reed.co.uk launches Exchange marketplace to connect employers and agencies

Leading UK job site, reed.co.uk, has launched a new online marketplace to connect employers with specialist recruitment agencies to fill their vacancies. The new service is called Exchange.

Exchange: watch the demo from reed.co.uk on Vimeo.

reed.co.uk Exchange allows employers to post vacancies anonymously into the marketplace where they can be accessed only by approved, specialist recruitment agencies. Recruitment consultants can pitch and negotiate online to work on individual jobs and, once engaged, start putting candidates forward. Once an offer is accepted and a new employee starts work, the employer pays the agreed fee.

Martin Warnes, Managing Director of reed.co.uk, comments:

“Employers place real value on the service they receive from specialist recruitment agencies and Exchange is a way for reed.co.uk to foster this.

“We’re already the UK’s biggest job site, we know recruitment inside out and we have extensive reach into both employer and agency markets. This makes Exchange an obvious complement to reed.co.uk’s current job board offering.”

Posting vacancies on Exchange is free of charge, so employers only pay when they successfully make a hire. Employers can work with as many of the agencies that pitch to them as they like.

Exchange will cater for all industry sectors, with a minimum salary of £25,000 for roles being posted.

Warnes comments:

“Exchange will really come into its own for niche, harder-to-fill roles, where we can add real efficiencies to the process of engaging with the best specialist agencies in the market.

“There will be an accent on quality and control to ensure employers receive the best and most relevant agency pitches and quickly gain access to the most appropriate talent pools, whilst consultants can focus only on the vacancies for which they have specialist market knowledge.”

Consultants will be able to build their reputation in Exchange, with employers invited to leave ratings for all of the individuals they work with. In addition, agencies can tailor each pitch, including providing anonymised candidate details when they first look to engage with a new client.

For the roll out phase, agencies joining Exchange will be limited to those who are both members of the Recruitment & Employment Confederation (REC) and existing customers of reed.co.uk. However, any agency can apply to join Exchange, which will be rolled out on a wider basis during the coming months.

Warnes explains:

“Listening to the needs of our users is what has led us to develop this service and, once it’s launched, that won’t change. We’ll continue to gather as much feedback as we can so we can develop and evolve the service to ensure we’re giving employers and agencies an effective, efficient and high quality experience.”

Learn more at reed.co.uk/exchange.

Jobs in UK could be at risk by a new law designed to improve the rights of those working under job agencies.

Euro-MP David Campbell Bannerman has raised concerns that the new ‘EU Agency Workers Directive’ could lead to serious job losses amongst companies using agency staff and temporary workers. To avoid the new regulations giving the workers the same benefits as permanent employees, once they have worked in the same place for more than 12 weeks, many will see their contracts terminated.

The Conservative MEP said: “Whilst it is laudable that workers are well treated, often agency and temporary workers are paid more to make up for not having the same benefits as employees. I know – I was an interim manager and consultant for some time!

“Now these EU regulations mean that after 12 weeks with the same company, agency workers will be entitled to the same pay and conditions as their permanent counterparts.

“Often, companies use agency staff because they cannot afford to take on permanent staff.

“Now they won’t have that option unless they change the staff every 12 weeks.

“That means that many people will be losing their jobs just before Christmas.”

Mr Campbell Bannerman explained that the implications for the UK will be greater than for other EU countries, he added: “The UK economy relies more on agency workers than any other country in the EU.

“8 out of 10 jobs effected by these laws will be in the UK.
“This is yet another out-of-touch law coming direct from the EU that has no understanding of how the flexible British economy works, at a time we need all the help we can get to recover from the recession.”

“This is bad news for agency staff and bad news for the businesses that rely on them. The EU has turned out to be more Scrooge than Santa.”

The law will be effective from October 1.

A recent survey suggested almost 500,000 agency workers could lose their jobs just before Christmas as businesses moved to sack temps to avoid the new rules. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/jobs/8775447/Government-to-bring-in-temp-worker-law-unchanged.html

The law is expected to cost employers £1.8bn a year to abide by. http://www.berr.gov.uk/files/file53058.pdf (page 111)

I thought this news article from Reed is interesting as it is has a substantial number of workers surveyed, making it more accurate than many!

