<p>Health &amp; safety has been a key focus for construction businesses for many years now, but in a new world of social distancing and infection control it has highlighted the need for us to continue focusing on developing new ways of keeping everyone safe.</p>
<p>Although the government didn't formally shut construction sites during the lockdown, I know many companies considered the health &amp; safety of the workforce and closed operations for several weeks.</p>
<p>Now as we are encouraged to go back to work where it is safe to do so, we are working closely with our customers to quickly establish care packages and develop new ways of working to ensure that everyone on site remains safe and well.</p>
<h3><strong>Keeping every person safe</strong></h3>
<p>Throughout this pandemic, our focus has been on making sure all our existing workers have had access to required PPE such as face masks, sanitiser and hand soap. And in these challenging times we've had to come up with some creative solutions to make sure these resources have been continually available.</p>
<p>Now as we transition into what is a new normal, I am partnering with many of our customers to make sure we have sustainable solutions to maintain social distancing, and that all workplaces remain clean and sanitised for all workers.</p>
<p>No one yet knows the answer around the best way to do this, and as advice continues to be released, we will keep our promise to continue to work closely with our customers and develop new and innovative solutions to keep businesses running and every person safe and well.</p>

In a new world of social distancing and infection control, we need to continue to focus on developing new ways of keeping everyone safe.

Working in the Socially Distant Future

<p>Change is an ongoing challenge for businesses, and this means getting the best talent is more important than ever. Whether it&rsquo;s technological advances, shifts in customer behaviour, or the &lsquo;new normal&rsquo;, your success will depend on having the right people in place.</p>
<p>The use of contingent workers has been rapidly growing over the years, and the demand is set to accelerate. In a recent study by McKinsey, 70% of business leaders said they were planning on hiring more contingent workers after the COVID-19 pandemic than they did before.&nbsp;</p>
<p>The knock-on effect is increased pressure on businesses to manage their expanding contingent workforce. It&rsquo;s why partnering with a Managed Service Provider (MSP) is becoming a popular option. By using an expert third party to take on the responsibility for your contingent workforce programme, you can gain a better oversight, whilst reducing the demands on your own teams.</p>
<p>Here, we look at some of the main benefits of teaming up with an MSP.</p>
<h3>1) Operational and cost control</h3>
<p>When you engage an MSP, the decision of what gets managed by them and what stays in-house is completely yours. This allows you to outsource the tasks which are more repetitive and time consuming, whilst still having managerial responsibility for the service. It becomes a win-win situation, as you and your team can focus on things that add greater value to the business, without losing control of what matters.<br><br>You will also find significant cost savings by using an MSP. Their pricing models are more predictable (for example outcome-based pricing), and third-party recruitment fees will also decrease.&nbsp;<br><br>Finally, your supply chain will become much more efficient, as all contractor and supplier engagement is done through one single provider. This not only saves you time, but many MSPs will reduce the number of suppliers in your network, therefore bringing costs down even more.</p>
<h3>2) Global talent pipelines</h3>
<p>If your business operates in multiple countries, or if you&rsquo;re about to expand heavily, your talent pipeline needs to be global. This can be a challenge, and is one of the reasons organisations like to partner with an MSP that also operates globally. They will have the ability to attract and retain the best people in all of your locations, as well as valuable local know-how.&nbsp;<br><br>This last point is especially important as each country has its own labour laws and working culture. Rather than you having to get to grips with each one individually, you can allow the MSP to use their on-the-ground expertise.&nbsp;</p>
<h3>3) Access to cutting-edge technology</h3>
<p>When it comes to recruitment technology, things are constantly evolving. Internal recruitment teams are either not aware of the latest tools, or unable to purchase them. This is because investing in single-use technology is not commercially viable for most businesses.&nbsp;<br><br>An MSP on the other hand, will have access to all of these tools and will use it for your talent acquisition needs. Not only does this give you an edge over your competitors, but it means you get the benefits of the technology without having to invest your own capital.</p>
<h3>4) Agility</h3>
<p>As mentioned earlier, change is a constant challenge, and this means agility is key. When the market shifts, you need to shift with it and adapt your recruitment accordingly. An MSP will have the experience and ability to not only guide you in the right direction, but actually take the actions required. This means that even in highly competitive markets, you can attract the talent that&rsquo;s best for you, at the exact time you need it.&nbsp;</p>
<h3>5) Flexibility</h3>
<p>When it comes to hiring, there can be peaks and troughs throughout the year. One of the reasons businesses look for an MSP is because they can scale the programme up or down depending on their hiring needs. It&rsquo;s far more difficult to do this if everything is kept in-house, or if you&rsquo;re trying to work with multiple agencies on a piecemeal basis. But an MSP will see themselves as a partner rather than a supplier, so will always be able to provide that flexibility.</p>
<h3>6) Visibility</h3>
<p>As touched upon earlier, using an MSP allows you to outsource parts of the programme without losing control. Part of this control relates to visibility &ndash; you will always want full oversight of your contingent workforce. Most MSPs will provide you with a bespoke Vendor Management System (VMS). This means you can keep a handle on all the key metrics and build a better workforce strategy.</p>
<h3>7) Best practice methods</h3>
<p>Just in the last few years, many HR teams have had to deal with the complexities of Brexit, IR35 and the COVID-19 furlough scheme. It can become a bit of a bureaucratic nightmare, but partnering with an MSP give you access to experts in all legislative and governance requirements. This gives you the peace of mind that your business is fully compliant. Quite often, the MSP will also offer to train and educate your team on upcoming changes.</p>
<h3>8) Employer branding expertise</h3>
<p>With so much demand for contingent and flexible workers, you need to make sure you&rsquo;re appealing to the best talent on the market. This is particularly important in a post-pandemic world, as the needs and expectations of candidates have changed.&nbsp;<br>A good MSP can work with you, as well as any of your suppliers, to develop a strong employer brand and Employee Value Proposition (EVP). This is an end-to-end process, from research into what candidates want, right through to practical recruitment marketing strategies.</p>
<h3>The key takeaway</h3>
<p>Engaging with an MSP is a win-win for any business that has a substantial temporary workforce. It provides control without overwhelming your resources, and allows you to access high-class expertise in a cost efficient way.&nbsp;<br><br>Finding an MSP that can become a strategic partner is key to attracting, onboarding and retaining quality contingency workers. Get this right, and your business will be well positioned for success.</p>
<div>&nbsp;</div>

