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Why Hire Temporary Staff?
Introducing and using temporary staff into your business can be super beneficial for multiple reasons. It can provide flexibility to your company in an unstable economy. Temp workers are under no contracted hours (unless stated) so it can be decided between both parties when and how much they work. With 1.4 million people in the UK classing themselves as Temp workers, you have a variety to pick from! Temp staff can save you a lot of money as you are not paying a fixed salary each month. You are only paying for the shifts picked up by the temp worker. It is unlikely that a temp worker will work 5 days a week every week, unless they are working for a contracted period of time. Another option to think about (which is beneficial to both the employer and the temp worker) is temp to perm positions. This is where you can bring in a worker on a temporary basis to start off with and then progress them into a permanent role. Doing this can allow you to see how they are in the role and you can see if they are the right fit instead of relying on how they come across in their interview. This leads to better and more efficient permanent hires. Bringing in temp staff can also boost the morale of your current employees. They are usually hired through busy periods i.e. Christmas or summer depending on what industry your company is in. Temp staff will allow your employees to shift some of their responsibilities, leaving them less under pressure and more engaged. Did you know? 1.4 Million People in UK class themselves as in temporary employment. 738,000 of these are part time workers 254,000 of these say they are employed by an agency. In the image below, you can see the importance of agency workers. Legal responsibilities when hiring temp staff Even though you are not technically the temp workers’ employer, you are still liable for their Health and Safety in the workplace. The recruitment agency is obliged to provide the worker with written terms of their employment, which includes: Whether they are employed under contract of services or contract of employment. Their notice period. The pay rate. Their holiday entitlement. When offered the job, the agency is legally responsible to provide the worker with: The start date. How long they are required to work there. The type of work they will be doing. Expenses. The location. The hours required. Any Health and Safety risks. Experience, training or qualifications needed. Recruitment agencies legally cannot charge the candidate a fee for finding or trying to find the worker a job. They can however, charge a fee for services such as cv writing, training or transport. From the day the temp candidate starts working, they legally have Worker’s Employment Rights. After 12 weeks in the job, the worker qualifies for the same rights as someone who is employed directly. This is known as equal treatment. These rights include: Equal pay. Automatic pension enrolment. Paid annual leave. Any temp worker is entitled to minimum wage for all hours they work. As of April 2019 the minimum wage brackets are as follows: 16-17 year olds - £4.35 per hour 18-20 year olds - £6.15 per hour 21-24 year olds - £7.70 per hour 25+ - £8.21 per hour One thing you will hear a lot working with recruitment agencies is something called Pay Parity. This is defined as ensuring that all employees in the same job in the same location are paid fairly relative to one another, regardless of their gender or ethnicity. As an agency, it is our responsibility to ensure this is the case. Best ways to recruit temp staff The easiest, safest and quickest way to recruit temporary staff is through an agency. Want to know why? Check below… Recruitment agencies will already have a strong pool of candidates just waiting for that call. All compliance is handled by the agency by a qualified team so you don’t have to worry about any risks. All payrolls will also be handled by the agency. Agency consultants and resourcers will already have market knowledge and will know what kind of qualities and skills to look for in a candidate. You will have access to better and higher quality candidates. It saves you time! Better/more appealing job adverts! How to choose the recruitment agency for you It can be hard to choose the best recruitment agency for your company when there are so many out there specialising in different fields and work different ways. But overall, when choosing your agency, here are some things to consider: Do they specialise in your industry? Or in the role you are hiring for? Are they in your price range? Or do their prices reflect their work? Are they local to you? Or can you contact them easily? Do you feel like you can trust them? How many candidates can they offer you? What are their compliance procedures? Have they won any awards? Or have they been shortlisted for any? Could you easily form a rapport with them? Sometimes, you are drawn to the cheapest option especially when your budget isn’t at its highest) but this doesn’t necessarily mean it is the right option for you. Sometimes, securing the ‘cheapest option’ may result in poor quality candidates, which isn’t what you need! In the image below, you can see that the percentage of “quality of service” is on average, the most considered aspect when employers choose their recruitment agency. All stats in this section are from December 2019 REC Jobs Outlook report. Maintaining a good relationship with your agency To get the most out of your chosen recruitment agency, you should build a rapport with them and ensure they understand exactly what you’re looking for. Here’s how you can do this… Clearly outline your expectations – this can be your expectations of the consultants and of the candidates they inevitably put forward to you. Ensure they really understand what kind of person you are looking for. This can avoid any miscommunication. Keep up consistent