Looks like many companies have not still seen the advantages, or is it down to liberties taken?

Two-thirds of UK workers think social networking sites should be banned from the workplace

More than two-thirds of UK workers believe access to social networking sites should be banned from the workplace, according to new research from leading UK job site, reed.co.uk.

The survey of 4,245 workers across the UK revealed that just one-in-three employees accesses Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn or other social networking sites whilst at work.

However, for some professions, social networks have become a staple of the working day. Almost half of Marketing and PR professionals tap into the social sphere every day, compared to just a quarter of Finance workers.

And when it comes to following Twitter or updating a Facebook status, mobile takes the lead: 60% of UK employees opt to use their phone over a work computer.

The research also revealed that one-in-four businesses has banned employees from browsing social networking sites during work hours. 35% of employers give full access and, while the remaining 40% do allow access, it’s almost always permitted for business purposes only.

Martin Warnes, Managing Director of reed.co.uk comments:

“In spite of their phenomenal popularity, the majority of UK workers would rather steer clear of Facebook and Twitter whilst they’re at work, with many seeing them as an unwelcome distraction or a risk to their privacy.

“But social networks aren’t just about liking and poking, they have an increasingly important role in business and in career development. Used in the right way, social networks offer a powerful platform for engaging with new customers, strengthening client relationships and gathering information.

Warnes recommends employers enter into a dialogue with their staff about access to social networking sites at work:

“For many, social networking is a way of life, and smartphones allow us to stay up-to-date no matter where we are and what we’re doing. So to avoid a situation where employees are surreptitiously accessing Facebook and Google + under their desks, employers should engage with their staff to determine an appropriate policy for use.

A visual summary of reed.co.uk’s research findings have been summarised in an infographic: 

Get Paid up to £6000 to Build Your Own Recruiting Business and Double Your Commission from Day One!

CNA International is offering five recruiters £1000 per month to cover their bills while setting up a new recruitment business in an industry sector of their choice. CNA Business Partners take between 60-87.5% commission, more than double the industry average. The package also includes full training, ongoing support, use of the Pertemps Group’s successful business systems, a phone and a PC.

Covering business start up costs allows new business partners to focus on earning money from day one, giving ambitious individuals the opportunity to build their own sector specific head-hunting business. As you develop the business there is the opportunity to convert to Senior Partner, own 100% of your CNA business and take home 87.5% of billing. Current Senior Partners generate average net-profits of £100,000 a year with one Senior Partner topping £600,000.

A Senior Partner package would usually require an investment of £30,000. However CNA are urgently looking for recruiters to start generating large amounts of income during this lucrative time in the market.

Lee Mason, who has piloted the scheme for the past 6 months commented, “having been in recruitment for many years and seen my hard work dramatically improve my employer’s lifestyle I jumped at the chance to pilot this opportunity. The support package has allowed me to build my sector specific business which I will soon own outright. I really would encourage other recruiters to go for it!”

Nick Sprang, Director of CNA comments:

“This offers ambitious individuals with a lack of resources an opportunity to shine. We are so confident in our business model and its success that we are prepared to invest our money in the right people”. He continues “If our partners are earning money then so are we, so it is in our interest to make sure you are achieving your potential, offering good quality continuous support”. He adds, “The recruitment market is booming providing a perfect opportunity for ambitious recruiters to make a lot of money”.

To apply for this package please visit http://cna-international.com/recruiter-opportunity.php

I just received this press release from MeetTheReaMe.com, which is basically another way to present CV’s with a video. I have to admit I am not a fan as a recruiter, as I really wouldn’t have enough time to go through every video application.

Maybe if  was looking for a trainee it would have more merit and a video could be a deciding factor if I was not sure. Based on the videos I have watched so far it would in fact put me off employing them, let alone interviewing them!

Saying that I was surprised there were 10,000 candidates registered, but when I looked further all is not quite as one would believe. The truth is they are a recruitment agency rather than a web portal and I would think the candidates would be a tad disappointed given there are only 110 jobs which go back to October 2010.

Still as an agency they specialise in media and sales so I can see how they would benefit and at least they are trying something in these difficult times.

