Business, Career, Career Woman, HR, Human Resources, Uncategorized, women in business

Steps Ahead of the rest!

by Natalie Ellis2 Comments on Steps Ahead of the rest!

Hello everyone,

I know it has been a while since I last wrote on my blog but now I am getting back into the swing of things! Moving home and juggling lots of exciting business ventures have kept me incredibly busy over the past few weeks.

At this time of year, we often spend time thinking of the perfect gift or the right cards to send so in the new year, why not make a resolution to help others? In this blog post I wanted to emphasise the importance of helping the next generation into employment and how we as HR professionals can make a huge difference.

I’ve worked in partnership with the CIPD Steps Ahead programme (in conjunction with Jobcentre Plus) for the past couple of years and from experience I have found that it can really change a young person’s life by supporting them into employment. As HR professionals, we have a lot to offer the next generation by utilising our support and mentoring skills, whether it is helping structure the right CV, assisting with interview skills or even just helping boost their confidence. This could make a significant impact on the skills gap shortages that has been so highly publicized in the media of recent years.

The scheme is aimed at job seekers who are between 18 – 24 years of age and has a success rate of 73% for those who have completed the programme. As a mentor I dedicate around one hour per week, per mentee (you can have up to three mentees at one time) and I tend to work remotely but as part of the scheme you can be paired up with local job seekers. It depends on your time and ability to commit to supporting them.

The responses and feedback I’ve received from the people that I have successfully helped into employment has been staggering, they are generally really motivated and want to build a solid foundation for their career. On the other hand, it is also great experience for anyone in HR to get involved in as it can take you out of your comfort zone and provide a rewarding experience which will be another string to add to your bow.

One of my successful mentees is Rick. He was a recent graduate, is incredibly clever but he lacked confidence to go for a role he really wanted. We worked together over a period of six weeks (as recommended by the programme). We started by identifying his chosen career path before building upon his existing CV to target those specific industries. Even this step seemed to boost his confidence significantly! I received a wonderful email from Rick this week, giving me vital insight into how the Steps Ahead programme has helped him into employment as well as the challenges he faced when starting to look for employment after university; I will be uploading Rick’s journey onto the blog to raise awareness of this fantastic programme so watch this space!

A common problem that I have encountered when speaking with my mentees is a lack of specific guidance they receive whilst they are still in education. They explained that there were not adequate support mechanisms in place to support the transition into the world of work. They advised that a professional career advisor is someone they would like to see regularly before they are due to leave college, graduate from university or leave school as they would then be able to understand how to correctly structure a CV, prepare for the world of work and assist with interview techniques. I feel that this is a strong enough case for more professional people to get involved with programmes like Steps Ahead in order to support the talent of the future otherwise we run the risk of further skills shortages in years to come.

My advice to young people would be; do not be afraid to go out there and seek the job you dream of, just as long as you have strong ambition, motivation, the drive to succeed and are prepared for some doors to close on you, you will make it. Many successful business leaders have had their ideas rejected countless times Richard Branson is a great example of this!
Preparation is key, if you have that big interview, an assessment center or even a telephone screening with a potential employer, make sure you are prepared – first impressions really do count. Here are some handy tips if you are looking to get back in to work or if you yourself are supporting someone to get their dream job:

1. Be professional – dress appropriately and avoid slang language and be careful with email addresses! This is a pet hate for employers and gives off an incredibly negative impression, use your first name and surname to set up a professional looking email address.

2. Check your CV. Some CV’s I have received in recent years (and I kid you not!) have been written in “text speak”, some have had emotion icons and some have even been multi-coloured, you may want to stand out but this will certainly not land you an interview so do be mindful on what you put on your CV and keep it simple

3. Create a profile on Linked In (think of it like a business Facebook) – Did you know that over 70% of jobs are not advertised? By using Linked In you can network with other like-minded professionals plus you can automatically upload your CV to the site, a lot of recruitment agencies use the site as well as companies to recruit directly so it could significantly increase your chances of landing that dream role!

4. Do your research! Ensure you have researched the company, understand their values and more importantly what they do! The amount of people I have interviewed over the years and they’ve not known what the company does is astounding and not really a points winner so do make sure you know what you’re talking about before you go in!

5. Make sure when you are being interviewed that you maintain eye contact and tell the story of the situations you have been in. Don’t let the phrase “competency based interview” scare you off, they just want to understand your experience and capability. Always use the STAR approach; Situation (describe the situation you were in) Task (what you needed to accomplish) Action (what YOU did, avoid using “we” as it is your overall contribution that interviewers are looking for) Result (what was the final outcome, what did you learn from the experience?)

6. If you are rejected from a role, make sure you obtain feedback so you can develop from the interview process, always remember that it may not be the right company at that point but it may certainly be in the future so by obtaining feedback you are ready for when that time comes!

More details tips and useful information can be found at Barclays Life Skills – this site is fantastic to help assist those with improving their professional profile or if you need to boost your confidence with job interviews: https://www.barclayslifeskills.com/

If you are interested in supporting this fantastic program whilst raising your own profile, please visit: http://www.cipd.co.uk/publicpolicy/steps-ahead-mentoring/default.aspx Alternatively if you would like to be mentored as part of the programme, please speak to your local Jobcentre Plus advisor who will put you in touch with a remote or local mentor.

I hope you have enjoyed this blog, thank you for reading it and I’d welcome any suggestions that you’d like to see in future posts, just leave me a comment below.

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Paris 13/11/2015

by Natalie EllisLeave a Comment on Paris 13/11/2015

I don’t normally randomly blog but I feel that it would be appropriate to pay my respects to the people of Paris.

My thoughts are with the French people at this devastating time.

