The graph above tells us that consumer confidence went from pretty positive at the back end of 2015 to Armageddon in July. There was a recovery before a further dip in November. Indeed, here’s a screen print from the BBC website today (Wednesday 04/01/17):
It makes for pretty depressing reading. To top it off, footfall declined over the New Year period. Given that we know that Article 50 will be invoked in March and that Trump will be inaugurated later this month we can be confident that another rollercoaster year is ahead of us.
As you would expect, if our clients lose confidence they cut costs and, as we all know, the quickest cost to cut is people related i.e. less recruitment.
Or at least, that was the traditional approach.
Over the last two years we have seen a bit more resilience in the jobs market. Our client base is a little less sensitive to macro change, and while remaining cost conscious, less susceptible to knee jerk reactions.
Additionally, not all sectors of retail or indeed other industries are impacted by poor consumer sentiment. Value retail is likely to see a resurgence in 2017 despite ever increasing competition. Arguably, Tesco & Morrisons will reap the benefits of the strategic changes they have instigated over the last two years. Here at AdMore we have invested in other sectors too, such as apprenticeships recruitment and that sector is forecasted to grow by up to 50% due to the impending levy.
So you see, whilst I believe that 2017 is going to be another rollercoaster ride for consumer sentiment and that some areas of recruitment are likely to mirror that, there are plenty of reasons to be optimistic.
That said, if you are a candidate, a hiring manager or a recruiter; we will all once again need to be very, very, very resilient!
By Jez Styles, AdMore Recruitment
15+ Great Website Links for Retail & Hospitality interview research
Apparently Monday 6th January was ‘Massive Monday’ in recruitment (definitely not a reference to working at desks all year and eating stodge solidly for two weeks). I’m not entirely sure about that but I do get the sense that there is going to be a lot more recruitment activity this year than in 2013. The economic data would suggest that things are picking up, and the recruitment ‘churn’ is showing signs of gathering pace. We have certainly seen a significant change in a) mind-set and commitment to hire and b) the volume of vacancies.
So, if you have made a New Year’s resolution to look for a new position and you have written your CV (Free template here), then you may be close to securing an interview or accepting an offer. It is likely to be a competitive market this year so it is imperative that you set yourself apart with some good quality Retail & Hospitality interview research. Our clients generally feedback more favourably on the candidates that have clearly researched the company and the market vertical. You could of course ‘wing-it’ with a simple read of the corporate website and a quick google search, however if you are looking to go a little deeper it would be worth checking out some of these sites for additional analysis.
Industry Magazines: Retail Week / The Grocer / The Caterer / The Morning advertiser .Industry magazines are still pretty much the top place to go when you are looking to build a base of knowledge or to read recent news stories. Depending on which sector you are looking to specialise in you may find there are other useful sites to visit, for example if you are looking for a job in Pharmacy retail it might be worth checking the Pharmaceutical Journal (not a light read!). The Retail Week site will require a subscription for detailed viewing but it might be worth doing so for a short period. There is a lot of information in their Resource Bank including a league table of over 200 retailers with detailed financial information.
TIP: If you want to access an article without paying a subscription fee you could try running the keywords (I just cut and pasted the headline below) through a search engine and then clicking the link to the site, hey presto you can read the full article!
Before:
After:
There are of course other useful sites which I haven’t mentioned, it would be great if you could add them in the comments below.
The Three routes to market
Social LinkedIn has changed the jobs market in the same way Monster, Reed et al did in the early noughties. It has become a giant candidate database for agency and in-house recruiters while at the same time masquerading as a Social hub…oh and there are some interesting stories on LinkedIn Today…no wait, I mean Pulse. In 2014, if you are a candidate, passive or active, you absolutely must have a profile on LinkedIn. Ideally it will be accurate too! There are a few things to remember:
Networking is in many respects a misunderstood area. To some it is a slightly mysterious, perhaps even murky world. To others it may simply be making the effort to stay in touch with people you have worked with in the past.
