Are Millennial’s a waste of time?

Posted by & filed under Blog, Opinion.

I come across numerous senior people within business lamenting the lack of commitment from millennials. They are seen as a generation with a chip on their shoulder; as those who simply do not know how to graft; people who will give up at the first sign of adversity.

“The kids today aren’t like we were…”

They are thought of as “snowflakes”, as people who are easily offended and who are going to be up in arms at very little.

But is this really true?

Of course, there have been changes in society over the decades and there are some differences in attitude that have developed over the years, but to say a whole generation of people now lack the drive, graft and commitment, is totally inaccurate.

Of course, there are some people who are spoilt and ungrateful – the perennial victims, but there always have been. However, now these people are more likely to have their demands fulfilled.

And I do feel that there is a broader change in behavior in general.

There is definitely a trend towards people changing employment more swiftly and there is certainly a greater demand on businesses to improve their packages and working environments, but this isn’t because people have suddenly become ungrateful in nature.

it’s environment rather than upbringing that is changing behaviour…

The reason we see this change of behaviour, I feel, is because we have had record levels of employment across the economy, even in spite of Brexit. This means people have numerous opportunities available to them. There isn’t the same fear that losing your job means you’ll have no income and won’t be able to pay your rent/mortgage.
Highly talented people can quickly find a new (and potentially better) role.

Rapid innovation of working environments…

With so much choice available to millennials (and all the other generations in employment), ensuring you have the culture and environment to retain your best people is fundamental to business success.
The availability of numerous opportunities coupled with advancements in technology is driving innovation in the work place – the rise of collaborative workspaces, flexible working hours and work from home opportunities, reflect this.
This is a great thing – and if you don’t move with the times you will be left behind.

There are still frustrations for business owners…

Even with the improved working environments, the huge amount of opportunity available to job seekers still means if it very difficult to hire and retain the best people in the business.

Companies need to build a long term “people strategy”. Proactive forward planning, thorough in-depth calculated assessment, and robust internal appraisals and 1-1 procedures in essential to maximising retention.

Do you agree? Really interest to hear peoples thoughts on this topic…

If you are interested in discussing your own recruitment strategies with one of our consultants (whether when growing your team or planning your personal career growth) please feel free to get in touch.

9 reasons why you should have a LinkedIn account

Posted by & filed under Advice, Blog, Starting a new Job.

Hopefully you have already set up a LinkedIn profile and are following our company page to keep in touch with all the latest Property & Construction news, latest job postings and recruitment tips and advice. However, if you don’t have an account here are 9 key reasons to get one:

1) Social media plays a huge role in recruitment for potential employers

2) You need to put the effort in to getting your profile 100% complete and looking the best it can, as this is like your shop window for potential employers – an opportunity to really impress!

3) Grow your own personal network, the broader your network, the higher you will rank in other’s search results. This is vital to be successful in any business, “it’s not what you know it’s who you know!”

4) LinkedIn can assist with your career development and help increase your earning potential

5) You can be proactive and approach/connect with people from Companies you want to work for in the future – build your profile with them!

6) Learn from and be inspired by others and how they have developed their careers – analyse their work history to see what they have done.

7) Keep track of your peers – when you see someone doing well it should motivate you to want to improve

8) Deepen your understanding of a company before interviewing or even joining them

9) LinkedIn is a more visual alternative to the traditional CV!

 

How do your other Social Media accounts like Facebook & Instagram affect your career – Social Media Friend or foe for your career?

Here come the girls! Why working in construction shouldn’t just be a man’s world

Posted by & filed under Blog, Industry News, Opinion.

Equality is something that every person on the planet should be striving for. In some areas of life and particularly employment, huge leaps and bounds have already been made in order for women to be seen as equals to their male counterparts. However, there are still some areas where so much more work needs to be done.

This is true for construction.

The construction industry has always been a predominantly male world, mainly because many of the roles require intense physical labour and of course strength. So, does this mean that construction will always be limited in welcoming women?

We don’t think so, in fact, we think that the construction industry could actually benefit from having a female’s touch.

The current standings

So, how does the current climate look for the construction industry? Well, across the industry as a whole, taking the roles that are more admin and design based into account, women make up around 11% of the entire workforce. When you actually look at the building sites themselves, it drops to just 1%.

Compared to the rest of Europe, the UK has the lowest proportion of female engineers, with only 14% of students entering engineering and technology first degree courses being women.

So, why is this?

Of course, the perception is that it is “men’s work” and its mainly manual and requires strength. However, who is to say that women are not able to handle these roles, and of course, the administration, technical, design, engineering and project led vacancies can be just as suitable for women as they are men.