communication with them. Encourage mutual respect. On boarding temporary staff When on boarding temporary staff through an agency, you will need to put a number of things in place to ensure it all runs as smoothly as it can. Provide shadow shifts. This can be highly beneficial to both you and the candidate. Providing shadow shifts can mean that you feel comfortable with the worker going out and knowing what they’re doing after watching someone else. The worker will feel more confident doing the job too. Provide an onsite orientation or induction on their first day. Just show them around the site/office so that they don’t get lost throughout the day/night! Ensure you explain to the worker your expectations of them, there’s nothing worse than that awkward “could you not do that” chat! Why choose Swanstaff? Choosing Swanstaff is paramount for your staffing and recruitment needs. Our company was established in 1997 and we are one of the fasting growing recruitment agencies in the UK. In addition to supplying temporary staff, we also have a growing national permanent team who recruit on a national basis. We have over 3000 active candidates who we believe portray our core values in every way. Our core values are at the heart of everything we do and offer. Our core values Create opportunities Believe that nothing is impossible Exceed expectations Treat all with respect Here at Swanstaff, we like to give back to the community. We have taken part in a number of fundraisers and charity events for a variety of different charities, here are just a few: Collecting and donating winter coats to different homeless charities up and down the UK. Children in Need bake sale. Dragon boat challenge for Stacey’s Smiles. Dressed up as Elves for Alzheimer’s Society. Took part in Christmas Jumper Day and raised money for Save the Children. Bundles of joy We have 9 branches across the UK and a national temporary and permanent team (who are both based at our head office) who are always happy and on hand to help. Please see below to check your nearest branch and their contact number. Happy Recruiting! Chelmsford branch – 01245 266888 Colchester branch – 01206 570688 Ipswich branch – 01473 558443 Kings Lynn – 01553 601222 National Temps (who cover Milton Keynes and High Wycombe too) – 01322 474655 Peterborough – 01733 307640 Swanley – 01322 614900 Waltham Cross – 01992 641987
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5 Effective Ways to Keep Company Culture Positive in Uncertain Times
Employees are a company’s biggest asset. It is through a culture of three C’s - communication, commitment and collaboration that a company can show support to its employees in uncertain times. Changes could be afoot due to economic instability, political turmoil or reorganisation within a company. The question of how leaders can still keep employees engaged and productive will be raised. During uncertain times, your employees will be concerned about their career and if their job is secure or not. Therefore, they may not be as productive and focused as usual. What can you do to lead them as a team and cheer them on, while still taking care of the company’s changing needs? 5 effective ways to keep company culture productive during uncertain times Here are a few things you can do to take a negative situation and make something positive from it: 1- Lead with compassion: Address your employees directly instead of avoiding the topic of change. Listen to their concerns and show compassion to how they are feeling. If they are anxious, acknowledge their fears and see how you can create a balance between their demands and your company’s needs. If you have a long-term strategy in place, you will not be leading from a position of panic, but from a place of confidence. Ignoring people’s concerns and emotions will only create more uncertainty and will act as an excuse for employees to not care about the company. Show them you care and they will care in return. It’s a two-way street – be compassionate and the employees will do the same. 2- Manage expectations: Tell them what you would like them to do. Explain and communicate properly where performance expectations remain the same, or if the goals/targets have changed ensure they are aware of this. You might give them flexibility in their work schedule but with clearly defined targets to achieve so they can deliver results while not feeling detached from the company during uncertain times. This will also help them stay grounded because it will develop a shared sense of purpose. It will also re-affirm to your employees that you take care of their needs too such as flexible hours, and not just about your company’s profits. Increasing your employees’ sense of control over their work schedule will help normalize stress among them and they will stay loyal to the company. 3- Build & encourage team collaboration: Working as a team not only boosts the performance of employees but also brings better results in terms of profits for the company. Therefore, encouraging teamwork can not only lighten the burden on one employee but also results in better project management. Collaboration is key to successful workplace culture, especially in times of change. It builds togetherness and unity and a shared desire to succeed and achieve goals, rather than working in silos. A feeling of belonging can effectively boost employees’ morale and motivation to deliver their best every day even in times of insecurity and uncertainty. 4- Create a nurturing environment: During uneasy and turbulent times, the strength of an organization lies in the hands of strong leaders. A great leader spends time coaching them, rather than dictating to them. An effective leader nurtures them by empowering his/her employees and delegating decision making powers to a certain extent to his/her employees. When the employees have the authority and power to make decisions, be it on project level or admin level, they feel motivated. They think of themselves, not as a cog in the machine but an important part of their company who can bring positive results. Therefore, great leaders focus on creating a nurturing environment to let employees reach their full potential. 5- Inspire & praise your employees: Create positive energy among your employees by praising them where it’s due. Do not ignore their efforts and hard work. Make your praise specific and do it in front of their team, to show that you are proud of their work and that they are making a valuable contribution to the company. Praising will inspire others in the team to work better too. Your employees will feel positive knowing that their work is being recognized. Follow the aforementioned 5 steps to lead your employees and company for success in difficult times.
