The Workthing+ blog

"It’s a positive thing to start an initiative that collates the best career guidance, at a time when people need it the most."

"Then of course there are sites like this one. Workthing+ is accessible to senior executives, which is a good thing. There’s a definite synergy between recruitment agencies and online services such as Workthing+.

"It’s a positive thing to start an initiative that collates the best career guidance, at a time when people need it the most."

Tom Hadley, REC Director of External Relations


Read the rest of this interview here...

Interview with Tom Hadley - REC Director of External Relations (PART TWO)

The Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC) is the only professional body dedicated to representing the whole of the recruitment industry.

Tom Hadley is Director of External Relations, focussing on lobbying key Government and EU officials on a range of employment and labour market issues. The work also involves highlighting REC initiatives to promote industry standards.

In PART TWO of this exclusive Workthing+ interview, he talks to Natalie Harris about how recruitment agencies can really help you with your job search.

Issue 8 - Should I take a temporary job?

Q.    Should I take a temporary job?

A recruitment agency recently offered me a temporary job in a FTSE company. The job spec doesn’t sound great, but I’m not getting anywhere with my applications for permanent roles. Should I take it or hold out for a decent job?

T.P., Guildford

FREE sample cover letter

Thanks to everyone for participating in today's online career workshop.

As promised, here's your FREE sample cover letter, telling you exactly how to structure this important document.

Don't worry if you missed the discount code at the end of the presentation, tomorrow we'll email it to everyone who attended so you can claim your 15% discount when you subscribe or renew your subscription with Workthing+.

FREE online workshop - CV tips

Want to know how you can create the perfect CV?

Don’t miss our FREE CV advice online career workshop, taking place tomorrow (Tuesday 27th October) at 1pm GMT.

Your CV is the first thing a prospective employer will see and is vital in positioning you as the perfect candidate. But where do you start? What is the recruiter really looking for?

Interview with Tom Hadley - REC Director of External Relations (PART ONE)

The Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC) is the only professional body dedicated to representing the whole of the recruitment industry.

Tom Hadley is Director of External Relations, focussing on lobbying key Government and EU officials on a range of employment and labour market issues. The work also involves highlighting REC initiatives to promote industry standards.

In PART ONE of this exclusive Workthing+ interview, he talks to Natalie Harris about the type of jobs you should be targetting and what the REC is doing to help people who are unemployed get back into work.

"How can I prove that companies are discriminating against me because of my age?"

Can you help? Leave your comments below.

"Should I take a financial risk so that I have more time to focus on building a new career?"

Can you help? Leave your comments below.

Looking to get a step on the ladder?

Advice from Jim Knight MP, Minister for Employment and Welfare Reform

Starting out with your career is never easy and in the current economic climate we know that it can be even harder. Young people have been hit particularly hard by the recession, which is why the government has made them a key focus over the last few months. 

One reason that finding a job in your late teens and early twenties can be difficult is a lack of experience. This problem can sometimes feel like a catch-22 situation: you need the experience to get a job, but you need a job to get the experience. To help combat this problem, the government has been working hard to create thousands of opportunities for work, training and jobs to give young people their first break and a chance to develop their potential in a way that shows employers what they can do. 

Issue 7 - Have I passed my job search sell-by date?

Q.    Have I passed my job search sell-by date?

I was made redundant last year and have been looking for a job ever since: 9 till 5; 5 days a week. I got some interviews early on in the process, but now it’s all dried up – no-one is even interested in talking to me when they know how long I have been looking.

R.V., London

Issue 6 - How can I stop potential employers Googling me?

Q.  How can I stop potential employers Googling me?

I've got an interview next week with a big company. My friend warned me the interviewer might Google me or look me up on Facebook. How can I stop this invasion of privacy?

S.R., Norwich

Workthing+ nominated for 'Best Employment Advice Website' and 'Best Newcomer in Online Recruitment' awards

"We are extremely proud to be able to announce the Finalists for this year’s National Online Recruitment Awards. Winners will be revealed at our awards event in London on Thursday, the 5th of November."


Best Employment Advice Website:

Nominee: http://www.workthingplus.com

Best Newcomer in Online Recruitment:

Nominee: http://www.workthingplus.com


The National Online Recruitment Awards, Finalists 2009


Read more about The National Online Recruitment Awards here...

Hot sectors: September 2009

Still looking for a job? Considering a career change? Make it your business to explore trends in new sectors so that you can target those sectors with specific skills shortages.

The latest report from Alert Data shows the hottest hiring sectors of executive appointments in September. Overall, there are still more appointments than departures, highlighting a steady but improved growth in the job market.

Why don't the best candidates get the best jobs?

What a frustrating market this is! You know you can do the job but you don’t get the job. Instead, the position gets offered to someone who you know cannot do the role as successfully as you.
 
Why is this happening? We are in a market where we have some real skill and expertise in so many different arenas, but many people just do not know how to sell themselves.

Salespeople manage to secure so many positions, even perhaps when they are not right for the job. Salespeople know that to get the job you want, you need to adapt the sales process whether you are presenting yourself on paper (your CV), targeting a position, or going for an interview.
 
But while many of us might be highly competent in our professions, we don’t necessarily understand that this is the process we have to undertake to succeed. You are up against the best of the best in this market, so not only do you have to ensure that you are highly competent, but that you know how to sell this competency to your potential employer.
 

"Workthing+ hosts a range of the latest psychometric tests ... a new breed of tests designed to point you in the direction of your ideal career."

"Ever hoped a careers test could finally show you what to do with your life? With versions ranging from five minute time-wasters to day long life-changers you'd be forgiven for being unsure as to which to bother completing.

But with psychology moving ever apace, and more interest than ever in the business application of the human condition, there's a new breed of tests out there designed to penetrate your inner psyche, assess your innate skills and point you in the direction of your ideal career.

'They've come an awfully long way,' confirms Paul Halliwell, of career site Workthing+, which hosts a range of the latest psychometric tests. 'When we were building the site, a lot of people we were working with had done careers tests and had come up as 'librarian' for an ideal career. Nowadays psychology has improved and tests have moved an enormous distance forward.'

The new wave of optimally effective careers tests have one thing in common - they weigh up a wider spectrum of traits in order to build a full picture of the candidate in question.

Analysts have been able to develop findings from the tests to specify ideal jobs for those it categorises, and the results have been very helpful when it comes to directing staff to avenues of employment which best suit them.

Careers tests can help people break out of a set work pattern and realise their aptitudes might equally suit a different area of work ... So if you're unsure of your future career ... (psychometric tests) could just help break you out of an employment rut."


Printed in The Sheffield Star, 24th September 2009

"Career business online"

"An online career management service has been launched to help Huddersfield people back into work.

Workthing+ has been set up to provide on jobhunting - with a money back promise if jobseekers aren't successful in six months.

Benefits of the website service include help to create and broadcast your CV, interview tips and a jobsearch facility. It also has psychometric tests which users can complete - and practical career recommendations based on the resulting psychometric profile.

Workthing+ has been launched by Trinity Mirror Digital Recruitment, part of Trinity Mirror, which publishes The Examiner."

Printed in The Huddersfield Daily Examiner, 23rd September 2009


Read the rest of this article here...

"Everyone else on my graduate scheme earns more money than me."

Can you help? Leave your comments below.

"With a potential fifteen year career in front of me, how can I go about finding work in my fifties?"

Can you help? Leave your comments below.