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Eventus Recruitment Group > Articles by: Eventus
05Jul

Navigating a Career in Financial Planning in the UK: A Comprehensive Guide

A guide to starting a career in financial planning

Financial planning is a rewarding and dynamic field that offers a range of career opportunities in the UK and beyond. With an aging population, increasing financial literacy, and evolving financial markets, the demand for skilled financial planners is on the rise. This blog provides an overview of what a career in financial planning involves, the qualifications required, career paths, and the benefits of choosing this profession.

What is Financial Planning?

Financial planning involves helping individuals and businesses set financial aims, achieve their financial goals through tailored advice and planning. This includes retirement advice, managing investments, tax planning, mortgage advice, income protection, insurance, estate planning and risk management. Moreover, Financial Planners work closely with clients to understand their financial situations, set goals and create comprehensive financial plans.

Qualifications and Certifications to enter the financial planning sector

In the UK, to become a financial planner, typically you need a combination of formal education, professional qualifications, and relevant experience. Here are the key steps and qualifications:

Formal Education

Many degrees can give you a give a step into financial planning. For example, degrees in finance, economics, business management, accountancy or a related field is often preferred. However, you can enter the financial planning sector with other degrees if supplemented with relevant qualifications.

Apprenticeships

It’s also possible to do apprenticeships in Financial Planning alongside college / degree courses. Apprenticeships are on the rise within many sectors with businesses now receiving funding to help with the costs. As there are many benefits of apprenticeships for both businesses and apprentices and they are a great alternative to full-time post-16 education.

Professional Qualifications

A Financial Planning Administrator is a common entry level role to Financial Planning. It is a great way for industry newcomers to gain knowledge and become familiar with the sector. Such a role provides a great foundation to commence studying towards a Level 4 qualification recognised by the Financial Conduct Authority or another examining body in Financial Advice.

There are different examining bodies that individuals can study through and gain their Level 4 Diploma. Some examining bodies and Level 4 Diplomas include:

Level 4 Investment Advice Diploma (IAD) – This is offered by the Chartered Institute for Securities & Investment (CISI). It provides a grounding in financial services and consumer relationships in the UK, macro-economic environment, settlement, safe custody and prime brokerage, financial protection, exchange traded futures and options.

Level 4 Certificate in Paraplanning – This is offered by the Chartered Institute for Securities & Investment (CISI).

Diploma in Regulated Financial Planning (DipPFS) – This is offered by the Chartered Insurance Institute (CII).

Diploma for Financial Advisers (DipFA) – This is offered by The London Institute of Banking and Finance (LIBF).

The Level 4 Diploma is the minimum level qualification you need to become a financial adviser, as laid down by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). It covers key areas such as investment principles, taxation, and retirement planning.

Higher level qualifications

There’re many qualifications that Financial Planners and Advisers can take to enhance their careers. These include:

Level 6 Chartered Financial Planner

Provided by the CII and LIBF, achieving Chartered status demonstrates a higher level of expertise and commitment to professional standards.

CISI Qualifications

The CISI offer many qualifications including:

To see the full CISI Financial Planning pathways click here. Alternatively to see the full Investment Advice pathway click here.

Work Experience

Gaining practical work experience through internships or entry-level positions in financial advisory firms is crucial. As many employers look for candidates with hands-on experience in addition to formal qualifications. However, apprenticeships are on the rise within the financial planning sector. Some firms now offer apprenticeships to people straight out of full-time education or to those seeking a career change.

Career Paths in Financial Planning

The financial planning sector offers various rewarding career paths, each with unique opportunities and challenges:

Independent Financial Adviser (IFA)

IFAs provide unbiased advice to clients and can recommend products from the ‘whole of market’. This role offers flexibility and the potential for high earnings. But it also requires the top qualifications within the sector and building and maintaining a client base.

Tied or Multi-tied Adviser

 These advisers work for a single financial institution or a limited range of providers. They offer products and advice specific to their employer’s offerings. This path can provide more stability and support compared to being an IFA.

Paraplanner

Paraplanners support financial planners by preparing reports, conducting research and developing financial plans. This role is often ideal for those who prefer a more analytical and less client-facing position. Alternatively, it’s great for people who are building experience whilst studying to become a Chartered Financial Planner.

Wealth Manager

Wealth Managers usually work with high-net-worth individuals and provide a holistic approach to managing their wealth, including investment management, tax planning, and estate planning.

Compliance and Risk Manager

This role has become increasingly important in recent years, as regulations in the financial sector continue to evolve. These professionals ensure that all financial planning practices adhere to legal and regulatory standards.

Financial Planning Administrator

This is an entry point into Financial Planning. In this role you will be supporting Paraplanners, Financial Planners and other team members with administration. It will provide exposure to financial planning work and the day-to-day running of financial planning firms.

Benefits of a Career in Financial Planning

A career in financial planning can be highly rewarding and has many benefits, including:

Job Satisfaction: Helping clients plan for the future and achieve their financial goals can be very rewarding.

Diverse Opportunities: The financial planning sector offers a variety of roles and specialisms, allowing professionals to find their niche and passion.

No two days are the same: Work within financial planning is varied, with each client having different financial backgrounds, requirements and goals. This means that no days will be same and the work will vary day-to-day.

Financial Rewards: Experienced financial planners can earn significant incomes, especially those working with high-net-worth clients or running their own practices.

Continuous Learning: The financial markets and regulations are constantly changing, providing opportunities for continuous learning and professional development.

Challenges and Considerations of a career in Financial Planning

Although working within financial planning has many benefits, it also carries its own set of unique challenges:

Regulatory Changes: The financial services sector and regulations are constantly evolving with external factors playing a huge part to this. In addition, financial markets are also constantly changing, with political and environmental influences impacting the markets. As a result, Financial Planners must stay up-to-date with regulatory changes and ensure compliance. This can be quite demanding.

Building a Client Base: For those starting out, especially as IFAs, building a client base can be challenging and time-consuming. However, not all roles within financial planning involve having your own client base. Some companies have their own client base, which their employees serve.

Ethical Considerations: Financial planners must always act in their clients’ best interests, as you are entrusted with their financial futures. This requires a strong ethical foundation and commitment to professional integrity.

Conclusion

A career in financial planning in the UK is both rewarding and challenging, offering those with an interest in the financial markets a range of career paths and progression opportunities. The financial planning field provides a dynamic professional environment, where you can make a significant impact on clients’ lives whilst enjoying professional growth.

If you’re considering a career in financial planning, start by exploring relevant qualifications and gaining practical experience. Also, explore the different specialisms to find your passion. The journey might be hard work, but the rewards of helping others achieve financial security and success are worth the effort.

Here at the Eventus Recruitment we are specialist recruitment consultants in financial planning. Our Financial planning is headed by Duncan McIlroy who has over 20 years’ experience in Financial Services recruitment. For further advice, do not hesitate to contact us for a confidential chat.

"The service I received from Duncan exceeds expectations, from my first initial chat through to my job offer he excelled! I always felt assured following our conversations. Duncan always offered support where I needed it and checked in regularly. My career has now returned! Thanks a million!!"
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Samantha, Mortgage Administrator
01Jul

Helen Milburn’s Inspiring career journey from Private Client Solicitor to Partner at Jacksons Law Firm

In this exclusive interview with Eventus Recruitment, Helen Milburn gives an insight into her career in Private Client and gives her top tips for those wanting to begin a career in Law. Also, she explains why she thinks there are less Trainee Solicitors wanting to specialise in Private Client. Helen is now Partner and Head of Private Client, Trusts, and Probate at Jacksons Law Firm.

I’m Head of Department of the Private Client Team and a Partner here at Jacksons. I have a nice story when it comes to my career history; I first came to Jacksons on work experience in February 2010 having already completed my legal studies. Whilst I was here, I must have made a good impression, and I was offered a training contract to start just two months after. After I completed my training contract I qualified into Private Client and progressed into more senior positions within the department over the years. I was offered partnership last year. It’s a career history that really shows Jacksons’ commitment to developing and supporting people. People want to be able to move forward in their careers and it’s good to be in a firm that really encourages that.

It’s always been something that I’ve been interested in, which I think is quite unusual as it’s not particularly the most well-known area of law. I initially did a degree in English and then a law conversion course during which I did my electives in Private Client, so I covered a lot about Wills and Trusts. Whilst I did then spend time in other areas of law on my training contract, they just didn’t appeal to me as much as Private Client did.

There are really two things I like the most about Private Client. Firstly, it requires in depth technical knowledge. It’s heavily focused on the details which appeals to my meticulous nature, and it’s deeply rooted historically, which I always find fascinating.

The second is it’s dealing with people. It’s a very people focused side of the law. You get to meet a lot of clients and you really feel you get to know them which gives great job satisfaction. As part of the role you meet with families, build rapport, and usually not for a one-off service – you’re often building long standing relationships as their Solicitor, which I really enjoy. Private client covers a wide range of different practise areas; wills, trusts, estate, planning and probate. It’s never the same thing on your desk day in and day out and I like that.

Private Client spoke to me straight away. I was lucky enough to do a long stint in it when I was training, and I knew it was what I wanted to do. The whole ethos of it just fitted in with me personally. I always say to trainee solicitors that you’ve got to keep your mind open when you’re looking at what areas of law to do. It’s important to pick something that you’re genuinely interested in; then you’re going to be passionate about it and be dedicated to it. That’s important in any job, isn’t it? But I think it’s important in law for a long and successful career.

It’s difficult to identify a single reason. However, when I was thinking about this, I don’t know whether it’s because it isn’t as glamorous as other areas of the law or as much publicised. When you’re a law student or a trainee, when you think of being a Solicitor, you’re only really thinking of being in a court room, I think these non-contentious areas do go under the radar a little!