With the use of contingent workers growing rapidly an MSP can help position you for success.

Why should you work with a managed services provider?

<p>Trust. A word defined by the Cambridge English Dictionary as: "to believe that someone is good and honest and will not harm you, or that something is safe and reliable."</p>
<p>Most of us understand that trust forms the basis of personal relationships, but did you know that it's just as paramount when it comes to business and professional relationships too?</p>
<p>The most successful organisations across the globe are built on trust and that means developing strong, trusting relationships between not only your employees and colleagues, but external contacts as well. It's a fact that people buy from people they trust, so ensuring that your customers believe and have confidence in you is essential in ensuring your ongoing success.</p>
<p>In this article we'll explore the importance of building workplace trust and how forging trust in you and your company are crucial steps to ensuring you're smashing those all-important business objectives.</p>
<h3><strong>Trust me, I'm an engineer!</strong></h3>
<p>We've already mentioned how important trust is in any organisation, but it's perhaps especially important in industries such as engineering. From the perspective of employees, engineers often work in challenging or high-risk environments, meaning that having trust of your management and peers comes down to much more than simply feeling warm and fuzzy at work - it can in fact have serious implications when it comes to safety and wellbeing.&nbsp;</p>
<p>From the point of view of a client, the risks are similar, and your customers will want to know that their potentially high-risk, high-value project is in safe hands. Your primary route to convincing them of that is to ensure you gain their trust in both you and your abilities.</p>
<h3><strong>Meeting objectives through trust</strong></h3>
<p>There's no doubt that trust is a key component to business success. Statistics have shown time and time again that teams instilled with trust are higher performing. But why is this the case? And why is it so important that you're gaining trust in your workplace and amongst your teams?</p>
<p>Well firstly, let's consider&nbsp;<strong><em>morale and motivation</em></strong>. When team members trust their management, and to some extent their colleagues too, morale is naturally higher. Like it or not, employees are inherently inclined to mistrust managers, but where leaders are able to turn this preconception around and actually gain the trust of their staff, the result is an increase in both morale and motivation. Employees working for individuals they believe 'have their back' are automatically more efficient, hardworking and greater performing.</p>
<p><strong><em>Decreased workplace stress&nbsp;</em></strong>is something that can be achieved through ensuring a culture of trust as well. This spans not only your management/leadership team, but peer-to-peer trust too. Employees want to know they can trust that your Board will demonstrate openness when communicating on things like change, profit and loss figures and their career progression.</p>
<p>And, where team members have trust in one another, there's less hostility and increased&nbsp;<strong><em>teamwork and collaboration&nbsp;</em></strong>- all factors that will greatly benefit your organisation, productivity and retention.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Next, let's look at&nbsp;<strong><em>loyalty and retention&nbsp;</em></strong>- equally important considerations when thinking about both your employees and customers.</p>
<p>It goes without saying that having sound relationships built on trust in place, will ensure that you're able to retain valuable customers and that they're returning to use you time and time again. A business' reputation depends heavily on trust - not only so that your customers know they can rely on you and your services, but so that you can in turn, rely on them to pay invoices, bring return business and recommend you to others.</p>
<p>Having robust customer relationships in place will also help you to build market-place credibility through gathering things like case studies and testimonials that demonstrate to others that you are a trustworthy and professional partner.</p>
<p>Focusing on the <strong><em>loyalty and retention of employees,&nbsp;</em></strong>all businesses strive to lower their staff turnover rates, and a major consideration in achieving excellent staff retention ratios is whether your people place trust in you as their line manager and employer. There's a well-known saying that 'employees don't leave bad companies, they leave bad managers', and this is never truer when thinking about the levels of trust that your employees are able to place in you and your leadership team.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Where trust isn't apparent, your people will feel uneasy, demotivated and are more likely to move to another organisation. Where trust is evident, employees will be more loyal, committed, productive and are much more likely to stay with your company for the long-term.</p>
<p>Closely linked with staff retention, trust should also be of significance when&nbsp;<strong><em>hiring.&nbsp;</em></strong>An individual's perception of you and your business will normally begin right from when they interview with you and you'll want to instill a sense of trust in order to attract new talent to your organisation.</p>
<p>And let's not forget things like&nbsp;<strong><em>remote working.&nbsp;</em></strong>Several recent surveys carried out on employee benefits have revealed that the most sought-after employee benefits are no longer necessarily linked to salaries and bonuses. Nowadays, and overtaking money-related benefits as employees' top priorities, are things like work/life balance and flexible/remote working options. But to successfully implement these kinds of opportunities into your workplace, there has to be a strong sense of trust between management and workers. Employees want to know they're trusted enough to carry out their work remotely, and managers of course want to be reassured that work will still be completed to a high standard under more flexible conditions. Once trusting relationships are built however, these more modern ways of working can function well in your organisation - and often result in a happier, more efficient workforce.</p>
<h3><strong>A culture of trust</strong></h3>
<p>There's no denying then, that building trust in the workplace is important, and it's obvious to see how gaining the trust of your colleagues and customers can play a vital role in helping you to achieve your critical business goals.</p>
<p>A key point to remember though? Building true trust into a relationship can be a very slow, steady process - but breaking that trust irreversibly can happen in an instant.</p>
<p>Make sure therefore, that trust is at the centre of your strategy for success and promoted throughout your business as an integral part of its culture.</p>
<p><strong><a href="https://calendly.com/chrispblackburn/the-importance-of-building-workplace-trust?back=1&amp;month=2020-05&amp;utm_source=carbon60&amp;utm_medium=blog&amp;utm_campaign=llmay20" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">&nbsp;</a></strong></p>

