People often move into a career in recruitment from all sorts of different industries. We spoke to Luke Arnott, the Manager of our Industrial & Technical Division, to find out why he moved from carpets and car sales to leading a team at our recruitment agency in Basingstoke. 

Tell us about your career path so far and how you found yourself in recruitment

“I should really have been a carpet fitter! I started out working in my family’s carpet-fitting business straight from school, working alongside my father, grandfather and cousin in Aldershot.

But all this changed when I tore my cruciate ligament playing football. After surgery on my knee, I  could no longer use a carpet stretcher or kneel for long periods, so I knew I needed to find a different career path away from the family business.

"I decided to apply for a role in automotive sales as knew that what I was good at was helping people, and working with cars was doing just that! I went to the local Audi and Vauxhall showrooms in Basingstoke and handed in my CV. The Sales Manager at Vauxhall invited me straight in for a chat and offered me a job as a sales trainee.

"I very soon discovered that my people skills meant I was good at sales. My natural skill was nurtured through excellent training from my manager at Vauxhall, and I soon progressed to become Assistant Sales Manager.

"In 2019, My partner and I discovered we were expecting a baby. 

"While I’d thoroughly enjoyed car sales, it entailed working every weekend, so I decided to seek a role where I could still use my people and sales skills, but where I could have weekends off to spend time with my new family."

How did you get your job working for an independent Recruitment Agency based in Basingstoke?

"I heard about a vacancy for a Recruitment Consultant at Priority Appointments and was invited in for an interview.

"As soon as I arrived, I knew I was in the right place.

"I really bought into all Priority’s values. I had always done well in car sales as my approach was to be a consultant and offer people advice, which is exactly what’s needed as a Recruitment Consultant.

"Priority realised that my personal values, coupled with my transferable skills, made me an ideal candidate to become a Recruitment Consultant. 

"And since joining the company in August 2019, my obsession with helping clients and learning all about their businesses has meant I’ve progressed to being a Lead Consultant."

How did you start learning about the Recruitment Business?

"I’ve been mentored by Priority’s Business Director, Tracy Welch, who has spent over two decades as a recruiter. When I first joined, Tracy taught me the ropes and introduced me to clients.

"Working for a consultancy that specialises in recruitment for manufacturing, precision engineering and distribution has given me an absolute passion for the sector. I love seeing how our clients’ companies work and understanding how they build products from scratch.” 

Looking back, is there anything you would change about your career path?

”I’m a believer that everything happens for a reason - I needed to mature before I moved into recruitment. I have no regrets about the work I did before I became a recruiter as it gave me the skills I use to help clients today.”

What do you think are the three best things about working in recruitment?

“Firstly, I love the buzz - I was a striker before I damaged my knee, and get the same feeling from finding great people for our clients as I did from scoring a goal! There’s so much team spirit when we succeed.

"Secondly, I really enjoy building relationships and meeting new people. In fact, I have clients who have now become friends.

"The final element is the potential to do so well financially.  In car sales, I had a very low basic with a heavily commission-based package. In recruitment, I earn a good basic salary and have the chance to earn a healthy, uncapped commission on top, plus other incentives.

"My partner and I have another baby on the way, so I need to keep doing well for my family.”

As your team grows, what are you looking for in the new recruitment and talent consultants who join the Industrial & Technical team?

“An ideal candidate doesn’t necessarily need to have worked in sales, but the qualities I’m looking for include:

• Being hungry for success
• Having loads of positivity and energy - having a ‘cup half full’ type of outlook on life
• Determination and the resilience to take the ups and the downs
• Warmth and approachability 
• Able to build strong relationships
• Going above and beyond - making sure everything you do is to help both clientes and candidates.”

Why do you believe working for an independent recruitment consultancy is a better career choice than joining a large, corporate agency?

“We have so much fun here and everyone in the business has a voice. In some of the big corporates, you’re just a cog in a machine.”

“Choosing an independent partner is better for clients too.