So what exactly is networking? Networking isn’t about collecting business cards. It is about having a group of individuals who you have a relationship with. Importantly, more often than not these are mutually beneficial relationships where there may be the opportunity to share knowledge and information for mutual gain. People often network without realising and as expected, it takes a number of forms. It can be as informal as catching up with ex-colleagues once a year through to joining a formal networking group perhaps centred around your expertise or indeed your local area.
Many people look to network when they decide to look for a new job. It is viewed as a valued technique to gain access to opportunities. By utilising your network you can leverage powerful support from those around you to assist in building your career. For instance by accessing more job opportunities or indeed gaining endorsements for applications you are making. Many people underestimate this aspect of job hunting, yet various statistics point to the fact that between 60 – 85% of roles are secured through networking. The biggest mistake most individuals make is that they only start "actively" networking when they are looking for a role. For many it may be too late to assist them on this occasion.
Networks are based on relationships and take time to build and develop. Click here to Tweet This
So what is the best way to go about building your network?
Step 1
Develop a networking plan - In order to get the most out of networking and in order to maximise your time it is a critical you have a structured plan. It is worth setting yourself some short and long term goals and this will shape your tactics. It may be that in the short term you are looking for a mentor, some like-minded individuals or indeed to break into another sector. Your plan should include both formal and informal networking.
Step 2
Make a list of contacts and make contact – this should be a list of both the people you already know and those who you should be in contact with. Developing a list of target individuals who you feel it would be beneficial to be in contact with is critical to your success in networking. Far too often people are just reactive to networking opportunities and not proactive in targeting the right individuals. Once you have your list, careful consideration should be given to how to best make contact with them. Ultimately this will depend on whether there is any form of relationship in existence? LinkedIn is a brilliant tool that most people don’t fully utilise. Not only can you use it to look up individuals but also use your existing network to get new introductions. It is critical that any communications are polite and upfront about why you wish to make contact, perhaps explaining why there may be mutual gain by connecting. I cannot emphasise enough that you must approach people in the right way. Try to make it about them, offer to help them. If you ask for help straight away it is unlikely to go down well.
Step 3
Use social media – I have mentioned LinkedIn already but Twitter is also a fantastic tool. It can help you identify movers and shakers in your space as well as give you the opportunity to join in the debate and raise your profile. Another consideration should also be writing some blog posts about your sector. My only word of caution here is don’t hide behind the technology. Social media is a creative way to start new relationships but it is important you move this rapidly to ‘proper’ conversation in order to fully leverage the relationship.
Step 4
Depth of relationship – in order to be able to leverage your network it is important the relationships you have developed are strong. Mutually beneficial relationships, like any relationship needs work. People often underestimate how much time and effort is required. Will your contacts go out of their way to assist you?
Step 5
Maintaining relationships – Given how busy we all are it can be difficult to find the time to fit in hours of networking but it doesn’t have to be like that. It will not always be about picking up the phone, it might just be a quick e-mail or indeed a short text. Don’t underestimate the impact – people will really appreciate the effort you are making. It is important for you to be seen to act with integrity and conviction. If you say you are going to do something, then do it.
Step 6
Leveraging relationships – One of the key benefits to building your network is gaining access to job opportunities. Even though the job market is improving, many opportunities are still being filled through companies directly sourcing and accessing the networks of the individuals currently in the business. From the employer’s perspective this type of candidate pool has been pre-qualified and won’t involve a recruitment fee. Where you have close relationships it is worth discussing your career plans and aspirations to see how individuals in your network may be able to help.
Step 7
Gain an endorsement. A major benefit of your network could be to get an endorsement. If you are pursuing a particular opportunity, do you know anyone in the organisation that would be willing to endorse you? Alternatively is there anyone in your network who may know the line manager who again can endorse you? You cannot underestimate the positive effect this will have on your application.
Step 8
Feed your network - it is important that you continue to invest in your network at every stage of your career. Failure to put time and effort into feeding your network means that it will not grow. You cannot just make time when you are looking for a new job. You need to develop and grow your relationship when you need nothing from them.
Although I have focused on this area, networking isn’t solely about furthering your career, there are many other benefits. Talking to people in your sector is going to help you in terms of building market knowledge and understanding any industry wide changes that are taking place. It could also be that there are some benefits in terms of contacts that may help you in your non working life. Most of all it should be enjoyable. You will have a natural affinity with some individuals and will hopefully develop some strong and beneficial relationships.
