For all businesses, the summer is traditionally a slow time. People go on holiday and take time off, less business gets done and it’s a time to take stock of where you are and plan your strategy for the second half of the year.

We’re the same, save for one exception. We’re getting busier and it’s down to two fundamental elements. Our service offering to clients and candidates is the foundation stone upon which our entire business model is built and also, theUKlabour market is on the rise.

As members of the Recruitment & Employment Confederation (REC), we actively contribute to a detailed monthly analysis of how the recruitment industry is performing so we thought we’d pass on some of the key points to you.

Bernard Brown, Partner and Head of Business Services at KPMG said ‘the indications are that the economy is getting stronger. Confidence is certainly evident amongst employers with many who conserved cash reserves for the last few years are now beginning to invest in people and as the search for talent is stepped up, the jobs market is looking buoyant again.’

He continues ‘high levels of demand for staff were signalled across every sector we analysed and the same can be said across each region of the UK. In a sign of the surge in confidence the latest figures also represent the sharpest increase in permanent placements for more than three years and the biggest growth in demand for six.’

This is great news of course, but it does put the onus back onto the candidate to develop or improve existing skills in response to what the market is actively looking for.

In addition, for the last half-decade there has been a mantra amongst employees which essentially says ‘I have a job in an uncertain economic climate so I’m not going to rock the boat and look elsewhere. I’m going to stay where I am, work hard and ride out the storm.’ Now, that tide is also turning with staff seeing the light at the end of the tunnel and they are looking for better offers elsewhere (or improved terms in-house) so employers now need to pay as much attention to employee retention as they do to their recruitment.

The key points of the report are as follows –

• Permanent placements have increased at their sharpest rate since March 2010
• Overall job vacancies increased at their strongest rate in six years
• The rate of inflation of permanent staff salaries is as high as it’s been for two years
• Temp pay rose at the fastest rates since January 2008
• The industries demanding the highest numbers of permanent staff are Engineering, IT & Computing and Executive positions

Salaries are going up, the demand for skilled talent is going up and there are more advertised jobs than there has been for years.

This really is great news for us and here at Asset Resourcing we will simply continue to do what we do – source outstanding candidates for exciting careers in great companies in the world of IT & New Media, Accountancy & Finance, Sales & Marketing and Admin & Clerical.

If you need any further information on the current state of the UK labour market, or you want to talk to us about any aspect of the recruitment process both client and candidate-side, don’t hesitate to contact us, it’s what we’re here for.

Also, the football season’s back! Is this the season Ben’s belovedSheffieldWednesday make it back into the hallowed Premier League? No? We don’t think so either.

Enjoy what’s left of the summer and we’ll see you next month!

Ben Sweeting & Michelle Scott
Directors, Asset Resourcing

Traditionally, the summer is when everything slows down, and for good reason.

While we’re all basking in the collective national glory of Andy Murray’s sensational Wimbledon win, a veritable thrashing of the Australians by the British & Irish Lions and at the time of writing, a potential series whitewash in The Ashes, we can all be forgiven for taking some time out, enjoying the weather and generally having a breather.

That is unless you work at Asset Resourcing.

The recruitment industry (as with all industries) suffers during periods of fiscal turbulence but we appear to have bucked the trend. We are busy and getting busier. Year-on-year we are placing increasing numbers of talented staff in businesses around the country in Accountancy & Finance jobs, Admin & Clerical jobs, Sales & Marketing jobs and especially IT & New Media jobs.

It’s no surprise that the world of IT and New Media is moving at lightning pace. The online world is growing far quicker than any of us could have imagined even three years ago and there are more and more innovative, creative companies springing up, all with the vision and foresight to find the next billion-dollar idea, app or website. At Asset Resourcing, we saw what was happening, expanded our IT & New Media department and we are now reaping the benefits.

To this end, we have taken on Sam Davison and we’d like to introduce him to you now.

Hi Sam, welcome to Asset Resourcing! Thanks very much, it’s great to be here!

