure will be added to those who do not want to participate. Taking a gentle approach and highlighting how such a plan will be a benefit to them; and outlining exactly how the program will be undertaken will help in managing the employee’s expectations. 

Create a Clear Message

Avoid ambiguity and set a clear, concise message from the outset by defining what the plan will include and how you can help your staff get to where they want to be. Be sure to affirm that what you can provide to them rests heavily on company growth, company priorities, economic circumstances and the career goals of the individual. You may also avoid getting into hot water by defining whether this program will provide internal job opportunities or career opportunities- there is quite a difference between the two.

Don’t Over Commit

When you begin to implement your career development procedure, you must ensure that you do not over commit your time or resources if you cannot follow through with your promises. Avoid uncertainty and specify exactly how you can help the employee with career development and the channels by which will help them achieve their goals. It may be that you will provide funding for a member of staff to complete a college course or degree, in which case it would be advisable to set in place any rules or regulations in regards to where and when the employee can complete their work. For example, all work must be undertaken out of working hours, or limited to 2-3 hours a week. Ensure that the boundaries are set and that the employee understands that you can steer them in the right direction and help them to explore their options, but you are not there to do the work for them.

If you are looking for someone to join your team who can help you implement career development opportunities, then call us today on 0207 788 6600 and our specialist consultants can help you find the perfect HR professional for the role.

2015 Roundup

Jan 12, 2016 | IT

We are kicking the year off to a great start following a tremendous 2015 full of new exciting projects, milestones, and many highs at Langley James. Here are just a few of the milestones and achievements we are most proud of:

Your satisfaction

2015 was a great year at Langley James for building and maintaining relationships with all of our clients and candidates. We placed many great candidates into roles with over 200 different companies repeatedly in the space of 12 months. We are proud to say that the majority of the clients that we recruited for, have become regular contacts, and have put their trust in our consultants to find them great candidates again and again. We are also pleased that a growing number of the people that we have placed into job roles, have kept in touch to give us updates on how they are getting on in their new role. We feel privileged that so many of you have built up such a great amount of trust in our consultants and continually show your support and confidence in our services.

Our services to you

In 2015, our efforts in quality client and candidate focus, management and continual improvement were highlighted when we began working towards our ISO accreditation under the British Assessment Bureau. This accreditation means that our process and approach to the way Langley James is managed adheres to the desired management, customer focus and quality processes; and demonstrates the quality in our services to you.

2015 was one of the biggest years for Langley James as we hit a record number of almost 5000 successful placements, with our team of consultants stronger than ever- most with over 15 years’ experience in recruitment. Our live internal database size also hit a record number this year, and we were thrilled to be able to help an unprecedented number of great candidates find the job they were looking for. The number and scale of great people who approached us to help them find the right role meant that we were able to give clients a great choice of people to interview. It also meant that clients could be very specific about any definitive attributes they were looking for in a potential employee and we could always find candidates who could fulfil these requirements.

HR Division

After 16 years in IT recruitment, it had been continually requested that we move into HR, and it felt fitting as we have been dealing with HR specialists and their recruitment processes. One of our top recruiters, Lucy has had a wealth of experience in management and human resources previous to joining the team 3 years ago. The division officially launched in July, and in the space of 6 months, has rocketed. We have already had the opportunity to work with many incredibly talented HR professionals and this is just the beginning of the division.

Business Intelligence and Data Warehousing Specialism

There has been a focus in the market for specialists within Business Intelligence and Data Warehousing and we are catering for the specific need by having Mark Holloway and David Barnes join us. Both seasoned recruiters with over 20 years’ experience, they will be utilising their traditional recruitment skills, including head-hunting to enable us to deliver the best candidates to our clients.

Thank you

We would like to take the opportunity to thank you for coming along on this journey with us, and without your support we couldn’t have experienced the great number of accomplishments that we did in 2015.

Four Workplace Trends For 2016

Jan 12, 2016 | IT

January is always full of predictions for the year ahead and it’s interesting to look back to see which of last year’s predicted trends really did make an impact. However, as technology continues to develop, candidates seize more control over their career opportunities and the workplace becomes ever more flexible, we thought we’d report on some of the possible workplace trends for 2016.

Boomerang Employees

Feel like you’ve seen that CV before somewhere? Well, this year you may just get a touch of deja vu as we’re expected to see more employees returning to businesses they onced worked for. And, according to Forbes, we’re more welcoming than we once were; 48% of organisations previously had a policy against hiring so called boomerang employees, but 76% now say they are more accepting when it comes to hiring a previous employee again. As technology has given us better access to more talent and switching jobs becomes more common, hiring a previous employee could mean less training and induction time as they’ll already be familiar with processes, systems and the company culture, they’re also likely to arrive back with a fresh, enthusiastic perspective.

Enter Generation Z

For the first time we’re noticeably going to see generation Z, the fresh wave of graduates born between 1994 and 2010, make their mark on the workplace. With the lessons of the previous generation and the recession in their minds, along with the responsibility of heavy student debts generation Z are likely to be savvy workers, seeking mentors to help them reach their goals of becoming managers within only a few years. However, although success is important, so is work-life balance, possibly more so than monetary reward.

Succession Planning High on the Agenda

With the likelihood of a five generation workforce in many organisations and a large amount of baby boomers about to retire, the dynamics in the workplace are likely to change significantly for some in 2016. Millennial workers will move into management and leadership roles but may lack the guidance and knowledge of those preparing to retire, making succession planning more important than ever. See our article on managing retirement here.

Flexibility Become Reality

There’s been so much talk over the last year about flexible working – but apparently 2016 is the year you’ll really be able to see the rise in co-working, flexitime and telecommuting. With younger generations valuing more of a work-life balance and workers feeling burned out as they struggle to keep up with longer working days and the need to be ever-contactable, flexible schedules have been shown to make people happier.

To have a chat with one of our experienced recruitment consultants about the needs for your business in 2016 just get in touch here.

Five Important Changes to Employment Law in 2016

Jan 12, 2016 | IT

This year brings into play new laws directly affecting HR, and changes to existing employment laws, as the Government update their policies. It’s important that employers, HR teams and all managers are aware of these changes and how they may impact staffing and workplace procedures. Here’s five of the most important changes to familiarise yourself with as we head into 2016.  

The National Living Wage

From April this year employers will be required by law to pay the national living wage of £7.20 an hour to employees over the age of 25 (the current minimum wage is £6.70 an hour for those over 21). The Living Wage Foundation estimate the true living wage to currently be £8.25, however the Government’s decision to introduce this increase is part of their ambition to raise the national minimum wage to £9 an hour by 2020.

Gender Pay Reporting

By March it will be compulsory for organisations with more than 250 employees to report on and publish the difference between the pay of men and women within their organisation – and this includes the difference between bonuses. The average pay gap between men and women is currently just over 19% and companies currently only voluntarily offer over this pay gap data. Campaigners are keen to have this information available to employees and to trade unions, but the details of this legislation are still being finalised, so keep a look out for further updates.

Parental and sick pay frozen

Normally each year will see a rise in the weekly rate of statutory maternity pay, statutory paternity pay, statutory adoption pay and statutory shared parental pay, however in 2016 a fall in the consumer prices index means there will be no increase and pay rates are frozen from last year. Sick pay will also remain at the same level as 2015.

Trade Union Law Amended

2016 sees amendments to the Trade Union Bill, introducing more strict procedures with the aim of minimising unnecessary threats of industrial action. The measure includes increasing the voting threshold, setting a four-month time limit for industrial action and increasing the amount of notice to be given to an employer of strike action.

Updated Laws for Employing Foreign Workers

With the aim of tackling illegal working, the Immigration Bill has been updated and now makes illegal working an offence. Also any public-facing public-sector workers must speak fluent English and employers employing foreign workers may now be charged an immigration skills fee.

For more indepth details about changes to employment law this year and further ahead visit gov.uk and keep an eye out for updated news and articles from us here at Langley James.

Why Employees Leave and Why They Stay

Jan 11, 2016 | IT

It comes as no surprise that this is the time year that we see a surge in people deciding that enough is enough, that now is the time for a new start and go on to look for new job opportunities. Here we discuss some of the key factors that you should remain mindful of in order to retain your best employees in 2016.

Growth and progression

It is human nature that we want to better ourselves. The strive for growth is a very natural progression that an employee will go through during the course of their career.  It would be unfair and unrealistic to expect an employee to not toy with the idea of moving on to a better position on the job ladder, whether it be within your company, or elsewhere, no matter how loyal the employee. Internal flexibility is a favourable attribute that if you have the means to implement, is likely to enhance employee retention. This is the idea of being open to moving employees around and letting them find their talents and discover what they are best at. You may find that an employee you originally placed in one role, finds their niche and performs to a higher standard in another role just by giving them some flexibility to try their hand at new projects. Obviously it is not always possible to offer that level of flexibility to employees, depending on the size and scale of the business. In this case, challenge your staff, and provide them with a higher level of responsibility. This will alleviate tedium and create a feeling of purpose and worth. Read more on employee retention here.

Work life balance

Although it may be frowned upon by employers, it should come as no surprise when people say they would prefer to work only standard or flexible hours so that they can spend more time focused on other commitments. It can be easy for employers to overlook the bigger picture, and a lack of work life balance will not only impact on the person in hand, but their spouse, family and many other aspects of their life. According to the Mental Health Foundation, over a quarter of employees in the UK feel depressed due to their work load, and a further 58% feel irritable because they struggle to maintain a healthy work life balance. Work load plays a significant part in employee satisfaction and ultimately can influence an employee’s decision on whether they stay or leave. Projects are often time oriented, do not assume that if an employee continues on with tasks beyond scheduled working hours that it is because they love their job and want to be there, which of course can be the case, but not in all instances. A feeling of pressure will profoundly impact upon an individual and force them into working beyond their contentment. If an employee is showing signs of stress and continually working beyond what is expected of them, then perhaps it is time to discuss with the individual ways to more effectively manage their time. Read our top tips in creating and implement a work life balance here.

Lack of Recognition

Measuring how appreciated an employee feels is one of the most difficult things to gauge, but one of the most important. According to a recruitment survey conducted in 2014, a simple “thank you” to your employees is worth £1,608 a year. Lack of recognition or appreciation can cause an employee to feel undervalued and unsure of how they are performing, which can ultimately lead to anxiety and stress. People perform to a much higher standard when they feel valued and a boost in confidence can have a staggering impact on the standard of work produced by your employees. If you are finding that employees are disengaged, yearly appraisals simply will not suffice. Higher engagement levels will greatly benefit both you and your employees. Making small alterations such as implementing an open door policy, and setting goals and targets for your staff to reach, will get conversation flowing, and feedback and recognition can be easily carried out. Read more on open communication here.  

“The Job wasn’t what I expected”

This is the age old tale of someone who has taken a job role with certain expectations, and has been left feeling disappointed and misled when the role they undertook was not as it was expected to be. As a recruitment agency, when we ask why people are looking to move, a large number respond with “the job didn’t meet my expectations”. Often the problem is that the job description that was presented to the employee doesn’t match the role. Ambiguity of a role prior to an employee starting with your company can be far more critical than you would anticipate. People place a large amount of trust in the employer to provide them with the most accurate depiction of what they will be undertaking as part of their new role. Often it can simply be that the employee has misunderstood the job role, but can sometimes be that the employer has deliberately misled them into a job that was not for them. To prevent your new employee from making a move in the first few months of employment, take measures to ensure that the employee has a clear picture of what is expected of them. A trial day is a great way of demonstrating what the role will entail, and also the type of environment they will be working in. This is often a measure used as part of the interview process and will also give the you the chance to see if the candidate can perform to the standard that you expect of them, and fits in well within the environment.  

Training and Development

If someone is feeling dissatisfied with their ability to complete their duties due to lack of knowledge, satisfaction levels will suffer and you are likely to lose them from your team. Providing training and development at work poses great benefits to both you and the employee. It is crucial in keeping your employees engaged and satisfied in their role. It is also a benefit to you, with duties and tasks being completed to a greater standard. Enhancing knowledge through the appropriate training will increase confidence, and ultimately help you to retain staff. It will give the employee the opportunity to address weaknesses and to improve on those weaknesses before they make the decision to leave on their own accord.

If you are looking for someone to join your team who can help you manage your employee satisfaction and retention, then call us today on 0207 788 6600 and we can help you find the right HR professional for the role.

2016 – The Year of the Candidate?

Dec 21, 2015 | IT

2016 has been dubbed ‘the year of the candidate’ as the job seeker’s position strengthens and the job creator’s gets tougher. The Office of National Statistics found that 7.7 million of the UK’s workers plan to make looking for a new job in 2016 their new year’s resolution – that’s over half.

There seems to be two main reasons that this has been predicted, following activity over the last few years. To begin with, it seem that many employees are unhappy in their current role. Lack of job satisfaction and a feeling of being undervalued are often cited as the main reasons for unhappiness in the workplace, and there is often an aspect of ‘the grass is always greener’. However, candidates are also become savvy to the fact that they may be in the driving seat, or at least feel they are in a position to make positive steps to change their career for the better. Gaining a sense of empowerment to take control of your own employment opportunities may be down to the continued skills shortages which show no sign of slowing in 2016.