"We’re very flexible and can tailor our services to fit the client, not the other way round. We also take the time to get to know people so we only put forward those who are really likely to be a good fit.”

If you think you have what it takes to build a career in recruitment, give Luke Arnott a call on 01256 334575 to find out if you could join our growing team.

Tracy Welch FIRP explains what led her to switch from Retail Management to Recruitment - and why she’s never looked back!

“When I left school, I was clear that I wanted to work in retail and I quickly got a position through a youth training scheme with M&S in my home town of Cardiff.

At M&S, I was taught that the customer is king (or queen!) - and that’s something that is still 100% at the heart of how I work today.

After a happy decade with M&S, I did a short spell working for another retailer. They had a very different ethos and I realised that this was totally contrary to my values. 

Unlike M&S, I discovered that working somewhere where I wasn’t able to provide customers with the high level of service I'd been used to really compromised my personal standards and made me deeply unhappy. 

I was young and idealistic and thought I could change the world - but soon realised that if I stayed there, I would have no freedom and no scope to use my creativity. 

So I decided I was done with that way of working - and a 16 hour shift one Christmas Eve was the final straw!

Discovering Recruitment 

At that stage, working in recruitment wasn’t even on my radar. Then a friend of mine was headhunted from an estate agency to work for a recruitment company and suggested I take a look at the opportunities on offer.

I already know that I wanted to work in a role that involved people - which always was and still is my passion - and I wanted to use my skills to help others.

On a more practical level, I was pretty keen to get my weekends and bank holidays back, and to have the opportunity to get paid more the harder I worked. 

When I looked into working in recruitment, it was as if everything in the universe aligned! I found a sector that was all about helping people, and which offered a good starting salary and attractive commission.

Making the Move to Recruitment

I went for three interviews with recruitment companies - and got offers from all three! That was a massive boost to my confidence and made me realise that I had transferrable skills and all the right personal qualities to work in recruitment.

So I joined what was then Select Appointments (we became Priority Appointments in 2014), and Barbara Law, the owner and MD, suggested I spend half a day shadowing the team.

I found that I absolutely loved the work and the company and knew it was the place for me!

Building on Strong Foundations

When I joined, Barbara became my mentor. She told me she wanted someone to take on a senior role managing the business and I threw myself into learning all I could.

I did every job - running the temps desk, permanent recruitment and business development as I wanted to learn every aspect of the business from practical experience.

Barbara and I shared the same passion for helping people, the same set of ethics and the same values of integrity and service. 

I was excited and inspired to be part of the success story of a profitable business.

What’s Great About Working in Recruitment

It’s now over 22 years since I joined the company as I am as passionate about the job now as I was back then!

One of the very best things about working in recruitment is that no two days are the same. 

Finding a job for someone that will make a difference to their life is hugely satisfying, as is helping a manager or business owner to find that ideal person who will make a difference to their business.

One of my favourite elements of my job is meeting clients face to face (we’ve all missed that SO much over the past couple of years!). We’ve specialised in finding people for the manufacturing, precision engineering and distribution industries for years, but I never get tired of visiting new sites and seeing what makes different companies tick.

I also love it every time we successfully place great people in great positions and add to our collection of amazing five star testimonials from happy clients and candidates!

Plus, we all have a good laugh and plenty of banter in the office, as everyone works as a team. We may do different jobs, but we all have the same common goal of providing the best service to our clients and candidates. 

As with any career path, there are challenging aspects to working in recruitment of course. Sometimes you can work really hard on a vacancy but it doesn’t always work out. At the end of the day, we’re dealing with people, and people are unpredictable.

But I tell my team that in this job, you need to be a bouncy ball and come back quickly from the setbacks! 

Could You Be a Recruiter?

Contrary to popular opinion, you don’t need experience of the recruitment market to become a recruiter. 

What you do need is an inner passion to do the right thing and help people get jobs that are right for them. 

This role demands impeccable ethics, strong values, integrity and - perhaps most important of all - really great listening skills. When I’m training new consultants I always tell them that a client meeting or candidate interview should consist of the other person talking for 80% of the time while you listen…really carefully!