Trust. A word defined by the Cambridge English Dictionary as: "to believe that someone is good and honest and will not harm you, or that something is safe and reliable."

Why is workplace trust so important?

<p style="text-align: justify;">The video games industry is&nbsp;expected to grow from &pound;73.9 billion (2015) to a staggering&nbsp;<em>&pound;95.5 billion</em><strong>&nbsp;</strong>by 2019.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Video games are popular for many reasons, including the boost in self-esteem from solving puzzles or trivia games, to the relief of stress by focusing your mind on something else by escaping to another world for a few hours. Games release&nbsp;dopamine in the brain which is the chemical responsible for the excitement we feel when we chase a reward, something which video games are full of, and is also one of the reasons many people find them addictive.</p>
<p>A fun, addictive, stress relieving escapism for many people which employers are starting to utilise in different ways to make more mundane, everyday tasks more exciting.</p>
<h3 style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 24px; color: #7c97ab;">What is gamification?</span></h3>
<p style="text-align: justify;">You can&rsquo;t get further from a &lsquo;game&rsquo; than when you&rsquo;re at work, but gamification refers to the use of game theory, mechanics and design in non-game situations and environments.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">By the end of 2015, 40% of the world&rsquo;s top 1000 organisations used gamification as the primary mechanism to transform their business, and it&rsquo;s predicted that the worldwide gamification market will grow from &pound;195 million in 2012 to an incredible &pound;2.2 billion in 2016.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Gamification as a concept is used in various scenarios in different ways. It&rsquo;s already heavily used in fitness (<a href="https://www.myfitnesspal.com/">MyFitnessPal</a>), productivity (<a href="https://habitica.com/">Habitica</a>), mood/mental health (<a href="https://www.mindbloom.com/">Mindbloom</a>) and managing your finances (<a href="https://www.saveup.com/">SaveUp</a>).</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Gamification taps into peoples&rsquo; basic intrinsic motivators, the top 5 being:&nbsp;Autonomy &ndash; &ldquo;I control&rdquo;, Mastery &ndash; &ldquo;I improve&rdquo;, Purpose &ndash; &ldquo;I make a difference&rdquo;, Progress &ndash; &ldquo;I achieve&rdquo; and Social interaction &ndash; &ldquo;I connect with others&rdquo;.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">These motivators are common to everyone and research has shown that satisfying them can make an activity more productive and enjoyable.&nbsp;By making tasks feel more like games, it becomes a lot more effortless to encourage people to complete the tasks if they appear to be getting instant gratification or a buzz from them. People will then be rewarded for completing certain tasks which could be in the form of achievement badges, filling a progress bar or even being rewarded a virtual currency. Also, making these rewards visible to other players (i.e. work colleagues) in the form of leaderboards, will encourage others to compete against them in the quest to become the best.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">A range of industries are now utilising the concept of gamification within the work environment for various reasons whether it be improving the motivation of their staff or attracting people to work for them.</p>
<h3 style="text-align: justify;"><strong><span style="font-size: 24px; color: #7c97ab;">In the workplace</span></strong></h3>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Regardless of how much someone enjoys their job, being able to keep everyone engaged fully is a challenging task. Traditionally, KPIs are put in place to show staff what targets in particular they need to achieve on a regular basis, but sometimes these tasks can prove tiresome and repetitive, causing interest to fluctuate and people to become less interested in the job at hand.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Employees are strongly motivated by recognition, rewards and the sense of accomplishment, so taking the essence of games such as fun and competitiveness and applying them to non-game contexts, people are more likely to want to participate, driving positive behaviours and therefore becoming more driven to complete the task or hit the target.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Research by Gallup shows that companies are increasing their interest in gamification because only 31% of employees are engaged at work. The least engaged generation are Millennials with only 28.9% engagement compared to 32.9% for Gen X &amp; Baby Boomers. Considering that Millennials are going to make up 75% of the global workforce by 2025, you can understand why companies are having to adapt.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">The issue with the traditional method of performance management is that your weekly/monthly/yearly targets and objectives can become stale, but using a real-time performance management tool - where you could visually keep track on how you&rsquo;re doing towards target, how you compare to others, how far to your next milestone and perhaps even how you&rsquo;re doing compared to this time last year &ndash; can keep things relevant and interesting.</p>