By Sophie Mackenzie, AdMore Recruitment
A few years ago, I was looking for a new job and so, after years as a Recruitment Consultant, I was a candidate again, experiencing all the frustrations involved with looking for a new role as an In-house Recruiter. One of the biggest of these was dealing with recruitment agencies, a situation made all the more uncomfortable by the fact I worked for one!
The experience of being on the receiving end of varying levels of service from agencies made me empathise with candidates and hopefully made me a more considerate recruiter as a result. Don’t get me wrong recruitment agencies are an invaluable source of support, advice (and fundamentally, jobs!). However, there are ways to get the best from them as we have written about previously here. Equally, in a highly competitive market with a myriad of agencies competing for a limited pool of (strong) candidates and jobs, issues can arise, particularly when you are dealing with multiple agency contacts.
One of the main issues faced by candidates is when you are briefed on the same vacancy by two different agencies.
This problem arises when companies brief the same role to multiple agencies in the belief that this will be the most effective way to fill their vacancy. Whilst it has its advantages from a market coverage point of view, it also has some downsides. Sometimes there my be a lack of focus on the part of the agencies who have less incentive to work on the role and the potential brand damage that can occur when the impression is inadvertently given that the client is a. always recruiting (and therefore has a high staff turnover) or b. is desperate, disorganised or both. In reality it happens frequently and inevitably leads to agencies competing for the same candidates. Unfortunately for the client, this often means that the process comes down to speed (how quickly the agency can submit CVs) rather than quality (these are the right candidates for the role/business).
So what impact does this have on you, the candidate? As long as you get an interview, that’s all that matters, right?
Of course, your aim is to get a new job however when this happens you can find yourself the ‘piggy in the middle’ with both agencies claiming ‘ownership’ of your CV. This can put you in a difficult position with the agencies and sometimes the company themselves who have the unenviable task of sorting the mess out. It also makes you look desperate, disorganised or both!
So what can you do when faced with this situation?
Prevention is better than cure
There is a fine balance when job hunting, between casting your net wide enough to cover the market and taking care not to dilute your own personal brand in the marketplace. There are a limited number of vacancies in the market and it is impossible that one agency has (legitimate) access to all of them. Beware those that claim they do! It makes sense therefore to work with several agencies who you believe will represent you correctly and who have a strong network in your chosen field.
Choosing to register with more agencies than this could make life more complicated for you and will certainly require you to be more organised. More conversations to have (repeating the same information), more calls to take and more chance that an agency will misrepresent you and potentially damage your reputation in the market. If you do decide to go down that route I would highly recommend you set up a spread sheet where you can track who has spoken to you about which opportunity. Less is most definitely more in this situation, and by keeping close control over who you work with and who you allow to represent you, will minimise complications along the way.
Quality of the brief
Agencies tend to work in one of two ways. They will either be briefed by their existing client on a specific vacancy (they are likely to be on the company’s Preferred Supplier List - PSL) or they will approach companies speculatively with candidates they feel will be of interest. When approaching companies speculatively, the agency will either send your CV to a senior line manager in the hope they are tempted by your strong experience or alternatively will send your CV in response to hearing about a specific vacancy or seeing it advertised.
Either way, you need to be sure of which approach the agency is taking whenever they brief you on a role. If the approach is speculative, they should be open about this – it can be a highly effective way of placing candidates before a job vacancy reaches the open market especially when the consultant has a strong relationship with their contact.
However there is always a risk that the approach will come to nothing and, even if they know a vacancy is there, if they have not been legitimately briefed, they may be blocked from working on the assignment.
If an agency has been briefed legitimately, they will be able to give you specific information about the scope of the role, the salary, the reporting structure and interview process. If the client has provided one, they will be able to send you the Job Description. The agency’s job is to give you as much information about the role and company so you can decide if you would like to go forward. They should be selling you the opportunity but equally should be able to say why this could be a good move for you. By asking the consultant specific questions about the role, structure and business you will get a sense about how close they are to the business. I would also suggest asking them whether they have the role exclusively.