BE SEEN, HEARD AND HIRED WITH AN E-ME

Jobseekers looking to stand out in today’s crowded and competitive job market need look no further! The newly launched e-me is a fresh, new online tool that allows candidates to apply for any job, anywhere in world. It provides a unique platform for them to shine online and showcase not just their qualifications but their personality too.

In line with other leading social media platforms, e-me is the next online professional profile to connect candidates with prospective employers. It is free to set up and incorporates all the elements of a traditional CV, with the added benefit of an accompanying short, structured video interview to highlight a candidate’s charisma, confidence and communication skills. Quick and easy to create, all it takes is a webcam, internet access and plenty of enthusiasm. Jobseekers are then free to share their e-me with employers, whether it is via email, job boards, social networks or smart phones.

“With an e-me you’re not just a qualification, you’re an individual,” comments Meet The Real Me Director Brian Michael. “We wanted to find a way for candidates to gain a competitive edge in the employment race and really shine online when applying for a role. The beauty of the e-me is that unlike the traditional written CV, people can present their personality alongside their qualifications without anyone having to leave their desk! It’s the next generation’s answer to a job application.”

For employers, the e-me is also an attractive alternative to traditional CVs, as they face mounting applications and fierce competition for any given role. Hirers and firers can now find the best matches for their vacancies whilst saving time and resources in the process – an appealing prospect in today’s job market.

Continues Brian Michael: “We like to think of e-mes as CVs with personality. For many occupations personality is considered just as important as qualifications and grades, if not more. Morale is at an all-time-low amongst jobseekers right now, especially for this year’s graduates who are competing with the massive backlog of students who failed to find work 12 months ago. With the e-me, candidates can get one step closer to employers, helping them get noticed so they can get the jobs they want.”

For more information on the e-me, please visit www.meettherealme.com

1.5 Million UK Jobs in e-Commerce by 2015

• 730,000 now working in, or in support of, the e-commerce industry
• 60% of e-businesses are looking to bring in new staff over next 12 months
• Increase in employment opportunities welcome news for under pressure UK job market

An estimated 1.5 million UK staff will work within the e-commerce industry within the next four years according to new research from IMRG and eDigitalResearch.

The second annual IMRG e-Jobs Index shows that 63% of online businesses increased staff levels over the past year alone, with an estimated 730,000 now working in, or in support of, the e-commerce industry as revenues continue to grow.

The study, conducted in association with eDigitalResearch, shows that 74% of e-commerce departments and businesses have increased their turnover since last year and presents a huge opportunity for the industry to develop further, as another 60% of e-businesses are looking to increase staff numbers over the next 12 months.

However, this figure is considerably lower than what was anticipated. Last year, over 80% of those surveyed said that they hoped to recruit over the coming months. The actual number of companies that recruited new members of staff stands at 17.45% lower than this and is likely to be attributed to the recent and rapid growth of the m-commerce market.

Chris Russell, Director at eDigitalResearch, explains, “As we continue to see the popularity of smartphones and other emerging channels increase with consumers, retailers are beginning to merge and combine multiple departments and operations in order to create a coherent message across the board for all of their customers. This is not to say that the e-commerce jobs market is beginning to decline. It simply means that, along with everything else in the e-commerce industry, it is evolving in order to cope with the shifting consumer trends we are witnessing”.

Almost half (43.24%) of those surveyed suggested that up to 50% of their total revenue is generated via the internet. More importantly, another 40% (41.08%) indicated that 91-100% of overall revenue comes from e-commerce channels, an increase of 4% on the same figures last year, and represents the continued growth of the e-commerce industry and the importance for dedicated e-commerce teams and staff members.

James Roper, CEO at IMRG, comments, “The continuing strong growth in e-jobs is particularly welcome now when so much employment is being lost across the rest of the economy.  The UK leads Europe in e-retail, so many of these new jobs are well paid and right at the cutting edge of commercial innovation, with the skills being developed here arming Britain to win in the ultra-competitive global online marketplace that is already worth billions of pounds per annum to thousands of UK e-retailers who are selling cross-border.  Despite the recession, domestic e-retail continues to grow at 18% year-on-year as millions of hard-pressed consumers shop online to make their money stretch further, and with a third of the UK’s adult population yet to shop online, e-retail is set to continue to be a key employment generator for years to come”.