<h3 style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 24px;"><strong><span style="color: #7c97ab;">In recruitment</span></strong></span></h3>
<p style="text-align: justify;">From a recruitment perspective, it can be used to measure a candidate&rsquo;s potential suitability and commitment before you&rsquo;ve even looked at their CV.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Unilever have a digital recruitment programme which uses online games to help with candidate selection. To help them narrow down the 250,000 graduate applications they receive every year, they now invite each candidate to play a series of games which are used to determine the candidate&rsquo;s potential and how well they connect with the company&rsquo;s goals. The top performing applicants are then invited for a video interview which is then followed by a face to face.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">PricewaterhouseCoopers in Hungary developed and launched a game called Multipoly which is made up of an online part and a section based on personal participation. The &lsquo;player&rsquo; submits a virtual application, takes part in the virtual interview process which presents them with tasks based on the competencies of the company. PwC then narrow down the applications to the best players and invite them in for a real interview. The outcome was that the candidates who played the game were much more prepared for the live face to face interviews because they had been pre-educated by the game. Time spent on their career page went from an average of 15 minutes to up to one and a half hours.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Using gamification, recruiters can become more efficient. Rather than organising an interview, why not send the candidate a game which can simulate the work environment and test their personality traits? This can then enable recruiters and employers to see upfront how a candidate may react in different scenarios. This can help decide whether someone is the right match for the company/job before they&rsquo;ve even stepped into the office.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Regardless of the skills required for a role, gamification can be tailored to target its content around those attributes. It saves time for the recruiter, but it&rsquo;s also is a good measure of the candidates&rsquo; commitment &ndash; if they can&rsquo;t be bothered to complete the tasks the game requires, chances are they would have dropped out of the process at some point anyway. It&rsquo;s also beneficial to the candidates; they get to build up a picture of what the company&rsquo;s like and figure out if it&rsquo;s the right fit for them.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Gaming is a way of injecting a bit of fun into the recruitment process, encouraging some friendly competiveness between candidates while providing valuable insight and information to recruiters.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Regardless of how gamification is applied - whenever you have a contest that has a winner, you create losers. If gamification isn&rsquo;t done right, it can have the opposite effect and end up demotivating people. In the workplace, the trick is to create more winners more often, and don&rsquo;t just keep it focused on individuals - also reward teams for working together.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Businesses need to adapt to changing technology and market conditions which won&rsquo;t work without a motivated team. Some people are concerned that Gamification is just a sugar-coated, game-like facade to make work cute and fun, which normally causes people to dismiss it at face value. Applied in the wrong context and that&rsquo;s exactly all gamification would be, however used in an ingenious, original and engaging way means it can be a game changer. Not just making it more fun to hit targets, but changing the culture and the way people tackle and perceive work could be the breath of fresh air employees need.&nbsp;</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Interested to hear how we can improve your recruitment? Get in touch with us today:&nbsp;</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><a class="button-secondary" href="~/link.aspx?_id=41A0870BBA104687B23323B701F21120&amp;_z=z">Contact Us</a></p>

Employees are strongly motivated by recognition, rewards and the sense of accomplishment, so introducing the essence of gaming into the workplace can really help boost employee engagement and bring out their competitiveness...

