Retail Recruitment -Protecting your own 'Brand Identity'
You can spend years perfecting your skills and honing your abilities and, just when you decide to make a career move, you can really do yourself a huge disservice by a lack of planning.
Over the years I have noticed recruitment trends change but one thing that hasn't changed is that, there are recruiters and headhunters that will protect you and 'your personal brand', and there are those that won't.
As in many aspects of life, people are attracted by the 'exclusive' 'typically inaccessible' and the 'not easily obtained' and this is often reflected in the recruitment and hiring process.
Choose the headhunters and recruiters you work with carefully, do they specialise in your field? Do they operate at your level of the market? Some agencies are very skilled at working in the lower salary bracket but may lack the contacts or the reputation to market higher salaried candidates). Do you like and trust them?
Be very clear to tell them that they are not to mention you by name to any contact or recruiting business until they have discussed the premise for doing so with you first. Check - are they introducing you to the right level and type of person in that organisation?
A quality introduction of a candidate to a hiring organisation whether speculative or against a specific assignment should include a good level of detail on the person - extra information that a company couldn't know from reading his or her CV.
Despite my words of warning, a headhunter's introduction can be powerful and positive. Remember they can highlight things about you that you can't, for example, your high integrity levels, what your referees think of you and whether you are engaging/bright/witty/loyal and much more!
For more help and confidential advice call Gamble & Yeates - 0208 369 5199
Breakfast briefing with Sir Charlie Mayfield
Breakfast Briefing with Sir Charlie Mayfield - 31st October 2013
Yesterday I had the pleasure of attending a breakfast
briefing hosted by The Westminster Business Council where the guest speaker was
Charlie Mayfield, Chairman of The John Lewis partnership. The main topic of discussion was the effect technology was
having on retail and Charlie started by laying out the past and the effect that
technology has had in the development in retail.
Quoting one of his mentors of the past Sir Geoff Mulcahy "human beings have the tendency to over-estimate the impact of technology in the short-term and under-estimate the impact in the longer-term".
When asked how John Lewis motivate and retain their staff Sir Charlie highlighted the excitement the company feels at 9.30am on results day when their profit shares are announced and that they started their online 'Partner Surveys' on working for JLP 10 years ago and today have a 90% return rate. Total staff turnover at JLP is half the retail industry average.
Sir Charlie also reminded the room of the leadership culture at JLP, with a strong defence against complacency being the strong accountability to all of the partners. The drive to innovate, be the best and motivate the teams is re-enforced by the yearly vote taken to assess the confidence in the Chairman by JLP's top 70 managers.
Sir Charlie confirmed that two thirds of all sales at John Lewis have involved the internet as part of the sales process and that the growth of click and collect from Waitrose stores had been 'marvellous'. Highlighting the changing focus at Waitrose he said that the fact that 'we have a publication team with a whole media focus illustrates a shift from being just a retailer to being more and more of a retail brand'.
Whilst commenting on the resounding success of the MyWaitrose cards, free coffees and the pilot coffee cafes he was quick to say that although it has developed customer loyalty they have not been so successful that they will be opening a coffee chain!
Create better retail job descriptions
Create Better Retail Job Descriptions - 14th March 2013Job descriptions are selling documents as much as fact sheets and this should not be forgotten. In our role as headhunters we offer welcomed support with building JD's and I would urge hiring managers to consider the following points.
Job titles - what's in a name? Job titles mean more to the UK workforce than to our European neighbours. Why, I can't be sure but it may be related to our obsession with getting on the property ladders and always wanting to move on and upwards. If this is a new role make the title accurate but appealing - for example no one wants to be called ' Head of Markdown'.
Mention the team, where does this role sit within the company structure? What are the job titles of the direct reports - it surprises me how often this is ommitted.
Start your JD by telling your audience about your company - don't assume that the reader will know that your company started 100 years ago in an old yorkshire factory etc etc etc. Even if you don't have years of heritage and it was 'kitchen table' business that has zoomed into success over the last 3 years - I've never met a client who didn't have a story to tell.
List core responsibilities but below these also list core competencies, these are much more interesting and often more individual to your business. Use positive and high achieving words and include upholding the company's values of 'X, Y & Z'.
The final thought I will leave with you is 'branding'. Millions of pounds are spent on developing brands each year. I have seen so many JD's missing the company logo! Add your logo and some colour, remember retail can be truly colourful...
EG
Advertising V's Headhunting
As you would imagine I receive many calls from retail job sites and publications trying to sell me advertising. I had one such call this afternoon from a polite but animated chap from a well known retail publication. I hate being sold to (ironic...) but I gave him a couple of minutes of my time.
The sales exec explained that their publication was received by Directors in Retail throughout the industry and that their online job page was a big draw.
He spent a couple of minutes telling me that their company had access to senior candidates across the industry including those at director level -well this certainly sounded very impressive but then so do we...
I then shared how I feel about headhunting with this unsuspecting soul. If I place an advert, I might get some company branding/exposure out there but that is where the benefit in advertising our roles ends. I can't control who sees the advert that week nor can I assess what is most important to that individual and overcome any preconceptions they might have about a sector or a specific company.
I have to rely on the best people in the market picking up the publication at the right place and time. I then have to rely on a one dimensional advert catching the imagination of many different types of people. Further to this I have to rely on them either having their CV ready to send (some of the best people I approach have hugely out of date CV's) or them sitting down to update it. Finally I have to rely on a senior professional having the time or the particular push to invest the time and apply for the role.
This seems like too many if's and but's to me and any headhunter who has the patience and experience they should have can access and approach anyone they need to. Our clients don't just want to see a shortlist of candidates that are actively looking to change jobs - they want to see people who have their heads down immersed in day to day trading. So in short I explained to the very nice sales exec that a good headhunter will always have an infinite level of access to senior candidates as long as they have a pen, a piece of paper and a phone!
EG October 2012
EG October 2012
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