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Health Care Tips: Good Hand-washing Practice for Infection Control
It is important to understand why we should take extra care to control the spread of any viruses or infections using good hand washing practices. Hand washing is one of the best methods to prevent the spread of germs and keep yourself and your family protected as well as healthy. According to the CDC (Centres for Disease Control and Prevention), "handwashing can reduce the risk of respiratory infections by 16%" Think of it like this: if your hands are clean, you can save your life and others by stopping the spread of germs. Here is why good hygiene matters and what happens if infection or viruses spread fast: People can suffer and die, especially those using health and care services are usually more vulnerable and need protecting Infection is more likely to spread when vulnerable people are together Infection cost health care services huge amounts of money Infection can spread quickly affecting whole populations right across the world It can impact on people’s social and family life New diseases develop and old diseases reappear – infection never goes away Inadequate hand hygiene means a healthcare-associated infection which can result in patient death! In order to prevent or reduce the spread of infectious diseases and viruses, the “Chain of infection” must be broken. This can be done by appropriate cleaning and hand washing. Especially for healthcare workers such as nurses and healthcare assistants because they work in hospitals and take care of vulnerable people, it is crucial to maintain excellent hygiene levels. To protect yourself and others from germs: Wash your hands regularly with soap and water and dry them thoroughly If soap is not available, use an alcohol-based sanitiser but be aware that it does not kill all germs, whereas soap and water kill most germs. Unfortunately, studies have found hand washing compliance to be greater than 50% This is due to the lack of appropriate handwashing facilities, or complete ignorance. To become aware of the good handwashing practices, hospitals and care units should provide appropriate training to their staff. Good Handwashing Practices (Step-by-Step): These guidelines are given by the CDC, a government organization for disease control and prevention, please follow this to stay healthy: Wet your hands with clean, running water (warm or cold), turn off the tap, and apply soap. Lather your hands by rubbing them together with the soap. Lather the backs of your hands, between your fingers, and under your nails. Scrub your hands for at least 20 seconds. Need a timer? Hum the “Happy Birthday” song from beginning to end twice. Rinse your hands well under clean, running water. Dry your hands using a clean towel or air dry them. Here is a handwashing technique poster from WHO (World Health Organisation) to help you understand how to wash your hands properly: Source: https://www.who.int/gpsc/clean_hands_protection/en/ When should you wash your hands? Here are some of the times when it is essential before and after work to wash your hands and the steps involved to ensure good hand washing practice: Using disposable gloves: Before you wash hands, here is how to take off your gloves properly in a step by step manner: Pinch the lower palm of one contaminated glove with the gloved fingers of your other hand, and pull it toward your fingertips so that it rolls off your hand with the inside facing outward. Do not remove it completely, though. Now, pinch the lower palm of the other glove with the fingers of the partially-gloved hand, and pull it off completely by pulling it upward and inside-out. Do not dispose of this glove yet---hold it with the fingertips of your partially gloved hand. Then, insert the thumb and forefinger of your bare hand between your wrist and the inside-out cuff of the partially-removed glove. Use caution to avoid touching the outside of the contaminated glove with your bare fingers. Pull the glove toward your fingertips and then over the other contaminated glove. Dispose of the gloves in a marked infectious waste container. Wash your hands immediately with soap and hot water. Preparing, serving and eating food: Make sure to wash hands before, during and after preparing food. Also, wash hands before eating food. If you are serving food or caring for someone who is sick or has a virus or infection, then wash your hands before and after you serve food to them. Contact with your own and other body fluids: This involves all these tasks which means you should wash hands before and after doing these tasks. This list is not an exhaustive list but starting with these can help prevent the spread of germs: Handling clean and dirty laundry Using the toilet Blowing your nose, coughing or sneezing Touching an animal, feeding them or handling their waste Touching garbage, taking bins out Treating a cut or wound Changing a child’s nappy Follow the above-mentioned guidelines properly to stop picking and spreading viruses and infections, especially if you are visiting anyone in the hospital or you work in a healthcare setting.
