I’ve been attending networking events for the online recruitment sector since 2001. They have been a staple in my annual calendar, and have been an invaluable part of what I do. Because I live 400 miles away from the throbbing metropolis, (the big smoke, that Laandon town) they have given me the opportunity to meet...
Ever since Jeff Taylor launched Monster, and Robbie Cowling founded Jobserve, it has been generally accepted that job boards are merely replicating the print media model of advertising vacancies. Enabling employers and recruitment agencies to broadcast their available jobs to candidates, who were actively looking for a career move was very civilised, but meant that...
Right I’m going to speak plainly here, and use some blunt language. Please don’t confuse my frankness for callousness. Maybe I’ve always done this but, as a recruiter, when I meet new people, I always weigh up how they fit into the already large group of people that I already know. A new person could...
As a young-ish industry, subject to change at any time (as is the wont of many internet businesses) the online recruitment sector is subject to the threat of game changing moves, which can radically alter the premise upon which we mostly operate. Our industry is entirely predicated upon a set of assumptions, about how we...
This is a response to the blog post by Mervyn Dinnen here. There is inevitable duplicity built into the entire recruitment process. Would you advise a candidate to be scrupulously honest, and offer “full disclosure” in a discoverable way online? Lies being told. 1. Candidates appear at interview, pretending that they already want the job,...
I love Formula 1 motor racing, and have been staying up late to watch races from far corners of the world since the days of Nigel Mansell, Prost and Senna. The events of the past few weeks have demonstrated that the biggest rivals are often within the same team; Vettel and Webber have crashed into...
This isn’t an original thought, but it’s my spin on it. This week I met with a large number of recruitment agency directors at a UK Recruiter networking event. James Caan was speaking, and two other guys. No offence to the 2 other guys, one from Barclays Capital, I think, and the other was a...
Right, Who can I slag off next? It seems that in order to take umbrage with certain groups of people, you need to be entitled to do so, by dint of having walked a mile in their shoes. To do otherwise, would be offensive in the extreme, as you clearly “don’t know what you’re talking...
I don’t know if I’ve mentioned it, but I’ve been a recruiter since 1987. “I didn’t know that!” I hear you say. Yes it’s true. Up until a couple of years ago, admitting it in public was equated with being league with the devil, and greeted with a look of bemused disgust. And then of...
True story with a purpose. Years ago, I was recruiting for a client in Ayrshire, who needed a Design Engineer. As per usual I took on the job, quoted our fees, yada yada yada. During the process of sourcing candidates I networked through to a candidate who seemed to match the requirement perfectly. I approached...