How will you be represented?
You can tell a lot about an agency and the individual recruitment consultant by the quality of questions that they ask you to understand your experience, track record and overall aspirations. Bear in mind that if an agency hasn’t taken the time to talk to you in detail about your CV and job search in general, they will be unlikely to be able to ‘sell’ your skills effectively to their client!
Give your permission and keep control
You should always know where your CV has been sent, whether in response to specific vacancies or speculatively. This enables you to keep track of your job search and know which agency is representing you for each role. It also ensures that you do not apply directly to a company that has already received your CV from an agency.
If you receive calls from different agencies about the same vacancy, try and clarify who has legitimate access. Once you have given your permission to be submitted, ensure you get confirmation from the agency that they are sending your CV for the vacancy and ideally confirm this on email. Ensure you are transparent with other agencies about who is representing you. That way, everyone knows where they stand.
Referring to my earlier comment about speed, be warned, there are plenty of agencies who will send your CV first and speak to you about the role later. This approach is fraught with issues for you as a candidate and is just poor practice. Unfortunately, you are unlikely to know an agency has done this until you receive a call from the company or the other agency telling you that you have been submitted twice.
What do you do when it happens?
Despite all the above, this situation happens time and again and can be for a number of reasons. Perhaps one of the agencies has sent your CV without speaking to you about the role and the other agency has taken the time to brief you properly and seek your permission. Understandably if unfortunate, companies often apply a ‘first past the post’ rule with applications and so all too often it is the agency that send you first that get to claim the fee, even if they have added no value to you or the client.
Many companies however will leave this to candidate preference and so will ask you to confirm who you spoke to first and who you would like to represent you. They may need you to confirm this in writing.
When making this decision, consider the following points:
If one agency comes out on top then you have your answer and are quite within your rights, like any customer, to decide which service provider you choose.
If you have a good relationship with both agencies and cannot decide between them, then you simply need to confirm which agency first spoke to you about the role in detail and let the company know.
Knowing how to handle this situation will mean that you can maintain positive relationships with the agencies involved and protect your reputation with the potential employer. Most importantly, if you do feel you have been poorly represented or have been submitted for a role without your permission, you can take the necessary steps with the culprit!
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By Sophie Mackenzie, AdMore Recruitment
As there are positive signs that the job market is picking up, you may well be feeling more confident about starting to look for a new role. Chances are it will have been a while since you updated your CV. Although it is something we always say you should do regularly, let’s face it, when you are happy and busy in your job, it is often the last thing on your mind.However, as the job market becomes more competitive again, you need to be ready to move quickly and so the first job is to dust off your CV and get to work!
As someone who looks at a lot of CVs on a daily basis, I am still surprised by how many people send a poor CV out into the world to represent them. It makes me a little angry so in aid of keeping my blood pressure under control, here is my view on how to create a presentable CV and, in a highly competitive market, give yourself the best chance of securing an interview!
Which format to use
There are a myriad of CVs formats, most of which are downloadable and a similar number of schools of thought about whether you should keep it traditional or try to do something to stand out. This very much depends on the industry you are applying for. In creative or media roles, your CV is likely to showcase your design/digital skills and so there is room to be more radical. For other industries, the safest option is to stick to a traditional format with the aim being to give the reader the clearest understanding of your career to date. I fully confess to being a ‘CV classicist’ and don’t tend to be swayed by fancy graphics or gimmicks.
Beware the over-formatted CV
The bane of my life is an over-formatted CV. By this I mean one which has text in boxes and columns, numerous font types and sizes and an exaggerated use of bullet points. You may think this looks more ‘impactful’ however be aware that when CVs are added to a database, heavy formatting is often lost in the process. The answer to this is to PDF your CV however this can also cause issues if a system cannot ‘read’ the CV and also means that the CV cannot be corrected if a mistake is spotted.
By laying out your CV clearly and with sensible use of bold and bullet points, you should still be able to create a CV which is easy on the eye and will look the same to the reader as it does to you.
How long?