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Social Care: CQC Inspection Checklist [Infographic Inside]
Are you adult social care services that are providing regulated activities under the Health and Social Care Act 2008? Then, you must be registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC). Who is the Care Quality Commission (CQC) and what do they do? The Care Quality Commission (CQC) regulates against the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2010 and the Care Quality Commission (Registration) Regulations 2009. These regulations describe the essential standards of quality and safety for people who use health and social care services and these people have a right to expect these standards. Who uses care home services? A care home provides residential care for many people. These include older people, disabled people, people with a learning disability, people with long- or short-term health conditions or people with drug or alcohol problems. A care home may also provide services such as nursing care. What does a CQC inspection involve? According to Care Quality Commission (CQC), "Our job is to monitor and inspect health and adult social care services such as your local care homes, GP practices, and hospitals. We inspect these services to make sure they give you high-quality care and we give them a rating of ‘outstanding’, ‘good’, ‘requires improvement’ or ‘inadequate’. If a service needs to improve, we will take action to make sure this happens. When we inspect each service, we always find out whether or not it is: safe, responsive to people’s needs, effective, well-led and caring." An unexpected inspection from the Care Quality Commission (CQC) can be a daunting experience for a care home. To ensure that the visit goes as smoothly and well as possible, you need to set aside time to prepare for what will actually happen when the day arrives. If you follow our handy checklist of 5 top tips to preparing for a CQC inspection, you’ll be ready on the day of the CQC inspection. DOWNLOAD FREE PRINTABLE INFOGRAPHIC [PDF] CQC Inspection Checklist 1 – Prepare your staff: A huge part of meeting the inspector’s requirements and impressing them will be to prepare your staff. The best way to do this is to explain what the CQC inspection is. According to the Care Quality Commission (CQC), "The focus of our inspections is the experiences people have when they receive care and the impact the care has on their health and wellbeing. We make our judgements against the regulations, and the judgements we make are informed by these experiences. This is why inspectors spend a lot of their time on an inspection directly observing care and talking to people who receive care, their family and carers. They will check their findings in a number of ways, perhaps by looking at records, or speaking with staff, to reach their judgements." It is your job to explain to your staff why the inspection is so important for your care home. Make an effort to teach your staff how to communicate with each other and with the residents. The staff needs to be empathetic and respectful to the care home residents. Since learning communication skills takes a long time, start preparing after the day of your last inspection. Your staff does not need to learn all the complex regulations but they should have some understanding of some key regulations such as safeguarding and whistleblowing. This will come in handy when they will be asked questions about regulations and they can then confidently give a simple explanation. It is a good idea to help your staff prepare for CQC interview questions. This will help them to feel more confident and less likely to feel under pressure and on the spot. Here are some of the CQC interview questions that might be asked: How long have you been working here? What it is that you do here? How did you apply for your job? Do you have an updated job description / clear role responsibility, contract and staff handbook? Name one good thing you like about your work? Do you have any concerns? Do you feel supported? How are you treated by management and partnership? Did you have an interview when you applied for this job? Were references taken when you were appointed? Did you have a CRB / DBS check for the current position? Have you received training? What courses/training have you been on? Do you have staff appraisals? When was your last staff appraisal? How did you follow up on the objectives and action plan set out in your appraisal? Are you included in adding to the agenda and receiving meeting minutes? Where are the anaphylactic kits and are they checked regularly? Do you know about vulnerable adults and children? Who is the safeguarding lead here? What are the ‘out of hours’ arrangements? Are you aware of a whistleblowing policy? Do you feel free to blow the whistle if and when necessary? Do you know about the complaints procedure and can you describe it? How do you react when you read NHS choices if there is a complaint? Was there any significant event that you know about? Confidentiality and privacy – how do they work when dealing with patients/service users/clients? How do you treat people with dignity and respect? Describe