We invest in training and support our team to add to their qualifications, working with our professional body, the Recruitment and Employment Confederation.

One of the best things about working for an independent recruitment agency is that we genuinely care for our clients and candidates. It’s so great to know that when we find the right people for a company we are playing a key role in helping to transform their business. 

As we’ve worked in Basingstoke for so many years, our long-standing clients rely on us for local intelligence about the manufacturing, precision engineering and distribution markets. We always look to add value, so we can provide information such as salary benchmarking so they can be sure they’re offering the right package to attract the best candidates - even in the current challenging market.

Opportunities in Recruitment

If you want to find out whether a career in recruitment could be right for you, I’d love to talk to you with no obligation. 

Give me a ring on 01256 334575 or email me direct at t.welch@priorityappointments.co.uk to arrange a chat.

As a Talent Consultant, finding talented people for fantastic job vacancies is probably one of the most rewarding aspects of working for a recruitment agency. 

You get to be responsible for matching candidates to vacancies, winning gratitude from candidates who have secured the job they wanted and appreciation from clients who need the right people to help their business grow.

Filling jobs sounds simple - but there’s actually a lot more to it than most people realise.

Top Talent Consultants are part sleuth, part matchmaker, part analyst and part salesperson - with a healthy dose of friendly advisor thrown into the mix, as one of our Talent Team, Liam Deabill (pictured) will confirm!

Leaving No Stone Unturned to Find Talent

Right now, there is a global candidate shortage, which has made the role of Talent Consultants and Talent Finders more important than ever to local businesses in Basingstoke and the surrounding areas, and to the UK economy as a whole.

According to Matthew Fell, Chief UK Policy Director of the CBI, “People and skills shortage is one of the biggest issues facing the C-suite in all sectors and is putting the brakes on growth. It’s not a short-term issue that’ll resolve itself. Businesses must leave no stone unturned to attract and retain talent.” 

That is where skilled Talent Consultants come in. 

Here are 7 facts about being a Talent Consultant that you might find surprising:

1.    You Don’t Need Recruitment Experience

Personal Trainer, Healthcare Assistant, Customer Relations Officer, these are just some of the past roles of people who have gone on to become highly successful recruitment Talent Consultants!

Although there is a lot to learn when you first start working at a recruitment agency, having the right people-focused attitude and plenty of common sense are far more important attributes than already knowing about the industry. 

In fact, people who have knowledge of our clients’ key sectors of manufacturing, precision engineering and distribution are likely to have better insight than someone who’s already worked in recruitment. 

2.    You Can Earn Uncapped Commission!

Some people seem to think that only Recruitment Consultants earn commission as they are the ones who sell services to clients. Filling the roles that our clients ask for help with is a key part of the puzzle, so Talent Consultants also earn commission. 

On a starting salary of £21,000 - £23,000, you could expect to earn up to £30,000 including commission.

3.    You Work With Candidates and Clients

As a Talent Consultant, your main focus is always going to be on finding candidates and assessing if they are as good a fit in real life as they are on paper. But that doesn’t mean you don’t speak to clients too.

When we’re putting together long lists or shortlists for clients, they need to be kept up to date and given all the information they need about applicants. And once an interview has been booked it could be up to you to keep the key contacts at the client informed about interviewees.    

4.    You Need to Be a Good Researcher

A key part of being a Talent Consultant is knowing where to look for the best people. You need to have a systematic mind and be able to work through large amounts of information in an organised way. So while being logical is hugely important, you need to use your intuition too. 

It’s the job of the Talent Consultant to ensure that the right people are approached with details of each vacancy we’re asked to fill. Sometimes we already know candidates who would be a good fit, but often it’s a case of using tried and tested resources to find the people who would fit in well. 

The more experienced you become, the more you can trust your instincts when it comes to matching candidates to vacancies, but nothing replaces thorough research in the first instance.