Unsurprisingly, Christmas remains the most popular time of the year for online businesses to recruit extra staff, with one in four retailers (27.5%) declaring that they will look to employ temporary staff to help with the increase in online activity.

It is also important to acknowledge that a considerable amount of staff also work in areas supporting the e-commerce industry, including distribution and delivery, customer support and website development. It is estimated that 115,700 delivery staff will distribute over one billion parcels to online customers in 2011.

A new recruitment site is hoping to make job discrimination a thing of the past by offering candidates the chance to apply for roles anonymously.

Recently launched 2Apply.co.uk also safeguards employers against discrimination claims by ensuring all personal details such as age and gender, are hidden from job applications when firms select for interview.

Candidates are able to be judged solely on their merits and employers are able to compare applicants more objectively, in turn speeding up the recruitment process.

The site hopes to safeguard firms against employment laws which are becoming increasingly stringent. Employers currently face fines and legal action if accused of discrimination.

It’s free to use for both candidates and recruiters and founders hope the site will give employers greater confidence in managing recruitment in house, rather than relying on costly external agencies.

For many recruiters finding the perfect employee can be a time consuming and expensive process. However, by hiding the applicant’s personal details this makes it simpler to select solely on merit and covers the recruiter against claims of discrimination should an applicant feel they have been unfairly overlooked for a role.

Employers can access the 2Apply.co.uk system at any time and review the details of applicants responding to their advert. Once applications are closed the employer selects the people they want to interview. The system even emails the successful and unsuccessful applicants on the employer’s behalf.

The site was launched by HR4UK.com, who have been working with UK employers for more than 30 years.

Peter Abraham, MD at HR4UK.com, says he believes the tool will improve the recruitment process for both candidate and employer.

Mr Abraham said: “Without the right resources, recruiting staff can be a costly and potentially risky process for many companies.

“We’re seeing a significant increase in the number of firms affected by the changes in employment law and hope our new site will make it easier for companies to employ staff professionally, legally and effectively.

“Candidates can apply safe in the knowledge that they’re being judged solely on merit so it really is something everybody can benefit from using.”

For more information, visit www.2Apply.co.uk .

Finding a better job and a happier future just got a whole lot easier thanks to an impressive new online service recently launched from Optimised.me (www.optimised.me). The new website promises it can really helppeople identify the perfect role for them, one that really ‘fits’ them as an individual, and then provides a powerful toolset to help them land it.

Optimised.me has received much praise from users as well as from professionals in the recruitment sector. Mark Adams, theformer CEO of Blue Arrow Recruitment, one of the UK’s largest recruitment businessessays“I am hugely impressed by Optimised.me. PRISM profiling is a tool I know and respect as being very powerful. The on-line CV Wizard can generate CV’s that will truly impress and the information resources available here are first class. If this package doesn’t increase your job-hunting chances, then nothing will!”

Full membership to Optimised.me is still available for a limited period at the special launch price of just £97 and so confident are the people at Optimised.me that they are actually guaranteeing that those making use of the full toolset will be sure to find a better job within just 4 months. If not successful, members can request either a 100% no-quibble refund, or alternatively retain their membership and access to all the tools provided, with no expiry date and no further charge, making this powerful toolset available to help them throughout their whole working career.

The wide range of tools made available to members are centred on three key sections, UnderstandMe, PrepareMe and PresentMe.

UnderstandMe

It is estimated that a staggering 80% of the working population are unhappy in their job ‘to a significant degree’. Optimised.me uses PRISM, a much acclaimed and widely used neuroscience-based analysis tool to help members really understand what makes them tick. Each member’s own PRISM profile can be overlaid with ‘benchmarks’ for hundreds of roles. Only in a role that really ‘fits’ us can we be both happy and successful, and the people at Optimised.me don’t think that’s too much to ask.

PrepareMe

The job marketplace can be a battlefield. The library of information at Optimised.me gives members help and advice on everything from job seeking, through to CV advice and interview tips. It you’re entering that battle,Optimised.me makes sure you’re appropriately armed.