Can you please tell the readers what your job title is and when you joined the company? Sure, I am a Recruitment Consultant and I joined yesterday (Monday 8^th July 2013)!

What do you think an average day will look like for you? I’m hoping that every day will throw up a different set of challenges but generally speaking I’ll focus on new business development and bringing on board new clients and vacancies. My days will be filled with calls to clients and candidates, looking for leads and building my network.

Sounds great! We know you’ve only been here for a total of about 10 hours, but what do you like about working for AR? It’s an exciting office environment – way different from the whitewashed walls and sterile atmosphere I was used to – and the team have made me feel instantly welcome.

You’re welcome! Tell us about how your career has progressed in the recruitment industry. I have been focused solely on IT recruitment and I’ve been lucky that I have worked across the board, recruiting for technical positions such as developers as well as project management and analyst roles so I have a comprehensive understanding of all the different elements that make up IT & New Media. That said, my real interest is within mobile apps and mobile web development.

What areas of recruitment are you looking after and what do the prospects look like for candidates coming into your space in the next 12-18 months? I’m looking to grow recruitment in the mobile technology area. It’s my job but also an interest and I am confident that it’s an area that will continue to grow as quickly as it has done in the last few years as mobile devices and responsive websites become even more integral to our everyday lives.

Where do you see the future of recruitment going in the next 3-5 years? People will always need jobs, there’s no surprise there but it’s the types of jobs that will change. IT used to mean the guy that fixes your computer when it freezes, the guy who unjams the printer or the guy who sets up your email account. It’s not that anymore. The world of technology requires a huge number of people, all with different skillsets, both tech-based and business-based and it’s our job to understand what the industry needs and fulfil their requirements efficiently and effectively. We also need to have an element of psychic ability, in that we need to foresee trends before they happen and be able to respond accordingly. That’s where I see the real value of working for a company like Asset Resourcing. I was aware of their reputation before I came here and I haven’t been disappointed.

Well put! What traits do you consider useful working in recruitment? Tenacity, persistence and determination. I guess these are traits that are useful in any and every industry but especially in recruitment since we all get knocked back but it’s how you respond and move forward that determines how successful you can be, both as an individual, and as a business.

Let’s get onto some lighter stuff now. What is your favourite music/book/food/film and sports team? OK, let’s start with music. I love dance and trance music (I’ve just come back from Ibiza!) as well as hip-hop and rap music. Food-wise, I’ll basically try anything and I won’t say no to something I’ve not tried before, however weird it may be! Books next. I’m a huge fan of Clive Cussler’s action adventures stories as well as writers like Andy McNab. I don’t have a favourite film but I love the slapstick Will Ferrell and Adam Sandler comedies and you can’t beat a bit of old school Lethal Weapon! Sports-wise, there’s only one team for me – the mighty Watford FC. I follow them up and down the country and next season is going to be our year!

Watford fans have been saying that since 1982 so don’t hold your breath. Finally, can we have three ‘out of the office’ facts about you please? 1. I’m a volunteer Special Constable for Hertfordshire Constabulary at the weekends. 2. I love cooking. 3. I have a collection of over 120 pairs of trainers!

Sam, thanks so much for taking the time to speak to us. We know you’ve only just hung up your jacket so it’s appreciated. Now quick, get back to your desk before Ben sees you…

That’s Sam everyone. As always, if you have any questions for Sam or any one of the team about a role you’ve seen or you’re looking for talented, career-driven staff please don’t hesitate to contact us.

Once you’ve calmed down from Murray Mania that is.

If you’re going on holiday, have a great time, enjoy the sunshine and we’ll catch you in August.

Ben Sweeting & Michelle Scott, Directors, Asset Resourcing.

It appears that after some delay, the summer is finally creeping up on us. We’re almost halfway through 2013 and we don’t know if it’s just us (or the sunshine), but there appears to be a renewed optimism both from our candidates, clients and the workforce in general that things are starting to pick up.