Many women who are currently working in the industry, or have in the past, state that sexism is a real problem. Women, when they do decide to enter the industry are treated worse than their male counterparts and often face comments and low level, seen as playful abuse from their fellow workers.

What can be done?

We know that something needs to happen when it comes to women working in construction, and it seems that it is not just down to leading women to change it. The main thing that needs to be looked at is the perception of the construction industry and women’s place in it. This is particularly true in the new generation of workers, who will be making their decision on where they want to work in the future. So, this is down to the government, schools/colleges, leading employers and industry bodies and recruitment firms to accelerate the pace of change.

Construction should be portrayed as an industry for all, where women and men are treated equally, where there is a range of jobs and skills required, this will encourage more women to enter it as a career. The current working generation need to become positive role models for women looking to enter construction. Having these role models will show other girls and women that it is possible to enter what is perceived as “a man’s world” and start to put construction on the radar as a job of choice.
There is still work to be done to ensure that men and women are equal. However, we are hopeful that the future of construction looks like it might be a touch more feminine than it is at the moment!

If you are a student interested in working in construction, or you are an employer looking to create a more diverse and inclusive environment, please get in touch with me for a chat!

https://unitetheunion.org/what-we-do/unite-in-your-sector/unite-construction-allied-trades-and-technicians/

Cost Per Hire – Guess The Cost Of Hiring a Negotiator In To Your Business…

Posted by & filed under Advice, Industry News.

IMPORTANT – Before reading through the costs calculated below, have a guess as to how much you think an empty Sales or Lettings negotiator seat might cost an Estate Agency or Property Developer…

Write it in the comments below and see if you’re close!

So, I’ve been doing some workings on the cost per hire for Sales people within the Property sector.

Here are the potential costs of what might go into securing a suitable Sales Negotiator, Lettings Negotiator or Property Consultant…

  • Assuming that the position will remain open for 2 months and it will take this person 2 weeks to be fully integrated into the company – (based on a conservative £10k / month target) lost revenue – £25,000.
  • Job Advertised across multimedia platforms– cost of £1500
  • 600 CV’s will be received and need to be reviewed:
    • Typical review time is 3 minutes per resume – 30 hours of time.
  • 25 phone screens will take place (15mins / screening) – 6 hours, 15 minutes of time.
  • 8 face to face initial interviews will occur – 8 hours of time.
  • 3 face to face, 2nd, more detailed interviews will occur – 3 hours of time.
  • Background checks and reference checks will take – 2 hours total of time.
  • Hiring Manager earns £100k per year or £48.08 per hour (assuming only one person is involved in the hiring decision). Time invested of 49.25 hours = £2367.94.
  • Training and two-week ramp up of new employee – £1,500.

Total cost: £30,367.94

But wait…

I haven’t included the time lost from the core responsibilities of the hiring manager; they could be devoting a whole extra week per hire to generating revenue for the business.
Or they could be spending more time with the existing team to develop them and increase productivity and retention. This, in turn, would reduce the need to recruit.

Then, of course, you must also take into account the bad hires, people who aren’t right. These are the people who also take a wage out of the business and don’t generate revenue!
If you lose 1 out of 4 people hired at the end of their 3-month probation that would be £30k in lost revenue PLUS their wage cost of £4500 (3 months at £18,000pa) = £34,500 in total.
Spread that over the 4 placements = £8,625 / placement extra for each hire.
If that turnover is higher, I know many property companies and estate agencies where the turnover rate is as high as 1 in 2, that’s £17,250 extra/placement!

This makes the total cost per hire = £38,992.94 (or £47,617.94 if there’s a 50% dropout rate)

Of course, the biggest cost here is the loss of revenue – £33,625 / placement and the cost of bad hires.

So you want to see the best people as quickly as possibly but it’s important not just to hire anyone as you will be going through the whole process again, at more cost. Of course, recruitment companies can help but make sure you pick the right one – but before going down that route see my blog “recruitment agencies are a waste of time!”

The most important thing is getting the RIGHT person and do all you can to keep your BEST people. If you would like more information or advice on interviewing and selection as well as the best ways to increase retention – feel free to get in contact with me (alex@cherrypickpeople.com)

Really interested to hear if your guess on the cost per hire was close! And if you have anything to add or feel I’ve missed anything in my calculation please comment!

If you are interested in further reading on this topic here is an article posted in the Telegraph, it’s not specific to property sales people, however they calculate similar costs across various sectors…

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/jobs/10657008/Replacing-staff-costs-British-businesses-4bn-each-year.html