the chaperone policy and procedure for chaperones? Are you a chaperone? If yes, describe your role and responsibilities? How are areas kept clean and tidy and do you have any concern about the cleanliness of any areas? Do you have an incident and accident book and where is it kept? 2 – Personalise your care plans Your patients are the biggest assets of your organisation. The CQC inspector will want to speak with them to get their views on the organisation and how it is run. You want the patients to give their honest opinion so instead of preparing them in regards to the answers they are going to give, make sure your care plans reflect the actual needs of your patients. Make an effort to create personalised care plans. For example, if one of your residents suffers from high blood pressure, make sure you have a short term care plan in place for immediate care. Image Source: Flickr.com Patient feedback is essential in a social care setting. You should aim to provide the best care possible so you need to know what is working for your patients and what can be improved. It is important that you conduct feedback surveys to address the issues even before the inspection happens. CQC would see that you have thought about your patients' needs and made improvements in your care plans after the survey, based on your residents' feedback. 3 – Plan the day in advance Make a timetable for the day of the inspection so you and your staff know exactly what to do and when. You could also prepare a welcome pack that outlines the key members of staff that the inspector(s) may wish to speak to. This could include the staff member’s name, their job title and a picture of them. Ensure that you have checked if you are breaching any CQC regulations. If yes, create a correction plan quickly and improve your shortcomings. 4 – Gather all the correct and relevant information There could be a vast amount of paperwork and documentation that the CQC inspector could ask for. This could include; policies, HR records, patient information, and health and safety documents. Remember to include minutes of meetings where these topics may have been discussed. Here are a couple of things that CQC wants you to consider: Making staff aware of the methods CQC use to gather evidence. Making it clear that CQC doesn’t expect all staff to have the same level of knowledge and understanding. How you will be ready to produce documentation during the visit. If there is a valid reason why you can’t locate documents during the visit, the CQC inspector will usually allow you 48 hours to produce them. Including a contents page at the front of each care plan so that inspectors and your staff know what they can expect to find and where. Maintaining a folder that directs staff to where they can find information quickly, e.g. health and safety and training records. Keeping your records up to date, particularly training records Checking with the inspector before they leave that they have been provided with all the documents they have asked for, and spoken to everyone they needed to. DOWNLOAD FREE PRINTABLE INFOGRAPHIC [PDF] 5 – Don’t overthink it The CQC inspector will just want to see how the organisation operates on a day to day basis. Just remember to remain calm. If you will follow our CQC inspection checklist, then you will confidently face the CQC inspector as you will be prepared for your CQC inspection. Are you looking to hire staff for your social care setting? Please fill in the form given below and we will be in touch soon. Form ID:5382 CLICK ON THE IMAGE BELOW TO DOWNLOAD FREE PRINTABLE INFOGRAPHIC [PDF]
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How to Become a Mental Health Nurse
Mental Health Awareness Week has got us thinking about all the different kinds of roles nurses play and what different roles there are out there and how every single one plays a part in impacting the lives of their patients. We have put together some information on everything you need to know about the role of a mental health nurse who can prepare you on your journey to joining this respected profession. If you are wondering why choose mental health nursing as a career, this article is for you! What does a mental health nurse do? A registered mental health nurse is responsible for planning and providing support and medical care to people with mental health problems. What is the average salary for a mental health nurse, UK? On average, a band 5 (newly qualified) mental health nurse will earn a salary of £22,128 to £28,746 per year. Do mental health nurses get paid more? That depends on your qualifications and level of experience. As you progress, you'll work up through the bands. The most experienced Nurses work at Band 6 or 7 with salaries ranging from £26,565 to £41,787. What are the qualities and skills of a mental health nurse? If you are thinking why choose mental health nursing as a career, then understanding if your interpersonal skills match with these skills will help you decide whether to pick this as a profession or not. Assessing and planning nursing care requirements Visiting patients at their homes Building relationships with patients Reassuring, listening and talking to patients