As you know, we’ve moved closer to Ben’s favourite bar and Michelle’s hairdresser into bigger premises so we can further serve our ever-expanding client base with the best IT & New Media jobs, the best Accountancy & Finance jobs, the best Admin & Clerical jobs and the best Sales & Marketing jobs in Hertfordshire and the surrounding counties, and because we are growing, we are taking on more staff.

To this end, allow us to introduce Ryan Hearne and Ben Bagley. They have both joined Asset Resourcing this week and they have kindly taken some time out of their already busy schedules to chat to us.

AR: Hi chaps, welcome to Asset Resourcing!

RH: Thanks, glad to be on board!

BB: Thank you. It’s a challenge but one that we are both looking forward to.

AR: What’s your job title here at AR?

RH: Recruitment Consultant.

BB: Microsoft Development Specialist Recruiter

AR: What do you like about working for AR?

RH: I could tell instantly that it was a close-knit team, all working towards the same goals and I was really impressed with the general atmosphere in the office. The team works hard but there is a good vibe around the place.

BB: Personally, I was made to feel like part of a family and professionally, I feel that AR has all the tools in place to successfully facilitate any and every requirement, whether it’s niche or on a more populist scale.

AR: How do you think AR stands out from the competition?

RH: My answer is basically the same as my previous answer. Everyone is focused on growing the business and it’s immediately obvious that the team ethic is strong and committed.

BB: In a word – honesty. Asset Resourcing is an honest business. They do what they say they are going to do.

AR: How has your career progressed in the recruitment industry?

RH: I’m in the very early stages of my career and I have to say that it has started very well and I am eager to develop my existing skills and to learn new skills that will set me (and AR) on the road to success.

BB: It’s been predominantly IT recruitment and I have been very lucky to have worked with some global players like VISA, BP and Mercedes-Benz in the development area with professionals using Microsoft-related technologies and as a result, I can confidently call myself a specialist recruiter.

AR: What areas of recruitment are you looking after and what do the prospects like for candidates coming into your space over the next 12-18 months?

RH: I will be focusing mainly on the Business Intelligence side of the business and it does appear I will have my work cut out! We have an outstanding roster of first-class candidates and with more and more businesses looking to recruit over the next year or so, the future is looking positive.

BB: I head up the Microsoft technologies) arm of the business. In regards to what candidates will get from me in the next 18 months, In essence nothing will change from today. Our service deconstructs each individual requirement and formulates a plan of action to give conclusive results.

AR: What constitutes a ‘good day at the office’ for you?

RH: The objective is to get through to the key decision makers and to speak to them to emphasise how we can help them with their recruitment strategies. I’ll also be pouring through CVs looking at immediate and future potential as well as confirming interviews and finalising deals.

BB: Cheesy it may be, but a good day for me is knowing I have given my all for the business.

AR: Where do you see the future of recruitment going in the next 3-5 years?

RH: Throw us in at the deep end why don’t you?! That’s a hard question to answer. I am energised and excited to get my recruitment career underway here at AR and all I know right now is that if you provide a comprehensive service offering that goes over and above just worrying about how much commission we’re going to make, AR will continue to flourish and I’m looking forward to being an integral part of its success.

BB: Due to the rise of internal recruitment teams (and the fall for the companies who did it first), I believe that generic recruiters will disappear and the dawn of the specialist recruiter is upon us. I didn’t mean that to sound like the trailer for a new superhero film.

AR: What traits do you consider useful when working in recruitment?

RH: Persistence, willing to take knock-backs and come out stronger the other side, having excellent communication skills and being able to talk on a level with graduates and Managing Directors alike.

BB: Honesty, hard work, passion, having an attention to detail, resilience and being personable. I guess being six foot two and handsome doesn’t hurt either although you can’t have everything.

AR: What’s your favourite book, music, film and sports team?

RH: My favourite music is House, my favourite food is pizza, I’m not a massive reader but I do like the free Sport magazine you get at tube stations and my favourite film is The Hangover.