It’s a really rewarding area to work in. You’re dealing with people who want your help and advice, you are their trusted advisor and it’s a very positive client experience.

In terms of your legal development, there’s a lot of technical law involved and a lot of complexities to really get your teeth into. You’ve got a lot of opportunities to deal with marketing and business development, working with other professionals in other sectors, who compliment and develop your own work.

Sometimes people think it’s just drafting Wills, but it’s so much more! There are plenty of opportunities to develop your own specialism within Private Client for example, estate planning, agricultural, business, high net worth as well as opportunities to show creativity – to be able to do things a bit differently – and make your own mark on the way things are done.

In terms of the work, I would probably say estate administration. I’ve had a lot of complex estates over the years, where I’ve got to work with accountants and tax advisors in addition to the clients over a long period of time. It’s very interesting for me and always enhances my professional development; I like this collaborative approach.

I think the most challenging part is probably juggling everything! We’re quite a small department but we are wanting to grow. It’s coming up with new ideas and initiatives and balancing that with the day to day running of the department and looking after our clients. It’s good to be busy but you can come in with your to do list and then new things happen, and you’ve not ticked everything (or anything!) off that you wanted to that day!

For me personally, it’s quite simple, I like to do a good job and to do well at what I’m doing. I like to build relationships with my clients; getting positive feedback from them is really fulfilling for me as part of my job. In addition, I’m really motivated by managing my team. I’ve been in the department since I qualified, coming up 12 years now and it’s been important for me to develop myself, and others and grow the department. It’s really rewarding and motivating to bring people on this journey along with me and supporting them to build their own careers.

It’s been character building for me. I was given the opportunity to really step up to the plate in terms of working independently and be in a supervisory position quite early on in my career, I quite quickly became the most senior person in my team. Sometimes I do look back and wonder how I managed it! I think it’s full credit to the firm to allow that opportunity. Sometimes you have to be out of your comfort zone to see who you really are, I think that opportunity was formative and really kickstarted my career.

It was a big shift for me and very exciting, perhaps bigger than I had imagined because I’ve been a Head of Department for many years so considered myself to be in a leadership role. When I was offered partnership, it was a decision that I took seriously. It was not just a title to me, it’s a huge responsibility and commitment to the overall firm and its future. 

It’s hard to describe but it’s a transition from working ‘in’ the business to working ‘on’ the business. However, it’s been important for my career development to take that step. It’s a real change of mindset from just being focused on what you and your team are doing to thinking about it in the context of the overall firm.

I get to sit round the table and understand the wider workings of the firm and have a voice on business and the direction of the firm. It’s really opened my mind and I’ve grown quite a lot in the last year by taking in this bigger picture.

The achievement I’m most proud of is the professional development of the fantastic trainees, paralegals, and solicitors that I’ve had the pleasure of working with over the years; to have even been just a small part of shaping their careers is my greatest achievement and such a huge part of my career satisfaction. It’s so rewarding to encourage more fee-earners in an area of law that I love – and in a sector where they are really in demand.

Without doubt, it was taking on responsibility for the department early on in my career. I managed to navigate that successfully with the support of the firm – and some exceptional secretaries and fee-earners who were always rooting for me! Looking back, it was a sink or swim moment for me in my career. I think a lot of us do suffer from imposter syndrome (and I probably still do to some extent!)  however, it’s an important lesson for other junior lawyers, to know you can do a lot more than you think you can do if you take that leap of faith!

I was made a Partner last year so that was a huge career milestone for me. However, I want to continue to grow the Private Client team at Jacksons and put us on the map as one of the best in the North-East.

That is a huge question for everyone, I think it is hard to switch off from work. Some of my most inspired thoughts come to me in the middle of the night! It’s important to allow yourself time to switch off though and with my team I like to lead by example; I don’t encourage people to feel like they must be seen to work on the evenings and weekends. 

I encourage my team to have a good work-life balance, to know that they can leave work and take a break. Although, sometimes additional work outside of standard hours is unavoidable as part and parcel of your career, it’s important that people do have their free time to recharge their batteries. At Jacksons we have a flexible working policy to help with our work-life balance. Also, we have recently introduced term time contracts to help solicitors better juggle with family life.

Personally, I find that on the days that I’m working in the office, my long drive home helps me to get things turned over in my head and switch off into off work mode for the evening. When I’m working from home, I think it’s important to have an end of the day, so I’ll usually get outside, go for a walk, to clear my head.

Working in law is a really rewarding career, both personally and professionally. It can be a lifelong career choice, with so many opportunities to continually grow within it, ultimately all within your own aspirations.

Explore all the opportunities out there because the traditional routes into the profession are changing. You can now do the Solicitor Apprenticeship route which means you are in the working law firm office environment from day one. Being straight into the ‘real world’ has so many learning advantages.

There are a lot of non-traditional routes into law, and you don’t necessarily have to have started out thinking you want to be a lawyer. I didn’t know I did when I went to university! We have a paralegal in our team who started out on a Business Apprenticeship working on our reception and is now doing her CILEX course which is an inspiring example.

I think it’s important to do work experience, to get a taste of things and demonstrate commitment to your career choice. Do any voluntary experience you can get, law firms, legal charities, etc. I spent time at the Citizens Advice Bureau. I think you must keep an open mind about your future career. Always be authentic to yourself but take on board any advice what other experienced people in the profession can give to you, as they have once walked in your shoes.

Working for Jacksons Law Firm

Do your homework so you are knowledgeable about the role and the firm. Being able to show how passionate you are about working for Jacksons and be able to demonstrate your interest in your career with us is key.

It’s hard to answer this one without sounding cliché, but for me the culture and the ethos of the firm. If you’ve got a problem with anything, you can share that problem and know that others around you including those in the senior management team are going to support you. That sort of trust is hugely important, and I know you don’t get that everywhere.

You’re also trusted to do your job; I don’t believe anyone thrives in a situation where you’re micro-managed or you feel someone is constantly looking over your shoulder. However, there’s support there when people need it, it’s an open-door policy throughout, it is such a collaborative and conducive environment to work in.

When I think back there were times when it was just me and a trainee Solicitor in the department and then there’s been various combinations over the years where we have had real growth. We have a Private Client Solicitor in our Newcastle office also, which is great to have presence across the whole of the North-East. Now we are looking to expand the Private Client department in both offices.

We’re looking to have another fee-earner in our team, Solicitor or equivalent. We’re in a situation now where we’re looking to further grow and develop the department. We have a few exciting development initiatives getting underway and we’re really looking to have another Solicitor on board to support that. Ultimately, we’re quite flexible in terms of what we’re looking for, in terms of experience and qualification. The most important element for us is to get the right fit for the team. Somebody who’s possibly got at least a few of years of Private Client experience under their belt or equally someone who is well established and keen to develop specialisms, for example, for agricultural or business and high net worth clients. We do have quite a large agricultural and business client base and we would also like to expand our business development activities in this area.

Yes, they could be based in either our Stockton or Newcastle office. We are quite flexible and have a flexible working policy, which enables people to work across both offices and from home.

We are looking for someone who would be the right fit for our team. An applicant who is passionate about working in Private Client and can work well in the team but also has the confidence to work independently. We naturally want someone with strong technical skills and experience in Private Client, who is really focussed on the details but also has great soft skills for working with our clients and who has enthusiasm for business development and marketing.

You’ll be working with a team of people who are really dedicated and enthusiastic about what they do. We’ve got a lot of experience between us and we’re a forward-thinking and open-minded team. We are looking for people to bring their thoughts and ideas and they will all be taken onboard. It will be an opportunity to do a full and varied caseload in Private Client work.

Our Private Client team is currently a team of 7. There’s me, there’s two solicitors, a trainee solicitor, a paralegal and two secretaries. Also, you’ll be encouraged to develop your career with Jacksons in the same way as I and the rest of the team have. We actively encourage career development, for example, you may want to start or continue your STEP qualification. We would look to support you in that.

The office environment is also fantastic. It’s modern with break out spaces for collaborative working. There’s free parking at our Stockton Office and a real sense of community within the office. Plus, all the flexibility, which is a massive selling point at Jacksons!

We hope you have enjoyed this interview. The interview is part of our series of legal career insights with professionals specialising in Law at all levels. 

If you would like tailored career advice don’t hesitate to contact us. We are legal recruitment and job search specialists and we offer support at every stage of the job search process.

Contact Us
Further Reading

Sarah Jane Lenihan’s career journey to Partner and award-winning Family Lawyer at Dawson Cornwell. Click here to read.

Trainee Solicitor Ross Simmons’ experience of securing a training contract after working as a Paralegal. Click here to read.

Insights into Legal Apprenticeships with Solicitor Apprentice Ellie Phillips. Click here to read.

Solicitor Apprentice Ellie Phillips’ personal experience of a Solicitor Apprenticeship. Click here to read.

28Jun

Typhoons RUFC – An exclusive interview with Kris Barber-Midgley

Here at Eventus Recruitment we’ve sponsored Typhoons RUFC – Lancashire’s inclusive rugby club – for the last 3 years. To honour Pride we sat down with the club’s Chair Kris Barber-Midgley for a discussion about the Typhoons, his career and his advice for LGBTQ professionals.

What was the inspiration for setting up Typhoons RUFC?

The typhoons started in 2018. It came about as a result of a conversation between a man called Lawrence Howard and some of the community coaches from the Rugby Football Union (RFU). They’d noticed some interest nationally in inclusive rugby teams and realised that up until that point, all these inclusive teams focused on large city areas that typically had quite a mature LGBT community. But what they hadn’t seen was inclusive clubs in rural areas. So, they wondered whether such a club could exist in somewhere like Lancashire, which has got an LGBT community, but it’s spread out.

