Chris Potter
Simmtronic Case Study
As Simmtronic scales to dominate the intelligent lighting systems market, they needed more than just a recruiter—they needed a strategic partner. That’s where we came in.
About Simmtronic:
Simmtronic provides high-end, intelligent lighting control solutions for commercial buildings, with the ambition of becoming the market leader in their industry
Key Roles Filled:
- CAD Design
- Electronics Production
- PCB Testing
- Specifications Engineer
Our Solution:
A blend of data-driven sourcing, deep industry knowledge, and hands-on engagement. From tackling salary inflation to unearthing local talent in a candidate-short market, we delivered results where others couldn't.
We were thrilled to host a webinar with Dr. Amanda Potter, an international speaker, researcher, and creator of the Chief Psychology Officer podcast, who shared invaluable insights on building personal resilience, avoiding burnout, and fostering resilience within teams.
About Dr. Amanda Potter
Amanda is an award-winning Leadership and Executive Coach, Chartered Psychologist, and Certified Principal Business Psychologist with over 25 years of experience. She has worked extensively with C-suite and senior executives to help them drive strategic success.
Amanda’s expertise lies in enabling leaders to maximize their potential, prepare for the next role, manage and lead high-performing teams, and identify and address blockers, risks, and flaws. Known for her ability to navigate complex behavioural challenges, Amanda approaches her work with a direct, fair, calm, yet challenging style, helping her clients see themselves and their teams from new perspectives.
Key Takeaways from the Webinar
Participants gained insights into:
- What stress is
- The science behind it
- How to identify symptoms of stress
- Practical strategies for building resilience
If you’d like to learn more about the event, (Including the recording) or access resources from the session, please get in touch!
Face to Face Tips
Preparation
Preparation is one of the most important factors that can determine your success at interview. Demonstrating that you have done the appropriate research will show that you are interested and committed to getting this job and can reliably complete tasks. Failing to adequately research the company will most likely lead to an immediate no.
So, how should you go about your preparation?
Website
About Us - This section of an company’s site will give you valuable information about the company’s culture and what their ambitions are. Find things about the company that you particularly like – as interest in these areas will come across as genuine enthusiasm.
Products - Use this area to get to grips with what your prospective employers do. It may sound obvious, but having a clear understanding of the products or services will impress the manager interviewing you, yet failing to provide an adequate answer to the question, “so, what do we do?” could decide the interview then and there.
Job Description
Responsibilities – Get to grips with what you’ll be doing in the role. It’s important to understand what your day-day responsibilities will be so that you can explain how your background will enable you to perform in this role.
Requirements – Understand what they need to see in order to offer you the position. This is a good opportunity to discuss what the employer is looking for with your consultant. The fact that they are bringing you in for a face-face means that you have the required skills on paper. Now you need to back that up. Study the job description’s requirements to understand what they want to see from you.
Yourself
Your Response – Make sure you run over your CV and are able to justify any gaps and explain the reason you left your previous company, or why you are looking to leave now. This is an important step because your prospective employer is assessing how serious you are about moving company whilst looking for any red flags.
Your Questions – An interview is a two way assessment. On the one hand, you are trying to sell your experience and ability to the employer but if they feel you are the right person for the job, then it is up to them to sell the role so that you would consider accepting an offer.
Therefore, it is in your interest to ask questions. If you don’t ask questions this may come across as not being interested – so do have some prepared and write them down so you don’t forget them. It’s perfectly ok to refer to this written list during the interview.
Plan and organise
Find out the most suitable way to get to the company and make sure you have enough time to get there if there is bad traffic or a problem with transport. There is no harm in getting to an interview early and it will give you time to check out the surroundings, but if you arrive early don’t assume they can see you early. It would be better to wait in the car park until just a few minutes before the schedule time.
Make sure that you have everything you will need prepared before the day of the interview. If you are attending a technical interview then gather some examples of previous work:
- for a mechanical role bring a portfolio
- for a software role familiarise yourself with the language they develop in
- If you have prepared a presentation then make sure it is on a USB stick and you have a file saved as an attachment in your emails.
Get some rest
Make sure you get enough sleep the night before. That way you should be at your best for the interview. It’s ok to feel slightly nervous but try to enjoy it, this is an opportunity to show someone what you can do and remember that you have been selected. They want to see you.
During the Interview
Now that you have completed your preparation we can turn to the main event! The interview itself is an opportunity for you to demonstrate your expertise and show them that you are the right person for the job.