In the world of CVs this is the million-dollar question. People are given so much conflicting advice "it must fit onto one page" (even if you are a Managing Director?!) or conversely, it should contain detail on every role you have held (even if it runs to 5 pages?!).
In reality it is about common sense. If you are beginning your career, you may well struggle to fill more than one page however if you include all relevant information (Education, Qualifications, Interests etc.) you should be able to stretch to a page and a half. Equally, if you are a senior operator with many years of experience, it can be very hard to condense it down without losing some really valuable content.
As a general rule, a well-written CV should fill 3 pages and only go beyond this if you are at a very senior level. If you are at a senior level and have a CV of two pages, I would bet your bottom dollar that you are selling yourself short.
The key is to keep flowery prose to a minimum, use clever formatting (font size, narrow margins etc.) and be economical with your language without missing any salient points. Also, and this is just a little niggle on my part; it isn’t really necessary to have the words Curriculum Vitae at the top of the page. Your name will suffice and this will save you a valuable line of text!
Likewise, if you are short on space, don’t feel the need to write a long paragraph about your personal interests. One line is fine to give someone a flavour of your interests outside work.
Which order?
Absolutely the first thing that any recruiter (agency or in-house) will want to know is who you work for and what you do. Of course they will take note of other details but, for people who have to speed read hundreds of CVs a week, this is the salient point. Your CV therefore, should always be written in reverse chronological order. That is, your current or most recent role should appear at the top and descend backwards in time as the readers progresses down the page. The fact that you started your career as a paperboy has little relevance to your application*** (***unless you are a school leaver or recent grad whereby any work experience has merit). Also, please don’t use Work Experience as a heading for this section. This is your Career History* (*unless you are a school leaver or grad in which case that may be the best description).
Contact details
There is a worrying trend in the CV world of people not including their contact details. I won’t go on about this. Suffice to say that if you don’t include your telephone number, you are unlikely to receive a call inviting you to interview! Ideally, you should include your email address, your home address and a landline number if you have one. You need to be as accessible as possible and it is important that the reader knows where you live. On this point, if you are able to relocate, please make this clear. For obvious reasons, avoid using a work email address or number.
Content is king
Of course, layout and format is nothing without decent content. The challenge is striking a balance between providing enough detail and being overly verbose. The key is to be as specific as possible. If you list your achievements, ensure that you provide evidence. For example, it is not enough to say that you significantly increased sales. You need to say by how much and what you implemented to achieve this result. Ideally, you should provide enough detail to spark interest in the reader and hopefully you will get the chance to elaborate at interview stage.
It is important that you give the reader a clear idea of your remit. For instance, if you are a Store Manager, what is the square footage of your store, how many staff do you employ and what turnover are you responsible for? Equally for an Area Manager, there can be a big difference between a Cluster Manager looking after 5 stores and an Area Manager looking after 25 stores. Giving an idea of geography, turnover and reporting structure also gives the reader an insight into the scope of your role and how much accountability you really have.
Education and Qualifications
Unless you are a school leaver or recent grad, there is no need to list each subject you studied at school or the grade you achieved. You should still include, however, your place of education and a summary of the qualifications you achieved. For example: 8 GCSE’s at grade C or above.
Education should be listed in reverse chronological order starting with your highest qualification. I have seen numerous cases recently of people who have a degree burying it below their school information, or omitting it completely. If you have a degree, please ensure that it is clear to the reader. Some employers insist that candidates are degree educated so this could be the difference between you being asked to attend an interview or not.
The cardinal sin
Once written, you should check your CV for spelling and grammar. You should then check it again, use your spellcheck and get someone else to proof read it for you. I cannot stress how important this is. Cue previous rant in my blog Is it really that difficult.
Despite the much-lauded growth of the video-CV, ‘paper’ CVs are here to stay for the immediate future so it’s important to get it right!
While I head off to lie in a darkened room for a while, I do hope this helps you update your CV. I’m sure I have forgotten some points so please don’t hesitate to contact me if you would like further advice.
