Guest post by Mark Grigg
When I started in recruitment 10 years ago this month, I could never have imagined the fast pace at which things could and have changed in so many aspects of the recruitment cycle. Some, I hasten to say, for the better and perhaps a few for the worse. Here are a few of the areas where I have seen significant changes.
Relationships
One of the ways that the market has been negatively affected is that it there is much less personal contact than was expected 10 years ago. This has devalued consultancy at its best and provoked much bad press about the perceived "shark" culture in most consultancies.
In the past, job seekers (whether candidate or recruitment consultant) actively visited potential employers to find out if they had any openings. In my experience, with the on-set of technology this is far less prevalent. Also it is no longer considered "best practice" for larger, non-specialist agencies.
In today's job market, candidates email CVs to companies which they may never actually follow up. This leads to less personal contact and a lower likelihood of being hired. Often they have not invested time in researching the company culture and the intricacies of what the vacancy actually involves which is rarely evident in a short online advert.
There are lots of reasons in recent years why consultants and job seekers alike have chosen to hide behind a terminal or keyboard. If you are passionate about a new challenge, relationships are critical to your success. Typically people do buy people, not a piece of paper or an email.
Social Media as a networking tool
Another change in the job market involves social networking. In the area of job seeking, it always pays to know the right people. Online networking was in its absolute infancy 10 years ago and has evolved massively to being an intricate part of any hiring strategy. In the past, you had to actually know someone personally before they could help you get a job, this I believe to still be the very important however; with social networking, you can virtually ‘know’ them and get help with your job search.
Social networking allows you to vastly increase your circle of influence and get to know people in many different industries who could potentially help you get a job. For retailers, embracing digital technology has been high on the priority list for the past few years. As customer service becomes ever more important across different media and platforms, demonstrating a keen interest in this area will only add value to your job search.
Recruitment - a quicker process or not?
The Internet makes everything accessible so it’s no surprise that the introduction and growth of technology has streamlined and quickened the recruitment process at the front end. Whereas hard line advertising in newspapers/press and offline job applications was still a large proportion of the day job 10 years ago, I cannot remember the last time someone posted a CV to me! The Internet has made the recruitment process much easier and simpler to handle. You can now email a consultant and within seconds expect a reply, mostly automated and extremely frustrating to job seekers, however a necessary evil for most recruitment firms! This also applies to posting vacancies as most job boards are now extremely accessible and user friendly. It takes minutes to load a vacancy whereas it would have taken days or weeks to appear in a publication - now it can be online within minutes for all to see.
The Internet
The internet has allowed recruiters to work on a much larger scale than they have done before. How? Well, as a recruiter with access to the Internet, you can post multiple job advertisements for many different roles and manage those communications from one place, whether that is your inbox, a special portal or software system. It means that you can do more work, advertise for more jobs and hire more people which of course is every recruiter’s aim. In my humble experience, in an industry that is over 100 years old, all of the above makes for a more time efficient recruitment process but what still remains vital for all successful recruiters or job seekers is the personal touch.
Search engines, such as Google, have made the research side of recruitment much easier and much more thorough too. In the past, it would have taken several phone calls and several meetings before we had all the information we needed about a client. Still an important part of the process but the time saved is now available to add value to the candidate. A quick google search can throw up most of the necessary information or is certainly a good place to start.
10 years ago, if someone had mentioned a Skype interview you’d wouldn’t have had a clue what they were talking about (until recently, me neither!). Now, it seems that interviews over Skype and other online portals are commonplace and often replace the traditional face-to-face meetings. Indeed, one client I recently worked with closely in the UK insisted that the Skype interview be part of the process. If you are recruiting for an American office but are based in the UK, you can now skype or use other specialist software; Thus cutting down vastly on time and money invested and avoiding the hassle of booking flights and arranging hotels.
Changes in recruitment legislation
This has changed for the better, professionalising the industry and regulating it much more closely and it has had major implications for recruitment at all stages of the sourcing and selection process. This can be seen in the type of advertised Job Titles that are now acceptable, the preparation of Job Descriptions, drafting of job non-discriminatory advertisements, the CV short listing process, interview questions, documentation of interviews, retention of interview records, and the reasons given to a candidate who has not been shortlisted or who has not been offered a job they have applied for.
In its most basic form recruiters must not only be fair but must be seen to be fair, in most cases treating people how you would expect to be treated yourself and not just seeing candidates as a product or an easy route to some commission.
In 2004 there were fewer tightly controlled preferred supplier lists (PSL’s). Employers handed out vacancies to a wide range of recruitment agencies on an indiscriminate basis without taking any steps to ascertain the professionalism of such agencies. This is unusual these days, recruitment companies are vetted much more closely before being put on a PSL.