First of all – turn off your mobile phone. Don’t even have it on vibrate.
The best advice for performing well during an interview is to be honest and rely on your strengths. Use the following information to help you make the best impression you can.
Body Language
Most interviewers start with a handshake – not too firm but not too weak! Make eye contact and smile. When the interviewer offers you a seat at the start of the job interview, try to sit upright, relax and lean slightly forward toward your employer. This gives the message that you are both interested and involved. Try not to shift your weight too much and keep your feet on the floor!
Avoid crossing your arms but also make sure to avoid waving them about, if in doubt, rest them loosely clasped in your lap or on the table. Control your hands by being aware of what you are doing with them.
Try and maintain direct eye contact with the interviewer if they are talking, with a glance periodically at any other interviewers. It shows that you are actively listening. Whilst it is important to keep eye contact, avoid staring the interviewer down, feel free to look away briefly – making notes about what they are saying can be a good way to politely break eye contact if you feel uncomfortable.
During the interview speak in a clear and controlled voice. Try to vary your tone and pitch, speak calmly and don’t be afraid of pauses. Take time to think about a question before you answer it. Similarly, don’t be worried if the interviewer takes a pause, they may have been blown away by your answer!
Remember that the interview is a business situation not a social one. Whilst you should feel comfortable be on your guard.
Type of Interview
It is important to note what type of interview you will be attending and therefore act accordingly.
Technical interviews will look to test your ability, you might be asked to complete a test, or answer some technical maths questions/work related process questions. The purpose of this interview is for the interviewer to test whether or not you are technically able to do the job. A good interviewer will ask specific questions and you will either know the answer, or how to work it out, or you won’t. Think carefully before answering and explain your answer if prompted to. If you are unable to answer the question let them know but ask if they can talk you through it or allow you to work it out with some more detail. Whilst they want to see your technical ability, enthusiasm to learn and a willingness to be taught will go a long way in the eyes of the interviewer.
Competency based interviews follow a different format and style to others. In these interviews the interviewer will be scoring your response to a predetermined set of questions and then rank you amongst a cohort of candidates. Due to the objective nature of these interviews they can feel quite frosty. The interviewer will not deviate from the set of questions so the interview won’t flow like a normal conversation. Try to put that out of your mind and respond to each question calmly and as best you can.
Tricky Questions.
The interviewer may ask some pointed questions. They may question an area of weakness that was revealed during the interview, or probe you on your previous company. Try to avoid bad-mouthing your previous company. Remain objective and turn the answer into a positive by explaining how the role you’ve applied for fits what you’re looking for or how you’ve improved on a weakness.
When it comes to the salary, know your market worth but be flexible, it may be worth giving a range. However, make it clear that salary is not the key factor to your decision.
Making Hybrid Working Work: Our top 10 tips
During December we held a webinar on how to make hybrid working work. It was a lively and informative discussion. On the back of it, we’ve created our top 10 tips for businesses to consider.
Tip 1: There is no one size fits all approach
This is deliberately the first tip, because it straddles everything. Let’s call it the master tip. Organisations need to find their own unique balance between flexibility and productivity.
Tip 2: Trust
It’s crucial to treat people like the adults they are. Be open, set the business rules, let people follow them.
Tip 3: Enable your business
The right hybrid model should be a business enabler and help to solve challenges. Things like a challenging office location.
Tip 4: Structured flexibility
That may seem like an oxymoron, but to make hybrid working work it’s important to set clear objectives and priorities, as well as regular meetings to facilitate.
Tip 5: Flexible flexibility
Some love working from home. Some don’t. For example, many of our attendees felt that mature employees still prefer to be in the office. So, be flexible with your people, not prescriptive.
Tip 6: Follow the crowd
Not advice we normally give, but recent graduates see working from home as the norm. So, if you want the best from the new crowd, you need to structure working practices accordingly.
Tip 7: Embrace the difference
Trying to replicate everything you do in the office at home doesn’t work. Accept that and find ways to maximise productivity in each unique environment.
Tip 8: Don't forget the importance of soft skills
There is a concern that too much working from home means missing out on developing social skills. There’s no silver bullet for this, but it’s something to be mindful of.
Tip 9: The importance of good mental health
Whilst flexibility can unquestionably be a good thing for your people’s mental health, it’s harder to monitor remotely. So, look to put a process in place to keep this front of mind (if you’ll excuse the pun).
Tip 10: Don't let perfection get in the way of better
It would be disingenuous to say remote working is perfect. But, really, was "always in the office" perfect either? Working to explore the balance and make it better should be the priority.