and their loved ones Combating stigma and helping patients and families deal with situations Administrating medication Writing and updating patient records Liaising with doctors, social workers and other health and social care professionals Where can you get hired as a mental health nurse? The NHS General, psychiatric and secure hospitals Residential and nursing homes Community and rehabilitation units Special units within prison services What qualifications do you need to work with mental health? The main qualification you need is a Mental Health Nursing Degree. However, it is also desired that you have the following qualities: Good health and fitness The ability to empathise with people Good understanding of the theories of mental health Excellent teamwork skills Resilience Stamina Observation skills Communication skills Ability to stay calm and think quickly in challenging situations Skilled in decision making How to prepare for a mental health nurse job interview? If you are looking for mental health nurse jobs near me, then it would be good to prepare yourself for the job interview. Here are some common questions that might be asked: What experience do you have? What are the key tasks you think will be entailed with this job? What are the biggest risks of Mental Health Nursing? Why do you want this job? Why do you want to work for us? How would you handle complaints made by patients? How would you improve the quality of care provided? What’s the best approach to dealing with challenging patients and situations? Now you have an understanding of how a day in the life of a mental health nurse looks like, you can pursue mental health nursing as a career. Would you like to consider working as an agency nurse with Swanstaff? Then, fill the form given below and we will be in touch soon to match you with the role that fits you the most. Form ID:5353
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4 Top Reasons Why You Should Consider Agency Work as a Nurse
If you want a rewarding nursing career without some of the stresses of NHS nursing such as increasing workloads, lowering morale and poor pay, you can explore the option to work for an agency. There are many benefits of agency nursing; the top ones being higher pay rate and flexible hours of work. According to Adzuna, “Year-on-year pay for Agency nurse jobs has gone up 7.9% year-on-year, compared to an annual change of -0.4% for all jobs.” Agency nursing is becoming a preferred choice among nurses as hospitals are considering agency nurse job roles as a great resource to fill the staffing gaps. Here are some of the key benefits of agency nursing: 1 - Higher Pay Rate: As a nurse, you tend to get a higher hourly rate than for full-time permanent roles. According to the most recent agency nurse salary trends by Adzuna - a global job aggregator website, the average Agency nurse salary is £46,263, compared to the average NHS nursing salary of £36,435. Nurses are in high demand in the UK so if you want full-time hours you will not have any trouble achieving this. Equally, you will have the flexibility to choose a permanent role and work additional hours for an agency on your days off to increase your earning potential as a nurse. 2 - Skills Development: In order to expand your skillset and widen your career progression routes, agency nursing offers a variety of settings and training. If you want a higher pay rate, then you need to be an experienced nurse. A good agency usually offers training so you can upgrade your skills and have a better chance of landing nursing jobs with a higher pay rate. So, choosing an agency helps you build your career as a nurse. Here are some of the most common skills needed to be a good nurse: Good Health and Fitness Empathetic Adaptability Team Player Resilient Stamina Good Observation Excellent Communication Calm in Challenging Situations Quick Decision-making Ability 3 - Flexible Hours: Setting your own hours is another major benefit of working with an agency. You can choose the shifts you want to work on. For instance, if you want to work your shifts around childcare or other personal commitments then agency nursing is worth considering as a part-time nurse. If you've retired from full-time nursing but still want to have an income, then agency work will suit your lifestyle. 4 - More Work Opportunities: As an agency nurse, you get the opportunity to work in a wide variety of situations and areas. For example, you may have always worked in a hospital setting and want to move across to another department such as Elderly Care. With a temporary nurse role, you can build your experience in this area and gain relationships with one or more organisations who may then consider you for a full-time permanent nurse role. Would you like to know more about how to become an agency nurse? Then, please fill the form given below and we will be in touch. Form ID:5353
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5 Essential Items to take to Your Job Interview