Candidates are increasingly realising that there is more opportunity for flexibility and that there may well be a more suited and satisfying job out there for them. It helps that moving from job-hopping (in moderation) isn’t as frowned upon and doesn’t hold quite the negative connotations it once did. With a new sense of power businesses may have to work even harder to secure the right candidates for their organisations and specific roles.

A new year, a new job, is a typical story and although over half of the UK’s workers plan to job hunt in the new year, the amount that do, and the amount the do so successfully will no doubt be significantly less. However organisations should not underestimate the strength job seekers will continue to enjoy. We’ve talked a number of times about the rise in flexible working and the desire for more of a work life balance and this plays a key role here. It seems candidates also have more flexibility with location as jobs are continually becoming more decentralised. Although London will still remain the country’s main job-hub in 2016, there is likely to be significant job growth in other major cities including Cardiff, Edinburgh, Manchester, Leeds and Bristol.

If you’re looking for the ideal candidate for your position, please get in touch and see how we can help. We have an ever growing database of candidates and great relationships with some fantastic professionals who are on the lookout for the right fit for them.

Employer Branding

Dec 21, 2015 | IT

Due to growing competition in acquiring talent, professionals now have a far greater choice over where they work and who they work for. This shift in power now means that companies are having to sell themselves even more so than ever. General corporate marketing simply will not suffice anymore. Employer branding focuses on highlighting employee experience, promoting the appeal of working for their company, and outlining all the perks of working for that company and how it would benefit the employee. Before social media existed, employers had a degree of freedom to promote their internal processes in a good light regardless of the internal state of the company, and rarely wold people question it. However, employees have such a wide outlet to voice their opinions through social media that companies must ensure employees have a good perception of the brand they are working for and are happy in their working environment.

Create employee satisfaction

A strong employer brand is not achievable if you do not take care of your employees. First assess the position of your current brand identity internally. Conducting surveys and interviews are a great way of determining your employee’s satisfaction rates. Identify what you do well in ensuring your employees are taken care of and establish an account of the things you need to improve on in order to enhance satisfaction in your workplace. Your employees are an asset to your brand and have the ability to influence perceptions of your brand. Your employees are essentially recruiters for your brand and can have a huge impact on acquiring new talent depending on how they portray what its like to work for your company. Implement an employee satisfaction strategy. Build upon what you do well and focus on improving attributes that your employees deem important and attractive.

Determine brand perceptions

Perception has an influence on consumer behaviour, therefore having an impact on an individual’s drive and motivation to engage with a product or brand. There is clear evidence to suggest that perception is an internal stimulus that can be influenced by many external factors. These factors can be easily modified through the use of effective marketing. It can be detrimental to your brand If the correct use of marketing is not utilised in order to influence and enhance perceptions. It is important to maintain an awareness of brand perceptions of your organization. Invest in determining the factors that influence those perceptions.

Once an understanding of the influencing factors that could impact on brand engagement have been established, recommendations of the efforts that the business can make in order to modify their marketing strategy to adapt to these issues can be implemented.

Attract New Talent

At this point in the recruitment process, it is time to start building up your brand image in order to strengthen your employer proposition. Focus on highlighting why job seekers would want to work for you and how working for your organisation would benefit them. Promote the internal working environment of your organization. Ensure that you target your employer branding to the type of individual you wish to ultimately employ.

When marketing your brand to prospective employees:

• Promote the culture of your organisation
• Promote the ways by which employees are rewarded and celebrated for their performance and achievements.
• Advertise your awards and accolades. This is a great way of marketing your organisation and demonstrating your efforts and achievements.
• Promote the ways by which you encourage career development and outline the training you provide your employees and any progression prospects.

Measure and Evaluate

Now that you have invested in creating a strong employer brand, invest in measuring your efforts. Whether you have been successful in acquiring new talent or not, monitoring the effectiveness of your employer branding efforts both internally and externally is crucial in determining whether you are fulfilling your aims or not. Research from EBI 2011 found that employers use the following in order to measure return on investment of employer branding:

• Retention rate
• Employee engagement
• Quality of hire
• Cost per hire
• Number of applicants

If you are looking for someone to help you to improve your employer branding then please contact us on 0207 788 6600 and our expert consultants will help you find the right HR professional for the role.

Your Network Is Your Net Worth

Dec 14, 2015 | IT

Why Create a Strong Network?

We generally tend to measure our success and career prospects based on our income, skills, qualifications and experience. But we fail we understand the importance of not only having a strong network, but building on that network and maintaining relationships. Your ability to manage and maintain a large network is crucial in the current employment and social climate. Here, we discuss why and how you can build a strong network:

Plan your Networking Strategy

First of all, decide exactly what your goal is and why you are expanding your network. Your ultimate goal highly influences who you contact. If you are looking for a career change, it may be beneficial to determine the career you want and contact people who work in that field. You may use your network to job search, to mentor others in your field, or you may want to eventually become self-employed and simply want to ultimately build an awareness of your brand. Reach out to people accordingly if you feel their contact may be beneficial to you in the future. Identify yourself based on what your goal is. Highlight your interests, occupation and hobbies. Doing this ensures that those you connect with know that they have similar interests as you and leads to creating an element of trust.

Gone are the Days of ‘A Job for Life’

It is undoubtable that job security is far more unstable than ever before, with people having far more choice over where they work and who they work for; and with employees having a far greater choice of quality candidates. Companies are happy to make cuts where necessary and there is nothing we can do to avoid this, no matter what your position in the company. A job for life is quickly becoming a thing of the past. Building a network is like building yourself a safety net. Creating a network of like-minded individuals who share the same interests as you and maintaining relationships provides you with prospective contacts that may be able to help you in the future. In the instance that you have been made redundant or have had to leave your role, with a strong and healthy network, there is likely to be somebody who can help. Think “it’s who you know, not what you know”. There may be someone who is looking for someone like you to join their organisation.

Take Your Future Out of Your Employer’s Hands

Change your approach to how you envisage your future. Don’t assume that your employers will determine your prospects. Once you begin to network and maintain relationships, you then begin to take your future into your own hands. Communicate with your network, ask questions, promote your skills and experience and take in interest in others. You don’t know where your career will take you or in what job role you may eventually end up in. It is a sad fact that no matter how secure you are in your job role, there is always the chance that you may be forced into unemployment. In the instance that you decide to, or are forced to set up on your own , a large network will enable you to reach a large demographic and build a significant brand awareness in a short space of time.

The Movement in Recruitment and Referrals

An increasing number of professionals are looking to social media to seek out job roles. Employers are now encouraging their staff to seek out potential employees online. If you have a large online network, the chances are that there will be someone out there who admires your skills and experience and feels that you could be a great asset to their team. Share job vacancies to those who you feel may be suitable for the role, whether you are applying or not and encourage others to do the same. You may know of someone who would be perfect for a job role, so let them know and refer them! The chances are that people will start doing the same for you.

Related reading: Exploring New Ways to Grow

Preparing Your Business for The Build up to Christmas

Dec 8, 2015 | IT

Covering Leave

It’s inevitable that employees will want to take leave this time of year. If it’s typically a quiet time of year for your business this shouldn’t be too much of an issue, but it’s all in the planning. Encouraging employees to book their leave in advance, possibly with a deadline for booking Christmas leave, is one way to make sure leave is fair and you have time to arrange cover if needed. If cover for certain roles is essential organising this as far in advance as possible is also sensible. Outside cover could be tricky to find at short notice, not to mention expensive. Drafting in current employees to cover extra tasks could be the best solution, but you’ll need to have arrangements and procedures in place in advance to make sure workload is fair and achievable. Christmas bonuses or prizes could be on offer to incentivise extra work over the Christmas period.

Office Party Issues
Christmas parties can be great fun, but create a melting pot of different personalities, built up workplace tensions and alcohol, leading to potential troubles! Choosing and deciding on the venue and the type of even is the first hurdle. Keeping everyone happy, especially when there is a mixture of ages isn’t always easy. Try a vote on a range of options or try a ‘two phase’ event, perhaps with a Christmas lunch for everyone followed by drinks and some dancing for anyone who want to keep the party going. Having your party offsite is the best idea so any potential problems don’t occur on your business property. If you’re hiring out a venue, hiring caterers or entertainers make sure these are booked in early and that you have everything confirmed in writing or a contract. If you feel it’s necessary you could always update your employee handbook and send out a copy of the general code of conduct prior to the event, to cover anyone who’s likely to be caught near a photocopier or under the mistletoe!

A Change of Pace
Unless your business is retail where the pace gets a lot quicker this time of year, the lead up to Christmas usually sees things winding down in the office. To avoid boredom or wasted time, use any spare time wisely. Have your employees clear out old files, organise databases and folders and get those jobs done that just keep falling off the to do list. These kind of tasks can be mundane, so add some festive spice to boring chores and offer rewards, hold Christmas raffles, quizzes or advent calendars to brighten things up and boost motivation.

Snow Days
Do you have a winter weather policy? If the weather is really bad, do your employees know what the correct protocol is? The procedures should be emailed around at this time of year so everyone is clear on what to do. If a cold spell is forecast consider a plan for phone lines going down, pipes freezing up and transport being disrupted.

Planning is the key to most issues you’ll face this winter, and anytime in fact. Trying to foresee any potential issues will help things run smoothly. If you’d like help or advice with you staffing over the Christmas period you can get in touch with us here.

Managing Early Retirement

Dec 8, 2015 | IT

For those born after 1978 that state pension age will be 68, yet those questioned in the research (a variety of ages) believe they will be able to retire when they are around 62 to 64.

Most of us if asked ‘when would you like to retire’ would reply ‘today’ (if not ‘yesterday’)! The spare time, opportunity for hobbies, personal projects, holidays and just a little me-time are goals many are working hard to achieve for retirement. And although some of us love our jobs, most of us look forward to a day when the hard work has paid off.

However, as a manager loosing employees to retirement can cause a significant hole in your workforce and have an impact on productivity and even moral. As a manger you may well worry, or at least carefully monitor, employee turnover but rather than the number of workers leaving the more concerning statistic may be the important knowledge and skills they are taking with them.

Figuring out how to most successfully retain this knowledge is the important thing. Not only critical IT and systems insights, but long standing client relationships and critical role specific know-how could be lost, making it hard work for a newbie.

Having an appropriate transfer system in place could be the key to transferring the knowledge in the best possible way. For example those who are due to retire may be able to begin documenting their critical knowledge in preparation for leaving. A workforce assessment could be completed to identify any potential problem areas. Soon to be retirees could also choose to phase out into retirement by gradually reducing their hours during the new employee’s enrolment. This would be the perfect opportunity for the retiree to act as a mentor and guide the new employee through the role, solving any problems they may face together.

However, it’s currently the baby boomers who are at retirement age, on the whole a demographic who work hard and have put their all in their careers. The generation of employees who are taking over these positions tend to have different work-life values, and expect more flexibility such as flexi-time or working from home. These differences in working pattern and behaviour need to be taken into consideration too, as it’s unlikely there will be a ‘like for like’ fit.

If you’re a hiring manager and are facing these problems, Langley James are recruiting experts and are here to help. Give one of our experienced consultants a call today.

Exploring New Ways To Grow

Dec 7, 2015 | IT

Expanding your company into new turfs can be daunting yet rewarding. The business’s world is an ever-changing and unpredictable environment, and remaining complacent and dismissing the idea of growth and expansion can be detrimental to your success. 

Plan

Before you power ahead in your mission of expanding your company, ask yourself what your aims are and what are wanting to achieve. Of course, there are in most instances monetary motives behind a company’s expansion. However, aside from profits, determine the desired outcome of your growth, where you want to be and how you will get there. This will strongly determine the efforts you make in achieving your goals. For example, if you are looking to expand your business in order to ultimately gain a larger brand awareness, the marketing efforts that you make in order to contribute to your growth will differ from those if you wanted to improve your existing products or offerings.  

Branding

Assess your existing branding. Ask yourself if there are areas that could be improved. Your brand image is a strong platform that can have a heavy impact on the success of your goals, and can ultimately determine whether growth will be easily achieved or not. You need to assess whether your brand values remain consistent with the brand values of your new product, service or division. Continuity across your channels are a must! Your online presence is of paramount, so if you already have a strong online presence, the chances are, growth and diversity will come easier to you than if your online presence is weak. Utilise search engine optimisation tools. This may be costly but if you see it as an investment that will enhance your business as opposed to a cost, you will see big benefits. According to a report by Impact Branding and Design, 2015, 95% of marketers use search engine optimisation to induce loyalty amongst existing customers.

Diversify

Be mindful of competition. Anybody can create an alternative to your core product, make your offerings nonpareil. You may find that that diversification comes through natural business progression. A growing number of businesses have heeded to diversification in order to keep afloat. Diversification is a favourable method in growing your business, as long as you don’t neglect your original ventures. This is where it can become tricky. Make sure you can balance your focus between all your endeavours. You want to grow your business- not risk it!