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Summing up
Always remember the benefits.
A flexible approach to giving the people what they want increases staff retention, helps attract a better quality of candidate and, when done well, means people actually enjoy meetings when they happen. Really, it does.
But be mindful of the challenges
Of course, it’s all very well and good doing this, but there are challenges. You may find a culture clash. You may find that some people are at risk of burn out, as the boundaries are blurred, and they never switch off. You may find there’s friction between those who can work from home and those that can’t. And you may find it’s hard for leadership teams when their people aren’t always right in front of them.
No-one says it is easy, but the general consensus is that hybrid working is here to stay. So most organisations probably need to embrace it and make it work for them.
An Enterprise Recruitment Online Roundtable, 14th December, 10am
As we all know, the coronavirus pandemic had a profound effect on how, and more specifically where, people worked. Working from home, obviously, became the norm for many of us, but the impact since the pandemic subsided has been significant. According to data from the Opinions and Lifestyle Survey (OPN), hybrid working is consistently growing in popularity.
Earlier this year, workers were asked about their future plans after government guidance to work from home when possible was lifted in England and Scotland. And more than 8 in 10 workers who had to work from home during the coronavirus pandemic said they planned to move to hybrid work. In May 2022, the proportion of workers hybrid working had risen to 24% - almost a quarter of the UK workforce.
In our regular conversations with clients, we have found that many of them are still fine-tuning their hybrid work policies and procedures. In addition, many are facing what can only be described as a backlash from certain team members who either want more flexibility or, at the other end of the scale, a desire to return to full time office work.
As well as this, there is a general concern that some employers are missing out of some key hires because their policy isn’t right or, at the very least, isn’t well defined.
Our Hybrid Working Online Roundtable
Given this state of flux, we are pleased to announce we are hosting a roundtable with HR and Engineering leaders who will be sharing their approaches, as well as discussing what they believe the pros and cons are of different policies. We will also provide some time for general Q&As, as well as the ability to ask follow-up questions.
Date: 14th December
Time: 10am-1030am
If you’d like to join us, then simply click here to sign up via LinkedIn. We very much look forward to seeing you there.
The outlook on jobs and salaries
It’s time to take a look at the latest data on the jobs market in the South of England from the KPMG report on Jobs. All data is up to and including July 2022.
A brief reminder of the key to these graphs. 50 is the baseline number for each of them. If something is at 50 it is neutral, signifying no growth (or decline).
The placements
Permanent placement growth slipped to a 17-month low in July, although still above that neutral threshold of 50. Yet, the rate of growth was the lowest since the current period of expansion began in March 2021. Rising activity levels at clients and strong demand for workers supported the latest rise in placements, but there were reports of weaker confidence towards the outlook weighing on growth.
Staff availability
July saw the softest drop in permanent staff supply for 15 months and has now declined in each of the last 17 months. That being said, the latest reduction was the softest since April 2021 and less than the pretty severe UK average. Reports from recruitment consultants across the South of England highlighted that people were becoming more hesitant to apply for new roles due to the greater economic uncertainty, which has undoubtedly exacerbated ongoing skills shortages.
Pay Pressures
July data revealed the softest rise in permanent starters’ pay for 11 months. Whilst the rise was soft, it is still significant. AS it has been for quite some time, candidate shortages and a string demand for staff continues to push salaries up.
Our thoughts
Commenting on the latest data, Jamie Harris, director at Enterprise Recruitment, said: “The trends we have seen over the last year or so are continuing. It’s basic supply and demand at play, coupled with the wider economic situation the UK finds itself in. A lack of candidates presents issues for employers and, if they do manage to find them, they are having to offer significant starting salaries.
Of course, that is where we come in. We have access to a large pool of talent and we always work with our clients to ensure they get the most value from their appointments. So, if you have roles to fill, we’d be only too happy to help you.
Understanding IR35 and its implications
Over the last couple of months, we have had a number of examples of confusion around IR35 and the best approach to take when deciding whether contractors should sit inside or out. So, we thought it was worth giving an overview and our thoughts. Let’s start with the basics.
What does inside IR35 mean?
HMRC introduced the off-payroll working rules to make sure that contractors would be classed as employees if there was no intermediary pay broadly the same tax as employees. This means that of a contract is inside IR35, that contractors have to pay income tax and National Insurance Contributions just like employees do.
And what does outside IR35 mean?