Why gamification can improve employee engagement

<p>As specialists within the Engineering and Technical markets, we work with a range of different businesses, and it&rsquo;s abundantly clear why so many of them are choosing the executive search route. When you think about the well-documented skills shortage within this sector, combined with the demand for people who can really accelerate business growth, it makes sense to go for a highly specialised service.</p>
<p>That said, at times people can misunderstand what executive search is. Often, the term gets used interchangeably with &lsquo;recruitment&rsquo;. Both terms do relate to the art of hiring, but executive search is a very different model.</p>
<p>To provide some clarity, we&rsquo;ve put together an overview of executive search, and the differences compared to traditional recruitment. This is also a way for you to analyse which solution could work for your business.</p>
<h3><strong>What is executive search?</strong></h3>
<p>Executive search is a highly specialised service, used when companies need talent that&rsquo;s hard to find. Often this is for senior level roles, such as Vice Presidents, Directors or Chief Operating Officers. Alternatively, it may be because the role is in a niche sector where the candidate pool is small. Either way, these are high-impact and strategically important roles.</p>
<p>This is where executive search comes in.&nbsp; Unlike other recruitment models (such as contingency recruitment), it involves a highly bespoke and targeted approach. Your executive search partners will have industry expertise and a proven track record of sourcing hard-to-find people. They&rsquo;ll also have a strong network of contacts, and the ability to conduct searches in a highly confidential manner.</p>
<p>It&rsquo;s more than just hiring as well. Executive search consultants offer a range of other bespoke talent related services. Examples include market mapping, employer branding, benefits analysis and Diversity &amp; Inclusion advice. Many businesses go down this route because they need the extra expertise to build out their hiring strategy.</p>
<h3><strong>Is executive search the same as headhunting?</strong></h3>
<p>Headhunting is another word used interchangeably with executive search, but the two aren&rsquo;t the same. Headhunting is actually one of the techniques used during a search.</p>
<p>Put simply, it&rsquo;s when your executive search partner identifies and approaches a passive candidate &ndash; someone who&rsquo;d be a good fit for the position, but isn't actively looking for a new role.</p>
<p>Headhunting plays a part in executive search, but there's a lot more to the process.</p>
<h3><strong>What about a retained search?</strong></h3>
<p>Retained search is when you have a consultant working on an exclusive basis to fill your role. Many companies like this exclusivity, knowing that they&rsquo;ll have someone completely dedicated to their vacancy.</p>
<p>To secure this, an up-front fee (known as the &lsquo;retainer&rsquo;) is paid. There are then normally two additional payments &ndash; one when a shortlist of candidates has been provided (you can specify how many people need to be on the shortlist), and then a final payment when a candidate has been placed.</p>
<p>Some agencies may operate on a fixed-fee basis, where they receive a specified amount if they can fill the role within an agreed timeframe.</p>
<h3><strong>How would a retained executive search actually work?</strong></h3>
<p>When using a retained executive search agency, the service you&rsquo;ll get will be bespoke. Think of them as partners rather than suppliers.</p>
<p>Once you&rsquo;ve finalised the agreement and paid the retainer fee, the executive search consultant will have detailed conversations with you to find out what you want from the candidate.</p>
<p>This isn&rsquo;t just about a simple job description. They will want a full picture of your needs, your Employee Value Proposition (EVP), and crucially, the type of person you want. This is important because if someone is being hired in a business-critical role, you&rsquo;ll want them to fit in from a cultural point of view. An executive search consultant will sometimes use psychometric testing or other profiling tools, to see how aligned a candidate is with your values and how likely they are to stay for the long-term.</p>
<p>Because this is an exclusive agreement, they can dedicate maximum resources into filling the role, both in terms of their time and the tools they&rsquo;ll use to analyse the market and reach out to quality candidates. Usually, these candidates won&rsquo;t be actively seeking opportunities, so they wouldn&rsquo;t register on your radar, or that of a traditional recruiter. Executive search teams on the other hand, will have the network and tools to find them, as well as the track record to engage them in a discussion.</p>
<h3><strong>Should I use retained executive search for my business?</strong></h3>
<p>This depends on the type of role you are hiring for. There are normally some key factors you should consider when deciding what type of agency to use for your hiring needs.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: disc;">
<li><strong>Candidate pool size</strong><br>If the type of talent you&rsquo;re looking for is readily available, you should go to a traditional recruitment provider. If it&rsquo;s hard to find, then executive search is a better option. <br><br></li>
<li><strong>Sensitivity of recruitment </strong><br>In some cases, a candidate search needs to be confidential. This may be because you&rsquo;ll need to hire someone from a competitor, or because the person in your role currently is leaving and you don&rsquo;t want the news to leak. In this scenario, executive search is your best bet.</li>
<li><strong>Geographical spread</strong><br>Are you looking for someone purely from the UK, or is the search more global? If it&rsquo;s the latter, opt for executive search. <br><br></li>
<li><strong>Market data</strong><br>If you&rsquo;re not sure about the typical compensation and benefits packages in the market, a search team will be able to provide you with this data.<br><br></li>
<li><strong>Time-critical</strong><br>Do you need to find someone urgently? As mentioned earlier, a retained executive search agreement means you have a dedicated consultant, so this may be a good option for you.<br><br></li>
</ul>
<p>Ultimately, the quality of your hires will determine the growth of your business. That&rsquo;s why choosing the right recruitment model and partner is so important. By analysing your business needs, you can make an informed decision and increase your chances of landing the right talent.</p>
<h3><strong>SEARCH by Carbon60</strong></h3>
<p>Our STEM focussed search offering combines the technical expertise of Carbon60, Lorien &amp; SRG to offer a data-led approach that delivers much more than just a list of CVs.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: disc;">
<li>SEARCH BY CARBON60 &ndash; offering senior technical hires within the product lifecycle.</li>
<li>SEARCH BY LORIEN &ndash; Digital, transformation &amp; technical recruitment.</li>
<li>SEARCH BY SRG &ndash; Scientific, Technical &amp;&nbsp;Operations, Commercial,&nbsp;Medical &amp; Clinical Development, AI, Machine Learning and Bioinformatics.</li>
</ul>
<p>Specialising in your niche we can help you to attract and retain the right talent with:</p>
<p>Find out more here:&nbsp;<a href="../../../../../../our-services/search">https://www.carbon60global.com/our-services/</a></p>