Network

Expanding your network will provide you with a solid basis to get your brand out there. Having the right connections can improve your brand reach significantly. A strong network will allow you to market your new offerings to a large audience.  You also have substantial reach to undertake market research and collect significant amounts of data from feedback. Word of mouth and recommendations is an imperative marketing tool, and a strong network can be more beneficial to your new ventures than you would think.

Managing Costs Whilst Retaining Top Performers

Nov 30, 2015 | IT

It is understandable that employers are struggling to retain their stars when they are not in a financial position to provide the opportunities of promotions or monetary perks such as commissions and bonus’. The pressure is on for managers to ensure they can keep their best employees engaged and committed to their role, without a cost. Creating a culture where your employees feel valued enough to stay is key in retaining your top performers. We will be discussing some great ways to ensure commitment and loyalty in the workplace.

Praise your Staff

Celebrating your employees’ achievements and instilling confidence and encouragement is priceless, and often one of the most effective ways in retaining staff and sustaining employee satisfaction. It is often easy to assume that if your staff are performing to a high standard, that employee satisfaction rates are high, after all, there is a significant correlation between high performance and high satisfaction rates. However, this is dangerous assumption. Yes, there is likely to be a strong level of satisfaction amongst your team if their performance is high, however this does not mean that they do not need praise and encouragement to continue on with their efforts. If you become complacent and fail to maintain a strong level of commendation and instil confidence in your employees, you run the risk rapidly jeopardising camaraderie in the workplace. You ultimately chance losing some of your best staff. If you don’t praise them, another employer will.

Challenge your Staff

When your employees are performing to a high standard on a continual basis, do not assume that these employees do not need to be challenged. Ensure you are maintaining engagement and that that your employee’s roles do not become monotonous. Often employers become complacent and take the viewpoint of if the employee is achieving high results in their role, that they must continue doing what they do well. However, in this instance, your employees are likely to begin to find the job tedious and mundane. It is as this point you risk losing your best employees. Set your top performing employees projects that are new to them, or provide them with a higher level of responsibility. Incorporating an element of excitement and originality, is likely to enhance engagement and ultimately increase your chances retaining your top performance- at no cost. Ensure that you reiterate to your employees that providing them with new challenges not to try and overwhelm or overburden them, it is simply a way for them to build upon their experience and enhance their skill set while keeping their role fresh and exciting.

Free Perks

There are some great ways to reward your employees without having to provide monetary bonuses. Concentrate on rewarding your employees with perks that will benefit them in terms of their work life balance or autonomy. For example, for those employees who perform well during the week or hit targets, give them the option to finish work early on a Friday. Not only does this strategy reward your employees for their efforts, it also gives them an incentive to perform to a high standard. In order to determine what rewards employees would benefit from the most, find out what is important to your employees and what they would consider a ‘perk’ of the job, within reason. Once you have established an effective reward scheme, you will find a far greater level of satisfaction and engagement amongst your team.  

Tackle Concerns and Frustrations

Top performers may feel anxious or insecure about their future prospects with the company at the point where it is a necessity to cut monetary benefits or freeze salaries. Strongly emphasize the positive outlook for the company’s future and why you remain loyal to the company. Outline the reasons that you feel secure, and encourage your employees to review the benefits to them of remaining loyal to the company.

Four Trends Affecting Staffing Right Now

Nov 23, 2015 | IT

Rising Pay
Reports are showing us that pay is on the up for the years ahead. Most likely down to skills shortages and a general economic confidence, there may be pressure on employers to increase salaries in order to gain and retain their desired employees. UK workers are already enjoying a 2% rise in earnings, as low inflation helped to boost income and spendable pay. However a disproportional amount of these wage rises are going to London (and South East) based employees, highlighting the north / south divide.

Focus on Equality
Earlier in the year the Government pledged to help close the workplace gender gap, requiring businesses to publish details of pay gaps and announcing steps to help women in the workplace. This of course is no new issue and we’ve reported before on the rise of women in technology roles, however the fact remains that women still earn less than men. Just this week, a study by the UK Commission for Employment and Skills was released that found women earn less then men in nine out of ten industries (mainly the financial and insurance industries) and that in 2014 women were earning, on average, 19.1% less than men. Despite the fact that girls consistently outperform boys at school a Glassdoor survey revealed that less than one third of females received any kind of bonus, as opposed to 44% of males.

Connecting with Passive Talent and Pipelining
In LinkedIn’s UK talent solutions report, they found that 68% of respondents thought passive candidates were an important differentiator for their business. Half of these candidates are apparently interested in speaking to recruiters. Building on-going relationships and really getting to know and understand these candidates is key to what any good recruiter should be doing anyway, but it seems firms are becoming more aware of the importance of pipelining the best and most suitable candidates. It’s increasingly difficult to grab candidate’s attention and a thoughtful, one-to-one approach is a trend that spells a positive experience for candidates but also allows recruiters to find the most genuine match, quickly.

Branding to Differentiate
Organisations are increasingly becoming aware of the effect their branding has on recruitment. A positive brand image across online platforms, collateral, offices and through communication can be a real differentiator to job seekers. Firms are developing strategies around this in order to remain competitive and are investing more in their brand image in direct relation to staffing.

Here at Langley James, we’re always keeping up to date with the latest developments and trends within staffing to ensure we can give the best and most relevant advice to our clients. If you’re thinking about recruiting or would like some advice, contact one of our consultants here.

Are Property Prices to Blame for London’s Skills Shortage?

Nov 23, 2015 | IT

As London average house prices reach the dizzy heights of £500,000, according to the Land Registry, it seems that London (and to some degree the South East) continues to be a law unto itself.

Many young graduates and those looking to further their careers head to London for the best jobs and some CV enhancing. However, for these hopefuls, unless they are lucky enough to have family in London, the shocking reality of house prices and rental costs are often an obstacle, if not a complete barrier to the city. A London based CBI poll found that 57% of managers said they were struggling to recruit entry level employees due to the high cost and low availability of housing. Almost a third said that employees were having to leave their jobs because costs are too high. They even reported that it can be difficult to employ senior staff.

With these extortionate house prices, a buyer purchasing an ‘average’ priced London house with a 5% cent deposit will face monthly mortgage repayments of around £2,500. This has paved the way for ‘generation rent’ and the average cost of renting in the city currently stands at over £2,500 a month too, according to Countrywide.

The fact that many may feel the need to move to London to progress their career or to work in an organisation’s head office leaves little choice, other than moving further away from central London, with an increasing commute. Long commuting times eat into an employee’s personal time and can lead to less of a work-life balance than desired! It can also leave organisations with late or absent staff as they face more chance of travel delays and disruptions.

What happened to London’s less popular areas, in that they quickly saw trendy regenerations when everywhere else got too expensive to live, may be happening throughout the rest of the UK. The ‘northern powerhouse’ could really come into action as candidates seek opportunities outside of the M25.

The latest Tech Cities Job Watch suggested that Manchester, Leeds, Bristol and Glasgow are advertising more and more tech roles. There are also many start-ups based all across the country recruiting fresh talent, so perhaps a spread of skills would also contribute to the spread of prosperity outside of London?

As the Mayor of London introduces a £5 million digital skills programme for young Londoners, it is recognised that, in at least some sectors, there is a skills shortage in London, and the price of living there appears to be a key factor in this. However the number of digital technology companies in London is growing and that growth is set to continue, so perhaps the shortage is not as critical as some report.

If you’re a hiring manager in London and are experiencing these kind of issues, we’d like to hear from you. We’ve built relationships with a wide selection of skilled candidates over the years and if you’re looking to hire IT or HR professionals, we’re sure we can help.

Creating a Work-Life Balance

Nov 23, 2015 | IT

It can be difficult to define what equates to a reasonable work life balance. If you find it a challenge to juggle the demands of your career, and your down time out of the workplace, you are not alone. According to the OECD Better Life Index Report, working parents find it particularly difficult to find a suitable work life balance. The Mental Health Foundation supported this, stating that 40% of employees neglect other aspects of life due to work commitments. This demanding work culture is having a prevalent impact on mental health in the UK.

Create a procedure

Encouraging a culture of balance in the work environment is a fundamental step in working life that is often overlooked. Although you want to maintain a high level of professionalism in the workplace, you must also ensure that your colleagues and employees feel comfortable in taking time out and re-prioritising tasks when they begin to feel pressure and tension. In this instance, a procedure or policy by which the employee can refer to or take advice from when they need some down time would be beneficial for both the employee and the employer. Not only will this set the guidelines and regulations for employees to follow when workload is causing them stress, but will also release an element of pressure from the employee if they know that there is a procedure in place when they are feeling the strain.

Determine your balance

Getting to know the right balance between work and lifestyle that works for you is a personal judgement. There are no set guidelines to determining what you feel is a reasonable work life balance and each individual has varying degrees of what they would consider a ‘work-life balance’. The way to determine this balance is to acknowledge your needs and own well-being. Take into account your own personal circumstances, and acknowledge your needs and your own well-being. Often, by listening to your gut instinct and paying attention to your emotions and physical well-being, you can tell if the work life balance is wrong. When you start to feel like your balance is out of sync and your work load is outweighing your ‘down-time’ you may want to revaluate how you manage your approach to maintain a work life balance. Your work load should not cause you stress or anxiety.

Draw a line between home and work

You are feeling overloaded with projects and tasks to be completed and you are time short. An easy option is certainly to take your work load home with you and complete the jobs with a glass of wine in hand watching the Bake Off. This is great, in theory, however this can become force of habit, which ultimately sets your ‘work life balance’ off course. In situations where you feel you tempted to take your work home, note down in a diary what hasn’t been completed as a reminder to continue tomorrow when back at the office. Don’t take it home, leave it at work! This can seem easier said than done, but for instances where the task is not urgent and you are simply taking work home due to habit, it is perfectly reasonably to leave it in the office and take some time for yourself.

Go Offline

It is undeniable that the evolution of technology has improved the standards of organisational process and has advanced in many ways in recent years. However, for all the convenience this has created, it has caused a feeling of constant accessibility, discouraging down time from our phones and emails.

Each one of us at some point is guilty of checking our work mail outside working hours. At the point when you decide to remove your focus from the workplace, switch your phone off, or at very least switch off your notifications. Try avoiding your notifications when you are spending quality doing what you love.

Employee Retention: Creating a Culture of Engagement and Trust

Nov 16, 2015 | IT

Creating Engagement- Part 1

The basis to any successful organization is a high level of engagement amongst employees. Improved performance and productivity is amongst many other fundamental attributes that employee engagement contributes to. Ultimately, employee engagement contributes significantly to retention. Here we discuss the main components that ultimately contribute to a high level of employee retention.

Vision:  The prospect of vision and progression largely contributes to engagement. When faced with this prospect, employee’s engagement levels are likely to increase significantly. Engagement naturally occurs when an employee feels they are working towards something that will benefit them. In circumstances where employees place a large importance on progression, a high engagement level is deemed as an important factor in achieving their progression. Open up this prospect to all your staff, no matter what level they are at on the career ladder.  

Interaction: There is a strong correlation between how well an employee performs and their relationship with their boss. Provide your employees with constructive and positive feedback on a regular basis and maintain a constant level of interaction with your team. Creating a good relationship is an imperative step to encouraging engagement and ultimately creating retention. If creating strong employee relations is not a priority to you, your staff are less likely to place importance on their performance in the workplace.

Creating Engagement Part- 2

Reward: It is imperative that employees achievements are praised and efforts are appreciated. You will find there is a significantly higher level of engagement if employees feel they are working towards something that they will benefit from. Provide your employees with rewards when they have accomplished a goal or task and celebrate their achievements. No matter how big or small this achievement may be, if it is important to the employee, it should be important to you. Rewarding your team’s accomplishments will create a sense of purpose and importance as well as contributing to creating a strong camaraderie in the workplace. According to findings by Globoforce “when companies spend 1% or more of payroll on recognition, 85% see a positive impact on engagement”.

Training and Development: This is a topic we have previously touched on, however it is such an important step to maximising the potential of your employees and your organisation. Provide your employees with training to contribute to their existing knowledge and skills in order to instil your employees with confidence and sense of authority over their role.

Creating Trust- Part 1

Trust is the basis for any successful team. The concept of trust goes hand in hand with loyalty, and loyalty equates to retention. Essentially, you will cease to maintain a strong level of retention if your employees have little trust in you or your organisation. Here are our top components to creating trust in the workplace in order maintain employee retention.

Shared Vision: Building up a workplace where each individual is working towards the same goal and acquires the same vision creates a strong sense of trust and openness. The team are far more likely to feel a sense of contribution and importance as opposed to working towards the employer’s personal goal. A shared vision creates a sense of certainty and loyalty, and will significantly enhance the employees trust in you and your organization.

Integrity: Remaining honest and sincere is of paramount in creating trust. Honouring promises and maintaining a level of consistency with your approach is key when it comes to earning trust. You may find that your judgement is needed in determining what to share and what not to share. Sometimes confidentiality is unavoidable but in those instances, be honest about what you can share and what you cannot. You will easily earn trust if you simply remain consistent and open.