If a contract is outside IR35 it means that HMRC sees contractors as “genuinely” self-employed and they’re able to pay themselves in a tax-efficient way. The contract is likely to include details of the services a contractor will be providing, as well as when and where they’ll be working. But, crucially, it won’t include demands from an employer on performance monitoring and appraisals.
How do you work out if a contractor is in or out?
The best way is to use HMRC’s Check Employment Status for Tax (CEST) tool. To use the tool, HMRC says you need the following:
· Details of the contract
· The worker’s responsibilities
· Who decides what work needs doing
· Who decides when, where and how the work is done
· How the worker will be paid
· If the engagement includes any corporate benefits or reimbursement for employees.
You can check the tool out here.
Our advice
The issue we have been seeing more and more of is employers are searching for contractors before deciding whether or not the prospective work falls inside or outside IR35. And we don’t think that’s the right way round. Our advice is that when you have the need for a contractor that you use the CEST tool first and make the in or out decision before you go out to find someone. It makes the process easier and both parties understand the potential role up front.
Does CEST give accurate results?
Many of our clients have asked us whether we think CEST gives accurate results. For its part, HMRC says CEST is accurate and it “will stand by the results, provided the information input is accurate and it is used in accordance with our guidance.”
HMRC can open an investigation into an IR35 status if it thinks an outside IR35 determination is wrong, so it’s important to keep accurate financial records.
We encourage our candidates to have IR35 compliance in mind and actively discuss you’re their status with our clients.
Put simply, the off-payroll working rules are complex. If you’re unsure about whether a contract falls inside IR35 or outside IR35, get professional advice.
In a world where good news is an increasingly rare commodity, we have found some. It has been announced that graduates from the world’s top universities will be able to apply to come and work in the UK under a new visa scheme.
The UK government says that the “high-potential individual” route should attract the brightest and best individuals to the UK early in their careers. The scheme is available to alumni of the top international universities who have graduated in the past five years. Graduates will be eligible regardless of where they were born and, crucially, will not need a job offer to apply.
The visa details
Successful applicants will be given a work visa that will last for two years if they hold a bachelor’s or master’s degree. The vias is extended by a year for those who hold a PhD. Upon completion of that visa, they will then be able to switch to a long-term visa if they meet certain requirements.
The qualification details
To qualify, a person must have attended a university which has appeared in the top 50 of at least two of the leading ranking systems: the Times Higher Education World Uiversity Rankings, the Quacquarelli Symonds World University Rankings, or the Academic Raking of Word Universities in the year in which they graduated.
Here are the eligible universities from 2021. The list features 20 universities from the US and a further 17 qualifying institutes from around the world:
| California Institute of Technology (Caltech) | USA |
| Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) | Hong Kong |
| Columbia University | USA |
| Cornell University | USA |
| Duke University | USA |
| Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL Switzerland) | Switzerland |
| ETH Zurich (Swiss Federal Institute of Technology) | Switzerland |
| Harvard University | USA |
| Johns Hopkins University | USA |
| Karolinska Institute | Sweden |
| Kyoto University | Japan |
| Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) | USA |
| McGill University | Canada |
| Nanyang Technological University (NTU) | Singapore |
| National University of Singapore | Singapore |
| New York University (NYU) | USA |
| Northwestern University | USA |
| Paris Sciences et Lettres – PSL Research University | France |
| Peking University | China |
| Princeton University | USA |
| Stanford University | USA |
| Tsinghua University | China |
| University of British Columbia | Canada |
| University of California, Berkeley | USA |
| University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) | USA |
| University of California, San Diego | USA |
| University of Chicago US | USA |
| University of Hong Kong | Hong Kong |
| University of Melbourne | Australia |
| University of Michigan-Ann Arbor | USA |
| University of Munich (LMU Munich) | Germany |
| University of Pennsylvania | USA |
| University of Texas at Austin | USA |
| University of Tokyo | Japan |
| University of Toronto | Canada |
| University of Washington | USA |
| Yale University | USA |
But does it miss the mark?
Whilst we’ve said it’s good news, there are some people who are disappointed that it doesn’t go far enough. Literally. Several academics from around the globe have voiced significant concern that no South Asian, Latin American or African universities have been included in the list.
To be fair, they’ve probably got a point, but for now we will just have to take the good news. As the next section of our newsletter will highlight all too obviously, the more graduates we can get in the UK, the better.
Over the last few months, we’ve been working hard to develop a new, free resource for our clients. We’re delighted to be able to launch a white label Digital Employee Engagement Survey that is fully customisable, allowing you to capture data that helps you better understand your people.