BB: Music: Ben Howard or Paolo Nutini. Food: A painful curry. Book: Down and Out inParis andLondon by George Orwell. Sports team:Liverpool.

AR: Can you give the readers three ‘out of the office’ facts about yourself?

RH: Certainly. I love football (although you may notice he declined to mention who his favourite team is – Ed.), the best place I’ve ever been to on holiday isThailand and I have a dog called Rocky.

BB: I am musical so my three are playing drums (to Grade 8 level), playing the piano, playing the guitar and playing the bass (he declined to say whether it was that horribly annoying singing, wall-mounted fish or the bass guitar – Ed.) I know you asked for three, but I gave you four. Is that ‘going the extra mile’ or ‘not listening to instructions…’

So there we have it. Ben and Ryan.  As always, they are here for you to assist, advise and suggest. Please don’t hesitate to call them should you need anything and they will be delighted to help you.

In the meantime, enjoy the sunshine and we’ll see you again in July.

Ben Sweeting & Michelle Scott, Directors, Asset Resourcing.

PS: One last thing, if you’ve left summer temp cover to the last minute, don’t panic. Call us today on 01582 469 922 and we’ll talk you through everything you need to know.

As employers in the process of recruiting new staff, you have a legal obligation to ensure that each new employee has a right to work in the UK but more than that, you have a moral and ethical obligation to ensure that you have the best interests of your business at the forefront of your considerations.

Here at Asset Resourcing, in addition to sourcing outstanding candidates for outstanding roles in IT & New Media, Accountancy & Finance, Admin & Clerical and Sales & Marketing, we also believe in offering what is known as a 360° service, i.e. making sure that you are armed with the most relevant information that will seamlessly integrate your new employee into your business.

The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) estimate that the cost of recruiting a new employee is over £6,000 (including costs surrounding labour turnover.) Coupled with the fact that rising unemployment means that there are far more responses to job listings, more and more people are ‘embellishing’ facts in order to secure interviews.

The CIPD are also suggesting that because so few employers undertake pre-recruitment checks – despite on-going press coverage highlighting the importance of doing so – the ‘embellishers’ are slipping through the net and securing jobs they are neither qualified or able to do.

The point is that while it’s important to ‘get the right person’, it’s equally as important to know that they won’t spring any unwanted surprises that can, potentially, damage the reputation of your business by either action or inaction.

There are a number of elements to take into consideration –

In-House Application Forms There will often be information required on your own application forms that won’t be evident simply from reading a CV, such as eligibility to work in the UK, criminal convictions covered under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act and equal opportunities information covered under the Equality Act.

If you don’t have an application form, consider incorporating it into your recruitment process.

Rights to Work in the UK It’s your responsibility to check the documentation of each applicant to ensure he or she is eligible to work in the UK and there are stiff penalties for failing to check documentation and for employing an illegal worker. There are published lists of ‘approved’ documents and we can help you source them to make sure your applicants are who they say they are.

Checking References Following up on references is one of the best ways to check the validity of salary claims, job titles and duties and more and more employees are offering positions to candidates AFTER satisfactory references and not before, as was traditional.

Driving Licences If the role requires the employee to drive their own, or a company car, a thorough look at their Driving Licence and any convictions or points accumulations can and should be taken into consideration. It is of course an offence to drive without a valid licence but it is also an offence to allow someone to drive without a valid licence so it becomes your responsibility to ensure the employee can drive legally.

Qualifications Should the role you are recruiting for require the employee to be a member of a professional body or to have particular or specific academic qualifications, make sure you see original copies of certificates or memberships.

Health Checks Providing every employee is treated consistently (and not just those of a ‘certain age’), you are within your rights to require employees to have a pre-employment medical so you can be sure that you’re aware of any medical conditions that are present. This enables you to make any necessary alterations to working conditions.

If a pre-existing condition presents an unacceptable risk to your business (such as an employing someone with back issues for a manual labour job) you may be in a position to withdraw the offer of employment following any such examination.