Creating Trust- Part 2

Open-mindedness: A “my way or the high way” approach to the processes of the organisation will fail in contributing towards any sense of trust in the workplace. Be open to new suggestions from your employees. Try not to instantly disregard new ideas. Be aware that building employees confidence in suggesting new ideas, and ensuring that each employee feels as valued and important as one another is imperative. If your employees feel that you trust their judgment and acknowledge their thoughts and ideas, they are far more likely to trust you.

Body Language: According to body language experts, over half our communication is derived from our body language. Direct eye contact is an attribute that contributes significantly to creating an openness in our body language. Maintain an openness in your body language. To stimulate good feeling, smile. When you are in conversation, mirror their body language as this creates a sense of agreement and acknowledgement. Crossing your arms and legs is deemed ‘shifty’ and closed. Use your hands when in discussion. This creates a sense of passion. These may seem like obvious points to remember; however, they really are important components in earning trust. Practice open body language and watch how quickly you begin to earn trust from your employees.

SMEs Are Responsible for 15.6million UK Jobs

Nov 9, 2015 | IT

With a collective turnover of £1,753,900 (that’s 47.2% of private sector turnover) SMEs have definitely been playing an important role in driving the country’s growth and creation of wealth over recent years, as well as helping people into work. The European Commission also reported that 85% of EU jobs between 2002 and 2012 were created by SMEs.

Small Business Appeal
SMEs are an appealing place to work for many professionals, as well as graduates looking for an organisation with great culture and the opportunity for swift progression. The chance to be part of an exciting, fast-paced business where input and skill are likely to be recognised draws enthusiastic and talented individuals to small or new businesses.

Super SMEs
It’s with this talent, that SMEs are able to grow and succeed. What we call HGSBs (high-growth small businesses) are adding significantly, or we could say disproportionately, to the number of SME employees. An Octopus Investments report found that these super SMEs accounted for only 1% of the business community, but generated 68% of new jobs in the UK between 2012 and 2013. Last year, 20% of economic growth is said to have been created by these HGSBs.

An Uneven Divide
There is a clear north south divide when it comes to successful and powerful SMEs. One in every 25 professionals working in London is employed by a HGSB, but in Wales it’s only one in 80. It could be down to the government to help businesses outside of London and the South East grow and employ. Improving digital infrastructure and working on skills gaps could help local businesses out in the long term and help them trade internationally.

Barriers to Employment
The ONS report also highlighted a concern with the high proportion of businesses that do not employ. Many of the UK’s VAT registered businesses, actually don’t employ at all, often reaching out to freelancers or collaborating with others who are also self employed. Raising the question from the country’s smallest businesses of whether it should be more simple to grow a small business and employ workers.

However, despite some inconsistency and challenges, we know that SMEs are playing an important role in the UK economy and job market. Creative, professional and digital sectors are among the most successful industries in terms of overall job growth, productivity and average wages (according to the think-tank’s Small Business Outlook 2015). Strong customer service, product innovation, local knowledge and of course talented employees are cited as some of the key factor of SME success. So, if you’re a business leader and you’re looking to grow your team further, perhaps we can help – to have a chat with us about your recruitment contact us here.

Are You Listening?

Nov 9, 2015 | IT

Why are innovative ideas being missed?

It generally comes down to a lack of process for collecting and developing these ideas. From the workers that were surveyed, 37% said shared ideas are lost or unacknowledged, 27% said there was a lack of interest in their ideas, and 27% said there was a lack of incentives to share ideas in the first place. 

 Is the question ‘how do we innovate?’
Guest lecturer at Cranfield University and innovation expert Cris Beswick describes innovation as being “like teenage sex; everyone talks about it, nobody really knows how to do it.” And it seems that many happily reinforce the importance of innovation but struggle to address the ‘how to’.

Engagement
Innovation is often associated with research and development or IT but it should be woven into every aspect of business at every level. Challenging any traditional ‘them and us’ roles is important as is trying to adopt an attitude that sees employees as potential solutions to any problems. Engagement is so important in enabling a culture of trust between management and workers, and an innovative workplace culture should include managers that are willing to experiment and open themselves up to failure.

Helping to find answers to problems and improving the organisation should be everyone’s business. Regular team meetings offer a time to reflect on what went well and what didn’t. Offering time and space to step back from day to day tasks and discuss ideas may allow employees to speak more openly about potential innovations.

Here at Langley James we’re recruitment experts and can help you with the structure and organisation of your team. If you’d like a chat, you can get in touch with us here.

Employment Law Update: November 2015

Nov 9, 2015 | IT

Snowballs and open fires aside, winter isn’t all fun and games.  Dark mornings and dark afternoons pose their own mood-detracting challenges for workers and employers alike. And that’s not all.

Acas has a guide to dealing with winter’s workplace issues. It lists adverse weather, colds and flu, a flurry of holiday requests, and wellbeing in the workplace as seasonal issues that employers must carefully manage. Plan in advance, is the advice.

So, go on. Sort out your policies, get your systems in place, and grab winter by the horns.

The meaning of ‘public’- Underwood v Wincanton

In May this year we reported the case involving the estate agents, Chestertons. It was about whistleblowing; in particular, the requirement that a worker must reasonably believe that their disclosure is in the public interest in order to benefit from whistleblowing protection. The case decided that something that was of interest to 100 senior managers could be in the public interest.

Underwood v Wincanton builds on that. Mr Underwood was dismissed after he and colleagues made disclosures to their employer about the unfair distribution of overtime to drivers. He claimed that he had suffered detriment and had been automatically unfairly dismissed because he had made protected disclosures. But did the disclosures have the necessary ‘public interest’ element? The tribunal held not and struck out the claim at a preliminary stage.  The complaint was about a group of workers who had an identical grievance about an aspect of their employment contracts; this wasn’t in the public interest, the tribunal said.  

By the time the case arrived at the Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT), the Chestertons case had been decided. It was clear that ‘public’ could be a subgroup, even if made up only of people employed by the same employer on the same terms. So the EAT reached a similar conclusion in the Underwood case: it is at least possible for a matter to be in the public interest even if it’s only about a contractual dispute between a group of employees and their employer.

The upshot is that the claim will now proceed and it will be for the tribunal to decide the outcome. The EAT made reference to the fact that the Chestertons case is being appealed, and that until that hearing takes place in October 2016, its conclusions should be followed. So, for now at least, workers who disclose information in the right way about a breach of their (and their colleagues’) employment contracts could have whistleblowing protection. 

Zero hours guidance

Does your business rely to some extent on casual labour? If so, you may well be using zero hours contracts. They can be really useful, flexible ways of covering things like staff illness, seasonal work, projects and ‘on-call’ duties.

But you won’t have failed to notice that zero hours contracts have been in for some criticism recently. A huge bone of contention has been around exclusivity clauses; terms within these agreements that stopped workers topping up their (fluctuating) earnings by working elsewhere. Now that these clauses have been banned, zero hours contracts have clawed back some popularity. But are you comfortable about when and how to use them?

This guide from the Department for Business, Innovation & Skills should help:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/zero-hours-contracts-guidance-for-employers/zero-hours-contracts-guidance-for-employers.

It has some really clear pointers about appropriate and inappropriate use. It’s also good on best practice and on alternative arrangements that you could put in place.

And, while we’re on the subject, the Government has published draft regulations (the ‘Exclusivity Terms in Zero Hours Contracts (Redress) Regulations 2015’) which could thwart employers who ignore the ban on exclusivity clauses. Yes, these clauses will be unenforceable and, yes, employees could choose to take no notice of them. But the regulations will offer certain specific protections for people working under zero hours contracts:

• The dismissal of an employee (however long they have been employed) will be unfair if the reason, or main reason, is that they didn’t comply with an exclusivity clause; and
• The right for workers to not suffer a detriment because of failure to comply with an exclusivity clause.

In a group to TUPE?- Inex Home Improvements Ltd v Hodgkins

Where an organisation is to take over the delivery of a service, workers who currently do that work sometimes transfer over to that new service provider. It’s a fundamental rule of TUPE. However, only workers who are assigned to an “organised grouping of employees” make the move. And that was the key point in this case.

Mr Hodgkins was employed by Inex. Work was subcontracted to Inex in tranches by a company called Thomas Vale. There was a pause in the work supplied and Inex laid Mr Hodgkins and some of his colleagues off under the terms of a construction industry national agreement. It was a temporary stoppage and Inex continued to employ them.  

When Thomas Vale issued its next batch of work (which was pretty much the same work as Inex had previously completed), it went to a different subcontractor. Had Mr Hodgkins and colleagues transferred to that new subcontractor?

The tribunal held not; they weren’t an organised grouping  working on Thomas Vale’s contract immediately before the service passed to the new subcontractor. The Employment Appeal Tribunal took a different view, however. Just because there has been a temporary absence from work, or work has stopped, that doesn’t mean that there can’t be an organised grouping of employees who had been involved in the relevant activities. They don’t have to have been engaged in those activities immediately before the transfer.

Gender equality

As part of moves to close the gender pay gap, the Government has announced that larger employers – those with more than 250 employees – will be forced to publish details of the bonus payments they make to male and female staff. This is expected take effect in the first half of 2016.

Other measures will include requiring the public, as well as the private and voluntary, sector to publish average pay details for male and female staff. The Government also wants to eliminate all-male boards in the FTSE 350.

Details of the rules on pay reporting will be published in new regulations. In the meantime, the provisions are being hailed by some as a start. The TUC General Secretary, Frances O’Grady, said, “Employers need to look at why women are still being paid less than men and do something meaningful about it.”

The sleepworking conundrum- Shannon v Rampersad (T/A Clifton House Residential Home)

Is a worker working when they’re on-call but not… working?

Mr Shannon was an on-call night care assistant. It meant that he had to be present in the care home (which, significantly, was also his home) throughout the night to help the designated night care assistant. In reality, help was rarely needed.

Did all those nighttime hours constitute working hours, even though he slept during them? The tribunal held that he was only working when he was called on to help the care worker. As he was already being paid the National Minimum Wage for those times, he lost this aspect of his claim. The Employment Appeal Tribunal upheld that decision.

It’s important to remember, then, that just because a worker is at their place of work, it doesn’t mean that they are ‘working’. The usual rule is that if someone is available at or near work to do salaried work and is required to be available for work, then those are working hours. But, as this case has highlighted, it’s different where the worker is spending time at home. Then they’ll only be working when they are “awake for the purpose of working”.

It can be a difficult legal area to navigate and, as it’s so fact-specific, there’s plenty of scope for argument.

Companies have feelings too- EAD Solicitors v Abrams

An interesting take on the concept of associative discrimination.

Mr Abrams was a member of a limited liability company and was due to retire at 62. He set up a limited company (he was the sole director) which then took his place in the LLP. The limited company was entitled to the profit share that Mr Abrams would have received directly, had he still been a member of the LLP. The company agreed to provide services of an appropriate fee-earner to the LLP.

The LLP didn’t want Mr Abrams to do the work after the time at which he’d normally have retired. On its face, age discrimination. But could the limited company claim discrimination on the basis of detrimental treatment because of its association with someone who had a protected characteristic?

Yes, said the Employment Appeal Tribunal. It’s not just individuals that are protected under the Equality Act. The law is about discrimination by one person against another person – and ‘person’ includes a limited company. As associative discrimination is well established when it comes to individuals’ claims, companies may also be protected.

 And finally…..

Telecoms company TalkTalk has been the talk of the town for all the wrong reasons lately. But when it comes to protecting data, it’s not just hackers that businesses should fear. The problem can come from within, as supermarket chain Morrisons discovered. It’s being sued by 2,000 members of staff after its former company auditor uploaded the personal and financial details of nearly 100,000 Morrisons workers to a file-sharing site.

The auditor was jailed, but that didn’t put the business’ problems to bed. Far from it. Staff are claiming that Morrisons didn’t do enough to protect their data. The supermarket is reported to be denying liability for the actions of a rogue individual.   

As every business knows, the stakes are high where personal information is concerned. Serious breaches of the Data Protection Act can attract fines of up to £500,000. And then there are claims and reputational damage to factor in – which, in some cases, hit hardest. We’ll have to wait and see how this one pans out.

Creating Camaraderie at the Office

Nov 9, 2015 | IT

Office Activities

Incorporating activities into your working day is a great way of freshening up the office and revitalizing employees. Scheduling in time to implement activities and games can be far more beneficial than you would thing. A change in routine not only contributes to energizing employees and keeping them engaged, but encourages communication. This is an ideal way of staff to getting to know one another, and perfect for new starters in the company. It’s also a great way to assess the team’s problem solving skills and team building ability. Understandably you want to maintain some level of professionalism. Therefore, implement games and activities that encourage employees to utilise and demonstrate their skills and knowledge and ensure that any activities you implement maintains some level of relatability to your organization.