5.    There’s No ‘I’ in Team

Our industrial and office & commercial Talent Consultants work alongside our sector-specific Recruitment Consultants as part of the same team.

Although the roles of the Recruitment Consultant and Talent Consultant are different, success only comes by both working together. 

6.    You Need to be Confident on Camera

Lights, Camera, Action! One of the key ways we attract the best candidates is by talking about the great roles we have on offer. And the quickest way to tell lots of people about something is via videos posted online.

We use a specialist recruitment video platform called Odro to help bring jobs to life.

7.    The Sky’s the Limit!

Working as a Talent Consultant opens the doors to other roles if you want to progress your career. If the sales aspect of the job is your forté, then you could become a Recruitment Consultant with additional training. 

To find out more about the opportunities that being a Talent Consultant offer, get in touch with one of our friendly team at office@priorityappointments.co.uk or have a look at our current vacancies by entering the word ‘talent’ into the search bar on our Job Search page.
 

Looking for a new job is exciting - but trying to find the best recruitment agency to help you find the right role can be overwhelming and exhausting!

There are dozens of Basingstoke recruitment agencies, so it can be hard to choose which ones to register with and invest your time in.  

We understand. 

We’ve been helping great people find great jobs in and around Basingstoke for over two decades, so we know we can help you too!

By choosing the right, independent Basingstoke recruitment agency, you’ll make the best use of your time and maximise your chances of finding just the right role for you. 

1.    Go for Local Basingstoke Knowledge

When you sign up with a recruitment agency, it’s worth choosing one where the team has good knowledge of the local area and the local job market. 

At Priority Appointments, we’ve been working with some of our clients for decades, so we understand what sort of skills they’re looking for and don’t waste your time or theirs by only putting forward people who we know will be a mutually good fit.

We’ve visited the premises of our clients, so can tell you all about the working environment, as well as what the job you’re applying for entails.

2.    Pick a Recruitment Agency with Sector Expertise

If you’ve built up expertise and contacts within the manufacturing, engineering or distribution sectors, you need a recruitment team that ‘gets’ the industry as well as you do.

As we talk to employers every day, we often hear about new roles earlier than generalist agencies. And by knowing the market inside out, we have a wealth of knowledge about local pay and benefits packages, so won’t try and fob you off with a job that isn’t offering the market rate.

3.    Choose an Independent Recruitment Agency

Many of the big name recruitment agencies have a set way of doing things that means they may not have the insight to understand the ins and outs of a particular role.

Our commitment to finding jobs for ‘hidden gems’ means that we’ll be able to tell whether your skills are transferable into roles you might not have considered.

Larger agencies may have teams that work across more than one office, so you’re less likely to build up a relationship with one person. When your time is precious, having to tell your story over and over again to different people within the same job agency is annoying, to say the least!

We’ll never over-sell you as that just puts you in an awkward position when you get to interview. 

Instead, we’ll review your CV to make sure it’s a fair representation of what you have to offer, and if we think you’re right for a role, it’s our job to let our client know why you’re the right person and to encourage them to offer you an interview.

4.    Don’t Waste Time on Grumpy Recruitment Agencies!

It’s shocking how often we hear stories about people who have been treated in an offhand or even rude manner when they’ve spoken to or visited recruitment agencies local to us in Basingstoke or the nearby towns.

We are constantly busy, but - as you’ll see from our amazing reviews - we always treat everyone with courtesy and do all we can to help them find the right role for them quickly and efficiently.  

As Priority’s Business Manager Tracy Welch puts it, “We never forget that above all, we’re representing you as a human. We can’t guarantee to find you your ideal job first time (although we very often do!) but we do  absolutely guarantee that we’ll put our heart and soul into trying to find it for you.”

5.    Make Sure They’re Professional

It’s worth asking a recruitment agency which professional bodies they belong to and the values they abide by in doing business. 

We belong to the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC), which tells you that we abide by its professional standards and regularly take compliance tests to remain as members.