In recent years, executive search has become a popular option for employers looking to hire top talent. This is especially the case within the STEM sector.

What is executive search and how does it differ from other recruitment models

<p>"We don't use agencies" you hear yourself saying for the fortieth time that week as you put down the phone to another recruitment agency.</p>
<p>We can probably hazard a guess as to why you don't use agencies:</p>
<ul>
<li>You don't need to</li>
<li>They cost too much</li>
<li>They're ineffective</li>
<li>They're old-fashioned</li>
<li>They don't know your business</li>
</ul>
<p>You know something? I'm sure in some cases, you're absolutely right. However before you write agencies off completely, read on to see the reasons it would benefit you to use a specialist technical recruitment agency such as Carbon60.</p>
<p><strong>Get the best talent</strong></p>
<p>According to <a href="https://business.linkedin.com/talent-solutions/blog/2014/03/active-vs-passive-candidates-the-latest-global-breakdown-revealed" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">LinkedIn</a>, only 12% of the workforce are actively looking for a new job, but 85% are open to hearing about new opportunities. This means that only a small minority are likely to be responsive to advertising, as the rest just aren't looking - peculiarly referred to as 'passive candidates' in recruitment circles. Agency recruiters don't sit around and wait for a quality candidate to walk through the door (or respond to an advert), they'll proactively target your competitors and scour the marketplace for people in similar positions, to see if anyone is interested in new opportunities.</p>
<p>A specialist agency either already has a database of excellent candidates, or if not then they know the best places to find them. As they live and breathe recruiting, they have more time to identify and reach out to passive candidates in a way that's probably just not possible for your recruitment team or hiring managers.</p>
<p>There are strong brands out there, yours may be one of them. But a candidate has greater access to the employment market through registering with a third party. Many who decide to start actively looking for a job are more likely to register with a specialist agency first. This increases significantly in the temporary workforce and specialist contractor marketplace.</p>
<p><strong>More efficient</strong></p>
<p>Most agencies are able to manage the whole process. Agencies can save you time sifting through countless CVs and provide you with only the best. For instance, Carbon60 can provide vetting, arrange interviews, relay feedback and negotiate the offer. In addition, due to the large pool of candidates, temporary roles can be filled at short notice. We can turn a month-long search into one that lasts only a few days, as our experts can understand your niche and find the right people quickly.</p>
<p>In small companies especially, employees' time is already stretched thin, therefore recruiting in-house doesn't make for a wise investment of resources, so reducing the in-house resource you use for recruitment saves not only your time, but money too.</p>
<p>As recruitment is their core function, agencies can invest more in recruiting tools, job-board credits and candidate management technology, automating where possible, resulting in both time and cost efficiencies.</p>
<p><strong>Cost saving</strong></p>
<p>Posting job adverts is expensive, so we cover that cost and not only post them on your behalf, but create awesome adverts for you too. A decent agency will always provide replacements or rebates if they provide someone that you're not happy with.</p>
<blockquote><em>"Within our Engineering Technology division, we have a diamond guarantee that goes beyond recruitment standard practices. We are so confident that your new hires will be the right fit for your business, that if you're not happy with one of our candidates or the service we provide, you don't pay. In fact, we go further than that - if we place someone in a permanent position and they leave within the first 100 days, and we aren't able to re-fill it for you, we refund you 110%." </em>- <strong>James Spurling, Associate Director, Carbon60.&nbsp;</strong></blockquote>
<p><strong>Give us a try!</strong></p>
<p>We hope those are enough compelling reasons to use a specialist recruitment agency if you don't already, and we would love to chat to you if you're looking to use our services in future.</p>
<p><strong>Call us on 01329 227000 or email us at&nbsp;<a href="mailto:enquiries@carbon60global.com?subject=Specialist%20Recruitment">enquiries@carbon60global.com</a></strong></p>

Hear us out - this is why you should use Carbon60.

