The War For Digital Talent

WAR FOR DIGITAL TALENT

Digital is not a normal recruitment sector; it is devoid of reality compared to the general recruitment market. Digital is the football equivalent of Manchester City, operating by a unique set of rules in the employment industry.

As the country constantly sits on the brink of another recession, digital basks in the sun of job security and often incredible salary increases. And this situation is not likely to stop anytime soon. The fact remains that Digital is rapidly expanding as quickly as skilled people can be trained/hired. The war for Digital talent is the most eagerly fought of any recruitment sector.

The rapid rise of Digital has created a job vacuum and the industry has far more jobs available than skilled people to take them, this has generated a candidate driven market in which everyone is hunting for talent.

Taking this into account, it is fascinating that so few employers have created any innovative recruitment strategies other than ‘let’s offer them more money’. In fact it is strange to see so many companies scrambling for talent but investing little into a strategy of how to secure and retain it. 

So here are a few points I believe can help you improve your conversion rate and win the war for talent.

1. Don't rely on the power of your brand; often it is not as powerful as you think! Believe it or not your brand does not sell itself as I have been told several times. The key is to ensure the people who are running the interviews can actively sell and promote your business but equally promote the benefits of working for them as an individual: people buy into people and the people who run the best interviews secure more talent than the people who don’t sell and let the company speak for itself.

2. Research! So few companies ask me what does the candidate specifically want? Is it progression, is it training, is it money etc. It’s vital before a candidate attends an interview that you have a grasp of what you need to specifically promote in order to secure that individual if you decide they are right for your business.

3. The recruitment process in digital is often expedited; it has to be because the best candidates go on and off the market so quickly. Nothing frustrates a candidate more than a company not being able to officially offer a job because HR have no sign off. Don’t win the battle for the candidate but lose the war internally to hire them.

4. The most perilous stage of the recruitment process is the time between a candidate accepting a role and starting the role. Often companies think job done and wait for the candidate to start. But this is Digital - the company the candidate is leaving is well aware of the cost associated with replacing them and so often go to work during this time trying various methods to try and get the candidate to stay and renege on the new job. If only one party is talking to the candidate for potentially upwards of a 3 month notice period, this can have a devastating effect. As a recruiter I spend a lot time educating clients on methods of keeping in touch with candidates after they have been offered and including them when possible in social events, creating buy in to the new business.

5. Shameless plug I know… But work with good recruiters! A recruiter’s value is not sourcing candidates; anyone can go onto LinkedIN nowadays and compile a list of Digital ADs for example but a recruiter manages every part of the recruitment process. They flag up concerns, they personally get involved in ensuring a candidate starts and they educate your line managers. The difference between a good recruiter and average one can define the war for talent in Digital.

These are just some of the things I believe are useful to implement in order to maximise your chances of winning the war for talent, for further information on Digital Minds and how we can help you as a candidate or client give me a shout. simon@digital-minds.co.uk

The Ugly Truth Of How To Get A Pay Rise in Digital

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Ugly Truth Of How To Get A Pay Rise In Digital...

You would think that the best way to increase your salary would be to do a good job, be loyal to your employer & be valued by the accounts you manage or work on. In theory that should be the best way to get a pay rise & in some cases that is how it works, but most of the time it does not work that way…

I know two candidates in digital who both work for a well known digital media agency. Both candidates work in the same team, are good at what they do and they both have 2 years Digital experience. Up until last week they had the exact same salary, however one of them was actively looking for a new job and secured 2 offers from competitors. So this candidate hands in their notice. Within a couple of hours the business had booked a table at a restaurant for the candidate to meet the MD of the business (someone he had never even spoken with before) they went on to deliver a comprehensive charm offensive, coupled with offering the incentives of a promotion and a huge £10,000 pay rise! So the candidate decided to stay and accepted the promotion and pay rise. I would probably have done the same thing myself.  At the end of the month these changes take effect and the candidate is very happy.

So what about the other candidate? Well they are not looking for a new job, they have not handed in their notice so they don’t get fast tracked to Account Mgr level and stay as an Exec, obviously they don’t get a £10,000 pay rise either.