Making the Most of Your Recruitment Agency

As with any important relationship in life, you will get the best support from a recruitment agency if you work with them, so they can help you find exactly the right job for you. We ask candidates who sign up with us to:

Give us as much detail as you can 

We’ll ask you questions such as what type of organisation you’d like to work for, what you’re looking for in terms of salary and how far you’re willing to travel. 

Make sure your CV is up-to-date and any gaps can be explained

We work with people, not CVs, so we know there’s far more to your story than what we can read on your resume, but prospective employers will always want to see it first, as well as listen to us telling them about you. We offer help with improving your CV as part of our service.

Keep in touch

If you get a call from your consultant, do try and ring them back as quickly as you can - they may be calling with an amazing opportunity which could disappear if they can’t reach you! 

Whatever you do, don’t ghost your recruitment consultant! If you do find a job elsewhere, take a few minutes to let us know. We’ll wish you every good fortune and take you off our list of available candidates.  

To take the first step towards finding your ideal next job in Hampshire, Surrey or Berkshire, give us a call today on 01256 334575.

Recruiting has changed. The days when you could just put an ad on a job board and hope that great candidates would beat a path to your door are far, far behind us. In addition to partnering with a professional local recruitment partner, there are other ways you can ensure the best candidates choose your company by improving your recruitment process. 

Unemployment is at under 3.9% and is not expected to get back up to ‘normal’ levels of around 5.0% until  2025, according to the Bank of England, so the current shortage of good candidates is likely to last for some time yet. 

If you’re a manufacturing, precision engineering or logistics company based along the M3 corridor in Hampshire, Berkshire and Surrey in particular, this means that recruiting the people you need is becoming increasingly challenging. So it’s essential to make sure your recruitment process is as slick as possible to secure the best people. 

But how can you make sure that top talent chooses to consider joining your business, rather than one of your competitors? 

Here are some top tips from our experienced team in Basingstoke about what you can do today to make sure your company is a recruitment winner.

1.    Tailor your Benefits Packages

You know what you have historically offered for a particular role or skill, but securing the best people today is all about creating the right package. You need to put together appealing salary and benefits packages quickly if you want to steal a march on your competitors in the recruitment market.

More than ever, attractive benefits are a strong influencing factor in candidates’ decisions. Incentives such as a few days extra annual leave or the opportunity for flexible working are highly valued, and are something that smaller businesses, as well as larger corporate companies, can now use to attract the best talent. 

Applicants are demanding that job listings display salary information, so you need to make sure a realistic salary range is shown in the job ad, rather than statements such as ‘competitive salary’.

2.    Involve Colleagues in the Recruitment Process

As employees, we typically spend around 1,800 hours a year at work, so it is no wonder that job applicants are keen to know who they’ll be working with and where they’ll be based when they are considering joining your company.

So involve colleagues and peers as part of the recruitment process, perhaps arranging for them to briefly meet promising candidates on the day of interview.  

You can tell a lot about interviewees from how they engage with others, and listening to the questions they ask will give you a good idea of how interested they are in your company.

Current employees can have a huge influence on a candidate’s decision about whether or not to accept a job - plus, they are far more likely to trust information from other employees.

Ask your team to help find new colleagues by:

• Making candidates feel welcome during the recruitment process
• Leaving positive reviews on rating sites such as Glassdoor
• Writing positive posts about your company on social media

3.    Showcase your Company’s Culture

Job applicants are interested in more than just the details of the role they are applying for. They will also be looking for insights into the company’s culture when they come for interview. 

We visit every company we recruit for, so we’re able to talk to candidates about a company’s culture and ethos, as well as the job responsibilities. 

It’s very important to give every candidate a good experience when they come for an interview - even if you don’t think that particular person is right for the job.

Small gestures such as genuinely thanking someone for their time and interest in your company and - if they’re not successful - providing some balanced and constructive feedback about why they were not chosen are always greatly appreciated and will help enhance the reputation of your company as a great local employer. 

When you use the services of a professional recruitment consultancy such as Priority Appointments, we save you time by providing feedback to candidates on your behalf.