Implement a wellness plan

Camaraderie is established naturally when there is a mutual satisfaction amongst employees. Implementing a wellness plan accessible to your employees is the key to combating fatigue and stress in the workplace will also boost morale. There are varying methods by which you can implement some form wellness plan. Providing free fitness classes during lunch hour is a phenomenon that is proving favourable in a growing number of organisations. This being said, implementing a fitness plan is not exclusive to physical activity. You need to factor in a realistic budget to implement some form of health plan. Little touches such as providing staff with bottles of water or proving a fruit bowl in the centre of the office is a great way of administering a wellness plan, and it fairly cost friendly. (Keep an eye on the fruit- we do not want a smelly office full of perished produce!)

Trips outside the office

This does not necessarily mean scheduling in full day team-building trips (although this is advisable every once in a while). Taking short trips out the office is a great way of insuring that employees feel connected with one another. A change of scenery is a great way of boosting employee engagement.

Here are a few ways to incorporate a change of scenery into your working day:

• Allow your employees to spend a few hours discussing ideas and projects in your local coffee shop.
• Treat your employees to lunch every once in a while. If you are managing a large team, split your employees into divisions and take a selection of employees out at a time.
• Lead spontaneous, unscheduled activities. Encourage employees to go outside one afternoon and play a game of football, for example. 

You will find that your employees respond well to this approach.

Resolve issues and conflicts quickly and efficiently

Unfortunately, there are circumstances whereby conflict presents itself amongst employees, and you must not fear it. Often, we try and avoid conflict but ultimately, it is unavoidable. Recognizing when there are issues presenting themselves in the workplace is your duty, and tackling these issues head on is the only way to disburse animosity amongst your staff. Effective conflict resolution reduces the likelihood of distress and withdrawal amongst your team members. You want to create an atmosphere of openness and contentment in order to maintain camaraderie in the workplace, there is no room for animosity or rivalry in the workplace.

Related Reading: Managing Stress at the Workplace

Managing Workplace Stress

Nov 2, 2015 | IT

In a time when ambition and career progression is becoming ever more prevalent amongst the working population, a demanding work culture is the new norm. Long working hours and a constant pressure to perform to a high standard is beginning to have adverse effects on many professionals in the UK. Stress inducing factors are unavoidable in the work place, but managing these stressors in the most effective way possible is an imperative step to creating a healthy working environment.

Here we consider the most effective ways in creating a healthy work environment for you and your employees. 

Work smarter

Reducing work load is difficult, however managing the work load doesn’t need to be a burden. The ‘work smart, not long’ method refers to the idea of prioritizing tasks, and implementing a time management plan.

This increasingly utilized method amongst working Brits, is the idea of tackling each project in short, sharp time bursts. If you switch your focus to another task when you start to lose concentration, you will find that when you return to that task, your level of productivity will have largely increased. Establishing a time management and applying it in the work place will contribute to reducing pressure and will aid in constructing a level of organization to your work load.  

This applies to the work load to be tackled out the office outside working hours. Where possible, prioritize and limit the amount of work to be undertaken outside the office. Focus on what is most urgent and what can wait, and give yourself a time limit to finish the task. Although this may seem easier said than done, your productivity levels will certainly increase and stress levels are likely to decrease. It is important to remember that long hours don’t necessarily equate to quality production.

Take care of yourself

When you’re faced with a plethora of projects and responsibilities, it is easy to forget about number one. Ensure that you give yourself a substantial break. Skipping lunch hour seems like preferred choice when you have deadlines to meet and projects to juggle. But this is the opportunity to take time out, refresh your mind and prepare for the afternoon ahead, and where possible, remove yourself from the office. Don’t skip food. Ensure you eat a substantial lunch. Nibbling on a packet of crisps whilst sitting at your desk wont suffice in this instance unfortunately.

Don’t be afraid to say no.

Often in the workplace, feeling the pressure to agree to whatever project comes your way feels like the only option. However, agreeing to undertake projects that you know you cannot deliver to the full of your potential due to a heavy work load is unproductive. Maintaining an awareness of your limit and your workload is crucial in determining what projects you can agree to, and when to stop and say no. In most cases, it is more valuable to work on tasks to the best of your ability, then spread yourself thin and juggle copious amounts of projects that you know you cannot complete to the best of your ability. Don’t put pressure on yourself to take on more tasks than you know you can complete. It is ok to say no sometimes.

Talk

Discuss the issues you are facing with someone who can help. We all remember the cheesy line “a problem shared is a problem halved”. Yes, it is cheesy, but it’s true.  There is always someone who can help. When you bring awareness to your employers of the issues you are facing, you will find you feel less guilt or pressure for taking time out and saying no to tasks you cannot complete. Don’t forget, your employers want the best for you and will more than likely do all they can to help take some pressure off you reduce your stress levels.

Creating a Great Working Environment

Oct 27, 2015 | IT

One big misconception in the workplace is the belief that an employee’s experience and skill set is the fundamental attribute to the employee reaching full potential and performance levels. An employee’s level of performance in the workplace is highly influenced by their working environment. Creating a positive and comfortable atmosphere is the key to maximising your employee’s, and your company’s potential. Here are our 5 tips to creating a great working environment.

1. Equal Participation and Communication 

Encouraging your employees to discuss openly about their thoughts and suggest new ideas they might have, gives the employee confidence and promotes a sense of worth. It is crucial that you create an approachable atmosphere for your staff. not only does open communication create confidence to discuss opinions and ideas, but in most cases encourages the employee to openly discuss any problems or issues they are facing in the work place and feel comfortable in doing so.

      2. Training and Development

Training and development is crucial and ultimately contributes to maintaining and improving employee’s knowledge and skills in order to generate the best quality and results. It is crucial that the focus of implementing the training and development is on employee empowerment and building confidence. This is an investment not a cost. Ultimately employee efficiency is improved, therefore leading to financial gain.  If you spend the time to implement appropriate training, you will see the rewards. Employee productivity and job satisfaction is increased, thereby contributing to enhanced morale and reduced employee turnover.

      3. Feedback and Recognition

Providing your employee with feedback, whether positive or negative, will have a profound effect on the employee. Employees can utilize constructive feedback in personal development and self-improvement. Implementing an appraisal process is an excellent way of not only providing feedback to the employee, but gives the employee to the chance to discuss any issues they might be facing in the work place.

Ensure that employees efforts and achievements are recognised. Acknowledge what the employees do well and when possible, implement a rewards scheme for your employee’s achievements. When employees feel that they are being rewarded for their hard work and that efforts have been recognised employee satisfaction will significantly increase.

      4. Creating ‘Team Spirit’

Creating a feeling of team spirit in the work place provides a sense of community and solidarity. When morale and camaraderie levels are high, a strong team culture naturally evolves. Here are some tips on how to create a strong team spirit:

• Schedule bonding and activity days. Encourage employees to get to know each other and create trust amongst the team.
• Encourage employers to recognise, acknowledge and praise colleague’s achievments and celebrate as a team.
• Implement a core set of values to be followed by employees. Focus on maintaining respect, honest and fairness

     5. Creating a Sense of Purpose

Your employees are an asset to your company. Each employee, no matter what job role are equally as important as one another in contributing to the process effectiveness of your organization. Employees who feel they are valuable to your brand are significantly more likely to feel satisfied in their role, produce quality results in their role, and feel reduced stress in the workplace as opposed to those who feel no value. Ensure that you make the time to stress the importance of each employee’s role and how they contribute to the success of the company.

Poor Connectivity Issues

Oct 26, 2015 | IT

A report by the telecoms firm Daisy Group found that 47% of managers thought they rarely or never suffered from poor connectivity, when in fact companies are experiencing an average of 45 minutes downtime every week.

How much is poor connectivity and downtime costing business?
The report found that this is equal to more than £500 per employee, per year, in lost productivity. A prior study, earlier in the year by OnePoll found that slow internet connections and IT downtime is costing the UK economy £11 billion a year in lost productivity. And a study by Aberdeen Group UK found downtime cost an average of £138,000 per hour, varying across industries from £55,000 per hour in the media sector to £3.91 million per hour for large online brokerages. The costs come from paying employees to simply do nothing, to paying an individual or firm to fix the problem and of course any lost sales. There are also hidden costs such as employee overtime, missed deadlines, damaged reputation and customer dissatisfaction.

What’s the problem?
The problems can often be simple ones such as faulty modems, damaged wires or corrupted profiles. These kind of issues can normally be resolved in a day or so, even a few hours. One survey of UK, US and Canadian firms found that 82% of network downtime problems were caused by IT personnel making errors when configuring changes to the network. An irritating truth, when you know the majority of these kind of errors could have been avoided with more diligence or experience. With the rise of joint space and co-working environments wi-fi connectivity can be an issue. Owen’s Garage is a co-working space in the US and Kurt Rathmann, CEO of ScaleFactor Partners uses it regularly. Inevitably there are connection issues now and again and he eventually calculated that a four hour internet outage could be costing him up to $3000.

What do employees get up to during this downtime?

• 60% – taking care of personal business
• 48% – taking an extra coffee break
• 25% – checking Facebook
• 7% – indulging in a spot of retail therapy
• 9% – looking for a new job
• 30% – swoting up on some work-related reading

What should managers be doing?
The survey also asked managers what they thought they should be doing about such issues. One in eight said they didn’t know, 17% said they’d review things when the contract is due for renewal and another 17% said they would only review things when staff make a complaint. Really, as businesses change and grow, connectivity should be reviewed regularly and in line with these changes to ensure processes aren’t being held back by slow internet connections.

The government have committed to upgrading broadband for many of the UK’s cities and superfast broadband is spreading fast as providers compete. Having a connection that is built with your specific business, users and activity in mind is important to make sure it will work for you. If you need to hire IT professionals to advise or become part of your in-house team, speak to us and see how we can help.

Updates From The Langley James HQ

Oct 12, 2015 | IT

We’ve been very busy behind the scenes recently working hard on some exciting new projects, and felt it was time to share some of our updates and developments! For over 15 years Langley James have been providing bespoke IT recruitment for organisations of all sizes and specialisms. As our team of experienced professionals has grown so has our portfolio, excellent service and our aspiration for growth.

ISO accreditation

We’re working to continually improve our internal processes and programmes to make our service even more efficient and tailored. We are currently en route to becoming ISO accredited to ensure our fair practices and great service are recognised, and to help us increase productivity and minimise waste.

New Senior Recruiters in our London office

We have recently expanded our team by hiring two very experienced London based consultants, each with over 20 years experience. We’re delighted to welcome these accomplished and highly talented professionals to the team, whose depth and breadth of experience will enhance our businesses significantly. Not only this but being based in the heart of the city means having a presence in the capital, will be priceless for improving our service to London clients and candidates.

HR Focus

Recruiting for IT roles has long been our core focus. However following the strong connections and relationships we’ve built with many organisations over the years, teamed with consultants well versed in HR practices and personnel matters, we are now recruiting for a growing number of specialist HR roles such as HR Advisors and Payroll Administrators. If you are looking for a new addition to your HR team, please get in touch with us to speak to one of our experienced HR consultants.

Website Refresh

Our regular visitors may have noticed some subtle changes to our website recently. We’ve had a bit of a refresh to improve the feel and layout of the site so it’s even easier for you to find what you’re looking for! Our article section also includes some useful pieces to help managers through the recruitment process and to stay up to date with current IT and personnel topics.

We’re here to help, and pride ourselves in offering a boutique style service tailored to individual businesses and candidates, so that not only skills, but personalities are matched. So whatever your recruitment needs, feel free to get in touch with us for a chat.

Women in Technology – Are We About To See a Boom?

Sep 29, 2015 | IT

Following the Government’s commitment to help women into work, pledging that women will represent 25% of non-executive boards by the end of 2015, as well as a focus on school curriculums to develop more STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) skills, especially for girls, and from a young age, women in technology remains a hot topic.

A Fall in the Number of Women in Digital Industries

A report by the UK Commission for Employment and Skills found 27% of those working in the UK’s digital industries are female (that’s down from 33% in 2002, but expected to rise to 30% by 2022). There doesn’t seem to be a solid answer to explain the drop over the last twelve years, and as Aoife Ni Luanaigh, one of the UKCES’s report creators states, the drop is despite “a number of quite good initiatives that are already happening, to encourage more girls at school to take up coding, or to get involved with computer clubs and so on”.

Educating the Younger Generation

While being interviewed about being ‘a woman at the top’, Egnyte CSO Isabelle Guis also commented on education, “I believe a major reason that we are seeing more men than women working in the technology industry is education. There are fewer women in technology graduate programmes and in the marketplace because STEM subjects are still perceived by some to be ‘male’ subjects.”

A report by Gartner backed up these findings and opinions showing the number of female chief technology officers across the industry has remained static at 14% for the past 10 years. Further to this only 4% of CEOs at S&P 500 companies are women.

Raising Awareness of The Opportunities

The BBC, across Radio 4, BBC3 and other platforms, have recently been featuring women in tech and bringing the discussion into the public eye, and there are a number of organisations around the world championing women in technology. So, despite the disheartening figures there is a lot of action to change things for the future of women in technology.

The organisation Code First: Girls, who work with companies to help get more women into tech had, over the last 18 months, 1500+ young women participate in one of their courses or events, helping companies to recruit better tech talent into their firms.