And last but most certainly not least…

PresentMe

It’s irrelevant how great you may be. It’s accepted that CV’s have 10-30 seconds to make a good first impression; fail in this and it’s likely that your application will go no further. The ‘members only’ CV and Cover Letter Wizards provided are probably the best of their kind available anywhere. Members are tutored step by step through the on-line process of creating a great CV and Cover Letter that really makes the very most of themselves. Members can easily create applications tailored to specific roles, download and print CV’s and Cover Letters, or fax or email them directly from the site – instantly, and at no charge. Tracking the progress of applications is an additional useful feature providing automatic email follow-up reminders and much, much more.

An exciting and totally unique feature is that the CV Wizard is fully integrated with PRISM so members can even elect to include a short but incisive personal bespoke ‘PRISM CV Testimonial‘ directly into their CV. This independent assessment of their personal key strengths is seen by recruiters as a powerful statement showing that users take their career development very seriously.

Find out more about this unique new service by visiting the company’s website at www.optimised.me.

Launch of AllAboutCareers.com set to transform online recruitment for students

London, UK. December 2010 – The second generation of online recruitment has finally arrived with the launch of www.AllAboutCareers.com, a new social-careers website for students aged 16-24.

The new site has been founded by the team of experts who created AllAboutLaw, a leading law website boasting 20,000 unique monthly users, 52 clients and approximately one in four law students who log on regularly.

Launching in the New Year, AllAboutCareers.com aims to create a similar network and help get students off on the right foot by finding something they have a genuine passion for.

“On average, students spend one hour and 18 minutes on the internet each day^[i]”, said Director Paul Harris. “With AllAboutCareers, they can put this time to good use and still interact and network with their friends. It’s a whole new take on online recruitment.”

“Everything on the site can be personalised to each user’s interests, meaning they won’t waste any time sifting through irrelevant careers. They can very quickly create a personal profile and tailor everything to suit to their needs. What’s more, they can see what their friends are up to and bounce ideas off each other.”

One of the key innovations of the AllAboutCareers site is the self-refreshing noticeboard. This keeps people up-to-date with industry news, allows them to see what other users are looking at and gradually become better informed. They can create groups, forum topics and discussions and bounce ideas off like-minded people.

Furthermore, they’ll be supplied with personalised RSS news feeds and have access to over 1,600 career-related articles, with new information supplied on a daily basis by recruitment-expert editors.

With more than 350,000^[ii] students graduating each summer and 33%^[iii] of professionals unsatisfied at work, there has never a better time for the launch of AllAboutCareers.

“From our experience of working with law students, we know that generation Y are an extremely demanding bunch,” said Paul. “They crave information and are so often underestimated. We want to supply them with information to make them more commercially aware, whilst organically developing as employees by using the site from day-to-day”.

To get involved, head over to www.AllAboutCareers.com in January, create your profile and you’ll be networking in no time at all.

Over the last week or so I have been forwarded a number of press releases and until now I have not had a moment to sort.

So this afternoon I knew if I do not deal with them today, I never will!

The problem is if I was to write about each one then it would be too time consuming, but as I felt they would be of interest to you in regards to seeing what the competition was up to, I wanted to include them somehow. So below are short paragraphs and links to each press release.

First up is Medacs Healthcare recruitment, which really is doing what a good agency should do when it comes to cornering their market, as sponsors of the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy Conference. More here.

Next is Pathmotion who are looking to give lucky individuals the opportunity to meet their favourite UK business icon. More here on this competition

Roy Ripper is at it again with a superb Seminar on “the art of headhunting” on the 10th August in London, given his background it should be fact full of tips details here

A study by Vodafone has found that finally graduates are realising to succeed in finding a new job, they need work experience. More on the recruitment survey here

It’s all in the name recons Dave Way of Mark Sattin, who have decided to drop the WH with their new website launch, mind you WH Smiths cannot see a problem!! More here, but can you spot the mistake?

I may not necessarily agree with NetNatives recruitment strategy and its impact on the recruitment industry, but none the less it is important to see what the competition is up to.