Congratulations! You've managed to complete the first step in your search for a new job. You've got your foot in the door by securing yourself a job interview. You may already be excited but slightly anxious as your interview date approaches. You've done all the preparation you feel you needed to do and by now you're feeling confident that you're ready to tackle this challenge. It's the day before your interview and so it’s probably best to get everything you need to take with you together in preparation ahead of the big day, maximising your chances of acing your job interview. Wondering what you should take? Let me break it down for you... 1- A printed version of your CV This is a key item to take to your interview, although you will probably find that your interviewer has a copy already it is a good idea to have a copy of your own CV just in case they do not or if you are asked to talk through your CV you’ll have this as a prompt. 2- Your mobile phone Now this one may sound silly as there are not many people who don't seem to have their phone less than a meter away from them. Nevertheless, it’s worth putting it on your checklist. If you were to run into traffic on your way to your interview or needed to look something up last minute then you are going to need your phone to ensure you can call ahead and let your interviewer know you're going to be late, because of course, first impressions are important. 3- Copies of qualifications & certificates It is pretty common for you to be asked to bring along details of qualifications/certificates you have gained that prove you meet the job specification. Even if they have not asked you to bring them it is worth getting this prepared just in case! Make sure that you have all the official documents ready prior to your interview day to avoid giving yourself something extra to worry about on the day. 4- A notepad and a pen Ensure you take some form of notebook and pen with you, preferably a black biro because you never know when you're going to be asked to fill out a form. You can also use it to write prompts or questions you might want to ask in the job interview or to take some notes to follow up after the job interview. 5- A smart bag Now that you know what you need to take with you you're going to need a smart, appropriate bag to put everything in. Take some time when considering this, think about the environment you are applying to work within and decide based on this which type of bag would be most suitable. Are you looking for temporary or permanent work? Please fill the form given below and we will be in touch soon to discuss options that fit you the most. Form ID:5353
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Workplace Culture: Which F.R.I.E.N.D.S Personality Are You?
Over the years we have laughed and cried along with the TV series FRIENDS. In every situation, you find yourself, whether its job search or at work, you can learn a thing or two from these well-known Friends characters. So, which FRIENDS personality are you? Here are some career lessons that you can apply to be better at work: 1) Don’t bring your problems to work with you - Ross Geller Nothing is more unprofessional than speaking to your co-workers (especially a figure of authority) about the negative aspects of your personal life. Ross has anger issues and projected his anger towards his boss at work. Don’t be like Ross. Don’t cry over a sandwich. 2) Perform not-so-likable aspects of your job with a smile - Rachel Green Don’t assume that you will love every aspect of the job you are going for. Rachel thought she would never have to make coffee again, and yet she ended up doing the coffee runs for her new office. There is always going to be one or two things you would prefer not to do in your job role. However, if you love the majority of your duties then go for it. 3) Face your fears head-on - Chandler Bing Sometimes you are required to work with people who you would prefer not to spend your time with. However, you will need to swallow those feelings and focus on the work you are meant to be completing. You might think that you cannot decide on which career path to take. For example, Chandler worked at a company where he earned well but did not like the work. He then got out of his comfort zone and decided to leave that well-paid job to do an internship in an advertising agency, a career he wanted to explore. At first, Chandler ran from his fears of job security but decided to step out of his comfort zone and do something he actually liked. via GIPHY 4) Never agree to take a job that you dread the thought of - Monica Geller Never agree to take a job that you dread the thought of. This is wasting both your time and the employer’s time. It will also affect the other staff and their attitude as they may become hateful towards you if you are unmotivated and not doing your bit to contribute to the team. If you are already in a job you dislike then instead of suffering in silence, you need to figure out what is going wrong for you and talk to someone about it. See if anything can change, if it can’t, then maybe it’s time to look elsewhere. via GIPHY 5) There is nothing to be embarrassed about your job - Joey Tribianni The most important thing to remember about a job is to not be embarrassed by it. You are independent and earning your own money, there is nothing to be embarrassed about. Joey tried to hide his job at the coffee house from the rest of the group due to the fact that he was embarrassed however when they all realised that he was an employee, they were nothing but supportive. 