This is the reality of the reactive world of Digital when it comes to companies paying their staff. If you stay loyal to a company, you will absolutely be on less money than the people who have made moves or at least threatened to do so. I’m not saying there is an easy solution for employers either, it’s difficult for them, they know the cost of replacing a good candidate is huge & gifting pay rises and promotions to make employees stay is good short term business. Quite frankly as a recruiter these tactics provide me with a wealth of good candidates as well, but is giving promotions and big pay rises once someone has a foot out of the door right? What about he person who possesses the same skill set and experience who did not hand in their notice? Why don’t they get the same up lift in benefits? Well they will but only when they decide to leave…

If you would like to find out more about Digital Minds give me a shout anytime. We specialise in PPC Jobs, SEO jobs, Digital Planning & Buying jobs, Social Media jobs, Affiliate jobs, Mobile jobs & senior level Digital multi channel roles. We also have fantastic referral and reward schemes. Referral a successful candidate and we will gift you up to £2000 & a Kindle Fire for Christmas. Work with us exclusively for a period of time and if we place you in your next job we will reward you with up to £1500 and a kindle Fire as a thank you! Nobody else does this, certainly not to this level so makes sense to speak with us first.

Simon halkyard (simon@digital-minds.co.uk)

Want to get the dream job in Digital? You need an interview coach!

Having an interview coach sounds very American, not really something we would entertain in the UK. However in my opinion as a Digital recruiter it’s fast becoming one of the smartest moves you can make when looking for a new Digital job. Interviews are not natural situations; if you’re in the first few years of your career you also probably have little experience of them. More and more we are seeing candidates who are strong interviewers winning jobs over candidates that are more technically gifted, people who get nervous or struggle to articulate are losing out, but it does not need to be that way!
Good recruiters can add significant value by coaching you through the interview process. At Digital Minds we often role-play interview situations with candidates that are looking for an edge over other candidates. At first for some it’s a bit embarrassing to do this, but that soon disappears and the value is undeniable. A lot of people who think they are good at interviewing are actually not! So If not via a recruiter who offers coaching then at least run through interview situations with a partner or friend and get them to give you honest and constructive feedback. You will be surprised what you might find out. It’s much better to find out your faults in a practice situation than during an actual interview.
If like me you are in your thirties with kids you may not go out anymore on a Saturday night! If so you may have seen Strictly Come Dancing on Saturday night on the BBC. They have a new judge, prima ballerina Darcey Bussell. She has an annoying habit of saying ‘Yah’ at the end of EVERY sentence, god it annoys me! I’m sure someone on the show will mention it to her. I know that sounds insignificant, but you would be surprised what little habits we all have in interview situations that can be annoying or simply just don’t show you in the right light. I often get candidates who when discussing achievements talk about ‘we’ as in the team they work in, rather than ‘I’ as in what they have achieved individually. Again a minor point, however I have seen people lose out on a second interview because of something that simple. So the up shot is this. A good recruiter will coach you, if not then get a friend or family member to do it. Give it a go, don’t worry about looking stupid, you will learn from it, improve your interview technique and ultimately perform better in interviews. Don’t lose out on the dream job because you are not prepared!
If you would like to know more about me and Digital Minds please contact me anytime simon@digital-minds.co.uk I’m always happy to help regardless of if you are looking for a new job. We only work in Digital and specialise in: PPC Jobs, SEO Jobs, Digital Planning & Buying Jobs (Brand & DR), Social Media Jobs, Mobile Jobs, New Business Jobs, Affiliate Jobs & most other Digital disciplines. We also have fantastic reward schemes (see link below) if you work with us exclusively or referral a friend we have rewards for you paying £500 to £2000!
http://digitalmindsrecruitment.wordpress.com/digital-minds-reward-referral/
You can also follow me on LinkedIN and on Twitter @Recruiter_simon

#SHICKLEGATE A DIGITAL RECRUITERS VIEW

The resignation letter of Kieran Allen spread across Media Land like a forest fire yesterday. I was shocked by how quickly it started trending on Twitter & by the sheer appetite people had for it.

It really was a classic example of the power of Social Media. Here we have a man who had spent a dozen years building a successful career in media having his career crippled & permanently tarnished within the space of a few hours. The scary part is that nobody knew if the allegations made were true or not, it’s even more scary that it is now irrelevant if they are true or not as the damage has been done. It was trial by social media with a swift verdict. Working as a Digital Recruiter I found myself feeling sorry for both Kieran & Greg, their careers will always be defined by THAT resignation letter.

Digital media is a booming industry, people often work long hours & working to tight deadlines, it also has some big personalities. In this environment I expect many people in the industry have let off steam by engaging in office ‘banter’ that if written down in black and white would make them wince. As a recruiter I have had many senior people in the industry tell me jokes, stories, gossip that were delivered without any malice but are not for repeating. I expect many people last night have reviewed some of the things they have said previously that today would be horrified if they were circulated around the media industry. So are we now going to have completely sanitised office environments and updated directives, I doubt it. I’m absolutely not supporting any of the accusations that were made in the email, but equally many who have commented on #Shicklegate have probably also made some comments before that could be viewed as equally incendiary.