Our decades of experience ensure that feedback is delivered positively, even if the answer is not the one the candidate was hoping for.

Remember, a satisfied candidate might tell a friend about their positive experience. But a disgruntled candidate is likely to tell at least 10 friends how appalled they were with a poor interview experience!

And finally, do ensure that feedback is timely – don’t keep candidates in a state of uncertainty any longer than absolutely necessary.

4.  Invite Feedback on Your Recruitment Process

It’s not just candidates who can benefit from feedback. You can learn how to improve your recruitment process by asking successful and unsuccessful candidates what they thought about their experience of your recruitment process. Gather information through a follow-up email which asks questions such as:

• How would you rate your interview experience?
• Would you apply again for a role in our company?
• How can we improve?

This way you’ll gain insight into your recruitment process from an applicant’s perspective and continue to improve the candidate experience within your business and make sure you’re doing all you can to attract and retain employees that will help your business thrive.

Find out How to Create an Awesome Candidate Experience with our short guide

Photo by Christina @ wocintechchat.com on Unsplash

Tracy Welch, Business Director at Priority Appointments, explains how to win the war for talent when recruiting for jobs in Basingstoke.

When a client asked me the best way to secure the people they need to grow in the current recruitment climate, my advice was simple: “If you like them, hire them!”

There are of course very good reasons why recruiting new people can take a long time. 

Businesses are, well, busy, which can mean that finalising a job offer can take an extended period of time. Many companies have internal processes and procedures that involve multiple decision-makers who need to confer and compare information before a formal job offer can be made.

But in the current climate where the best candidates often have two, three or more offers, there is no time to lose when it comes to securing the best people who can help your company grow and thrive. 

Why is Filling Jobs in Basingstoke so Tough?

The latest figures from the Office of National Statistics (April 2022) show that unemployment here in the South East is just 3.4%, well below the national figure.

These figures are borne out by our professional industry body, the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC). In its Jobs Outlook for April 2022, REC has said that  large (250+ employee) and mid-sized (50-249 employee) organisations were notably optimistic about increasing headcount, at net: +33 and net: +31, respectively.

Where is Everybody?!

There are numerous reasons why recruiting is so tough at present. You’ll have read in the press that there are an estimated MILLION fewer people in the labour market than before the pandemic, which explains much of the problem. 

Added to this is the fact that there are an estimated 4million people who may be dealing with health problems as a result of having had COVID, or who have new caring roles as a direct or indirect result of the pandemic and who aren’t currently in the workplace.

Put these factors together and it’s easy to see why the war for talent is so heated!

Mistakes That Are Costing Employers Talent

In a climate where an eye-watering 50% of UK employers are experiencing labour shortages, it’s essential to make sure the jobs you have on offer are attractive to the best candidates.

The most common mistakes we see include:

Failing to prioritise making job offers - when business is full-on, making a job offer to a candidate can get lost in everyday busy-ness. But in the current climate, a delay of even a few hours can mean losing out on securing the best people.

Overly-complex recruitment processes - many companies have recruitment processes that have grown organically over the years, meaning they have steps that really don’t add value and that can cause delays in making job offers. 

Poor internal communication - sometimes employers miss out on ideal candidates purely down to one area of the business not knowing or understanding what another area needs. We encourage our clients to make sure all stakeholders are clear about the objectives before we present shortlists of candidates for interview. 

Unrealistic expectations in terms of skills and / or experience - when we recruit for our clients, we always check which skills, qualifications and experience are essential, and what is ‘nice-to-have’. Employers that are unrealistic about the type of people they want often end up missing out on the best ‘hidden gems’.

Offering outdated salaries or pay rates - the rise in the National Living Wage and the voluntary Real Living Wage, coupled with the increase in the cost of living, mean that salaries and hourly rates have all increased over recent months. 

Many firms are going beyond just increasing the salary band for offers, and are adding in-work benefits, such as flexible working, to help them win the war for local talent in Hampshire, Surrey and Berkshire.