6) Be motivated and willing to go the extra mile - Phoebe Buffay Despite growing up living on the streets with no family or friends to support her, Phoebe managed to land herself a job as a masseuse and ended up being able to share an apartment with Monica. This motivation and willingness that Phoebe shows can be transferred into employment and shows that as an employee you are able to do anything you put your mind to as long as you are motivated and willing to do so. Phoebe is the most motivated of the entire group, are you like Phoebe at your workplace? Enjoyed this blog? You might like: How to beat the winter blues at the workplace 10 ways you can share happiness in the workplace How to manage stress in the workplace How to support your mental health in the workplace Are you searching for a job or looking for a new role? Fill the form given below and we will be in touch soon. Form ID:5353
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Employer Brand: 8 Team-Building Exercises to Boost Employee Engagement
Team-building. It’s sometimes seen as the marmite of the employee engagement world. You either love it or you hate it! We're here to show you how you can plan team building activities that won’t bore your staff and will actually increase employee engagement. There are a number of factors to consider: 1 - The size of your team Some tasks won’t suit smaller teams and so you may need to plan to use a different space if you have a large group. 2 - The personalities within your team Are they introverts or extroverts? 3 - The likes and dislikes of the individuals Are they really sporty? You want to make sure you pick something everyone will want to get involved in. Now have a think about what you would like to gain from the team building activity? Are you trying to improve problem-solving skills, help people get to know one another or maybe something else? So, keeping your answers to all of the above in mind, here are our top 5 team building activities that we've run at company events and our staff have loved! 4 - Knowing me, Knowing you This team-building task is essentially a scavenger hunt but instead of items, you need to find people. All you need to do is set a range of qualities or attributes for people to find. This could be anything from someone with blue eyes, someone with a horse, someone who drives a BMW, etc. The only rule is that you can only put someone’s name down once on the sheet. Group size: Unlimited (the bigger the better!) Length: 15-45 minutes depending on group size Benefits: Relationship building, creating discussion 5 - Do good, feel good Plan a charity event. Split your group into teams (if you have more than 10 people) and ask them to choose a charity and then come up with a creative fundraising idea. You could give them a budget to spend but you don’t have to. In the end, ask people to vote for their favourite idea and then run this as a charity event. Group size: Unlimited Length: 20 minutes Benefits: Problem-solving, creating discussion 6 - Common knowledge Find five things you all have in common with each other. For this one, it works best in smaller groups. Maybe you all have a freckle on your left thumb or all love country music? This one is great as a warm-up task before a bigger team building task. Try to think outside the box with your answers! Group size: 2-5 (any bigger and it tends to be impossible!) Length: 5-15 minutes depending on group size Benefits: Relationship building, creating discussion 7 - Who do you think you are There are a number of great personality quizzes out there that you can print or do online. Choose one of these and get people to take it. Once you have the results, get people to stand with others with similar personalities and see if there are any who surprise you. Discuss your results in teams and use the information you learn to get to know your team better. Group size: Unlimited Length: Dependant on quiz Benefits: Relationship building, create discussion 8 - The apprentice Split people into teams. Ask them to create a product or service around the topic of your choice. Provide them with lined paper, A3 paper, and colored pens and ask them to split themselves in half. One half will be Marketing and Design, they will come up with a logo, tagline, marketing plan and marketing budget for their product or service. The other will be Sales and Finance, they will work out the costs and how the will pitch their product and who it will be aimed at. This task is a great one for salespeople and gets them to think about production costs, marketing, office costs and so much more that go into selling a product or service. Ask your CEO or Manager to pick a winner from the pitches. Group size: Split into teams of 4-6 Length: 45 minutes Benefits: Problem-solving, creating discussion Can you think of any other team-building tasks you could try? Have you tried any of these? Let us know in the comments below. If you’re looking to hire new staff, then fill the form given below and we will be in touch soon. Form ID:5382