As a result, the Typhoons was formed to encourage LGBT people into sport in Lancashire. Traditionally, I think it’s fair to say that our community has not felt the comfiest, whether that’s from experiencing school PE or for any other reason. And a lot of people come to our club and to other inclusive clubs in from the same position that I did. I’ve never played sport and never relished the idea of team sport. I wasn’t sure that I even could catch a ball or throw a ball and thought I was going to embarrass myself. 

That’s usually where people start. They’ve got this idea of what it means to be a sporty person and what it means to be on a rugby team. However, people come along very quickly and feel supported almost immediately. If only I had a tenner for every time someone said it just feels like a family. Everyone is just very friendly and that’s what it means certainly to us to be a Typhoon.

How has the Typhoons grown from the very beginning to now?

Howard and the RFU coaches started by putting an advert in the LEP and on Facebook. I was one of the first people to see and respond to it. Then I remember turning up to that first session being absolutely terrified, but I had a very warm reception at Preston Grasshoppers. However, to be frank I was a little surprised at the lack of turn out that there was. There were around 6 of us in total.

We all came from a similar position of having not played a lot of rugby. The coach, Kai Burns, was an experienced coach. We started playing what I could only like to describe as an adult game of Tig. Building on this over the course of the session, the rules evolved into something that started to look a little bit like rugby. We were all buzzing, we’d allayed our fears that we couldn’t catch or throw a ball. And little by little, week after week, we got more and more players, and it wasn’t long before we had just enough players to play our first game. Surprisingly, we won our first game against another team, which was also a surprise I think to the opposition at that time.

Today

Now we play rugby union and touch rugby. Our team has performed very well in terms of sporting ability over the years. The rugby union team this year went through to the International Gay Rugby (IGR) national final, and we won the northern finals. Unfortunately, we lost in the national finals. But what an incredible achievement to go from nothing six years ago to be playing at the very highest level within our leagues just a few years later. Also, our touch team, which came about a couple of years after the start of the Typhoons, placed third place in their league this year.

How has the Typhoons grown off the playing field?

Quite early on the initial individuals formed a committee and developed a plan to grow Lancashire’s first rugby club. We’d never been part of a rugby club before, so we had to learn on the spot. Also, we had to consider how does an inclusive club work in Lancashire. We’ve got to be seen and heard in the community and be recognised as a club that’s willing to put back into the community as well as take from it. 

So, we’ve got involved in some local charity events. We pulled a fire engine across the front in Blackpool, we attended local Pride events, local fairs and done talks in colleges and workplaces about inclusion. Always we continue to move forward and try to broaden what it means to be an inclusive rugby club. Month by month we get more interest and six years in we now have over 100 members of the Typhoons.

Additionally, off the pitch, we’ve been recognised on a national scale. We won an award at the National Diversity Awards and were nominated for King’s Award for voluntary Service. So, the Typhoons have grown not just in numbers, but in a really positive way, certainly to be recognised locally as a voice of inclusion. We hope to be a set of role models that people can look to; continue to challenge what it means to be LGBT, and what it means to have something different; and show that you can be proud of yourself for that difference.

What does it mean to be a Typhoon?

It is about challenging yourself. Being a Typhoon is more than just learning to play sport. There is a social element too. You come along and you’re instantly surrounded by the support of friends. People have gone through some incredibly challenging life experiences, things that ordinarily might not have been able to overcome, but now they have the support network of 100 individuals at their disposal. 

The people in our club are very generous with their time and their energy. For example, because of being part of the club, people have found work and support where they might have struggled. They’ve avoided homelessness, where again they might not have previously been able to and they’ve thrived as a result of it. So, it’s hard to say why the club was set up, but I’d like to imagine this was all very much part of the reason of setting something up here in Lancashire that we can be proud of and can continue to make that difference.

What did winning the IGR Northern League mean to you?

To me personally, I cried, and I don’t know if I’m turning into a soft sort in my later years because I’ve not historically been known to cry a lot. But the funny thing was we’ve worked hard year on year to improve. The dedication and the hard work of the players has been absolutely incredible. What was nice about this year is that we didn’t go out to win, that wasn’t the aim of our season. We were conscious that we’d grown a lot last summer with a lot of new players. So, our aspiration was just to play some competitive rugby and bring these newer players up to a point where they’ll feel confident to play competitively next season. 

The coaching team have been brilliant at putting in a really good structure and support. But what happened as a result is we kept winning the matches. And, so, the side effect of winning a lot of matches is that you win a lot, score a lot of points and you end up at the top of the league. Then, we found ourselves at the end of the season neck and neck with another local team, the Manchester Spartans. A very good team and who’ve been around for 20 years, and they’ve got hundreds of members, not just 100.

The cherry on the cake

There was never a point when we thought we must win. The team had already patted themselves on the back and said we didn’t think we’d get this far. We were just proud to have got so far. So, when we came out with the points and we won, it was just the cherry on the cake of the year that nobody expected at our club. And what a win. I don’t think there’s a better way to get to the top of the league. If you push and push and push at all costs, you can upset people, and some people get lost along the way because we’re not all here for competitiveness. Some people are here for the social side or to get fit. 

So, it was a lovely celebration of how far we’ve come as a team and what exciting position to be in, as 10 out of the 20 people that we took to the national finals hadn’t picked up a rugby ball until September last year. Ultimately, it’s an incredible credit to them how they’ve integrated into the team and picked up the sport quickly. It feels like they’ve been part of the team for the whole six years. I just hope that can be everybody’s experience when they come to the club, that they can surprise themselves and all of us in the process.

What’s next and your hopes for the Typhoons?

I have some really high hopes for this team, I have since the very beginning. This team with the coaches behind it, with the captains and the players that we have are absolutely going to do well on the pitch. I have absolutely no doubt about that and they’re going to continue to be recognised for their sporting ability. Also, I hope it continues to be more than just a rugby club. 

The thing that I go to bed at night proud of is the impact that they have off the pitch. You see individuals join and they grow as a result. Either directly of what the club’s doing or because of the people around them. People often come to the club with some form of baggage, and we support each other. At the Typhoons people often talk about their mental health, it’s a safe space and everyone is careful about others’ mental health.

Impact outside of the club

Always, I’m proud of the impact we have outside of the club. A few years back some of the players did an interview on BBC Radio Lancashire during Mental Health Awareness Week. Admirably, some of our players opened up on the radio about their own personal struggles and we had the presenter in tears and some of the listeners too, according to the tweets. It was refreshing to hear people talk so publicly about their struggles, as often people just show their best self. That was such a proud moment thinking someone has heard that it’s made a difference to them.

In addition, something I’ve been really surprised at this year is the number of invites we’ve had. Particularly during Pride month, to go to local schools, to workplaces in the community to talk about inclusion and some difficult topics as well. And so, hopefully there’s people out there that are looking at our club, maybe not interested in picking up a rugby ball, but are proud of the difference that we’re making to people’s perceptions and their relationship with our community as well. Hopefully that’s an impact that will last, and something that Lancashire can be proud of and can own.

How can people get involved with the Typhoons and do they have to want to play rugby?

To get involved with the Typhoons, simply get in touch. Usually, people will send us a DM on one of our social channels saying that they’re interested in taking part. Alternatively, you can go to our website where there’s a contact us form or just come and approach us at one of the many events that we attend. At Pride events we will be in our kits and our flags are super visible. Everyone’s super friendly.

You absolutely don’t have to want to play any form of rugby. Although don’t be surprised if we try to encourage you to because we’ve all had a go and really enjoyed it. But we’ve actually got what we call a social membership, which is growing. These are people who have said, I really want to be part of the club, its atmosphere and its community, but don’t want to play. They come to all of our social events and take part in volunteering opportunities and they’re very much as part of the club as anybody else.

How can businesses like Eventus get involved with the Typhoons?

So, this is one of the topics that I’m really passionate about because for the first five years of the Typhoons, I was the sponsorship officer. It meant so much that businesses took an interest in our little rugby club and bought into the values of our club and what we were trying to achieve. And in return for that, we would try and give some sort of benefit back. Honestly, in those first few months I sent out hundreds of emails to local businesses and at times I wasn’t sure whether we’d be able to sort or get an income to support our club.

However, one by one we met some wonderfully generous, philanthropic individuals who absolutely bought into what we were trying to do, who have seen first-hand the importance of inclusion and have started to sponsor our team. A lot of our sponsors have been with us now for a number of years. We’re very lucky that we don’t have a high turnover and pretty much all of our sponsors don’t come to us with a commercial outcome in mind. They come to us because they believe in what we’re doing and out of gratitude, the club tries to do everything it can for those businesses to redress that generosity. 

I think our sponsorship model works very well. We have 100 members who understand the value of what those sponsors bring to our community. It costs a lot of money to hire pitches and to train coaches, have first aiders and to deliver the sort of things that we do. Without the generosity of local businesses, it simply wouldn’t happen.

How to get involved

So, for any businesses out there that are interested in supporting the Typhoons, the ways to get involved are not prohibitively expensive. However, the impact of that money has, and is, changing directly the lives of at least 100 individuals and others who come into contact with the Typhoons through the various events and activities that we do too. So, it’s money, I think well spent in the community and often those businesses are seeing the benefit of being associated with the club as well. If you would like to sponsor the Typhoons send us a message on social media or contact us through our website.

How can being involved in the Typhoons or a similar LGBTQ club support or enhance a person's career?

I’ve worked in the legal sector now for seven or eight years and before that within professional services. Generally, I’d like to think I’ve been relatively successful during that time. Over my life I’ve heard about people talking about the benefit of team sports, of working as part of a team. I never really understood it until I became part of a rugby club. Also, I’ve often reflected on where I’m at now in my career and wondered whether I would have got here had I not been involved with the Typhoons. And the easy answer is no, I wouldn’t. I’ve built networks, I’ve built connections, I’ve learned different ways to deal with people that I have brought into my professional life. And, the two often lean into each other and it’s beneficial in both directions.

