Yvonne 
June 25, 2008On Monday 30 June 2008 UK Border Agency will fully implement Tier 1 of the new points based system. On that date they will complete the roll-out of Tier 1 (General) worldwide (more…)
Yvonne June 25, 2008
Comments (0) Yvonne June 20, 2008Purple Squirrel, a new Recruitment Consultancy that was founded by Engineers to serve the niche hiring needs of engineering, technical and industrial sectors, today announces launch of it’s new website.
“The website now provides Jobseekers, Employers and Contractors with online access to our range of recruitment services, says Yvonne Paige, Proprietor and Recruitment Director”.
A former successful Engineering, Programme and Business Development Manager, she has previously held high visibility posts in some of the world’s largest corporations. “After I had my family I just wasn’t satisfied with the level of roles accessible to me. Like many people I have always privately wanted to start my own business. Recruitment is an ideal way for me to use my industry experience to the benefit of my former peers and colleagues, 95% of companies struggle to find candidates for their job vacancies. The UK credit crunch is making that situation worse as people are fearful about their ability to sell and relocate for a new job and yet many potential candidates are struggling with fuel prices and long commutes.
I am always being asked why on earth I picked the name ‘Purple Squirrel’. Well all industries have jargon, recruitment is no different. I learned that a Purple Squirrel was the recruiter’s term for an elusive candidate with the exact qualifications to match the client role. I immediately liked the fact that it was different, memorable and a name I could build a brand around.
Purple Squirrel is definately a career choice and I am hugely optimistic and positive about the future.”
Yvonne June 19, 2008The study, published by the Chartered Management Institute, DWP and Institute for Employment Studies examines the career aspirations and job-search methods of a range of diverse groups in the UK.
Report urges employer action to boost recruitment from diverse groups (more…)
Yvonne June 12, 2008Fans of the hit TV show will know that now it’s official: Who Lies Wins. Recruitment sales manager Lee McQueen last night beat 15 other candidates and has been crowned Sir Alan Sugar’s £100,000-a-year apprentice, despite telling a huge whopper on his CV - and, more unforgivably still, being caught. He claimed that he attended Thames University for two years when he had stuck it out for just four months.
However, his admission that he lied on his CV has provoked controversy.
He is by no means the first high profile job candidate to be caught out embelishing his qualifications: below is a selection of the most infamous cases
Name: Alison Ryan
Job: Communications manager, Manchester United
Claim: First-class degree from Cambridge
Truth: She got a second class degree and had been banned from practising as a lawyer
What happened: Ryan got the £125,000-a-year job after being interviewed by Sir Alex Ferguson but was sacked after lies were exposed.
Name: Patrick Imbardelli
Job: Chief executive of the Asia Pacific arm of UK-based InterContinental Hotels Group.
Claim: Two degrees from Cornell University in the US and one from Victoria University, Australia
Truth: He attended classes at both universities but did not graduate from either
What happened: Imbardelli resigned
Name: Ronald Zarrella
Job: Chairman and chief executive of Bausch & Lomb
Claim: MBA from the Stern School of Business at New York University Truth: Mr Zarrella did not have an MBA and was exposed by a business website
What happened: He offered to resign following an “error of judgement” but the board backed him to continue. Forfeited a bonus of more than £500,000
Name: James Stocks
Job: Chef at top Scottish hotel Balbirnie House in Fife
Claim: Worked for Marco Pierre White and Gordon Ramsay
Truth: They denied knowing him
What happened: He admitted “beefing up” jobs he had done at previous restaurants on his CV and resigned.
Name: David Edmondson
Job: Chief executive of electronics retailer Radio Shack
Claim: Degrees in theology and psychology
Truth: He only completed two terms at the Pacific Coast Baptist Bible College in California
What happened: He resigned but received a payout of more than £500,000
Lee McQueen was clearly by the end of the Series the right man for the job and we say to him congratulatons. However, as ethical recruiters and members of the Recruitment and Employment Confederation, we have to advise our candidates that “Factual Discrepencies” or Fibs are not at all to be condoned. Yes of course your CV is a sales document but if the Employer is going to make a hiring committment to you as a permanent staff member you can be sure that checks on ‘details’ will be made. So if you were thinking of putting a little extra polish on your CV, please don’t. If like Lee, you were meant for that role, it will be yours anyway without the need for a lie.
Yvonne June 11, 2008The very nature of the global internet means a candidate may apply for a position practically anywhere, subject of course to securing the necessary work permissions. This company regularly receives inquiries from India in particular. I was therefore interested to read that at a 3 day event called E-Cube 2008 held this week in Calcutta that Indian engineering (mechanincal, electrical, civil) undergraduate intake is currently 10.8% and enrolments are expected to grow to 15% by 2015. That is staggering.
Conversely in the UK the popularity of engineering degrees among undergraduates is still in slow decline. 2006/7 only 5.9% of UCAS entrants took an engineering or technology subject, compared with 6.5% in 2000.
There are many barriers affecting the supply of UK engineering undergraduates principally lack of awareness of what an engineering career entails (poor careers advice and let’s be honest folks no iconic role models) and lack of mathematical preparedness from a GCSE and A’Level education.
Annual demand for engineers in the UK increases year on year by around 2% while 95% of firms report difficulties in finding candidates. So what is the future for the UK engineering industries and UK education system?
Well it would appear that in India, teaching of mathematics to a relevant standard and also encouraging students to enter engineering as a career choice is not a problem. So if a Purple Squirrel is the elusive candidate with exactly the right qualifications and capabilities to match the client requirements, then maybe future civil, mechanical and engineering Purple Squirrels will be found from India?
Yvonne March 31, 2008Why do UK workers put in more hours than any other European nation, but still have the lowest levels of productivity? Recent articles have suggested that one reason is that we are exhausted! (more…)
Yvonne March 15, 2008The workplace is the melting-pot where three different generations are thrown together. Generation Y ((born between 1980 and ‘95), the wistful reminiscence of baby-boomers (born between 1946 and ‘63) and don’t forget the almost equally bemused Generation X-ers - born between 1964 and ‘80 - caught in the middle.
For you as a manager, these people, whatever their ages, are your people. (more…)