Working with Children & Vulnerable Adults The Vetting & Barring Scheme provides a vetting process under the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act which bars people who pose a potential risk to either children or vulnerable adults from working with them. Those working with such groups are required to register with and be subject to checks by the Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA).

As well as these checks, you need to ascertain whether there are roles within your business that require Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) checks and make it a condition of your offer of employment that if applicable and necessary, a CRB check is undertaken.

By either luck or good judgement, Asset Resourcing has never had a candidate who has had an offer withdrawn or committed a criminal offence in relation to working for a specific company but we know it happens and there are regular tales – apocryphal or otherwise – where businesses have had to repeat the recruitment process two or even three times (at their own cost) because the candidate wasn’t who they said they were.

As always, we are on hand for additional information and clarification on any of the points you’ve read here and while we do all we can to ensure we provide you with the best candidates, you have a duty and a responsibility – legally and ethically – to make sure you do get the right person.

Have a great month, enjoy the (occasional) sunshine and we’ll see you in June.

Oh, one more thing, have you sorted your summer holiday temp cover yet? If not, get ahead of the curve and talk to us today!

Ben Sweeting & Michelle Scott, Directors, Asset Resourcing

When we started Asset Resourcing, we knew we had a sound business model, we knew we had the relevant industry experience and we knew we had a good enough service offering to compete in what is a crowded marketplace but what we didn’t know was if a) we were going to be successful and b) just what our growth might look like.

Our growth over the last few years has been down to a number of elements. Working hard and diligently for our clients for sure, but also by identifying markets that are showing real growth, especially in the IT sector, and we have hired talented and experienced Consultants specifically to capitalise on those growing pockets of client activity.

With technology moving as quickly as it is, we are seeing a whole new range of exciting skill-sets as well as whole new range of positions but also it gives us the means to identify, track and engage with the very people who have a genuine need for our services.

While we’re on the subject, the newest addition to our stable of industries we serve is a dedicated Web & Mobile Technology team who can deliver permanent and contract candidates with in-demand Java and iPhone software development skills as well as Business Intelligence, Project Management, Analytics and IT Support roles.

As we go into the new financial year, we have nine fantastic staff and given our current rate of growth, we think it will take around two years to fill the new office to capacity. We’ll then look at taking over The Gherkin but in the meantime, we remain focused on what we do well.

There are plenty of companies (not just in the recruitment industry but across all industry sectors) who put too much emphasis on where the next fee is coming from rather than developing and nurturing long-term relationships with clients and candidates. At Asset Resourcing, this is fundamental to everything we do and ensures we develop a process whereby we are working with and not for the people who literally and metaphorically come through our door.

One of the questions we get asked regularly (*once, by a bloke in the pub) is why should candidates use recruitment companies at all. What’s to stop them going direct to the businesses they are interested in working for? The simple answer is nothing is stopping them but then there’s nothing stopping you from growing your own food instead of going to the supermarket.

We have worked long and hard to gain real insight into our clients and to develop strong relationships with their key hirers. By coming to us you are availing yourself of that intelligence and your CV will find itself directly in front of the right hiring manager and not lost in a ‘careers@’ inbox.

As we’ve said many a time in these blogs, the hard-working, the committed and the talented will always find work in any economic climate and to some degree, we are examples of that. Michelle and I are working as hard as we have always done, but we are also working smart. We will never waiver from offering a 360° recruitment service to clients and candidates but now we are challenging ourselves further to run a successful and growing agency and to take it to a place that we could only have dreamed of a few short years ago.

Moving up the road may not seem like a massive deal, I mean it was literally hiring a van, loading up the stuff and then unloading it again, but we look at it as a metaphor for growth and success and we hope that you will continue to stay with us and grow with us because without you, we are just nine people sitting in a room staring at each other, and we’ve all seen One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest.