I have no words for these horrifying events, to all my colleagues, friends, family and contacts; stay safe and cherish every moment with your loved ones, sadly there are too many who are unable to do this today.

Paris, France; 13th November 2015

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How to handle your social media channels; without getting told off by your better half!

by Natalie EllisLeave a Comment on How to handle your social media channels; without getting told off by your better half!

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My husband was always telling me off for being on my phone and using social media as it ate into our limited time together. At first I wasn’t aware until I put the phone away for a few hours and realised I was struggling to leave it alone!

Upon reflection I then became concerned about the effect that it would have on my step children and the example it would set them. I thought about ways to limit its use without missing out (and its an incredibly difficult balance to find!) so I researched ways to improve the situation and it really works! So here they are; my top five tips for handling your social media whilst still having a life!

1. Use an automated app to send your tweets and update your LinkedIn; many people often ask me how I can get all of my work done and still have the time to update social media? It’s pretty easy because I generally don’t! I allocate one hour each evening or a couple of hours on a Sunday evening, I then identify trends in the HR world then put it all into my Hootsuite application on my iPhone. Hootsuite works on your behalf and can even schedule updates to appear at peak times to ensure you get noticed. Now that I have it I don’t know how I lived without it!

2. Get business updates to your desktop, all of my CIPD, ACAS and People Management updates are sent to me directly via email and appear at lunchtime when I have time to read them whilst having lunch.

3. Put the smartphone down! Working without your phone on your desk or not getting it out of your bag when you meet a friend for coffee will stop you getting distracted and allows you to switch off and focus on the task at hand. You can then recharge your batteries and allow yourself some much needed “you” time and trust me, you will feel a lot better for it.

4. Don’t look at your emails all day; allocate certain times during the day to check your emails; go and talk to a colleague instead of sending an email or pick up the phone if they’re not based at your site. People often prefer a more personable approach, this allows you to build effective relationships in your workplace, well let’s face it you can’t get a personality across via a screen!

5. Download a radio, podcast or a playlist from iTunes or Google Play; when at home instead of checking Facebook, put on the playlist and listen to it around the house, this will keep your mind busy and help you resist the temptation to pick up the phone or tablet. If you listen to business podcasts, it’s a great opportunity to learn about current trends but if you listen to some of your favourite music, nothing can be better to help you relax or have a dance around your kitchen if that’s more your thing!

I hope these handy tips will help you free up your time and help you become more productive, not just at work but at home too.

Check out this article to find out more about smartphone addiction: https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/reading-between-the-headlines/201307/smartphone-addiction

Business, Career, HR, Human Resources, Uncategorized

Where it all began… HR with added Girl Power!

by Natalie EllisLeave a Comment on Where it all began… HR with added Girl Power!

When I first decided to start my own blog, I spoke to one of my dear friends Cheryl who told me to go for it but the biggest piece of advice she offered was “to be myself” so I thought it would be a great idea if I started from the very beginning so you can get to know me a little bit better.

Believe it or not my drive and motivation stems from July 1996 when the Spice Girls shot to the top of the charts, I kid you not!

They inspired me; I adored their music and I literally wanted everything from Emma Bunton’s wardrobe! But the one thing that really stuck with me was the hard work they had put in to conquer the world, it seemed, overnight.

Upon researching their story I realised that they had sacrificed their education, employment and even lived on the dole for two years in order to become the most successful girl group of all time. Can you imagine Victoria Beckham collecting her dole money in Maidenhead town centre? No neither can I….

You’re probably thinking; what on earth does this have to do with HR? This formed the basis of my determination to be the best that I could be, as Karren Brady said in her autobiography “even if I was a cleaner, I’d make sure I was the best cleaner I could be” and I make sure I keep this at the forefront of my mind every day before I go to work.

One of the biggest hurdles I faced when I first started going for HR interviews was a lack of HR experience. I was a strong administrator with customer service experience and bags of determination, after nine interview these were the qualities that my first employer spotted and offered me the HR Administrator position on the spot. Many would be disheartened after nine interviews, but I had channeled my inner Ginger Spice! The Spice Girls had sacked their first manager, and not one for missing an opportunity; Geri Halliwell’s determination to work with a hugely successful songwriter, Elliot Kennedy (who went on to produce their second number one “Say You’ll Be There”). He was reluctant to work with the girls due to the lack of management but soon came around to Geri’s way of thinking after seeing how much passion she had to make the group a success. Spice Girls

Each Spice Girl was different, and let’s face it we all had a favorite! But by being unique and having individual contributions allows diversity and creativity to shine. They taught us all that it is okay to be different which helped women boost their self-confidence to get them “out there” and be proud. It takes a lot of confidence to push yourself forward and stand out from the crowd, but this is how I have managed to create a successful career, now I am using my experiences to inspire and motivate others, all whilst doing a job I adore!

One thing we could all certainly learn from  Scary, Sporty, Ginger, Baby and Posh is that a small team can accomplish anything when supporting each other and that is why it is so important to ensure we support each other in our work and personal lives. Making time to help our friends, family and colleagues is a HR strength, we should play to it and use it more often.

HR is all about support, we need to support the needs of an organisation, we need to support the employees but we also need to support the needs of our own teams. When a HR department is in tune together, large projects don’t seem so large and a heavy workload seems much lighter. The key thing is to stick together and identify viable solutions to the challenges that each HR team faces; one thing that is certain is that you will succeed as long as you work through the challenges together. It is these challenging situations that keep us focused and allow us to develop ourselves, embrace them!

If you are new to HR and want to push yourself, think about what you want to achieve, how you can bring this to your role and always remember to keep sight of your goals, it is only you that can hold yourself back.

Swing it, shake it and show them how good you are!