One of the key reasons people call me looking for a new digital job is because they do not like their manager or director. Another key reason is many people in the media industry are working crazy hours, don’t feel supported & just cannot sustain the workload they have been given. It amazes me how many digital agencies don’t invest enough in supporting their current staff and work harder on keeping people happy. If your people are working regularly until late & don’t feel appreciated when they do and also don’t get help when they ask for it, I can guarantee you they will be calling someone like me. Then that agency has to replace them with someone who may not be as good, who costs more to hire, train, develop and bed into the job and who carry a recruitment fee for a cherry on top!

 If someone has decided they want to leave I would certainly recommend a digital agency perform an exit interview that is not completed by the line manager or director but by an HR professional who is not emotionally involved. Someone who can explore the reasons why someone is moving so they can improve their processes, certainly when this is done consistently patterns appear that allow improvements to be made. Obviously there are also two sides to every story & when someone is moving their motivations for doing so should not be accepted as the whole truth, many will be honest, but some will have an axe to grind. But I would think by having an exit interview a lot of bad feelings could be defused to some extent & the companies could move forward with useful information about how to keep their staff in future.

Ultimately social media has shown that unsubstantiated accusations are just as powerful as substantiated ones & that within a matter of hours careers can be brought to their knees with the press of an ‘enter button’ on a keyboard. The fallout of this will be interesting to witness, especially how people change in terms of what they say and what people feel is appropriate to say in jest for example. No matter what happens I personally think it is worrying & unacceptable that a career that took many years to achieve can be harmed in such a way by unsubstantiated allegations. I also feel for Kieran because regardless of if his accusations are correct or not, he must have felt extremely stressed and under immense pressure.

If you are interested in finding out more about Digital Minds please feel free to contact me anytime, simon@digital-minds.co.uk you may well not be looking for a new role but just have questions about the industry, i.e. are you paid in line with counter parts in other agencies or client side roles. I’m always happy to help. If you are looking for a new role we specialise in PPC jobs, SEO jobs, Digital Planning & buying jobs, Social Media Jobs, Affiliate jobs, Business Development jobs, Mobile Jobs & many other digital roles. We also have a couple of outstanding reward schemes that can be reviewed via this link.

http://digitalmindsrecruitment.wordpress.com/digital-minds-reward-referral/

Simon Halkyard

Tales from the recruitment industry. Preparing for interviews...

Tales from the recruitment industry. Preparing for Interviews...

My job in essence is a simple one; I make matches. I match a role with a candidate. That’s it. It’s the candidate part that makes it difficult!

 Every person is different and every person reacts differently in an interview situation.  Some thrive. Some panic. The end result is that on a regular basis the most talented person does not get the job. The key to a good interview is preparation. By this I don’t mean look at a LinkedIn profile and the company’s website. Real preparation needs to be much more in depth. ‘Fail to prepare, prepare to fail’ is a well known quote and it is true. You may move jobs 3, 4, 5 plus times in your life, you will probably spend more time at work that you do at home, so how you perform in your job will impact every aspect of your life. If you are happy in your job, you have a much better chance of being happy in your private life not to mention your financial life. Basically getting a new job is one of the most important things you will ever do. So it should make sense that you prepare fully.

 I recently read a blog from Sam at Koozai (which is a perfect example to use http://www.koozai.com/blog/search-marketing/my-first-public-speaking-appearance/  Sam had not done any public speaking and was nervous, which is to be expected. But what she did was ensure she prepared, extensively, in order to ensure she would succeed. I urge you to read her blog. When I read it I thought, wow I wish every candidate went to that level of detail because if they did they would minimise the potential to fail.  Interviewing is not a natural situation, so here are a few examples of useful things to do prior to an interview.

The company you are interviewing with:- What do you know about them? You probably have a website address and a job spec. It’s not enough. What else can you find out about them? Speak with your recruiter get more info!

The person you are interviewing with:- You may have their LinkedIn profile – it’s not enough! I once interviewed someone for a job at Digital Minds who started by saying, “I hear you have a new baby daughter, I have one aged 2 – how you coping with the sleepless nights?” This person took the time to find out something about me that would build rapport and show they had done their homework. I instantly felt a bond with this person who had been in the same situation as me. Simple and effective. Get as much info as you can. Find out about their personality, what they like, what they don’t like.