Employee surveys are both important and incredibly useful for businesses. They provide employees with the chance to be heard and feel valued. And they provide employers with invaluable feedback and data to use to transform their business for the better.
We’ve designed our template survey with what we believe are 10 key questions that will help you do this. All the questions have five potential answers in a tick box format: strongly disagree, disagree, neither agree or disagree, agree, and strongly agree. So, it’s incredibly quick and east for your employees to fill in. The starter questions are as follows:
1. I feel I make a positive difference to the business.
2. I feel valued.
3. My targets and objectives are realistic.
4. The pressure I am under is reasonable.
5. I know what I need to do to succeed.
6. I am doing what enjoy and am good at.
7. I have the right tools, processes and technology to do a great job.
8. My wellbeing and health matters to the business.
9. The working arrangements (where we work, flexibility etc) work for me.
10. Any other comments.
The good news is that these questions are not set in stone. If you’d like to change them, add to them, or even ask less, then we can help build that for you. All you need to do is get in touch with us and we can do that for you. Speak to Jamie Harris, our senior partner, who will work with you to build and launch the perfect survey.
We hope you agree that this is a fantastic new resource, and we look forward to helping you build your own, unique Digital Employee Engagement Survey.
The many benefits of a more diverse workforce
There are a wide range of reasons why a more diverse workforce can benefit employers. From increased innovation and creativity, due to a bigger range of perspectives; to better decision making; to better company culture; and making yourself a more attractive employer, diversity is a business enabler
Research, common sense and a swathe of academic papers show that those businesses who get their diversity and inclusion strategies right are highly likely to reap rewards. Both in terms of a benefit to their working culture and, crucially, their commercial prospects.
It helps to frame the discussion in some key statistics. In their Diversity Matters report, the global management consultants, McKinsey & Co, analysed 366 companies and found a statistically significant connection between diversity and financial performance. Here’s a few of their key findings:
Of course, there is much more research that highlights the benefits of diversity. Two final statistics to add to that already impressive list is from recent research by Josh Bersin that found that inclusive companies are 1.7 times more likely to be innovation leaders in their market and a recent survey by Glassdoor that found 67% of job seekers argued that a more diverse workforce is important when they consider taking a job.
And of course, we are a recruitment consultant, so one of the key aspects from our perspective is the importance of inclusive recruitment. So, why you should be truly inclusive in your recruitment policies?
What does inclusive recruitment mean?
At its heart, inclusive recruitment is about recognising the biases and discrimination candidates can face during the hiring process and designing and implementing solutions to minimise the impact of bias.
Types of bias
Awareness of bias is incredibly important; however, it cannot be trained away, therefore it’s essential to examine every stage of the recruitment process with an inclusive lens and ensure you have removed barriers to underrepresented talent.
Confirmation bias
A type of cognitive bias that involves favouring information that confirms your previously existing beliefs or biases.
Heuristic Bias
This judges someone’s job suitability by superficial factors such as visible tattoos or personal body weight standards.
Affinity Bias
When you unconsciously prefer people who share qualities with you or someone you like.
Conformity Bias
Is the tendency people have to behave like those around them rather than using their own personal judgement.
Intuition
When an interviewer makes a judgement on the basis of his or her “sixth sense”, he is intuitively selecting a candidate or in other words, intuitively rejecting all other candidates.
So, how do you prevent bias?
There are many different ways you use to eliminate boas from your recruitment process. Here are just three of them:
Job Descriptions
Ensuring a job description is in place and that all involved in the hire have agreed to the criteria is one way of avoiding bias as you start the search with a set of skills and competencies in mind rather than the profile of an individual. Additionally, ensure that all language used is gender neutral and reflective of our inclusive culture.
Blind Recruitment
Removing names, gender, age and other types of information such as education and hobbies helps us to focus on skills and prevent biased decisions whether unconscious or conscious.
Job Advertising
Using gender-neutral language in your job advertising is known to fill jobs faster than posts with a masculine or feminine bias and attracts a more diverse mix of people. Additionally, candidates from diverse backgrounds are more likely to apply if our equal opportunities’ statement is visible on your adverts.
The importance of building a Diversity, Equality and Inclusion Strategy
If you don’t have one in place already, we highly recommend you consider building one. We have provided the full research paper from The Recruitment Network below. Within it, you will find more detail on what we have already outlined, as well as an incredibly useful process to create your strategy. To access it, just click here.