Why Prides and clubs like Typhoons matter

From an LGBTQ perspective, I gave a speech recently about the importance of pride and what that means. In the speech I said, people often approach us and say, “is there any need for pride in this day and age? You know, isn’t the world inclusive enough?” I answered with, “the world has changed a lot since I was quite little and people are generally more, and I hate the word accepting, that they’re more accepting of and inclusive in general. People’s understanding of the LGBT community has come a long way, but you can’t open the papers in a given week at the moment without people’s gender identity or sexuality being politicised even right now. Their very liberties and freedoms challenged.” As a result, clubs like ours matter.

It’s a symbol for people to understand that we’re here regardless of whether people like it or not. That it isn’t about acceptance, it’s about saying we’re here. For some people in our club and for people that look at our club, it matters that there’s an organisation there, that’s challenging the stereotypes and the norms. Consequently, it gives them the confidence to go out into the world and to be themselves. There’s nothing worse than living a life where you’re having to wear a mask or hide a part of you. So, being part of something like the Typhoons makes an incredible difference. Whether that’s in terms of the professional skills that you gain as being part of a sporting organisation or any sort of voluntary organisation. But it also gives you the pride to be yourself in your day-to-day life too.

With the Typhoons growing rapidly, how do you juggle being the Chairperson alongside managing work and personal commitments?

That is a challenge, which I’m sure every volunteer in the land has experienced at some point. This year I became the Chair of the Typhoons. I didn’t know what to expect even though I’ve been on the committee now for half a decade and it has been one of the proudest things I’ve done.

Understanding all the different cogs and levers that make this club work has been incredible and working alongside our volunteers has been a very humbling experience. But alongside that, I work in a very busy industry with some of the world’s and the country’s biggest law firms. That comes with a lot of expectations. And I’m also a Dad and a husband. So balancing those, I’ll be lying if I say I got it down to a fine art. Usually I am trading on the goodwill of one of those to allow me to do the other. But I think what’s most important in anything you do in life is to do the things that matter to you and to make time for those things that are important and not to get bogged down by anything that isn’t delivering value.

Also, I’m very lucky that my little boy Jacob, who is about to turn 4, has a real passion for rugby. So, he’s quite often my little cheerleader. All of the events that I go to, he joins me on stage with the microphone. He’s there at the side of the pitch cheering me on. So, it gives me a lot of pride that he sees his Dad doing these things. Hopefully he gets a better relationship with sport and things at an earlier age than I did. He’s brilliant, he’s my world.

What policies or practises do you think are the most effective in promoting LGBTQ and inclusivity in the workplace?

I think it’s got to start with your external appearance as an organisation. In our community it’s very hard to speak on behalf of other people. However, I know for myself when I don’t see organisations engaging with diversity externally, I’m not necessarily inclined to believe that it’s a particularly inclusive organisation. If you want to attract and retain inclusive talent, you’ve got to live by your values. It’s not just good enough to have them written down on a piece of paper and then to have senior individuals in those organisations be seen to not live by those values. 

We all like seeing ourselves reflected in the places that we work, so that we can see a part of us reflected in that workplace. And that isn’t to say that people at senior levels must be LGBT, but they have to be engaging with it. For example, I look at the organisation I work for and we regularly participate and attend Nottingham Pride. That’s an organisational activity and there’s some really enthusiastic individuals internally that go and champion that. We participate in a cross organisational LGBT network, even though we are a small organisation in terms of headcount.

Also, perhaps I’m slightly biased here, when I see organisations that sponsor LGBT or inclusive organisations, again, it reflects the values of the organisation and the difference that they want to make as a business in the local communities too.

So, those things work very well and to give a voice to inclusion in an organisation that matters. As diversity impacts all of us, because it’s not just diversity of gender, sexuality or identity. It’s diversity of thought, and diversity of experience that can really enrich our workplace. Together they bring different and innovative ways of working that often benefits everybody.

How can organisations address any issues related to inclusivity?

In terms of dealing with issues, people are often terrified of saying the wrong things. Henceforth, they often say nothing, and I think that’s a very dangerous place to be in. I understand the desire of HR individuals for their reaction to be risk averse, but I think openness and empathy to the challenges specific to the different strands of diversity is often the right place to start a conversation around issues. Sometimes issues are directly related to one’s diversity, but sometimes it’s secondary and not directly related. However, I think being able to talk openly with empathy is always the best starting point.

Do you feel that being part of the LGBTQ community has impacted your career progression anyway?

I was very shy about coming out professionally for a large portion of my career. That wasn’t necessarily because of the organisations or other people that I worked with. It was that fear of being treated differently in my career. However, the more and more I’ve done it, it’s become less and less of an issue for me. Initially, I think that reluctance to be open with people I worked with probably impacted my early career. At some points I probably came across as a bit cagey and not open to my colleagues for a little while due to the anxiety of coming out.

However, my actual experience in the workplace has been incredibly positive. I worked for a local law firm up until a couple of years ago that was very supportive and encouraging. They all came to my wedding. It was a wonderful place to work and helped me with some of those anxieties, by facilitating an incredibly professional environment where diversity was welcomed and accepted. I’ve seen that that’s also reflected in my current workplace. However, I have no doubt that there are people out there that either through discrimination, but just as likely through the fear of discrimination, have had their careers impacted.

Do you have any LGBTQ role models or mentors who have influenced your career?

I’m rubbish with pop culture and celebrities, and probably a lot of the role models I had when I was younger, I wasn’t particularly tuned into to their sort of their own diversity. In recent years, I look at individuals like local legend Serene McKellen, who has just been unapologetically himself and actually thrived on who he is.

The importance of role models

There are so many individuals out there that make a difference and whether these are people we see on TV, on the radio or perhaps people in our own lives, for example our manager. But I think role models are very important and they often set the tone on how people feel about themselves and the direction they choose to go in.

Most recently, the person that stands out to me as a role model was my Dad, who passed away just before Christmas. Through his entire life, he was a firefighter and he was someone who went out and saved lives. So, that is someone that makes a difference in the world in a very real sense. He was in a very senior position in the fire service, he was involved in training and setting the standard for others. I can’t really compare me being the chair of a community rugby club to him being in a senior position in the fire service. But I always looked at his leadership style as one that has been very empathetic and very person centric. 

Also, I often reflect on what he would have done or how he would have dealt with people. When it came to people’s diversity, he was always someone that I think in his own way, he said, “I just don’t care. They are who they are, it’s what they choose to bring to the world that matters to me. I don’t care how somebody identifies, they are who they are. And that’s all that matters.” And so for me, my role model is him because I quite often look at the people in our club and say “how can we get the best out of these people? How can we deliver the best? How can we make the biggest difference? How can we make sure they enjoy their experience?” And that’s very much my Dad in me.

What resources or support networks other than the Typhoons do you rely on as an LGBTQ professional?

There’s some really good resources. So, we have a wonderful organisation called Lancashire LGBT who provide a whole range of signposting and services to the local community to try and help build that idea of connectivity. Also, they help professional organisations in putting strategies in place to be more inclusive.

In addition, there’s some wonderful resources now online and any professional that are on LinkedIn can find community groups of like-minded individuals. I’m part of a number of inclusive professional networks. So, you can network with individuals across the country and across the world, which is very beneficial.

In each local area there’s support groups too. So, speaking specifically about Lancaster, there’s an organisation called Out in the Bay that offers a range of support from connecting individuals and businesses with other local services, to mental health and crisis support. So, there are support networks out there either for individuals or for businesses. Consequently, I encourage people to reach out and take that support because regardless of whether you are an LGBT person or not, we all get points in our life where support makes a big difference. Usually, we find ourselves in trouble when we think we can do it alone or we should do it alone. Quite often you hear people say, “I’m not the sort of person that needs that help”. And usually those are the people that probably do. So, by making yourself familiar with what’s available and then when life throws you a curveball, you’ll have those resources available to you.

What advice would you give to LGBTQ individuals who are just starting their careers?

To always be yourself and I know to some people that means be confident in coming out. Our sexualities, our identities, are only a part of us. Be yourself in every respect and if you find yourself in a situation where you feel that you won’t be accepted or you won’t be tolerated, don’t feel stuck.

Our generation, and younger generations, are switching on to the idea that careers don’t have to be permanent. It can be stepping stones and you might be somewhere that is not ideal right now. Don’t feel stuck there, move on and keep being true to yourself. Keep moving until you find somewhere that you feel that your whole self can be appreciated.

It sounds corny, but your difference is your superpower. As I worked for a long time in marketing in professional services, I always say marketing isn’t blending in with the crowd, it’s standing out. When you’re talking about your own identity and your own personal branding and organisation, you can make a career of blending in. However, the way to really make a difference in your career is to stand out. There are lots of ways that you can do that. Find the things that make you different, find the ways that enable you to do your job better and go and do that. And if you’re in the wrong workplace or if you’ve got a manager that can’t utilise that version of you, then it’s time to look to go elsewhere. So, that’s my advice, never feel trapped in a place where you don’t feel like you can be yourself. There is always a place that can make better use of your whole self than places like that.

Thank you for reading

We hope you have enjoyed this interview. To find out more about joining or supporting Typhoons RUFC, please click here.

Passionate about people, the Eventus Recruitment Group specialises in matched talented professionals with like-minded companies in the legal and financial services sectors. For a confidential discussion call 01524 34400 or click here to contact us.