Oh, by the way, we’ve moved 400m down the High Street and I assure you it’s nothing whatsoever to do with the new office being slightly closer to my favourite bar or Michelle’s hairdresser. Oh no. Nothing to do with that at all.

Enjoy the warm(ish) weather and we’ll see you in May.

Ben Sweeting & Michelle Scott, Directors, Asset Resourcing

The signs are there that the UK economy is slowly coming out of the funk we have found ourselves in for the past half-decade. House prices are rising (slowly), unemployment is falling (slowly) and there are almost 600,000 more people in work today than there was a year ago.

At Asset Resourcing, we are adding new roles every day across all our service areas –

• IT & New Media Jobs
• Admin & Clerical Jobs
• Accountancy & Finance Jobs
• Sales & Marketing Jobs

And we are seeing a consistently high calibre of candidate that we are delighted to put forward for interview. That said, we know that competition is fierce and job hunters need to gain the biggest advantage possible over their ‘rivals’ to secure the best roles but unfortunately for some, looking for that advantage can trigger ‘cardinal job searching sins’ that can do more damage than good…

1.  Irrelevancy

Looking for your ideal role isn’t an ‘if I throw enough mud at the wall, some will stick’ exercise. Recruiters and HR Managers constantly receive applications from candidates who have little or no experience in the roles they are applying for but who believe in what Americans call the ‘spray and pray technique’.

It doesn’t work. It never has and it never will. Today’s job market is especially discerning and you will only be called for interview if your experience matches that which is required for the role.

2. Your qualifications

The first knowledge (and impression) recruiters have of you is by reading your CV. We understand your need to stand out but please don’t make claims that you can’t back up with evidence.

We’ve all seen the candidates on The Apprentice squirm when they are asked to explain anomalies on their CVs…

If you say you speak French but you struggle to order a ‘sandwich de fromage et jambon’ in a café, you don’t speak French. Similarly, don’t exaggerate your accomplishments or qualifications, professional or educationally. These facts are so easily checked (and they will be) that there really is no point. Plus, how long do you think you’d last in a job you are wholly under-qualified to do?

3. Money, money, money…

No-one can disagree that earning a lot of money for doing a job you love isn’t rewarding, but focussing on money sends out some very disturbing messages to recruiters who become reluctant to put you forward for interviews. It suggests (perhaps wrongly in some cases) that you are selfish, disloyal and at the first sniff of a higher-paying position somewhere else, you’d be off faster that the proverbial rat up a drainpipe.

4. Do you know what you’re qualified to do?

Don’t get us wrong, we applaud ambition. We are all ambitious but very few of us are delusional and they are the ones who are easy to spot. Not often these days, but we still get CVs from candidates who want us to put them forward for director or senior executive-level roles in which their experience and skill-sets don’t even come close to what’s required.

‘You can’t very well expect to come out of university after a six-month internship at a bank and expect to be interviewed for the vacant Global Head of Derivatives Trading at Goldman Sachs, it’s simply not going to happen’ says Asset Resourcing director Ben Sweeting. He continues ‘ambition is great, but realism is better, especially at the outset of a career.’

5. Communication

Following up on calls, CV submissions or interview feedback is expected and welcomed, it tells us that you are on top of what’s going on and efficient, traits any employer would covet.

However, calling or emailing once a day for status updates crosses that fine line between proactive and obsessive, a trait that employers most certainly don’t covet.

If you’re going through multiple interviews with a number of different companies, then perhaps more frequent contact is necessary but don’t hound your recruiter. Rest assured they are doing all they can (and in Asset Resourcing’s case, going way beyond what’s expected) and if there’s any news, they will be straight on the phone.

We know the job market is tough but as we’ve always said, in any economic climate, the most talented will always find employment and it’s our job to make sure one of them is you!

As always, if there’s any further information you need, have a look through the articles in our Candidate Clinic, or alternatively, call us on 01582 469 922 or email enquiries@assetresourcing.com

Ben Sweeting & Michelle Scott, Directors, Asset Resourcing