We don't use agencies

<p>Several aspects of the recruitment process have changed over the years, for both employers and candidates. In many sectors, one of the biggest changes for candidates has been the increase in choices available to them. This has had a knock on effect for employers.</p>
<p>With so much competition for the best candidates, using traditional recruitment methods is no longer enough, while it also takes more than just a good salary to attract and retain people. Businesses now need to promote themselves in the best possible light to candidates.</p>
<p>This is commonly known as employer branding. By showcasing your culture, benefits and ways of working, you can position yourself as an attractive place to work. The likes of Google and Apple are commonly mentioned as desirable employers, and it&rsquo;s not just because of their business success, but their Employee Value Proposition (EVP). Meanwhile, data from LinkedIn suggests that companies with a strong employer brand see 50% more qualified applicants.</p>
<p>This makes it a critical part of your recruitment process, and one of the fundamentals of your overall business strategy. You&rsquo;d do everything you can to build an appealing brand that brings in customers &ndash; why not pay the same attention to candidates?</p>
<p>Of course, employer branding isn&rsquo;t a magic bullet solution for all of your talent acquisition needs, but it certainly plays a big part. Here are just some of the ways it can benefit you.</p>
<h3><strong>Attracting top talent </strong></h3>
<p>More and more candidates want to work for a company that aligns with their values. By marketing your business in the right way, you will get them coming to you. Think about employer branding in a similar way to storytelling &ndash; you have to let people know what you do, what you stand for and what it&rsquo;s like to work for you.</p>
<p>Authenticity is key &ndash; communicate your mission, vision and values in a way that&rsquo;s real and believable.</p>
<p>A big part of employer branding is using the right channels to tell your story. For example, Millennials and Generation Z make up a big part of the workforce, and will continue to do so. These groups are highly active on social media platforms like Instagram and LinkedIn, so use them to promote your employer brand. Things like employee stories or behind the scenes snapshots of your business always go down well.</p>
<p>Some companies also incorporate these channels into the actual candidate journey. For example, they use social media to build connections and have conversations with potential hires, making it a two way conversation rather than pure promotion.</p>
<h3><strong>Saving time&hellip;.</strong></h3>
<p>A strong employer brand will mean a bigger pipeline of talent is available to you, perhaps following you on social media, or having registered on your website. This means you can actually start the process of screening and vetting candidates earlier, and begin interviewing almost as soon as you have a vacancy.</p>
<p>In addition, candidates who you reach out to are likely to respond to hiring managers or recruiters a lot sooner, as they will already be familiar with your brand.</p>
<p>All of this speeds up the recruitment process, reducing your time-to-fill. In such a competitive market, this could be the difference between bringing in a top tier candidate, and losing them to another company.</p>
<h3><strong>&hellip;.and money</strong></h3>
<p>A quicker process also means you can fill more roles in a short period of time, bringing down your cost per hire &ndash; and this isn&rsquo;t the only financial saving.</p>
<p>Having an attractive employer brand also means you need to spend less money on recruitment marketing and other hiring process. In some cases, you may even be able to get a candidate on a lower salary than expected if they&rsquo;re eager to join.</p>
<p>After all, research from Talent Now shows that 50% of candidates wouldn&rsquo;t work for a company with a bad reputation, even for a pay rise. So while your budget may only stretch to a figure that&rsquo;s lower than a competitor, having a better reputation may just tip the scales in your favour.</p>
<h3><strong>Increasing staff retention</strong></h3>
<p>The employer brand isn&rsquo;t just about new candidates and their perception of you. It also incorporates the employee experience &ndash; in other words, how your existing staff feel about you.</p>
<p>It&rsquo;s difficult to position yourself as a desirable employer if people are constantly leaving. That&rsquo;s why a solid employer brand strategy has to take the employee experience into account. This starts from onboarding &ndash; the first 100 days in particular are key. Make sure staff buy into your culture and values and are staying engaged. Attrition can always be a problem for organisations, but if you create a good working environment, this can be prevented.</p>
<p>Don&rsquo;t forget that existing employees are the ones who offer the most reliable insight into what working for you is actually like. They could be your biggest advocates, but also do the most damage to your employer brand. Social media and dedicated employee review websites such as Glassdoor have made it easier than ever for employees to tell people about your business, so ensure you create a positive experience at all times.</p>
<p>If you get this part of your employer brand right, you will naturally find your staff becoming ambassadors. Not only will they stay with the company, but they&rsquo;ll recommend you to others &ndash; further increasing your pipeline and reducing recruitment costs.</p>
<h3><strong>Building trust with customers</strong></h3>
<p>Good recruitment leads to good business. There&rsquo;s a famous Richard Branson quote that&rsquo;s often used when talking about this subject:</p>
<p>&ldquo;<em>Clients do not come first. Employees come first. If you take care of your employees, they will take care of the clients.</em>&rdquo;</p>
<p>The reason it&rsquo;s often used is because it&rsquo;s true. The success of a business depends on having talent and motivated people working within it. Focusing on your employer brand will help you attract the best people, and keep them engaged. This will translate into a better experience for your customers, and increase your credibility with them.</p>
<p>One common factor which links all of the best employer brands, is a focus on people. The days of being able to attract candidates with just a good salary and pension are gone. Things like work-life balance, company culture and employee wellbeing are big priorities for candidates, and should be for businesses too. This then needs to be communicated to them in the right way, using the right channels.</p>
<p>The employer brand was once seen as a nice-to-have, or an expensive addition to traditional recruitment. But with so many companies fighting for the same talent, and the needs of candidates also changing, it&rsquo;s now an essential part of your recruitment toolkit.</p>
<p>If you would like to know more about how Carbon60 can help with your employer branding, <a href="https://www.carbon60global.com/contact-us">please get in touch.&nbsp;</a></p>