Transparency in Job Descriptions

Vanessa Vallely, founder of women’s network WeAreTheCity explained how greater transparency could be the key to attracting more women into tech roles. For example, knowing if they are to be paid the same as others currently doing the same or similar roles. She also spoke about job descriptions, explaining that underlying masculine language can be off putting for women. She said “I would urge, if you are writing job descriptions, make sure they are good, make sure they excite people and make sure they tell them what the job is.” Vallely also spoke about a number of banks which, she said, pass new job descriptions through a female focus group before they are advertised, helping to soften the language used.

The Benefits of Female Leaders

The benefits of having a more gender balanced company are endless, and the attributes women can bring to the workplace are valuable. According to the Credit Suisse Gender 3000 report, organisations with more than 10% of women at the helm had higher returns than those that weren’t gender balanced. To back this up First Round Capital, recently released a report highlighting that businesses with female founders (or co-founders) performed 63% better than those with male leaders.

An Exciting Future

All great news for women who want to join, or develop further in, the technology sector, and also great news for businesses who want to create a more balanced and apparently, more productive team.  Perhaps negative figures that have been released over the last few years relating to women in technology has been the extra push to encourage individuals and organisations to put the steps in place to open the doors to more female digital employees, and we wonder whether 2016 could be a boom year for women in technology.

Latest UK Employment Figures Highlight Continuing Skills Shortage

Sep 29, 2015 | IT

This month the Office of National Statistics released the UK’s latest employment figures. Many experts have commented on some of the key statistics, the potential implications of the rises and the falls, and what it means for the labour market and technology sector. So here’s our summary of the important facts and figures.

This ONS report shows figures for May to July 2015.

• There were 1.74 million people working full-time, 361,000 more than for a year earlier.
• There were 1.82 million unemployed people (people not in work but seeking and available to work), 10,000 more than for February to April 2015 but 198,000 fewer than for a year earlier.
• The unemployment rate was 5.5%, unchanged compared with February to April 2015 but lower than for a year earlier (6.2%).

So, compared to last year the number of people in employment is up and the unemployment rate is down – that’s good, right? Well yes, but there still continues to be a record number of job positions being posted and a large volume of candidates applying for these jobs, yet still 1.82 million people unemployed. One theory to explain this problem, is the ever discussed ‘skills shortage’, or perhaps more accurately a mismatch of skills, between available candidates and the expectations of employers.

15% of Employers Reported That They Had Employees With Skill Gaps

One recent piece of research reported that in the last year 83% of CFOs had to offer salaries above what they were originally prepared to, in order to secure the right candidate for the job, with the right skills. The Employer Skills Survey’s most recent data also found that “15% of employers reported that they had employees with skill gaps, equivalent to 1.4 million staff or 5% of the workforce.” And it’s important to point out that this is only what is reported, many employees are unlikely to admit to, or possibly even recognise, skills gaps. All of this data and evidence builds a strong case for the fact that the skills gap is a long-term problem that the country is facing.

Employers Invest £42.9bn in Training

KPMG’s ‘Report on Jobs’ for August found that the demand to fill permanent tech jobs rose over the summer, as many tech professionals felt confident enough in the market and demand for their skills, that they took the summer off completely! I’m sure there’s plenty in the industry who would contest this view, but it does seem to be true that IT is not the sector most at risk.  Changes and developments in technology can be some of the most significant and fast moving changes that can lead to very specific skills shortages. However, employers invested £42.9bn in training in 2013, and Mark Beatson, chief economist at the CIPD stressed recently, the importance for employers to continue to invest in technology to avoid the prospect of increased skills shortages.

Education is often on the receiving end of complaints about the lack of skills in the UK, however the gap between choices made at school, college or university, and the options once ready for employment, can be vast. Similarly, particularly with ever developing technologies, education policies take time to implement, causing a gap there too.

The UK Population Grew by Almost 8% Between 2004 and 2014

However, it’s also worth noting that the UK population grew by almost 8% between 2004 and 2014, and most growth is down to international migration. The demand for labour is keeping up with the growth in the population well, and this year the average pay for UK workers has risen at its fastest rate for six years.

The figures are, on the whole, positive, however the underlying problems of a skills mismatch can lead to a detrimental effect on how organisations deal with their customers and manage to stay ahead of competition. Also, with more jobs empty, comes stress on other employees and increased workload. We’ll be keeping an eye on the markets and industry trends to follow the developments of the skills shortage debate.

Types of Interview Questions to ask your Candidates

Aug 17, 2015 | IT

Hiring the wrong person can prove to be detrimental to your organisation. Now, if you’re using one, your recruitment company will do their best to ensure the right people are in front of you to begin with, but at interview you will get a true feeling for whether this candidate is a good ‘fit’ for your business.

Well-known marketing blogger and Brand Director at Kareco Tim Tyrell-Smith conducted a survey concluding that, “interviewers’ number one concern is fit with the company’s culture.”

Similarly, technology information expert David Bradford reported on a past survey about “how people got their job” which found 56% obtained their job through a personal connection, proving that personal connections and team fit are very important factors in job placements.

So what is the best way to confirm these connections and team fits during an interview? It’s good news that the quirky, oddball, brain teaser type questions that often flummox candidates are going out of fashion. Laszlo Bock, Google’s HR chief said “if you’ve heard that Google likes to pose brain-teaser questions to candidates—like why manhole covers are round—your information is out of date. There’s no evidence that they suggest how people perform on the job.” Never the less, there is definitely a need to be creative in some respect in order to get the most out of your interview and your candidate.

We’ve highlighted some of the interview types you may come across.

Informational

These questions will include topics such as why candidates left their last role, work history and qualifications.

These are essential questions, some of which you may have basic answers to already from CVs or your recruitment agency. Gather as much of this information together before the interview and ask questions about anything you need to clarify. This way you don’t need to spend too much time on the basics.

Role Focussed

These questions will be focussed around abilities, strengths and weaknesses, technical skills and if necessary, leadership and management skills.

When asking role focused questions you may opt for open questions, allowing the candidate to speak broadly, such as “what are your strengths?” or you could be more specific and ask a question like “could you explain something complicated, but that you know well?”

Company Questions

Some organisations will choose to ask candidates what they already know about their company and how they feel they could add value.

Questions such as “why do you want to work here?” and “how would you fit into the team?” are often criticised because the reason the candidate is at the interview is to learn more and discover whether they are a good ‘fit’ for the team and business. An alternative could be to ask a more creative question such as “Can you pitch the company to me as if you wanted me to buy your product or service?”

Personal

Questions about the candidate’s personality, hobbies, interests and future goals.

“Tell me about yourself” can be a good opener to asking a few questions about the candidate’s non-work life, however it’s very vague. Questions like “where do you see your self in five years?” are popular but also perhaps a little dated. An alternative could be to ask “what’s the biggest decision you’ve had to make in the past year? Why was it so big?” This could be answered with a personal or work related answer and allows you to assess the candidate’s decision making skills.

Behavioural / Competency

These are the juicy questions that may take up a large section of the interview. They come in many forms, but essentially are “tell us about a time when…” type questions that really test a candidate’s ability to think on the spot and select relevant, quality examples of their work and experiences.

These questions can be specifically targeted around your organisation, its culture, goals and the role you’re recruiting for. For example “tell me about a time you set goals, and how did you achieve them?” or “tell me about the relationships you’ve had with the people you’ve worked with.”

The ‘Trap’

Some see these kinds of tricky/curveball questions as a way to test candidates on their ability to react under pressure and be creative with an answer.

As we mentioned, the fall in popularity for asking ‘trap’ questions is only a good thing for both candidates and employers! However, questions such as “what is your biggest weakness” remain popular and opinion is divided about whether or not these questions are useful. Tricky, but more relevant questions could include  “what’s your definition of hard work?” and “tell me about a time something didn’t go as planned.”

It can be challenging to evaluate someone in an interview alone, so spending time selecting and composing the most appropriate interview questions for your business and the role you’re recruiting for is worth the investment in time. Here at Langley James we’ll work with you to find the best possible candidates for your IT and HR roles. Contact one of our consultants today for more information.

Creating a Strategic Approach to Hiring

Aug 17, 2015 | IT

As we know, taking a longer amount of time to fill a job vacancy can have a negative effect on productivity and an organisation’s ability to reach goals. In order to ensure the hiring process is efficient and effective, a strategic approach to recruitment could be useful.

Research by Hired, the online marketplace for tech talent, found recently that 65% of UK tech companies foresee a negative impact on revenue due to their inability to hire the talent they need. Sophie Adelman who is Hired’s general manager said “the fact that the majority of companies are still sourcing candidates through referrals and job boards suggests that they might not be able to access, or have visibility on, the best talent for their teams. In order to thrive and compete within the global market, companies need to take a more strategic approach to hiring.”

“Instead of waiting for referrals and looking at job boards they can benefit from proactively accessing a focused and curated pool of technical talent that has been vetted for both quality and intent – this will significantly impact the efficiency of the hiring process and contribute to their overall competitiveness” she added.

 Marketing and Recruitment

One notion that is often discussed is the need for the recruiter to act more like a marketer in their approach to hiring. Targeting candidates with engaging and tailored content can convert a ‘passive candidate’ with an interest in the organisation into an ‘active candidate’ who will actually apply for a role.

Susan Vitale – Chief Marketing Officer at iCIMS explains that “Technology, such as a recruitment marketing automation tool, mobile-optimised career sites, and a social media presence, can streamline processes and provide you with pools of warm talent from which to source when your organisation is ready.”

Consistency

Following on from this, consistency across the brand could be a key aspect to marketing your organisation and your roles to potential candidates. Consistency across your website, social media and during the interview process will help candidates to get a real understanding of the business.   According to a recent iCIMS study, “78% of job seekers agree that the look and feel of a company’s career site is moderately to highly important to their decision to apply for a job.”

The Steps to Creating a Recruitment Strategy

Nicola Hawkinson founder of SpineSearch – highlights six steps to creating a clear recruitment strategy and said, “you need to treat the hiring process as a key business practice — have a plan, make a timeline and reach your goal”. Her steps are:

1. Identify the vacancy and need before beginning the search. Identify the reason for hiring, whether it is due to expansion, increasing customers, or replacement for an existing position.
2. Create a search strategy. Consider search methods, a quota of candidates to interview before making a selection, a defined screening and interview process, criteria for selection and the selection team.
3. Interview slowly. Build a steady stream of applicants and interview them in groups of three to five per day for back-to-back comparison.
4. Keep candidates engaged throughout the selection process.Good candidates are likely considering multiple opportunities, so you do not want to lose them at any point during the process through a lack of communication.
5. Don’t ignore red flags. Contact three to five references with a detailed questionnaire tailored specifically to the business or practice.
6. Design a detailed on-boarding process to improve retention. Consider detailed introduction/enrolments and possibly a buddy for your new employee.

Keeping Up to Date

We have mentioned the increased usage of social media, however one recent article from the IT Portal suggests wearable should be the new inclusion in your recruitment strategy! They suggest that, “wearing Google Glass at an interview will allow you to record it and evaluate [the interview] back.” Or that the use of “bracelets or wristbands can be worn by your employees that monitor their heart rates. If one rises abnormally high you will be alerted to it and can tell that employee to take it easy.” We may be a little away from these techniques, but these concepts are real and available, and for the tech-savvy firm could be a seen as a real completive advantage!

Taking a proactive and strategic approach to hiring should hopefully lead to better long term hiring decisions that will have a positive effect on your business. A recruitment strategy will also help to ensure that all employees involved in the recruitment process are on the same page and take the same approach.

If you’d like to speak to someone about hiring IT professionals for your organisation, get in touch with one of our experienced consultants for advise and recruitment guidance.

Closing the Workplace Gender Gap

Aug 3, 2015 | IT

Last month the government announced new steps they are pledging to take in order to close the workplace gender gap. With the new national living wage and legislation requiring companies with more than 250 employees to publish details of their pay gaps, the Prime Minister said “transparency, skills, representation, affordable childcare – these things can end the gender pay gap in a generation.”

In the UK, and consistently around the world, women still earn less than men. But what does this mean for organisations, workforces and for the nation’s 28.5 million women?

Equal opportunities

The debate remains that some women may opt for more of a work life balance to the detriment of their pay packet, and not all women strive to be board members. The ILO (UN’s International Labour Organization) found that “mothers were more likely to have career breaks, switch to part-time work, choose jobs that help to reconcile work and family – which are usually lower paying – and miss out on promotions”.

However opportunities should be equal in all situations. Flexible working rights, tax-free childcare schemes, new enterprise allowances and public awareness campaigns, such as International Woman’s Day, are all factors that are helping to close the gap in equality. However, the pay gap in the UK stands at 19.1% and is above the EU average of 16.4%.

Still, there are more women-led businesses currently in the UK than there ever has been as well as a record number of women in work, suggesting things are heading in the right direction. In April this year 285,000 working couples became eligible to share maternity/paternity leave – another step towards making opportunities equal.

The benefits of gender diversity to business

One of the most prominent figures representing women in IT, Dame Stephanie Shirley champions diversity in the workplace in all forms, not just gender. She has a mission to get a million people with Asperger’s syndrome into the IT industry by 2020 and has also tackled the subject of ageism. She advised: “women must recognise and grab the many opportunities the tech industry offers.”

