August 06 Newsletter

City 2 Surf and Camp Quality

Earlier this month the Beaumont team joined up with Camp Quality and ran the City 2 Surf! We ran the hill and all survived, so far approximately $40,000 was raised through the event and we are glad that we had the opportunity to be a part of this magnificent event. Even better was the fact that we knew with each step we took it was going towards this great cause. If you would like to learn more about Camp Quality and all the great work they do follow this link – www.campquality.org.au. Because laughter is the best medicine!

A HUGE THANK YOU to all 550 runners who took time out for such a fabulous charity!

Managers told to lift their game

Australian companies are losing hours in productivity each year costing the nation over $103 billion in wasted working time, according to a recent labour survey of 11 countries.

A recent report found that in 2005 Australians wasted on average 56 working days of the year, a figure significantly higher than the other countries surveyed.

The research was released at a lunch hosted by the Australia - Israel Chamber of Commerce. ACTU boss Sharan Burrow told the lunch that the reason for the productivity decline was a lack of investment by businesses in skilling up staff. Ms Burrows said companies needed to spend more on integrating technology systems as well.

Wesfarmers Limited managing director Richard Goyder said productivity could be boosted through better communication between managers and staff.

"We [businesses] run a risk of becoming complacent", Mr Goyder said adding that poor management practices, a lack of communication and employee interaction were to blame for workplace inefficiency.

"Any company that does not engage with its workforce will lose them", he warned.

According to the report, "unproductive" time in Australia had increased from 24.9 per cent of the total working year in 2003 to 39 per cent in 2005.

Other countries in the survey had reported improved levels of productivity. Employers in the UK cut unproductive time from 39.9 per cent of the working year in 2003 to 31.5 per cent of the year in 2005.

The report looked at 1,900 companies in 11 countries including Australia and contained an opinion poll of 13 industry sectors examining how people work and current productivity barriers.

Artice from; Zsa-Zsa Bowie Wilson, careerone.com.au

Conquer your fears - Delivering effective presentations

There comes a time in most careers when people have to give a presentation. When that time comes, it's extremely important to be able to communicate clearly and effectively. You need to be able to present your ideas with confidence, allowing you to fully participate in meetings, negotiations and debate. It's a non-negotiable when it comes to career building.

If you're so scared of speaking in front of a group you avoid it at all costs, you'll miss out on opportunities to practice a vital skill. By not drawing this attention to you, you won't always be noticed or rewarded. You don't need to shout the loudest to be noticed, but you do need to speak up.

So how do you overcome a fear of public speaking?

The best way to overcome fear is to know the subject well. So even though you may not be thinking all that clearly when you first get up there to present, your sound knowledge of the topic will come back to you surprisingly easily once you get back on track.

Fear sometimes arises when your inner voice reminds you how scared or uncomfortable you are with the situation or when confronted with something that is totally out of your comfort zone. Your fear mechanism tries to convince you to keep safe by avoiding risks, although this is where your best judgment needs to kick in, to remind us to seize these career opportunities instead of stifling them!

Here are some simple steps to help you manage your speaking fears:

Be confident in your knowledge of the subject and comfortable in your appearance
Make sure you practice beforehand in front of an audience no matter how small
Confide your fears to a friend. Call a friend and tell them about your fears. A lot of these fears tend to lose their power once it's all out in the open
Challenge yourself to overcome these fears, tackle each of your concerns head-on one at a time

Successful people aren't necessarily less fearful than you, they just get on with things because they know the benefits can far outweigh the alternative
If something goes wrong in your presentation, it's not the end of the world, just joke about it and move on

Article from: Mycareer.com.au

Employment opportunities...

We are currently looking for a Generalist HR Manager for one of our favourite clients. The role is North Shore based, overseeing 2 staff and paying up to $70K base. If you know anyone who might be interested please contact Tara Robinson in our Chatswood office on 02 8448 2008.

Welcome Steve!

We have a new addition to the Beaumont crew this month - Steve has recently joined the Chatswood Branch of Beaumont Consulting where he places candidates in Permanent and Temporary assignments.

He relocated from Scotland to Sydney nine years ago and has worked successfully for the last 2 years in the Sydney employment market covering roles in the credit, general insurance and customer service areas.

Prior to his career in recruitment, Steve worked for 5 years in customer service and sales and feels that this experience gives him a real desire and commitment to work towards complete customer satisfaction in every interaction with candidates and clients.

Please feel free to give Steve a call should you every feel the need for his services!

Terrific Temp

Outstanding performance from our temps doesn’t go unnoticed. We truly appreciate their efforts and therefore would like to acknowledge the great work they are doing for us.

Our August Temp of the Month award goes to Emily Howman. She has received fantastic feedback with her employers saying she is a tireless worker and has been worth her weight in gold!

Emily is pictured here with Michelle Maye whilst on assignment at Walker Corporation. She gets a $100 voucher from the store of her choice.

Joke of the month

A young Aussie lad moved to London and went to Harrods looking for a job. The manager asked "Do you have any sales experience?" The young man answered "Yeah, I was a salesman back home." The manager liked the Aussie so he gave him the job. His first day on the job was challenging and busy, but he got through it. After the store was locked up, the manager came down and asked "OK, so how many sales did you make today?" The Aussie said "One." The manager groaned and continued "Just one? Our sales people average 20 or 30 sales a day. How much was the sale for? " ....... £124,237.64 pounds" The manager choked and exclaimed £124,237.64 pounds! What the hell did you sell him "Well, first I sold him a small fish hook, then a medium fish hook, and then I sold him a new fishing rod. Then I asked him where he was going fishing and he said down at the coast, so I told him he would need a boat, so we went down to the boat department and I sold him that twin-engined Power Cat. Then he said he didn't think his Honda Civic would pull it, so I took him down to car sales and I sold him the 4 x 4 Suzuki". The manager, incredulous, said "You mean to tell me....a guy came in here to buy a fish hook and you sold him a boat and 4x4?" "No no no......he came in here to buy a box of tampons for his lady friend and I said......... 'Well, since your weekend's buggered, you might as well go fishing."

Quote of the month

The first step to getting the things you want out of life is this: Decide what you want.

Ben Stein