By showcasing your culture, benefits and ways of working, you can position yourself as an attractive place to work, helping to attract top talent, save time & money in your recruitment process.

Using employer branding to boost your recruitment process

<p>The IR35 legislation has now been delayed for a year, until 6th April 2021, as a result of the uncertainty caused by the coronavirus pandemic. It's still important to prepare for IR35, so if you have any questions, please don't hesitate to contact us.</p>
<p>With the reform to the IR35 legislation coming to the private sector in April 2020, now is the time to start preparing. With the onus of assessing compliance to this tax law now shifting to the fee-payer (be that your business if you engage directly, or your recruitment agency partner) rather than the individual contractor themselves. Failure to prepare could result in hefty fines, increased costs or loss of talent.</p>
<p>However, this process doesn't need to be difficult! There are some simple tasks you can do right now to start this process:</p>
<h3><strong>Work out if your business will be affected</strong></h3>
<p>These reforms are first being rolled out in the private sector to medium and large businesses. That means if you qualify as a small business then you don't yet need to make any changes.</p>
<p>A business is deemed to be 'small' if it meets 2 or more of the following criteria within a 12-month period:&nbsp;</p>
<ul>
<li>Turnover not more than &pound;10.2 million</li>
<li>Balance sheet total not more than &pound;5.1 million</li>
<li>Fewer than 50 employees</li>
</ul>
<p>As a tax legislation, this also only applies to contractors, so you will only need to consider this if you are actively engaging contractors who will still be working on the April 2020 deadline.</p>
<h3><strong>Map out the operating structures of your contractor workforce</strong></h3>
<p>If you don't classify as a small business you need to move on to the next step, which is understanding the contractor base you have.</p>
<p>The legislation is aimed at targeting 'disguised employment' of those working as a PSC (Personal Service Company) also known as Limited Company Contractors.</p>
<p>It is essential that you understand which of the contractors in your business are operating in the way so you can assess their roles. Other operating structures that could be in place are:</p>
<ul>
<li>All PSCs (<strong>high risk</strong>)</li>
<li>PAYE Umbrella (<strong>no risk</strong>)</li>
<li>Direct PAYE (<strong>no risk</strong>)</li>
<li>Agency PAYE (<strong>no risk</strong>)</li>
<li>Other* (<strong>high risk)</strong></li>
</ul>
<p>*if you don't know how the contractor is operating, this is also high-risk, and we would recommend moving on to the next stage for these individuals too.</p>
<p>It could be that you don't have access to this information, especially if you're working with a recruitment partner, so you may need to request this information from them. With this information you will then be able to work out which roles in your business are high-risk, and make the necessary preparations.</p>
<h3><strong>Use the CEST tool to assess high-risk roles</strong></h3>
<p>CEST (Checking Employment Status for Tax) is a tool from HMRC which allows you to answer a series of questions about a role to assess if they would fall inside or outside IR35.</p>
<p>You only need to do this for every role type, not every contractor, providing that they are managed the same, and you will likely need to work closely with the Hiring Manager/Line Manager of that role to gather all of the information you need to be able to complete the questions.</p>
<p>If this tool considers the role to be inside of IR35 and you have contractors operating via a PSC, you will need to start communicating with them that they will need to change the way they operate from April 2020.&nbsp;</p>
<p>If the role is deemed to be outside IR35, great! This means that your contractors working via PSCs are compliant and will not need to make any changes to how they operate. We recommend that you produce an SDS (Status Determination Statement) and share this with the worker and their relevant the recruitment agency. This is your defence in the event of a claim from HMRC.</p>

April 2020 is just round the corner, so now is the time to start preparing.

Three ways you need to be preparing for IR35

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<p>At Carbon60, we welcome the opportunity to share our gender pay gap as it will help us have more meaningful conversations with our people and our customers about equality, diversity and inclusion.</p>
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<div><a href="-/media/96be436efcd64156a18dc6ca715bf159.ashx"><strong>Download the Carbon60 gender pay gap report here</strong></a></div>

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