30May

How to recruit in summer months when there’s a decline in candidates actively job searching

Over the summer period businesses often see a decline in applications to their job vacancies with fewer candidates actively job searching. There are many reasons for this, including:

  • People enjoying the better weather
  • People taking their summer holiday
  • Childcare responsibilities with children being off school for an extended period

Recruiting during a candidate shortage can be a daunting task for any business. With fewer job seekers and increased competition, companies need to adopt innovative strategies to attract and retain talent. As a result, it’s vital that hiring businesses step up their game to attract and recruit the talented professionals during the summer months. Here’s some effective approaches to consider:

Be Proactive

Provide times for every stage of the recruitment process. For example, your availability for interviews. So, candidates know what to expect and whether they can commit to your recruitment process. Professionals don’t like wasting their time, especially in the summer months.

Market your vacancies effectively and utilise job boards

Ensure your vacancies are visible. It’s likely that professionals will spend less time on job boards. So, it’s vital that your job adverts reach them instead of them finding you. List them on as many job boards as possible, as well as social media platforms. Also, do a search on LinkedIn and Facebook for relevant groups where you can share your job vacancies. For example, sector specific job social media groups or job groups within your location.

Write job adverts that stand out to candidates

It’s not just where you post and advertise job vacancies that’s important, the content and the detail in them is crucial also. A poorly written job advert with typos and a lack of information will put people off applying. Make sure your adverts contain the location, salary, job details, personal specification, employee benefits and why they should want to work for your company.

Be clear and emphasise growth options

Make sure your job descriptions are clear, concise, and free of jargon. Be honest about what the job entails and highlight the essential skills and experience required. Also, most candidates have a desire to progress within their careers. So, outline any training, development and progression opportunities that your company can provide in your job adverts and descriptions.

To view our tips and advice on writing effective job adverts and descriptions, please click here.

Build a brand for hiring

It’s important that your brand is not only relatable to your customers, but also to your employees and potential employees. It’s important to showcase your company culture and why people should work for your business. By building a brand that represents and shows your company culture will work in your favour when hiring. As doing so will enhance your recruitment campaigns by increasing your company’s visibility and standing out to potential employees. Here’s some ways to increase your brand visibility and boost your employer brand over the summer:

Increase your social media presence

An attractive employer brand can set you apart from your competitors. Invest in a strong online presence by maintaining active and engaging profiles on social media platforms, especially LinkedIn. Showcase your company culture, values, and employee success stories. On LinkedIn connect with people who look to have the skills and values that your business require.

Summer socials and company events

Do you host summer socials or company events over the summer months? If you do take photos and / or videos and post these on your social media. The photos are also useful for internal communication, your website and promotional literature to use when recruiting.

Talk about work-life balance strategies / employee benefits

Do you have strategies that enhance your employees’ work-life balance and offer rewarding employee benefits? If so, showcase these on your website and throughout your recruitment campaigns.

If you can offer unique benefits that set you apart from other employers, such as enhanced leave entitlement, wellness and mental health programmes, or financial planning services.

Here’s some ideas for demonstrating your employee benefits throughout your recruitment campaigns:

  • Conduct interviews with your staff about working in your company.
  • Create branded employee benefits pdfs / leaflets to send to job candidates and potential employees.
  • Display benefits in your job adverts.
  • Discuss your company culture and employee benefits in the job interview with candidates. The job interview is as much about the hiring business impressing the candidate as it is the candidate impressing you.
  • After the interview, put the candidate in touch with a current employee where they can discuss the company culture and employee benefits.
For ideas on great employee benefits you can offer, click here.

Utilising summer networking events

During the summer months there’s an increase in professional networking events. Attend these events to increase the visibility of both your business brand and employee brand in your area and sector. Networking events present an ideal opportunity to meet like-minded individuals who could potentially work for you in the future. Also, they give you access to professionals who are not actively job searching but may be tempted by your job opportunities after speaking to you during the event.

Referral Schemes

Sometimes it’s not what you know it’s who the know. Your employees, friends or even family might know the ideal person for your job vacancies. So, speak up that you are hiring or have a referral scheme which rewards them for introducing candidates to you. Offer incentives to employees who refer candidates that get hired. Rewards are usually in the form of cash or vouchers. Alternatively for employees you could reward them with an extra day’s holiday when you take on a new employee that they have recommended.

Employee Ambassadors

Empower your employees to act as ambassadors for your brand. Provide them with the tools and knowledge to talk about your company’s strengths and career opportunities. You can do this by encouraging employees to have their own professional personal brand on LinkedIn and represent your business at networking events. In addition, if you have a marketing team they can help your other employees with their LinkedIn profiles. For example, by creating banners and advising them on content.

Use a recruiter

A good specialist recruiter will have strong connections with professionals’ job searching in your sector and locality. So, they are the ideal people to help you hire and recruit talented professionals throughout the summer months.

The Eventus Recruitment Group have a large database of talented professionals in law, legal finance, and financial services. Also, we:

  • Write your job adverts for you in a way that they will rank online.
  • Get to know your company in detail so that we can produce the best job adverts and connect you with the right candidates for your firm.
  • Take time to build relationships and get to know a candidates, which means we will only send you candidates who meet your job requirements and fit in with your company culture and values.
  • Post your job adverts on job boards free of charge.
  • Offer support to you and candidates at every stage of the recruitment process.

For more information about the services we offer, click here or contact us at the button below for a confidential discussion about your recruitment strategy.

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Written by Emma Guy, Marketing Manager at the Eventus Recruitment Group.

“The team at Eventus Legal always take time to fully understand the needs of the business and each role they are involved with, putting forward only those candidates who closely match our requirements. Feedback from successful candidates sourced by Eventus Legal has been excellent and they offer full support throughout the whole process from initial stages to job offer.”
testimonial image
Marsden Rawsthorn Solicitors
23May
working under pressure

How to Work Effectively Under Pressure and Towards Deadlines

Today’s world of work is extremely dynamic and fast-paced. Now more than ever,  the ability to work well under pressure and towards deadlines is a vital part of your skillset. Although stressful, with the right techniques in place, you can manage working under pressure effectively. Following the tips in this blog will ensure you thrive under pressure, and can turn your stress into a driving force for productivity and success. 

Best practice for working under pressure to meet deadlines

Eliminate distractions

If you find yourself procrastinated, you’re not alone. Research found that about 80% of employees admitted to procrastinating daily. It’s important that we stop finding excuses to put off our work and become productive. If you need to, put your out of office or do not disturb on until your tasks are complete. There is often a sense of a relief when we get that task done that we have been putting off. You will feel so much better for doing so, and get the job done much quicker. – Nikki Phillips, Senior Recruitment Consultant for Legal roles across Lancashire, Cumbria, Greater Manchester, and Merseyside.

Prioritise, prioritise, prioritise

Create a list, stick to it, and mark off your progress as you go. Identify those tasks that are most critical and get them ticked off first. Don’t try and multi-task multiple assignments, one at a time will be effective. Additionally, break down your tasks into manageable chunks. This will make you feel productive and motivated when you’re able to tick them off quicker. By prioritising, you are less likely to leave work until the last minute. Finishing tasks in plenty of time allows you to proofread and double check your work, so no silly mistakes are made! – Amy Watson, Director and Senior Legal Recruitment Consultant covering Yorkshire and the North East.

Identify strengths and weaknesses

Identify your strengths and weaknesses based on your past projects. Don’t dwell on things that might have previously gone wrong, but use it to better your next assignments. For the areas you might have struggled with focus on improving them. For example, you might have noticed your focus levels were low last time you worked towards a deadline. Maybe this time around eliminate distractions to keep your focus on the tasks. Similarly for identifying your strengths, maybe you’re good at time management, so get a plan in place way before your deadline and stick to it. This way, if you do end up falling to your weakness of procrastination, you have steps in place to combat it also. 

Break down tasks

As mentioned briefly above, the bigger picture and the deadline may look daunting. So, break it down into smaller tasks. Celebrating the little achievements along the way gives a sense of accomplishment and refuels motivation for the next tasks.

Stay positive and use visualisation

Positive mindsets and reinforcement when feeling stressed can help calm you down. You will most likely have handled stressful situations before, or much worse. If you got through those, then you can get through this as well. Also, visualise the end goal and how you’ll feel when you finally meet that deadline. Visualise the journey to that end point too. By visualising, these practices are more likely to become reality. 

Ask for help

Never be afraid to reach out for help if you are struggling, stressed, or feel under pressure. Most likely, your colleagues will have also been in the same situation you are in. They can offer advice on how to get through it, or just be there for you to blow off some steam. Moreover, your company might be able to allocate additional resources to help you meet your deadlines or manage working under pressure. 

Take care of yourself and stick to a routine

Remember to prioritise self-care during stressful times – it is easy to neglect yourself and put work first. Take breaks, get enough sleep, exercise, and eat healthily. If you need to step away from your desk for five minutes to get a drink of water or some fresh air. Doing so, can help focus your mind and see things from a different perspective. Taking care of your physical and mental well-being is essential for maintaining productivity and managing stress. 

Also, part of self-care is maintaining a set routine. One that works for you during busy periods. Get up, have lunch, and go to bed at the same time. In your routine, assign time in the evening for down time to do something you enjoy. This will take your mind off your deadlines and help you get a good night’s sleep. Furthermore, sticking to a routine will help your concentration levels during your working hours. Enabling you to focus your mind on tasks and meeting the deadline. 

Conclusion

By implementing these techniques when working towards a deadline, you will manage being under pressure much more efficiently. Simultaneously, you will be able to minimise stress and maximise your productivity. Always, put yourself first when you are under pressure. Remember, the stress is only temporary, and your rewards will be worth it. 

The Eventus Recruitment Group

The Eventus Recruitment Group source the best job opportunities for talented professionals in Law, Legal Finance, and Financial Services. We offer support to job seekers and hiring managers at every stage of the job search and recruitment process. 