The interview:- This is the big one. How do you prepare for an interview? The best way in my opinion is to role play. I did a drama degree so I’m always up for role playing interviews! I know many people find them uncomfortable but they are effective. We all know a lot of the questions that will be asked at interview so why not prepare for them, why not role play them to the point it’s like muscle memory. This also takes care of the nerves to a certain extent. You cannot prepare for all the questions but a good recruiter can help you prepare for most.  A good recruiter can and will tell you that you speak too fast, you over elaborate on your answers, you don’t make enough eye contact – the list goes on but better you make your mistakes whilst practicing and have the opportunity to implement improvements.

Make interviewing easier by preparing fully and by committing to the process. Some will be embarrassed to role play an interview; some people take it personally when someone highlights a weakness in there interviewing technique. But if going through this process allows you to go on and secure the job you want it is worth it! If you are going to lose out on a new job, let it be because the other person is better suited, not because you did not prepare fully. For advice on interviewing feel free to contact me. simon@digital-minds.co.uk

If you are looking for a new PPC job, SEO job, SEM job, Social job, Display job, Digital Planning & Buying job, Mobile job, Affiliates job, Web Development front end and back end we can certainly help. My LinkedIn profile gives a good overview of Digital Minds and me personally. It also has recommendations on the page which cover how I operate and work with people. http://www.linkedin.com/in/simonhalkyard

Tales from the recruitment industry...Cash incentives for candidate's a new twist on the reward scheme

Digital is probably the best example at the moment of a candidate driven industry. What I mean by that is there are far more jobs available than good candidates and consequently candidates often have plenty of choice and salaries that far exceed the norm. As a recruiter my key function is to source talent and that is getting harder and harder to do. Like a lot of recruiters we have a referral scheme which is successful and has been in place for a long time. Basically if you refer someone you know who is looking for a new role in digital and we place them in a new job we will give you a cash sum from £250 to £1500 and in some cases an iPad2. It works well and we are continuing with it. However we are always trying to think of innovative ways of promoting Digital Minds and we have come up with a new incentive, not especially innovative but hopefully welcomed– this time aimed directly at candidates.

From now on if you register with us by either 'Liking' our Facebook page, or by 'Following' Digital Minds on Linkedin & give us one week exclusivity to represent you and show you what we can do we will give you up to £1500  (depending on level of seniority) when we place you in a job. No catch – if we place you in a job we will happily give you the reward fee rather than to someone who recommends you. This can appear a brash way of attracting candidates and I guess it is. But ultimately we have a reward scheme for referrals so why not for direct applicants as well? The aim of this is to do our job the right way; one week’s exclusivity allows us to work closely with candidates and not rush or be compromised because we are one of several recruiters working with them. So that is the new incentive at Digital Minds. From now on give us a week to prove ourselves and if we do and we place you in a job, not only will you get a great new role but also a nice sum of cash from us as a thank you. Very interested to hear your thoughts on this approach.
If you are looking for a new job in PPC, SEO, SEM, Social, Display, Digital Planning & Buying, Mobile, Affiliates, Web Development front end and back end we can certainly help. My LinkedIn profile gives a good overview of Digital Minds and me personally. It also has recommendations on the page which cover how I operate and work with people. http://www.linkedin.com/in/simonhalkyard

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Tales from the recruitment industry. Should recruiters look at a candidate's Facebook page?

Should Recruiters look at a candidate’s Facebook page?

We live in a social media world and a simple Google search will bring up some information on everyone. But how far should recruiters go to find out what a candidate is like away from work? Is it relevant? In my opinion, yes, as it forms a more rounded picture of a candidate, but the key question is “is it ethical to look at a candidates Facebook page to glean this information?”

My view on this is no. I use a range of social media tools to meet/source/communicate and find out more about candidates. LinkedIn is the main one and I find it a very useful source of information. A lot of recruiters will tell you that a candidate’s LinkedIn page will show a candidate as they want to be perceived but their Facebook page will show you who they really are. I agree with this, but at what stage do we draw a line? Facebook for me is a social tool for friends & family only and just because a candidate has not ticked an obscure privacy button that does not mean it’s ok to go snooping.  My Facebook page contains numerous pictures and videos of me in various situations which taken out of context could lead someone to conclude I’m not suitable for a role. But whilst there may be a picture of me drunk in fancy dress as Mr T, I can confidently say I have never turned up to work either drunk or dressed as Mr T and certainly not both at the same time! So what is the relevance?

Look, I need to know that you have the skillset to do a job well and that you tick all the personality boxes; enthusiastic, good face to face skills, strong work ethic etc. But I can gain all of this via competency based interviewing and taking qualified references. So for now I will stick to LinkedIn. Let me know your thoughts on this one – or if you just would like to see a picture of me drunk dressed as Mr T, give me a shout!