First Past the Post

Right now, speed is probably even more key than offering the right level of salary and benefits.

In August 2021, LinkedIn published research based on an analysis of 400,000 confirmed hires on its platform to see how long the recruitment process took. 

They found that engineering was right up there as one of the sectors which took the longest to hire new people, taking an average of 49 days to appoint new members of staff!

Recruiting for Manufacturing, Engineering and Logistics

In our specialist sectors of manufacturing, logistics and precision engineering we’re increasingly finding that it is companies that can make offers quickly who are securing the best candidates.

Many people have told us that if they didn’t hear back after an interview that they felt had gone well, that they assumed the employer wasn’t interested in them, so they went off to look elsewhere.

So in a climate where great people are so hard to come by, making good decisions quickly is the best way to secure the best people. 

Here at Priority Appointments, we help our clients walk the tricky tightrope between acting quickly, whilst still making sure that the people they employ in temporary or permanent roles have the right skills and attributes to fit in and become valuable members of the team.

Get in touch with our professional team to find out how we can help give you the best chance of securing the right people: office@priorityappointments.co.uk.

The new levels of the National Minimum and National Living Wage come into effect from 1st April 2022. The UK's minimum pay scales are governed by two different sets of regulation:

National Living Wage regulations were passed through parliament in 2016 and from April 2021, have applied to anyone aged 23 or over.

National Minimum Wage regulations have been in force since 1999 and apply to anyone under 23.

The rates from April 2022 are:

£9.50 for people aged 23 and over 

£9.18 for 21 - 22 year-olds  

£6.83 for those aged 18 to 20

Penalties for employers who flout the regulations are punitive. If an employee can prove that they have not been paid correctly, HMRC can issue a fine and insist that employers pay any arrears. If these monies remain unpaid, the employment tribunal could impose fines of up to £20,000. You can find out more about your responsibilities as an employer on the ACAS website.

Voluntary ‘Real Living Wage’ Scheme

In addition to this mandatory scheme, there is also a scheme known as the ‘Real Living Wage’ run by the Living Wage Foundation, which is based on the cost of living.

There are currently over 9,000 accredited employers who support the scheme which, according to the Living Wage Foundation, helps them attract the best staff.

As a reputable consultancy with some 20 years experience, we understand the nature of the local job market, which means we can offer you guidance on the optimum hourly pay rates and salaries to attract the best candidates.

For more information about setting appropriate pay rates, please contact Tracy Welch at Priority Appointments on 01256 334575 or email us.

Using temporary or contract staff as part of your team gives you optimum flexibility at a time when planning your workforce is particularly challenging.

With resources stretched to the limit, many manufacturing, distribution and precision engineering companies are finding that taking on temporary staff enables them to add key skills wherever they are needed in the business, from support and office functions through to the warehouse or shop floor.  

Making temporary staffing easier

According to the Recruitment and Employment Confederation’s Recruitment and Recovery 2021 report, 61% of businesses are currently hiring staff on a temporary basis. 

As Priority's Business Director Tracy Welch explains, “Companies want to keep their headcount as flexible as possible this year so they can scale up or scale down as their order book demands. As one of the leading temp agencies in Basingstoke, we’re finding a growing number of companies want to add key resources to back office and support functions quickly.”

One of the key advantages of using temps is that you don’t need to make any changes to your payroll, set up pensions or do the paperwork associated with onboarding new permanent members of staff.

Luke Arnott, Manager of our Industrial and Technical Division says, “When you need to scale up for a big order or to meet a contract, using temporary staff means you can quickly put additional resources in place to give you maximum flexibility.”

So if you think that using temporary staff could be a good solution for you, how do you ensure you get the best value from your temps or contract staff?

The Benefits of a Flexible Workforce

Here’s our short guide to getting the very best value your temporary or contract staff:

1.    Speed up recruitment

Recruiting a full-time, permanent member of staff can be a slow business as you will probably need to see them twice, and multiple managers may need to interview them too. Once you’ve chosen the right candidate and agreed terms, they’ll probably need to work out their notice with their existing employer before joining your organisation.