In addition, we hold an in-depth knowledge of the dynamic legal and finance markets. So, we can help offer timely advice and support when things might feel stressful for you. For more information or for help with your job search or recruitment, contact us today.

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09May

How to Improve your Onboarding Process

Creating an engaging new employee onboarding process

There’s a famous saying – first impressions count – and this couldn’t be truer for when people start a new job within a new company. The first days and weeks of a new job set the scene for things to come and are vital to ensuring that the new employee settles into the company. A key part of making new employees feel welcome in your company is your onboarding process.

Recently we placed a candidate into a new firm. Every time we checked in with them after starting their new job, they always told us how great their firm’s onboarding process is, even weeks into the role.

Why is your onboarding process important?

Jo Hood, Principal Consultant at Eventus Recruitment commented: “I feel so strongly that the onboarding process is a critical part of the recruitment process and needs to be viewed as part of the recruitment process. Sure the candidate has accepted and started. However, a lot could still go wrong if these early days are not handled with the same level of professionalism and care that the employer has portrayed at interview stage.”

So, how can you be sure that your onboarding is welcoming?

There are many ways to enhance your onboarding process. An engaging and successful onboarding process should go beyond completing paperwork, communicating role expectations and setting up workstations.

Decorating their desk

Ensuring they have everything they need to get started with their new job is a must. Provide them with stationery and ensure they have everything they need to do their job comfortably. See if they have a preferred brand of technology or if they need a monitor.

Some extra things you can do to make your new employees feel welcome include:

  • Decorating their desk area with a welcome sign, balloon or gift.
  • Put small gifts on their desk at the start of each day on their first week.
  • Ask them if they require any adjustments to their desk / working area and purchase these for them. For example, footrest, back support etc…
Introduce them to everyone within the business

Beyond introducing new starters to colleagues who they will be working with, it’s best practice to also introduce them to all managers and other teams within the organisation. On top of this it’s important that they are also introduced to clients, key customers and suppliers who they will be working with.

Ideas for introducing new employees to the team

Here’s some ideas for introducing new employees to your existing team and clients:

Before they start:
  • Send a welcome announcement to your company announcing the new employee and their start date. Another notification the day before the someone new starts to all employees can prepare them for some positive change and remind them to be on their top form. Also, an announcement to the team once they arrive for everyone to introduce themselves also helps.
  • Hold a ‘meet the team’ day prior to their start date would bring a gradual introduction to the team, meeting colleagues before getting straight to business. This would also help for the new member to see the team culture. Also, if there is a team meet up/social event planned near the time of them starting, why not invite them along? This way, the new start can meet everyone in a more relaxed and open setting, with less pressure. By the time it comes to the start date, they have met everyone, and the first day nerves are much more settled.
  • Inform key clients relevant to the new employee that a new person will be joining the company. This will be appreciated by both the client and new member of staff, as it shows you value the client’s relationship, and it will help embed the new person into the team. The employee can then follow up with the client when they start.
When they start:
  • Arrange an induction and meetings for the new starter with the heads of each department and key personnel they will be working with.
  • Take them out for lunch or pay for them and the team they will be a part of to go for lunch together.
  • Show the new starter around the office and introduce them to all teams.
  • If there is a games or staff room give them a longer lunch in their first week to help them to get know other people within the company.
Goal setting and Check-ins

Starting a new job is always difficult with there often being new systems and procedures to learn. In addition, new starters need to know what is expected from them from the get-go and have support in place… So, employers need to make sure new members are welcomed and included from the get-go. From their first day, goals should be set so they have achievements to chase. As well as this, regular check-ins, every few days but if not then certainly weekly, should be made. 

Having a meeting to see how they are settling in and finding the workload can help to see if they are on the right track, or if adjustments need to be made to be more suitable to the individual. A candidate who recently placed said that they found the meetings they were having with their manager every other day were really beneficial to them settling into the firm. Personalising each staff members career development is crucial for motivation and productivity, and will only help a new start feel at ease.

Welcome kit

Just before they start, or on their first day, a welcome kit is a nice gesture to new starters. This could include maybe a company mug, a pencil case, office necessities or even some snacks! Importantly, this a great opportunity to showcase the company values by reflecting them in a welcome kit, and it introduces them to the culture. For example, one of our core values is Fun, so an office desk toy would reflect this.

Other things to do to make them feel welcome include:

  • Tour of the office on arrival and how things work around there, including the little things like making brews or washing up.
  • Share all the group activities/culture/plans with them before starting to get them excited about working in a great team and looking forward to starting/reducing nerves.
  • Make the documentation/employee handbook engaging and fun instead of just listing off all information because you have to. Make them excited to read it and learn.
Buddy programme

Partnering a new starter with an experienced member of the team can be extremely helpful. The original staff member can act as a buddy and be there for the new start to help with whatever they need. Whether this is teaching them how to use the new software, or just showing them where the bathroom is! It’s the little things that make someone feel involved from the very beginning that really boosts a new members confidence. Resultantly, they are likely to feel part of the team much more quickly.

About the Eventus Recruitment Group

We work closely with our candidates to find out what they want from their employers. So, if you require advice on your onboarding process, we have a thorough understanding of what works best.

We recruit in all jobs within Law, Finance, Accountancy, and Financial Services as well as support functions within firms. With over 90 years combined recruitment experience, we recruit for you to the highest standard.

Don’t hesitate to contact us for a confidential discussion about your recruitment and onboarding processes.

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Further Reading:

19Apr

Employment Insights and Work Trends Survey – Your Opinion Matters!

Our annual Employment Insights and Work Trends Survey is back. By sparing 5 minutes to complete the survey will allow us to use the collective insights gained to campaign for you, encouraging organisations to make changes for your benefit.

We pride ourselves on being able to advocate for you towards businesses to ensure you have a working life that’s right for you. With your anonymous answers to this survey, we can continue campaigning to the best of our ability for you in the following areas:

  • Working environment
  • Work-life balance
  • Employee benefits
  • Career goals

The survey covers your views and attitudes toward working environments, employee benefits, work-balance, career goals and emerging trends in the last 12 months. Our consultants advise companies on how to create positive working environments and company cultures, ensuring you satisfied and rewarded at work. Your insights are integral to making this possible. As a result, we have created this survey to find out what is important to you.

The survey is easy to complete, and your answers will be kept anonymous. As a thank you, we will enter you into a prize draw to win a Fortnum & Mason Hamper. To qualify you will need to leave your name and contact details, only so we can contact you if you win. If you would like to your response to be completely anonymous, that’s totally fine, just leave the name and contact information blank and press submit.

To complete our 5 minute survey please visit https://survey.zohopublic.eu/zs/I4DXKy

Thank you for taking part in our survey. We appreciate your opinion and look forward to continuing our campaign for improved company cultures and benefits.

Complete Survey
18Apr
business values thumbnail

Why do businesses need Core Values?

Why do you need Core Values as a business?

In a world where authenticity is imperative, having well-defined business values isn’t just a checkbox—it’s a game-changer! When workplace values are at the core of your business they help align all stakeholders. From managers to employees, to customers, and even the wider community. Like creating a strong company culture, values guide us in our actions at work, help us with our decision making, and aid our career choices.

Examples of strong core values

Here at The Eventus Recruitment Group, our strong core values are at the heart of us. The values we have are some that our team stand by every day, and act with in everything we do. Having shared values within our team allow us to create a stronger bond and a team to be proud of. The core values we have at Eventus Recruitment are:

  • Honesty
  • Integrity
  • Transparency
  • Passionate
  • Fun

Additionally, the values below are Netflix’s core values (Netflix Jobs). These are values that have driven them to success, so are useful when thinking what your business values should be:

  • Judgement
  • Selflessness
  • Courage
  • Communication
  • Inclusion
  • Integrity
  • Passion
  • Innovation
  • Curiosity

In this blog, we take a look at why having strong core values in your firm is important, and how you can demonstrate them.

Authenticity Attracts

Consumers want realness and an honest business. When your business values are clear and align with your customer’s beliefs, you create a relationship beyond transactions. People want to support companies that stand for something meaningful. A core value such as honesty or transparency can go a long way here.

Building Trust

Trust is the backbone of any successful relationship, including those between businesses and customers. Clearly defined values act as a foundation of trust, showing your audience that you’re committed to them, not just to profits. Ultimately, this trust forms long-lasting customer relationships. Long-term, trusted relationships are crucial to success, particularly in the world of recruitment.

Differentiation

In a large market, standing out is key. Values are unique to you and what sets you apart from competitors who offer similar products or services. It’s your secret ingredient, your competitive edge that captures attention and loyalty.

Storytelling

Storytelling is a powerful tool, especially in marketing, and your values can support this. Share stories that demonstrate your values in action – whether that’s how you source materials, treat employees, or support your community. Furthermore, these values help to personalise your brand and help customers form connections with you. Be creative with your values – display them on your website, company materials, and around the office.

Crisis Management

When challenges arise, businesses with strong values are able to use these values to navigate through them. Your values guide decision-making, ensuring that even in times of crisis, your actions remain consistent with your principles. This consistency breeds, creates, and demonstrates trust and resilience.

Attracting Talent

In today’s job market, prospective employees aren’t just looking for a job – they’re seeking purpose. Clearly defined values signal to potential hires that yours is a company worth working for, attracting top talent who share your vision. By having your values in a prominent place on your website and within your recruitment campaigns, it will give candidates a sense of the company culture. Moreover, it will allow them to determine whether their values align with those of the company before applying for or accepting a job within the firm.

Building a strong company culture

Having core values help to build a workforce of like-minded individuals, who have a shared vision and purpose. As a result, they enable you to create strong teams who work well together and are satisfied within the company. Get creative with your core values – display your core values on graphics around the office or in internal communications. By embedding values into your company culture it will provide your employees with a shared purpose and an understanding of how they fit in within the company.