Diversity in general is beneficial to the workforce and is said to help business growth. Pinky Lilani, founder and chair of a number of awards which attempt to recognise influential women and leaders says: “I think women are very collaborative and they do tend to love to work together. I think different dynamics come into place when people are working together – the results are much better. Women tend to think of solutions whereas men can sometimes be focussed on proving how great they are. It is a basic generalisation, but that is the kind of feedback I get from a lot of women.”

Increasing number of female entrepreneurs

This year, the number of female millionaires in the UK increased by a third. Many women who have previously worked for large corporations, but have moved on to have families and grown tired of the politics of the corporate world, have chosen to set up their own business. Flexibility, and the opportunity to pursue a passion may also be the driving factors encouraging women into business. However, a startupDNA survey found that women are half as likely to receive venture capital funding than men.

Is there more to be done?

Despite the government’s efforts, there is still no legal requirement for organisations to act on the gender gap data they are required to publish. It also doesn’t require businesses to carry out equal pay audits, looking at similar work done by men and women and aiming to close pay gaps.

There’s a complex web of cultural, economic and corporate factors that contribute to the current status quo of women in the workplace and it’s no doubt we are in a better position than we were 20 years ago, but there are still steps to be taken to create true diversity and equality in all UK workplaces.

What Distracts You In The Workplace?

Jul 20, 2015 | IT

From noisy colleagues to uncomfortable chairs, the workplace is full of distractions and unfortunately this can lead to a lack of productivity and concentration. Many of these are inevitable, but a number of these day-to-day distractions are definitely avoidable. Personal financial management service Think Money’s recent report found that 759 hours each year are wasted due to workers being distracted in one way or another.

Colleagues

Noisy workplaces were the main cause of distraction along with getting side-tracked into non-work conversation. There seems to be two types of distraction – self-distraction and being distracted by others. Chatting to colleagues and engaging in some workplace banter is not always a negative thing, it can help to create a positive and productive workplace, but as an employer it can be difficult to ensure this line isn’t blurred.

Technology

Technology, unsurprisingly, was also to blame with slow computers, bad internet connection, checking mobile phones, social media and on-line shopping on the list of interruptions.

The Unplanned

Edward Hallowell, author of Driven to Distraction at Work: How to Focus and Be More Productive explains that we spend 20 minutes out of every hour dealing with unplanned distractions. This could be phone calls or impromptu meetings. He said “the mail used to come once or twice a day, now [email] comes once or twice a second. We’ve broken down all the boundaries and made ourselves literally available 24/7.”

Busy, Stressful Workplaces

Although we may associate a distracted worker with an organisation or department that doesn’t have enough work to do, it could in fact be the case that busy workplaces are just as much at risk from distraction. Those who are very busy, with a number of devices on the go (PC, laptop, phone and tablet) and need to regularly multi task could find they are doing a number of things at once, but non very well. Also those who find themselves taking on the jobs of others, or regularly helping colleagues out, will find themselves distracted from their own job.

 Personal Issues

Further more, RAND found that “lack of sleep, financial concerns and giving unpaid care to family members or relatives are negatively associated with productivity.” It goes without saying that if you have personal issues affecting your life at any one time, it’s impossible to completely shut off from these at work.

Combating these distractions could be down to good self and time management within teams, so that unscheduled meetings don’t eat into people’s days for example. The layout of the office might be important, as open plan offices have a lot of benefits but can lead to noisy workplaces. Some organisations may choose to ban social media or clamp down on other distractions, but how about encouraging scheduled down time and refresher breaks during the day? Encouraging general well-being and healthy lifestyle choices at work should lead to happier, more productive employees.

The Need for IT Professionals to Diversify

Jul 20, 2015 | IT

According to research by Tech Pro conducted to report on the future of IT jobs, there is a need for IT professionals to diversify in order to stay in their current job roles. The report found that 59% of those surveyed felt worried that their current skill set would become obsolete.

Ordinarily, there are IT generalists and IT specialists, and this research suggests that today’s IT departments require their professionals to be more of a generalist, but with a broader, more diverse skill set. It seems that these professionals are already beginning to address these concerns as 57% of those surveyed are planning to obtain additional training and certifications to put them in better stead for the future.

Within SMEs it could be said that generalists already rule. In smaller businesses it is uncommon to have a number of specialists, but rather a couple of generalists who perhaps lean towards different specialisms internally, but cover all areas of IT to some degree. It is likely that the report’s findings will apply to these individuals the most, as smaller businesses grow and technologies become more advanced and in depth.

There are now such a huge amount of tools and frameworks available and some blame the ‘IT explosion’ of recent years, for changes within IT departments. However Tech Pro’s report “refutes the recent media reports on the possibility that IT jobs may disappear due to new technical advances. In fact, it’s quite the contrary with the increased complexity breeding new opportunities and furthering demand for skilled IT professionals.”

Paul Venezir uses the example of scripting and programming languages when discussing the growing need for specialists and whether the ‘do everything’ IT admin is becoming a rare breed. There are many languages and layers of frameworks within those languages, that would prove challenging for a generalist to deal with. He explains that it’s much harder now for one single IT professional to deal with so many disparate tasks and technologies than it once was.

However, there remains a demand for one or two people within an organisation that understand the whole technical landscape, internal systems and how they all work together. This role is vital, as there may be specialists working in their niche areas but without someone directing and understanding the whole process, things won’t run smoothly. After all, hiring specialist contractors is often the best option for SMEs who need specialist knowledge for a short period of time, such as new software installation or training on a new system.

There are definitely strong cases for both specialist and generalists within IT departments, but developing technologies and a competitive market build a strong argument for the need of generalists to continually develop and diversify their skills. Tech Pro conclude that “as things stand, the future of IT looks bright for both existing workers and newcomers.”

Call us to have a chat about the staffing needs of your IT department. Our specialist IT recruiters are here to help.

Can the Older Workers Bridge the Skills Shortage Gap?

Jul 6, 2015 | IT

As Britain’s population hits a record breaking high of 64.6 million, a new study by The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) has warned of the threat of a significant skills shortage if the older generation aren’t encouraged back into the workplace.

There are 9.4 million workers over the age of 50 in the UK, but between the ages of 53 and 67 the employment rate drops. There are many older people wanting to work but not being hired, and 4 in 10 unemployed older workers are out of work for more than a year.

With an increasing demand on services it seems silly not to utilise the pool of older, experienced and skilled workers keen to continue in work, but how?

The CIPD are urging organisations to “take steps now to reap the benefits of a more age diverse workforce”. Changing attitudes and building a new strategy that revolves around the following, is some of the key advice from this report:

• Inclusive recruitment practices
• Investing in training and development
• Supporting employee health and wellbeing
• Flexible working
• Improving line manager capability

Backing up this CIPD report comes research from the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC) which showed that “businesses need to adjust the way they advertise jobs and provide training opportunities or miss the best candidates in the over 55-age group.” The report commented on job adverts and the need to adjust tone of voice and leave out terms such as  ‘graduate’ or ‘energetic’ that may be off putting to older workers.

According the Office of National Statistics, the rise in the population is down to both a higher number of births than deaths (46% of the increase) and positive net migration (53%). So as people live longer, they want to work for longer. Older workers have a wealth of experience and skill that they can bring to organisations as well as maturity for dealing with difficult or sensitive situations.

Age UK and the REC have teamed up to launch a best practice protocol guide which “aims to end age discrimination in recruitment and give older people a better chance of finding work.” It guides recruiting organisations in committing to offering opportunities for older workers and highlights the benefits they can bring to an organisation. This might involve upskilling or reskilling some workers or promoting flexible working opportunities.

It’s no doubt that utilising the skills, enthusiasm and commitment of older workers could bridge the gap of skills shortages for many organisations. This issue also highlights the increasing need for true equal opportunities and a ‘blind recruitment’ approach.

Robots in the Workplace – Is There Cause for Concern?

Jul 6, 2015 | IT

We’ve seen the movies and heard the stories, but with the field of industrial robotics booming we wanted to explore the facts and opinions that generate the heated debate of robotic employees.

According to a recent survey, three quarters of Brits believe that their jobs are at risk because of robots potentially taking over their positions in the workplace, and we must admit it’s easy to see why when software is perfecting the art of many day-to-day human tasks.

The Digital Revolution
Much of the world’s current robotic workforce come in the form of huge machines in factories, doing heavy work like lifting and moving cars or doing simple repetitive tasks. That’s what robots are good at, and is historically the main reason robots have taken over human tasks. However Brynjolfsson an economist and author of the book ‘The Second Machine Age’ believes the digital revolution is very different to the industrial revolution, although it may move a lot faster. In his book, Brynjolfsson uses the example of the photograph to demonstrate how things move on. The hundreds of people who used to be involved in the production of chemical photos, are now mainly redundant as photographs became digital and now live online on Flickr, Facebook and Instagram. However these social platforms have grown to create many more jobs and a good few millionaires. Particularly in IT and media there are many new job titles that just didn’t exist in the 80s or 90s.

A Lack of Flexibility
Robots are often very task orientated, and may be very good at completing the task they’re assigned to, but allow for no flexibility. For example a robot that knows how to pick up a pen, may not be able to pick up a piece of paper.

Jobs such as accountants and telemarketers may be the type of jobs most at risk, along with service roles in general. We have already seen the loss of many checkout operatives in UK supermarkets to machines, and a hotel opening soon in Japan will be staffed by (scarily lifelike) robots who will check guests in and take their luggage!

However, put a robot in an unfamiliar situation and it won’t know what to do. Famously clumsy, robots can make mistakes and don’t really have the ability to adjust. In many cases it may just be easier and quicker to ask a human to do the task.

Interaction and Creativity
Interaction and creativity are two very human aspects that many (if not most) jobs require. For example a robot may be able the take the job of a financial journalist reporting numbers and statistics, but not that of a creative novel writer.

Interacting with real-world environments and unpredictable situations is difficult and usually impossible for bots. These interpersonal skills such as motivating, nurturing, caring and comforting are vital in a workplace.

Better Together
A recent paper by Georg Graetz and Guy Michaels of the London School of Economics found that, despite the lack of much previous research into the impact of robots in the workplace, robots have actually been a driver of labour productivity and economic growth.

Seeing these advancements in technology as a tool to help aid workers and allow them to achieve more could be the way forward. If humans and robots can cooperate in the workplace, rather than compete, productivity could be greatly improved.

Employment Law Newsletter July

Jul 1, 2015 | IT

Employment Law Newsletter 

July 2015

As the summer kicks in, so does the peak time for employees taking annual leave and this can put additional strain on any business.  Not only this, but the law on calculating holiday pay also refuses to stand still!  In this Employment Law Update we looks at calculating holiday pay, reporting your own misconduct, religious dress at work, collective consultation and more…

In dealing with voluntary rather than compulsory overtime the case goes beyond the ruling in Bear Scotland v Fulton but it is hardly a surprise. The European Court of Justice has made it clear time and again that holiday pay should reflect what an employee normally receives. If an employee normally works overtime then his or her holiday pay should reflect that fact.

Of course, it is not clear just what ‘normally’ means and the Northern Ireland Court of Appeal does not give any clear guidance as to when an employee’s overtime is sufficiently regular to be seen as a normal part of his or her pay. That is an issue to be saved for future cases.

The situation is not helped by the fact that the Working Time Regulations – which set out the right to paid annual leave – have now been so completely overtaken by case law that their provisions on holiday pay are practically useless. It is about time the Government updated them and gave employers something concrete to work with. In the meantime the safest course is to base holiday pay on an average of the employee’s earnings over a 3 month reference period – and take advice if that seems unduly burdensome or unfair.

Reporting your own misconduct
Many employees work for more than one employer – although employers are generally entitled to insist that employees either get their permission – or at least inform them – before taking on a secondary role elsewhere. One issue that can then arise is the extent to which one employer is entitled to know about any misconduct issues that have arisen while the employee was working for another employer.

In Basildon Academies v Amadi a supervisor took on another role at a college without telling his employer. More seriously he also failed to tell them when he was accused of sexually assaulting a student. No criminal action was taken against him – although he was arrested and bailed. He did not inform his main employer of the incident – but they found out when the police made enquiries about his employment with them. He was dismissed for what his employer said was gross misconduct in taking another job without permission and also failing to inform them of a serious allegation of misconduct that had been made against him.

The Employment Tribunal found the dismissal unfair, and that finding was upheld on appeal.  The EAT held that, in the absence of a specific requirement set out in the contract, there was no obligation on an employee to report allegations of misconduct – particularly where the employee regarded the allegations as malicious or false.

This is obviously a serious issue for employers – like Basildon Academies – that have safeguarding obligations in relation to children or vulnerable adults. One obvious answer is to make sure that there is an express requirement in a contract of employment that the employee provides full disclosure of any allegations that may be relevant to his or her main employment. However even without that requirement an employer, once it has been informed of an allegation, would be entitled to investigate it to see whether it was sufficiently serious to justify a dismissal on the basis that the employee presents a safeguarding risk. This is a difficult and delicate area and it is important that employers do not take action without taking legal advice first.