Looking at the numbers from the Caterer report there is a clear decline in the number of vacancies with a fall of some 10% on the previous year. Unfortunately for job seekers, this was matched by a 4% increase in the number of job applications. This reinforces what we are seeing in the market, that the job market in hospitality remains extremely competitive. In fact, looking at the previous caterer report we can see that in fact the decline in roles has actually accelerated from an 8% decline to a 10% decline and that the increase in applications has also accelerated, moving from a 2% increase to a 4% increase. Such dramatic falls can be reconciled by a number of factors, firstly that due to the on-going economic uncertainty people are "sitting tight" which is actually reducing "churn" in the market. However it can also be attributed to the continued economic challenges that are causing businesses to remain cautious about their investment in people. Without doubt though over the last four years, many businesses have chosen to invest in developing and retaining their existing staff as the most cost effective people strategy.
Across the sectors, there has been mixed performances. Some sectors have fared better than others with the Pub sector continuing to face very challenging times. According to figures from the Office of National Statistics, over the last 5 years there has been a 14% decline in the number of pubs. Interestingly according to those statistics in 2011 5,505 new pubs opened but some 6,115 closed indicating the significant churn and instability in that sector. This also reflects the changing nature of the market as pubs adapt to trends in the market with many now diversifying into more food-led operations.
However, there are some good news stories out there and reading the M & C report each day certainly gives me some hope. As expected, there are always winners and losers and in this highly competitive sector, those businesses that have their proposition right and are able to communicate this effectively to their customers are prospering. Whitbread for instance recently released some stellar results with like-for-like sales up 3.7% and yesterday The Restaurant Group’s shares reached an all time high on the back of the strong results they released yesterday showing a 4.5% increase in their like-for-like sales.
The Hospitality sector continues to be an incredibly dynamic and exciting industry. Trends and customer needs are constantly changing. New concepts, designs and formats are constantly being designed and launched and those that satisfy and capture the needs of the market will reap strong rewards.
So what do these statistics say about your career in Hospitality?
Firstly, it shows the sector continues to face challenges and that the competition for roles remains as intense as ever. This reinforces the need for candidates to prepare effectively for their job search and to ensure that, when they do secure an interview, that they are able to perform exceptionally well. By conducting thorough research into the brand including site visits and SWOT analyses when appropriate, ensuring that you are able to provide tangible examples of your achievements and by giving evidence that you possess the capabilities required for your target role, you will have an edge over your competition.
It also shows that different sectors are performing better than others and within each market there are clear winners and losers. With rapidly changing customer needs, businesses need to change, adapt and evolve and those that do will outperform the market strongly. By keeping in touch with developments in the sector as a whole, you will be able to assess where the growth areas are likely to be and which businesses will offer you the most career development. Industry publications such as the Caterer and the M&C report are invaluable however, keeping in touch with your personal network of contacts is also hugely effective in keeping tabs on what is happening in the industry and what opportunities this could present for you.
To be successful in your job search in the current market, you must focus on those roles where your skills are most transferable and where your experience is most relevant. By doing this, you will maximise your chances of success when a precious vacancy arises.
By Jez Styles, AdMore Recruitment- Specialists in Retail and Hospitality Recruitment, Search & Selection, Talent Management and Career Development.
I read an article late last year that has kept coming back to me in recent months. The article (a study by Lauren Rivera) from the December issue of the American Sociological Review suggested that Employers are often more likely to hire a person they would want to socialise with than the ‘best’ individual for the job. The article didn’t suggest that employers were hiring the wrong people, but that they would prefer to hire someone that they have bonded with, would perceive to be a future friend or who made them feel good about themselves.Given the amount of focus on CVs, interview techniques, innovative job searches (etc, etc) most candidates could be forgiven for focussing on the ‘technical’ side of looking for a job. Getting ‘in front’ of an employer is for most candidates the primary focus and in an increasingly results driven culture it is easy to forget how important it is – to put it simply – that you and the employer like each other. Talk to any recruiter and they will confirm, if there is a shared past or common interest the candidate has a much better chance of getting the job. I believe this is particularly true in Retail where often there are no technical qualifications to differentiate one candidate from another.
So, if you are looking for a job, what can you do? Here are a few tips on how to build rapport and give you the best possible chance of landing a job offer!
Overall, keep in mind that you want to generate a sense of similarity between you and the interviewer.