So, don’t underestimate the power of defining your business values. They’re not just words on a page, they’re the heart of your brand.

If you’re still not convinced on why you should have strong core values in your business, take a look at the comment below from a new client, demonstrating their impact and importance.

"I googled recruiters and you came up. When I looked at your website I knew I wanted to work with you because everything about Eventus and your values aligned with our business."
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Hiring Manager
How we enhance your company culture and recruitment strategy

With over 90 years’ combined experience in recruitment, we can help you to recruit in a timely manner. Our recruitment services are extensive to ensure you get the people you require for when you need them. Furthermore, we recruit for all jobs with Law, Finance, Accountancy and Financial Services, as well as support functions within firms.

Always, we use our expertise to:

  • Understand your business and your full recruitment requirements to identify the best candidates for your firm.
  • Offer tailored recruitment advice and techniques.
  • Write and advertise job adverts on your behalf.
  • Provide you access to the right candidates for your job vacancies and business requirements.
  • Pre-screen candidates to ensure they are the right fit your business.
  • Arrange job interviews on your behalf.
  • Manage the job offer process and any negotiations.
  • Help you and your new employees build a successful working partnership.

Don’t hesitate to contact us for a confidential discussion about your recruitment and or advice on embedding your values into your recruitment strategy.

Contact us
12Apr

The Ghosting Phenomenon in Recruitment

Why do some hiring employers ghost job candidates?

In today’s fast-paced job market, the term “ghosting” has transcended its origins in dating culture to become a prevalent issue in the professional realm. While most commonly associated with individuals suddenly cutting off communication in personal relationships, ghosting after attending a job interview is a frustrating reality for many job seekers.

The story tends to go that you have spent hours perfecting your CV, perhaps even crafting a cover letter specific to that particular role and preparing for the interview, deciding on which scenarios you’ll draw upon and how to answer common questions that arise. You then leave the meeting feeling confident, only to be met with… silence in the days and weeks that follow. No callback, no email, just radio silence. This phenomenon, known as candidate ghosting, can leave candidates feeling bewildered, frustrated, and even questioning their worth in the job market.

After hearing a few snippets in the news it got me thinking… So, I recently held a poll on LinkedIn asking my connections if they have ever been ghosted by a potential employer after an interview. A whopping 77% said “Yes” and I have to say I was genuinely shocked.

I then held another poll asking if my connections had ever or would ever not turn up for a job interview… The results? 96% said “No”.

So, why does ghosting happen after attending an interview? 

Having extensive experience in the recruitment sector, I know that there are often several factors at play:

Volume of Applicants:

In today’s competitive job market, employers often receive a high volume of applications for a single position. This can make it challenging for hiring managers to provide timely feedback to every candidate, leading to some slipping through the cracks.

Internal Delays:

Sometimes, internal processes can cause delays in communication. Decision-making may be stalled due to conflicting schedules, additional interviews, or changes in priorities, leaving candidates in limbo.

Company Culture:

Unfortunately, some companies have adopted a culture where ghosting candidates is considered acceptable or even the norm. Although, I must stress this isn’t an issue with the law firms I work with. This lack of communication reflects poorly on the organisation’s professionalism and can damage it’s employer brand in the long term.

Unclear Expectations:

Candidates may also experience ghosting when there are unclear expectations regarding the hiring timeline or next steps in the process. Without clear communication from the employer, candidates are left in the dark about where they stand.

So, how do you deal with being ghosted after attending an interview?

Here are some tips:

Follow Up Professionally:

If it’s been a week or two since your interview and you haven’t heard anything, it’s perfectly acceptable to follow up with a polite email. Reiterating your interest in the position and asking for an update on the hiring process will also show keenness in the firm.

Manage Expectations:

While it’s natural to feel anxious after an interview, try not to read too much into the silence. Remember that hiring processes can be complex and time-consuming, and delays are often not a reflection of your qualifications or performance at the interview.

Keep Applying:

Don’t put all your eggs in one basket. Continue applying to other positions and exploring new opportunities. Keeping your options open will prevent you from becoming too fixated on one particular job prospect.

Seek Feedback:

If you do receive a response from the employer, whether positive or negative, it’s always worth requesting feedback on your interview performance. Constructive criticism can help you improve for future interviews.

Evaluate the Organisation:

If you ultimately receive an offer from a company that ghosted you during the interview process, consider whether this company is right for you. Was their behaviour a one off, or is it indicative of a larger issue with their organisational culture? Trust your instincts and consider whether this is a company you want to work for. Particularly if they haven’t explained the reason for the delay, or it doesn’t sound feasible.

Conclusion

In conclusion, while being ghosted after attending an interview can be disheartening, importantly remember that it’s not a reflection of your worth as a candidate. Job seekers can maintain their confidence and resilience throughout the job search process, by understanding factors that contribute to ghosting. Also, taking proactive steps to cope with the situation will help massively.

What’s more, when you work with a specialist Recruitment Consultant who has a thorough understanding of the job market and an established relationship with the hiring organisation to seek feedback on your behalf. Here at Eventus Recruitment Group, we are with our candidates every step of the recruitment journey. From discussing your specific requirements, perfecting your CV, preparing you for interviews, following up on feedback and ensuring you are happy in your new role. As specialist Recruitment Consultants, we can alleviate all those problems leaving you to focus on smashing your interviews and getting excited about your new job.

For more information on how we can help you with your career aspirations, you can get in touch with us here.

Written by Nikki Phillips, Legal Recruitment Consultant for all legal roles across the North West and Wales.


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“My thanks to Eventus for reaching out. You introduced me to a fascinating high-calibre opportunity, and managed the process thereafter like old friends. It really was a pleasure to work with both Nikki and Siobhan, and I have good reason to be grateful for their calm, quiet competence, and their understanding of their market, and their clients’ needs.”
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Dominic, Solicitor

04Apr

How to show Commercial Awareness when applying for jobs and attending job interviews

Showing Commercial Awareness throughout your job search

Showing commercial awareness when applying for jobs is important for demonstrating your understanding of how businesses operate within their industry and the broader economic landscape. But what is commercial awareness? Commercial awareness is understanding what’s going on in the business world. Then, being able to apply this knowledge to your local market. Sometimes interviewers will also ask questions surrounding commercial awareness. As a result, it’s vital to be able to display commercial awareness skills throughout your job search. Here’s some ways you can show commercial awareness:

Keep up-to-date with news and market trends

Make sure you highlight on your CV how you stay updated on industry news, market trends, and major players in your chosen field. As keeping up to date with market trends and industry news is vital to showing commercial awareness, as they can impact how a business will perform commercially in future. Follow relevant publications, blogs, and social media accounts to understand the current landscape.

Within Law it is always important to know of any recent case studies and reported cases in your chosen discipline. Importantly, make sure you demonstrate this knowledge when applying for roles and at interview stage. – Siobhan Courtney, Managing Director and Legal Recruitment Consultant covering London, Home Counties and Ireland.

During job interviews or networking events, share your insights on current market trends, emerging technologies and consumer behaviour that could potentially impact the business down the line.

Research the business

It is imperative to be able to demonstrate your knowledge of your industry, it’s competitors, and the firm as a whole. Look on the news section of the website of the firm you are interviewing at to see if they have highlighted anything. This:

  1. Proves you have done your research on them, and
  2. May give you some ideas on questions to ask them or about the local business fraternity as a whole.

Look at their website, social media, and any press coverage they appear in. Also, look at websites like Glassdoor, Google reviews, and other review sites to read reviews from both employees and customers.

Make sure to thoroughly research the business before the job interview. Moreover, understanding the company’s goals, challenges, and opportunities, allows you to tailor your responses during the interview to demonstrate how your skills and expertise align with their needs. By integrating this knowledge into your conversations, you not only highlight your awareness but also illustrate your potential value to the company. This demonstrates that you would be a proactive and well-informed team member. – Duncan, McIlroy, recruitment consultant specialising in Financial Services.

Demonstrate problem solving skills

Explain in the interview how you’ve identified business problems in and outside your role, and how you overcame them or proposed solutions.

Consider business problems the company you are interviewing at might face and how they might be overcome. Hiring employers value candidates who can think critically and offer innovative ideas to facilitate business success.

Get to know the customer

Take the time to understand the company’s core customer base – their needs, preferences, and what makes them tick. Share how your skills and ideas could make a positive impact on boosting customer satisfaction, keeping them coming back, and turning them into loyal fans.

Continuous Learning

Demonstrate your willingness to continuous learning within and outside of your job role. Consider any certification you’ve been rewarded and any workshops or online courses you’ve attended. Emphasise your commitment to enhancing your skills and staying updated on industry developments.

Case studies

Study real-life business cases studies to understand how companies tackle challenges, adapt to market changes, and capitalise on business opportunities.

CSR and Volunteer Work

Have you undertaken any pro-bono work, supported any charities or done any volunteering? Consider relevant experiences like these, what you’ve gained from them and how it’s enhanced your skills as a professional. They are great talking points in a job interview, and there’s also questions that you can ask about their CSR activities / plans. Also, apply the experiences back to the business environment and consider what employers will get from it. For example, marketing opportunities, positive brand awareness etc…

Networking

Networking both in person and online is a great way to increase your reputation and gain visibility within your market, to expand your customer base. Make sure to mention any networking opportunities you take part in regularly, as well as opportunities you participate regularly in to build your online connections.

About Us

The Eventus Recruitment Group source the best job opportunities for talented professionals in Law, Legal Finance and Financial Services. Award-winning recruitment consultants, we offer support to job seekers at every stage of the job search process. This includes CV writing, arranging job interviews and in-depth job interview preparation. We hold an in-depth knowledge of the very dynamic legal and finance markets, so we can help you prepare appropriately and pass on our own commercial awareness to you. For more information, or for help with your job search, contact us today.