By taking on temporary staff, you can have someone in place within days, with the peace of mind of knowing that all their paperwork Is taken care of by us.

2.    Scale up (or dial down) on-demand

Large orders, seasonal peaks and staff absences can all affect the number of staff your company needs, while particular projects may mean that you require specific experience and skills on a short-term basis.

By using high-quality quality temps, you can adjust the size and skillset of your workforce and very quickly increase the headcount, or dial it back down, as the business demands. 

3. Prepare for the unexpected

In addition to dealing with the normal pattern of sick leave, managers now need to cater for people who have to self-isolate for a period if they have been in touch with someone with COVID-19, or ahead of routine hospital appointments. 

One local manufacturing company we have worked with for many years had a challenge in its finance team due several members of staff being on long-term sickness leave. This affected key processes which needed to be completed for supplier invoices to be approved and paid.

We provided them with four experienced temporary finance assistants who were able to ‘hit the ground running’ and cleared the backlog quickly, meaning supplier invoices were brought up to date and the supply chain remained uninterrupted. Several of the temporary finance assistants we provided have now been offered permanent roles. 

4.    Keep your options open with temporary to permanent

If you are not completely sure about the skill set you need in a particular role, employing someone on a temp to perm basis gives both you and the employee a chance to scope out the new role, and to make sure that you are a good fit for each other. 

One of our clients, a well-known international distribution company, needed up to 30 temps to support their core customer service team in a particularly busy period and asked us to help them find the right people.

We were able to engage the new team quickly and provide in-house testing to assess their customer service, problem-solving and written communications skills before they were offered longer term roles as part of the assignment process. 

Once again, several of the people we placed have been offered permanent roles with the company. 

5.    Gain a new perspective and additional knowledge

Where teams include a high number of staff who don’t have extensive experience in a given role, it can be useful to bring in an experienced specialist on a contract or longer-term temporary basis.

Not only will they have the functional skills you need, but less-experienced members of staff can also learn from someone with extensive experience to uplevel their own skill set.

Many teams have lost momentum over the past year, especially if people have been working from home and unable to meet up face to face. Including some temporary members of staff in the team can help bring new energy into the business.

The right temporary hire could also bring experience with processes and procedures from other organisations to spark fresh new ideas and help the in-house team grow and develop. 

6.    Be certain about what you pay

At Priority Appointments, we can offer local temporary pay rate benchmarking to help make sure you’re offering the right rate to attract the best people with specific skills for your temp roles. 

We also make sure that you know exactly what you’re paying for. When you use temps through us, our  Transparent Pricing commitment means that you see exactly what you will pay for each temporary member of staff. We clearly explain all our hiring processes, procedures and pricing, which is based on a fixed margin per hour, not a percentage margin or mark-up. This means that if a temp’s pay rate increases, as a result of a pay rise or overtime for example, there are no nasty surprises as the hourly margin you pay remains as agreed.

7.    Choose an accredited temp agency

Many people underestimate how much paperworks is involved in placing temporary staff and performing compliance checks. Not only do we meet with candidates face to face to ensure the team fit is right but we follow rigorous compliance checks to ensure candidates can present the correct right to work documentation as well as evidence of any specific qualifications that are required for the role.

By choosing a recruitment partner which is a member of the Recruitment and Employment Confederation, you can be sure that we will undertake all the necessary checks so that you don’t inadvertently breach any regulations with the people you employ.
 

8.    Benefit from Continuous Support

Once we have placed a temporary worker, we will keep in regular contact with you to ensure their work performance is as expected and to provide support if you need it. We will also contact the temporary worker from time to time to check how they are doing.

If you are ready to find out more about how to make the most of temporary and contract staff for the choppy business waters ahead this year, please get in touch for a no-obligation conversation. Tel: 01256 334575 or email us at office@priorityappointments.co.uk