Religious dress at work
Employers are entitled to impose reasonable dress codes on employees – although in doing so they should take account of any religious requirements that a particular employee must observe. Where there is a clash between the needs of the business and the religious needs of the employee then the question is whether the employer can show that complying with its rules is a ‘proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim’.

In Begum v Pedagogy Auras UK Ltd t/a Barley Lane Montessori Day Nursery Ms Begum was applying for post in a nursery and in the course of the interview the employer commented on her jilbab – a long flowing garment worn by some Muslim women. The employer thought that the particular jilbab she was wearing was slightly longer than ankle length and told her that it would not be suitable to wear at work as it would be a tripping hazard. Although the interview ended amicably – with Ms Begum saying that she would consult her family about wearing a shorter jilbab – she subsequently claimed indirect discrimination based on her religious beliefs.

Her claim was rejected. The employer had been entitled to be concerned about the potential trip hazard and had not told her that she would not be allowed to wear a jilbab at work. It was just that the jilbab she had worn at interview appeared to be even longer than usual. The employer had been open to further discussions about what kind of jilbab could be worn and would have been happy to accommodate the employee’s needs if it could be shown that wearing the jilbab at work would be safe.

Collective Consultation
An employer that is proposing to make 20 or more redundancies at a single establishment must consult with employee representatives about ways of avoiding the dismissals. Failure to do so can result in a tribunal making a ‘protective award’ of as much as 90 days’ pay to each of the dismissed employees.

In E Ivor Hughes Educational Foundation v Morris and others the EAT held that a school was proposing to make redundancies when the Board of Governors decided that it would have to close the school unless numbers improved significantly over the coming term. The fact that it was still possible that the school would be saved did not alter the fact that redundancies would be inevitable unless there was a significant change in circumstances and the employer should have begun consultations at that point.

The law on redundancy consultation does allow for special circumstances where it is not possible for consultations to take place and the school sought to argue that the special circumstances in this case were that if news of a possible closure was to leak, then numbers would fall off even more and the school would be doomed. The EAT held that there was nothing particularly special about that situation, which would be faced by many employers contemplating a closure.

As it happened the school did close as numbers continued to decline. Even if consultation had taken place, it would have done nothing to delay or alter the final decision. However, this did not affect the amount of compensation payable. Compensation in this situation is based on the employer’s failure, not the employee’s loss and so the full 90 days’ pay was awarded to each of the 24 employees made redundant.

Transfer of Undertakings
The Transfer of Undertakings Regulations – TUPE – cause regular difficulties for employers. One important thing to remember is that it is that the employer cannot simply pick and choose which employees are transferred. The process is an automatic one and all employees who are ‘assigned’ the contract or undertaking at the time of the transfer will transfer – whatever the wishes of the employer may be.

In Jakowlew v Saga Care an employee worked on a care contract that Saga Care held with Enfield Council. After a falling out with her line manager she was suspended and Enfield eventually instructed Saga to remove her from the contract – which they were entitled to do under the terms of their agreement.

However Saga took no action and the employee was still suspended when the contract was transferred to Westminster Homecare Ltd. When Saga eventually made her redundant an issue arose as to who was liable for her dismissal – Saga or Westminster?

There was no doubt that TUPE applied – the question was whether the employee was assigned to the contract at the time of the transfer. The EAT held that she was. The Council had instructed Saga to remove her, but no action was actually taken. It was not argued that the fact she was suspended in itself prevented her from being transferred. The fact that the Council did not want her to be assigned to the contract did not alter the fact that – at the time of the transfer – she was. It followed that Westminster Homecare would be liable for her dismissal.

And more from TUPE…
It is clear that TUPE applies when a client changes its service provider – but what if one of the contractors then subcontracts work to another firm – does TUPE apply then too?

In Jinks v London Borough of Havering the Council contracted with a firm called Saturn to operate an ice rink and car park. Saturn sub-contracted the car park to another firm – Regal. The ice rink eventually closed and although the car park continued to be operated for a while the Council eventually took it back in house before closing the whole site, which was subsequently passed on to an NHS Trust.

The Council did not have any contract with Regal – but could an employee of Regal’s be transferred to the Council when it took over the site? The Employment Tribunal initially said no as a TUPE transfer requires the contractor to be working on behalf of the client – the Council in this case – and the Council was not Regal’s client. However the EAT held that that was not necessarily so. A contractor in a TUPE situation may have more than one client and it could be argued that while Regal’s main client was Saturn, it was operating the car park on behalf of the Council and in that sense the Council was Regal’s client too. The issue was sent back to the Tribunal to decide the issue.

Working time and travel to work
When is a worker working? The Working Time Regulations impose limits on working time and also require employers to provide a 20 minute rest break during a working day of six hours or more, an 11 hour rest period between working days and a 24 hour rest period in every 7 days. To meet these requirements an employer needs to be clear about what counts as working time and what doesn’t. It’s also important because the employer needs to be sure that it is paying the national minimum wage throughout any period of working time.

Ultimately the question is governed by the Working Time Directive, which means that cases that come before the European Court of Justice have a direct impact on the UK. A Spanish case currently making its way through the system – Federación de Servicios Privados del sindicato Comisiones Obreras – will be important for determining whether time spent travelling to and from work counts as working time.

It is generally accepted that the normal commute to a regular place of work does not count as working time. After all, an employer does not control whether the employee lives a five minute walk away from work or on the other side of the county. Equally, it is clear that travel time during the working day should be treated as working time. An employee who needs to visit a number of clients over the course of the day is almost certainly working when travelling between appointments. This case, however is concerned with employees who do not work from a fixed location, but visit a number of sites within a geographic area. The employer treats journeys within the working day as working time but does not count the journey to and from home – seeing that as equivalent to a daily commute.

The case has not been decided yet, but part of the process in the European Court is to publish an opinion from the Advocate General which is usually highly influential on the eventual outcome. The Advocate General in this case has now said that the initial and final journeys of the day should count as working time. As home-based employees, travelling from home to the first client, and travelling from the last client back to their home is an integral part of their daily duties and should count towards their total hours worked in any week. The Court does not always follow the Advocate General’s opinion, but if it does then employers with mobile employees may have to rethink how they measure working time.

And Finally…
You might have thought that if one of your employees was given an 18 month prison sentence for GBH and resisting arrest then a fair dismissal would just be a formality. Yet spare a thought for the Fermain Valley Hotel in Guernsey which has just been ordered to pay out over £11,000 to their former head chef whose drunken rampage landed him behind bars. The case is reported in the Daily Telegraph and the employer is more than a little annoyed at the ruling. It seems that the Hotel assumed that the prison sentence justified dismissal and did not carry out any investigation of its own or attempt to interview the employee.

It is important to realise that Guernsey is not part of the UK and has its own employment law. If the case had come up before a UK Tribunal, even if there was a procedurally unfair dismissal, compensation would almost certainly have been reduced to zero to reflect the fact that dismissal was inevitable. However in Guernsey compensation for unfair dismissal is a fixed penalty of six months’ pay and the circumstances in which that is permitted are limited. As it happens the Tribunal did reduce his compensation by 25% to reflect his misconduct. Since that involved biting a police officer’s finger while resisting arrest, one has to wonder what an employee has to do in Guernsey to get a 100% deduction.

Reporting your own misconduct

Religious dress at work

Collective Consultation

Transfer of Undertakings

And more from TUPE…

Working time and travel to work

And Finally…

Windows 10 is on the Way. How a Contract IT Trainer can Help you Find Value in your Software.

Jun 23, 2015 | IT

Windows 10 is on the way and whether you’re for it or against it, you’ll definitely have heard plenty about its imminent launch next month. Windows 10 will be rolled out on 29^th July on a range of devices, but will also be available as a free download for anyone currently using Windows 7, 8 or 8.1.

If Windows is central to your organisation and the day-to-day tasks of many of your employees, there’s a strong case for creating a plan to deal with the changes and upheaval an upgrade or software change like this can have on a workplace and its daily practices.

Hiring support for change

A contract IT trainer could be the answer if you’re short of time, support or in-depth specific knowledge of a certain product. An IT trainer could save you time training staff (one-to-one or in group sessions), create guidelines specifically for your organisation’s practices, be on hand in the office to floor walk and answer employee queries and also could help to reduce the strain on your help desk.

Staff may become frustrated or make mistakes if appropriate steps and training are not provided to carefully implement change. Bringing an experienced professional in can open up new training suggestions and highlight fresh opportunities.

Going through an important upgrade (like the Windows 10 upgrade) or a period of organisational change (like a new or more advanced system upgrade) are more obvious reasons highlighting the potential need to hire a contract IT trainer.  However there may be more subtle, nagging IT issues that could be causing a lack of productivity and wasted time where a trainer would prove just as much value.

Underused and unknown features

A 2014 study found employees only spent 48 minutes per day using MS Office applications and only a small percentage of users were considered heavy users. Since many users are unaware of the advanced features of office and other such programmes, they barely scratch the surface of what’s available to them. Investing time and effort into highlighting some of the unknown and unused features of the expensive software your business owns should not only improve the speed of tasks but develop understanding and increase efficiency.

Computer Weekly state that only “15% of North American and European information workers say they are completely satisfied with their IT department’s understanding of what they need to be successful. For the remaining 85%, there is a gap. The larger that gap, the more time staff may spend figuring out how to get the job done anyway.”

The true value of your company software

IT consultants have experience working on and implementing projects for a range of different organisations, giving them a fresh take on practices and bringing some fantastic expertise to the table. Fully understanding your IT and ensuring that your employees are using it to its full potential is key to keeping IT budgets under control and reducing unnecessary costs.

It is so important to have the right tools for the job, but ensuring your whole team understands how to use them to their full potential is just as important. Making a transition or changing something significant in your organisation’s technology will require a strategy to help make it straight forward and cause minimum disruption for employees. If you’re short of time and want the most productive outcome, hiring a contract IT trainer could be a viable and valuable decision. Remember that updates such as Windows 10 are created to ultimately make life and processes easier, but it’s important for everyone to fully understand them as much as possible from the beginning.

Here at Langley James we’ll support you every step of the way with your IT recruitment, finding the perfect match for your business requirements. Find the contractor or IT professional you’ve been searching for and get in touch with one of our team today. 

Five Ways the Modern Workplace is Evolving

Jun 23, 2015 | IT

It’s nothing new to suggest that the workplace is not the same as it was 30 years ago, and technological advances have been a driving force behind many of these changes, not to mention economic and cultural shifts. However, the CIPD recently released a new report for cityoflondon.gov.uk highlighting some of the key workplace changes that are happening to the physical workspace and workstyles that make up the environment where so many of us spend so much of our time.

The city has over 50,000 jobs forecast to be created from 2013 to 2023 with two of the four most notable sectors mentioned being the technical services sector, and the information and communications sector. The report looks at what kind of workstyles are becoming more important, what role the workforce need to play and how office space and infrastructure need to change to support these new styles.

Although the report is focused on the city, you don’t have to be in a state of the art, central London office for these key themes to affect you and your business. The interviews on which much of the report is based “confirmed a shift from a narrow focus on workplace efficiency, towards a more balanced focus including workplace effectiveness and engagement. An effective workplace is one that optimises productivity by providing workers with the environment, tools and support services they need to fulfill their roles.”  That sounds good, right? But what are the important factors that are allowing this to happen?

Flexible and Agile Working

Working away from the office and flexible start and finish times are some of the characteristics of agile working. There is more pressure on organisations to offer flexibility, although not all are happy to. The report found it could be one of the top tactics for improving employee productivity.

The Growth of Shared Space

Activity-based workspaces are increasingly being providing for collaboration, concentration, communication, creativity and contemplation. There is a shift from fixed, long-term leased space to flexible and on-demand space. Less space is generally being used more efficiently, and more effectively.

Connectivity

As businesses adapt to market pressures, and change within business is more frequent, there is much more need to be agile and well connected. High-speed internet connections allow working from home, a coffee shop or anywhere you wish in fact. Workplaces are becoming more team based and collaborative but also more mobile, making the power of the network more profound.

A Multi-generation Workforce

The majority of the city’s workforce are Generation Y, born between 1979 and 2000. However generation Z, those born after 2000, will soon too be entering the workplace. Due to improved longevity and changes in retirement law there are also increasingly more older workers staying in work. “Tomorrow’s office will need to accommodate up to four generations of worker, and cater for their different workplace needs, covering a wider spread of ages than ever before.”

Technology Continues to Develop

Employees are now bringing an average of three and a half mobile devices to the workplace. Email once took over voicemail and now instant messaging is taking over email as the chosen form of inter-office communication. Working on the move and remotely is becoming easier as technology gets more reliable, user-friendly and convenient.

Perhaps your workplace will organically evolve to incorporate these factors, but it’s certain that you can prompt, encourage and facilitate change in your physical workspace, in-house technologies and through workstyles and practices. Increasingly, workspaces are required to be more flexible, open and interactive, but still need to work for a range of workers at different stages and with different needs. Organisations need to attract and retain highly skilled employees while responding to the changing demands of the workplace.