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22Mar

How to use the benefits of Spring to enhance work performance

Although our typical British weather is proving to be temperamental right now, Spring is finally here. A new season brings a new, more positive mindset, longer days and all the focus we need to succeed. Spring is the perfect time to get rid of those winter blues and reset. In this blog, I will discuss ways in which Spring can help boost workplace performance, and why you should take full advantage of the new season!

Brighter days

With the clocks going forward in spring and the days becoming lighter for longer, this is no doubt a mood booster. Getting light in as early as possible during your day is so important, to wake you up and make you alert. As the days are lighter for longer, there’s less dull and gloomy weather to get you down. So, no more excuses. Lighter days can boost your mood and happiness. A study at Warwick University found that happiness can boost someone’s productivity by 12%. Therefore, motivation and productivity are automatically positively affected by these lighter days.

Energised earlier

Similar to the above, as you’re waking up to a brighter day than during the winter, it gives you that motivation to have a good day. Also, if you sleep with the natural light and wake up with it, you gain more time to be productive in the mornings before work. Utilise this time wisely, don’t lay around in bed, but get ready, make a nutritious breakfast, tidy that worktop that you would usually put off. Take advantage of this extra time in the morning to get organised for the day. This again will only lead to a better rest of your day, with improved mood and increased productivity.

Nicer weather

The sun is shining for longer, so there is no excuse to not get out into some fresh air. Whether that’s eating your breakfast in the garden, a lunchtime stroll away from your desk, or taking the dog for a walk. Getting in that Vitamin D from the sun is so important. So, sunnier days are the perfect reason for you to get away from your desk, switch off and reset your brain. This can help you wind down and refocus your energies back at work properly. Employers should do their best to encourage getting fresh air on breaks or lunches, as it has significant links to improvements in workplace performance.

Additionally, not only will employers see a boost in productivity, but you can personally make well-being improvements by stepping away from your desk. For more on well-being at work, this blog discusses our best tips on how to improve it.

Making the most of your time off in spring / summer

Holidays

Perhaps you have children who are on their Easter school holiday? Or if not, we have a few bank holidays during spring – so utilise them! Take them as your sign to have a full reset and spend time doing your hobbies, with your friends and family, or taking a short-break. Whatever you need to re-energise away from work, use these extra free days to your advantage. So, that you return to work fully rested and more productive.

There are also so many great ways you can spend your time of doing, that isn’t just resetting to go back to work again. For example, taking up gardening, reading a book whilst sat in the sunshine, exploring a national park, or booking a city break. Making the most of getting outside and in the fresh air will do wonders to your personal wellbeing and productivity. Also, you may find a new love for an activity by giving something different a go!.

Spring Cleaning

The first thing that comes to mind when we think of spring is the big spring clean. This counts for your workspace as well as your home. De-clutter, re-organise, maybe rearrange for more light exposure – but change your workspace! A revamp and a tidy up can do wonders to boost productivity and de-clutter not only your physical space but your mind as well.

New goals

With a new season, comes new goals. Take this ‘fresh start’ as a sign to reassess where you are, where you’ve come since the start of the year, and where you want to be. Have you been setting realistic and achievable goals? Or do they need to be changed? Re-prioritise and set some new goals going forwards.

Written by Ellie Pomfret, Marketing Assistant at the Eventus Recruitment Group. Follow us on LinkedIn for tips to enhance your career and latest job opportunities in Law, Legal Finance, Accountancy and Financial Services.

11Mar

Ways to increase flexibility in the workplace

Increasing flexible working arrangements has become a significant trend in modern workplaces. This trend is driven by many factors such as technology advancements and changing attitudes towards work-life balance. Furthermore, there’s now widespread recognition of the benefits flexible working provides both employers and employees.

Many professionals look to employers who offer job flexibility to enhance their work-life balance and for more freedom. As working full-time, juggling personal commitments, and finding a work-life balance can be a challenge.

Why should you offer more flexibility in the workplace?

Businesses who offer flexibility to their staff receive many benefits as a result. Benefits of flexibility in the workplace for employers include:

  • Happier and more productive employees
  • Increased staff retention
  • Helps you when recruiting, as your company will look more attractive to potential employees.

Comments on flexibility from our Recruitment Consultants

Attraction and Retention of Talent

Offering flexible working arrangements can make your company more attractive to prospective employees and can also help retain current staff members. Many job seekers prioritise flexibility when considering potential employers, and employees are more likely to stay with a company that offers and reviews their flexibility options.  – Nikki Phillips, Senior Recruitment Consultant covering all legal roles across North West England and Wales.

Increasing flexibility in the workplace can also encourage greater diversity across many different metrics including gender, ethnicity and disability. There are numerous people who struggle with full-time, in office work. For example, for caregivers or those who can’t drive due to a medical condition. If you are struggling to attract a diverse talent pool, then look at your flexibility and ask yourself if you could do more. – Amy Watson, Director and Recruitment Consultant covering all legal roles across North East England and Yorkshire.

Ways to offer more flexibility

Here are several strategies and options for increasing flexible working:

Flexible working hours

There are many ways to be flexible over working hours. Consequently, moving away from the traditional 9am to 5pm can open up many hiring opportunities.

Flexitime

Flexitime is great, for when people are working extra hours and you don’t pay overtime. It allows them to take the time back to support their work-life balance. If people are expected to work additional hours and they aren’t compensated for them, after a while it will begin to grate on them and negatively impact their work-life balance. For example, if people are working overtime to meet deadlines or travelling to visit clients, they could take the time back at quieter times.

Core Hours

Core hours work by having set hours that must be worked during the day and offering flexibility outside of core hours. If employees are working their contracted hours it is another way to provide extra flexibility. For example, if your core hours are 10am-2pm, your employees have the flexibility to start and finish work outside of those hours. Maybe starting earlier working longer hours one day and finishing earlier another day.

Four day working week

A four-day working week is still being trialled across the globe. The majority of companies who took part in the initial trial have implemented a four day working week permanently. These companies noticed an increase in productivity and a positive impact on their employees’ wellbeing.

In our exclusive interview with John Hopkins – a leading expert in flexible working research – he discusses his findings from interviews with employers who have introduced a four day working week. Click here to read the full interview.

Prioritise Health and Well-being

Encouraging employees to prioritise their health and wellness can lead to increased productivity and job satisfaction. Implement wellness programs that support employee well-being, such as onsite fitness classes, mindfulness sessions, or access to mental health resources.

Provide flexibility for health appointments

It’s hard arranging health appointments when you work full time Monday to Friday. So, by being flexible and allowing employees to have health appointments during working hours, takes some stress and worry away from them when they are ill. Getting the help they need when ill to recover is better than not getting help and their work suffering as a result.

Caregiving Leave

Offering caregiving leave establishes your company as compassionate and opens your firm up to a new group of hires. Sometimes things happen that are unexpected and can’t be planned for, which your employers might benefit from taking extra leave off for. By offering caregiving leave, it will make your firm accessible as an employer for people with children, or planning to have children or people with elderly relatives who need care.

Buy and Sell Leave

Offering employees the opportunity to buy and sell leave gives them more flexibility for big life events. It allows them to effectively manage their work-life balance giving them more freedom over their leave entitlement.

Work from anywhere policy

A work from anywhere policy gives your employees extra flexibility over their working location. We have a policy where our employees can work from anywhere in the world for 5 days a year outside of their contracted location of office / hybrid or homeworking.

Hybrid working

2020 showed that many people can work from home efficiently and effectively. Consequently, hybrid working has become increasingly popular in recent years. Many people haven’t wanted to return to the office full-time and hybrid working offers them the best of both worlds. Working from home a day or two a week improves their work-life balance with no commute, saving time and commuting costs. Whilst working in the office provides time for communicating and collaborating face-to-face with colleagues.

With employees’ preferences changing, offering hybrid working will increase talent pools when hiring and enhance staff retention.

Advice for implementing a flexible working strategy

Eventus Legal as it was then, was set purely on a flexible basis long before it was the norm and it has been in practice for us since, whether that is genuine hybrid working, reduced hours or flexibility to work around families. Here, from our experience we provide our top tips for implementing flexible working policies.

Consult with your employees

It’s important to consult with all your employees before implementing flexible working policies. Flexible working expert John Hopkins said in an exclusive interview with us, that: “before changing anything, it’s important that employers understand the needs of their workers. What kinds of flexibility they would value, and how they will benefit from having it? This is a great starting point for implementing any new workplace flexibility measures. It is essential that workers are consulted in the first instance like this, before discussing what might be possible and what the benefits would be.”

Performance Metrics

Change how you measure performance. Shift the focus from hours worked to outcomes achieved. Establish clear goals and performance metrics for employees, which can be measured without considering their working hours or location.

Invest in technology

Invest in software that enables remote communication, teamwork and task management. This includes technology like video conferencing, project management software, and cloud-based document sharing software.

Management Training

Provide training and guides to all managers on any flexible working policies you introduce. Training should include how to implement the arrangements, communicating the policy, making adjustments, monitoring performance and requesting feedback.

Regularly review policy

It’s important that you regularly request feedback from managers and employees and review flexible working policies. This is to ensure that the arrangements are still working from both a business perspective and they are meeting your employee’s requirements.

Trial Periods

When introducing flexible working arrangements, consider holding a trial period to assess the feasibility and address any challenges before committing long-term.

By implementing this advice, businesses can effectively increase flexible working arrangements, promoting employee well-being, productivity and retention.

Further Reading

To read our exclusive interview on flexible working with expert and WorkFLEX founder John Hopkins, click here.

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