Competency based interviewing or behavioural interviews were also not as widely used 10 years ago, whereas they have since become the norm as they give the interviewers a much greater insight and structure, allow clients to convey a more professional image and of course providing evidence if required about why a candidate may not have been successful.
Documentation of interviews was limited in the past but it has become more widespread in recent years particularly with larger agencies keen to earn external audit accreditations - particularly important within the Finance and Public sectors.
In summary, although the technicalities of recruitment and the tools that are used to improve the processes are vastly different from 10 years ago, in reality most is largely the same – it is how you get to the end result which differs.
For me, all the tools and speed efficiencies formulates the same old argument in recruitment - Quality v/s Quantity - which can be qualified and quantified within many aspects of our trade.
Passionately I believe in adding value and that personal relationships make the better agencies stand out. Increasingly it is about what you can offer your client not what they can offer you. Whether you are candidate, consultant or client we must not lose sight of taking the time out of our very busy schedules for personal interaction which fundamentally has not changed and in my opinion will not change in the future.
Mark Grigg has spent the last 10 years in retail recruitment and we are delighted to welcome him to AdMore this month.
A Settlement Agreement (formerly known as a Compromise Agreement) is a contract between an employer and an employee terminating the employment relationship. They provide an employer with certainty that a claim will not be brought against it by the employee through the Tribunals and Courts. For employees, a Settlement Agreement will typically provide something more by way of compensation than the employee might otherwise be entitled to, such as a financial payment or some other non-financial incentive such as a detailed reference.
Settlement Agreements are increasingly common. Just because an employer offers a Settlement Agreement does not necessarily mean they have done anything wrong. Agreements like this are used for certainty and completeness and should not be viewed defensively. Of course, there are exceptions and agreements can be entered into or offered when the employment has broken down beyond repair or used as a solution to effect a mutually agreeable termination (such as if someone is retiring or moving to another organisation).
Settlement Agreements - and any payment under them - are almost always made without any admission by the employer as to liability or blame.
Like all contracts, Settlement Agreements can vary in length and scope, according to the seniority of the employee, the type of organisation and any risks associated with termination. They can be anything from one side of paper to 50 pages or more. However, there are key terms which are typical to all such agreements.
Key settlement termsYou will always expect to find details of the employee and the employer; the termination date; notice and/or notice pay; legal advice and fees; the waiver of claims; reference details and; any announcement to other employees and/or customers, clients and suppliers.
Compensation amount: This will inevitably vary between every situation. The compensation or settlement payment will often include an ex gratia amount - something which isn’t required by law or by contract to be paid to the employee. This is in effect what the employer is paying to reduce their risk of a claim.
Tax indemnity: A part or the whole of a compensation or settlement payment may be paid tax free. If there is an element of redundancy pay or an ex gratia payment included within the compensation amount and it is paid as ‘compensation for loss of employment’, up to £30,000 may be paid tax free. Where a payment is made, the employer will typically include an indemnity clause, meaning that if HMRC pursue the employer for any tax which it believes it should have paid, that liability will be passed on to the employee. If the payment is a genuine compensation payment (and not, for example, a contractual entitlement to a bonus or notice pay) there should not be any risk, however the clause is a precautionary measure. You can also discuss with your advisor the various ways of structuring a payment so as to minimise your exposure to tax.
Restrictive covenants: You may already have some restrictions in your contract of employment which will continue beyond the termination of your employment. These will often include restrictions on where you can work for a period after termination, what type of company you may work for and/or any geographical location which is prohibited. You will often be reminded of those restrictions or your employer may include new restrictions in the agreement as part of the ‘deal’. You should review these carefully, particularly if leaving to commence employment with a competitor organisation.
Legal advice: You must seek legal advice as to the terms of the Agreement. This will usually be in a short meeting with a solicitor or other legal advisor of your choice. There are some criteria that the advisor must meet to be suitable for these purposes. Although there is no obligation on your employer to provide any contribution towards your legal fees, it is usual to include a nominal contribution of at least £300 plus VAT. If the Agreement is more complex, this might be increased. Your advisor will also be required to confirm in writing that they have provided you with the necessary advice.
Confidentiality: The terms of the Agreement and the circumstances relating to it will almost always be subject to a confidentiality clause, with very few exceptions. This is likely to be taken very seriously by your employer who will want to protect this information, specifically in relation to payment terms.
The terms of any Settlement Agreement are negotiable, however, the extent of how flexible the employer may be will depend on the particular circumstances leading to it. Your legal advisor will be able to assist you when considering this.
Dealing with the termination of your employment, whatever the reason, can be difficult and emotional. Professional advice is essential when you might not be thinking clearly. Settlement Agreements may seem very insincere, but they can prove to be a valuable method of dealing with the necessary formalities at the end of the employment relationship. It also seems likely that they are here to stay.