Which job is right for me?

When you are reviewing jobs from agencies, job boards or trade magazine adverts, how do you decide which opportunities to apply for?  It is tempting to look for impressive job titles, well known brand names and high salaries – but are those good indicators of a job you’ll enjoy?

To be able to effectively sift through all the jobs available, first of all you need to spend a bit of time on yourself.  If you spend some time reflecting on your own values, what motivates you, and what gives you satisfaction at work, then you will be able to look beyond the flashy headlines to assess the job itself more effectively.

If you are to fit comfortably into an organisation and feel energised and motivated to work there and give your best, then you need to be sure that their organisational values are a good match to yours.  If they operate on the ‘make the most profit at any cost’ principle, while you gain satisfaction from going the extra mile to give great service, you are likely to find your natural inclinations at odds with their operating policy much of the time.  Likewise, if you are driven to earn the highest bonus while they place most emphasis on customer care, you are likely to feel impatient with their slower pace of life quite frequently.

Perhaps you are motivated by receiving praise and recognition in front of your peers for a job well done?  Check whether a prospective firm offers internal award schemes.  Perhaps getting a promotion is important to you?  Find out what their internal career development and appraisal process is like. 

Think about what aspects of your current and past jobs have given you greatest satisfaction – that ‘wow’ factor of a job really well done.  Was it presenting a stunning campaign, hearing from a client about positive effects of the work you’ve done with them, or learning new skills so you’re ready to tackle something more challenging?  How many of these satisfying activities would a new job involve? 

Having thought through all the aspects of a job and an organisation that will make it right for you allows you to frame the right questions to ask of your recruiter, to look for in adverts and job descriptions, and to ask at job interviews.  Armed with this more in-depth information you will be able to make a better decision when it comes to which job to apply for – and which offer to accept.

A View from the City: Salaries set fair for 2012

On the 24th January, Fabric hosted A View from the City, an informal networking event for corporate and financial communicators. It represented a chance for delegates to network and take part in a debate with industry leading figures on the challenges facing corporate communicators in 2012.

The panel consisted of Alex Sandberg, Chairman of College Hill; Victoria Brough, Group Communications Director of London Stock Exchange; Paul Harris, Senior Financial Press Officer at HSBC and Tim Ledeboer, Head of Corporate & Financial at Fabric.

Among some of the many discussion points which created a lively debate, was the key area of remuneration and benefits vs. job security.

Most in the room were in agreement that whilst salaries are, in general, weathering the downturn and in fact showing a slight uplift in some cases, candidates are realistic about what is on offer. There was a meeting of minds between employers and employees as to the key motivating factors when job seekers weigh up their next opportunity – principally job security and career progression, alongside the financial gain.

Salary snapshot in Financial PR consultancies 2012

If you are interested in hearing more about A View from the City, or to arrange a meeting to discuss in person how our expertise and experience could be of value to your business, please contact Tim Ledeboer on:

+44 (0)20 7734 0441

or

tim.ledeboer@fabricrecruitment.com

A View from the City

Happy New year to all of you!

January 2012 sees the launch of Fabric’s A View from the City, a series of informal networking events aimed at corporate and financial communicators.

Our first event of the year is taking place at Balls Brothers, Lime St on the evening of 24^th January. 

We have an expert panel of industry leaders talking about their vision for 2012 before we open up the debate to the floor. It promises to be an interesting and enjoyable event and gives everyone an opportunity to network with your peers in an informal setting.

If you are interested in attending or finding out more about the event, please contact me on tim.ledeboer@fabricrecruitment.com or 020 7734 0441

Tim Ledeboer - Associate Director, Corporate & Financial

A view from the City

How heart warming to see that in these times of riots, protests, countries on the brink of bankruptcy and Frankie Cocozza (!) that the PR industry has such a great wave of talent coming through. The recent PR Week 29 under 29 (11.11.11) showed off the cream of the crop and it was great to see the future stars emerging.

Whilst I am all for celebrating the achievements of these undeniably excellent young professionals, I wonder whether it actually goes far enough.

I agree wholeheartedly with the sentiments Alex Sandberg, Chairman and Founder of College Hill shared in the last issue of PR Week (18.11.11), which for a number of reasons is well worth a read (including tales of him seeing Hendrix live in Covent Garden). For me, what resonated most was the passion and fire which still burns inside after all these years and the fact he is still so hungry for success for both his business and the industry as a whole. "On a good day, the best agencies are as good as any professional service because we can add huge value. Some of the planet’s best brains work in PR and I sometimes wonder whether we are proud enough of what we do," said Sandberg.

I couldn’t agree more. In my experience, comms people as a whole are an underrated breed and too often underrate themselves. Industry leaders are singing our praises and UK plc sees the value of effective communications so why don’t we?

Taking that point to the next level, should we as an industry celebrate talent (young or otherwise) across the board and shout about the best in Consumer, the best in City PR and the best in Healthcare for instance? If we are going to do it, let’s do it properly.

One of the joys of my job is that I see how many great comms professionals there are and contrary to popular belief, there are also plenty of jobs around. Whilst there is an undeniable risk aversion that continues to pervade amongst employers, there are still many agency and in-house roles which are yet to be filled and are there waiting for candidates with the requisite skills...they just might take longer deciding on the right one! I therefore maintain that whilst there will be significant challenges next year, there will be a good pipeline of opportunities out there for us all.

And don’t get me started on Cocozza!

Tim Ledeboer - Associate Director, Corporate & Financial

AWR - Agency Worker Regulations

The Agency Worker Regulations (AWR) have caused quite a stir of late. For good or bad they come into effect on 1 October 2011 and have certainly divided opinion across the industry.

This EU directive seeks to ensure equality between those workers supplied through an agency and those recruited directly by hirers, and it seems there is little that can stop it from being implemented. Such new equality rights may seem incredulous to some during these times of economic hardship, but to gain perspective it is important to remember those people working in sectors of the economy that don’t feature in PRWeek, the Financial Times or the weekly glossies. These are the people to whom these regulations will make the most difference.

For the most part in the digital, marketing and PR industries, agency worker rates of pay are at least on a par with, and frequently superior to, those of their directly recruited comparators. Therefore with AWR being focused on the issue of equality, clients needn’t throw the baby out with the bathwater and decide not to use agency workers at all. That said, ignoring or flouting the regulations can’t lead to anything good either. The focus needs to be on working with your recruitment partners to ensure compliance and finding the best way of going forward.
　
At Fabric we’ve been speaking to our clients for the last few weeks to ensure that everyone is aware of the regulations and working with us towards full compliance. As part of this process, and in consultation with the REC and senior figures in employment law, we’ve put together a guide - An Insight to AWR - which breaks down the AWR and demystifies it all. If you would like to discuss anything AWR related and see how Fabric can work with you to ensure a transition that is as smooth as possible, do get in touch.
 
Jody Dunn - Freelance Consultant