August 2010 Newsletter

WELCOME TO OUR NEWSLETTER

Dear All,

I am not sure about you but Winter seems to be dragging on this year, we at Beaumont Consulting just can’t wait for the Spring to kick in with those sunny days and light nights !

Having just closed off the books for the financial year I thought it would be appropriate to report back on what the latter part of the year looked like for us as a business and some insights looking ahead.

The beginning of 2010 saw some big changes at Beaumont with the expansion of the office itself as we knocked down walls and refurbished our premises almost doubling in size in physical floor space. This expansion created new jobs internally and the start of some new divisions for us working in new and exciting areas such as IT and Property & Construction.

Over the last six months we appointed Rachael Burling to manage our specialist Property desk and are in the process of relocating Joe Hendry from the UK who comes with over ten years of construction recruitment experience, we look forward to his arrival anytime in the next few weeks. We also expanded our Business Services Division (Office Support) with the appointment of three new consultants Pauline Carr our Events specialist, Sam Torma our Call Centre Specialist and Rebecca Choularton our Executive Support specialist.

Our Temporary Services Division is going from strength to strength supplying across a variety of industries and in particular our call centre clients have continued to use our services and some in much greater volumes. Unfortunately, we are saying goodbye to Claire Tate who has been with the business for 2 years, moving onto pastures new. As with all sad news there is positive to follow with the promotion of Tracy Myneham from Resourcer to Account Manager and the appointment of Karen Thorney who will be joining the temp team with over five years experience in late August.

Our Chatswood Branch continues to expand and is seeking to appoint a further six consultants across the board in the next twelve months. We are very much enjoying having the familiar face of Rhonda Dunn on board as acting Branch Manager.

Looking forward, business is looking bright for us and many of our clients. As always a positive sign in the market is the number of live and vacant positions we have on our books and although we saw a slight dip in July, the flow is strong and clients are optomistic for the next quarter. Our Banking & Finance clients are remaining more cautious than our commercial clients but there is still a green light on recruitment for the coming months so we hope not to see the much talked about “W” effect happening in the market.

Best wishes for the new financial year from all at Beaumont, may it be prosperous and here’s to the first signs of Spring !

Emily
CBD Branch Manager

event

THIS MONTH'S COMPLIMENTARY EVENT

On Wednesday August 18th we will be holding our first Not-For-Profit evening. This is a chance for anybody who has previous experience within a charitable organisaton either in their free time or as a job to come and hear from two senior figures within the Not-For-Profit industry.

Leanne Warner, CEO at Cure Cancer and Alison Carmichael, CEO at ABSA (Assoc. of Building Sustainability Assessors) will be giving you an insight into the industry, their careers and how they got where they are today.

This will also be a chance to meet the team at Beaumont over a glass of wine.

There are now limited places left for this seminar. If you are interested in attending please contact Debbie Jenkins by email.

temp

TEMP OF THE MONTH

This month our $100 Temp of the Month prize goes to ….. Victoria Innell!

We have had the pleasure of working with Victoria since 2007. Victoria has always shown such flexibility during this time, being ready at a moments notice to help us and our clients out with short term temporary needs.

Since 2007, Victoria has completed a record 20 assignments with Beaumont Consulting and on no occasion has we received anything but positive feedback. What an amazing result!

Well done Victoria from everyone at Beaumont Consulting!

DON'T LIE ON YOUR CV.......HOW TO GET AROUND THOSE TRICKY ‘ISSUES’

How can you minimise problems on your CV, such as work history gaps, lack of experience, a previous dismissal, or health problems; and demonstrate that you aren't a risky candidate in the interview?

Gaps in your work history
Showing the last ten years' experience on your CV is generally sufficient, so you don't need to explain gaps earlier than this. However, you'll need to account for recent gaps.
If it's a short gap sandwiched between longer periods of employment, you can deflect attention by giving the dates of employment in years, rather than in months. For example, '2002 — 2006' rather than 'January 2002 — October 2006'. But if you were out of work for more than a few months, or your dates of employment are short, don't try to conceal a gap. Instead, show how you used the time constructively.

As long as you can show that you're doing something during your period of unemployment, you can appear more attractive to a potential employer. Also, doing voluntary work, researching something, learning something new are all ways to show how you are occupying your time. ... Given that this recession is so tough in so many sectors, employers are likely to be more 'forgiving' of long gaps in your work history.
Activities which bolster your CV are training courses, learning new skills or a language, volunteering, or creating your own project. Slot your activity with the dates into the appropriate section on your CV (professional experience/education for example) making it as relevant as possible to the job you're applying for.

Make it clear at the interview that you're up-to-date with events in your industry, so make sure you stay in touch with contacts, keep up membership of professional organisations and attend industry events.
Lack of experience

If you're changing career and don't have much relevant experience, go with what you've got. Find examples which demonstrate how your skills, accomplishments and personal qualities are relevant to the role you're applying for. Experience isn't always the deciding factor, so ensure your other strengths stand out in your CV, covering letter, and at the interview.

Don't underestimate the potential of networking. Finding out about a job before it's advertised may mean you avoid competing with more experienced candidates.

Careerenergy says in the forums: "You need to look carefully at your skills & experience and understand which organisations and jobs are best suited to your personality, working style and career needs...

"Then use your networks to get in front of people in those organisations. You need to be clear what they are looking for and why you meet their needs. And you need to communicate this effectively...

"What you do need is the drive, focus and commitment to conduct a successful job search, and a positive attitude so that you know from the start that you are going to succeed."

Extend your network of contacts online (LinkedIn, Twitter for example) and offline. Take every opportunity to develop your experience, and consider internships, temporary and part-time work. Offer your skills to local groups, charities and businesses, or set up projects yourself to gain the necessary experience.

Dismissed from a job
You may not need to include a job you were dismissed from on your CV. You can omit the job it if only lasted a few months, was more than ten years ago, or is completely irrelevant to what you're doing now. However, keep it on if it was your last job. Although you don't need to state the reason you left on your CV, be prepared to talk about it at interview if asked.

You don't need to lie about why you left. Frame it as a learning experience. You didn't do as well as you'd hoped because you needed more training and mentoring as the field was new to you for example. It's taught you to ask for regular feedback from your manager...

If you can, think about one positive thing that happened and use this — firstly on your CV — and secondly at interview, framing it again as a learning experience. For example, did you achieve goals through working in a team? Seize on a few aspects and offer these up as evidence that you have learned something that will be of value to your next employer.

If you're worried about references from your boss, ask human resources to provide one with dates of employment.

If you don't give references on your CV, provide them at interview.

If you have other references from previous jobs, then offer these too. The important thing is not to dwell too much on a working experience where you didn't 'gel', but to put it into a wider perspective of your overall career history. Try to give the impression that the most recent experience was a bit of a 'blip'. You have some examples of where you excelled and you made the most of it, but in the end it didn't work out as you had hoped.

Focus on how the job you're applying for now is your perfect match, and prepare well before you write your CV and attend the interview, so that you're sure about what you can bring to the role. Make it clear that you've learned from your previous jobs (not just the last one) and that you understand the challenges and opportunities in the new role, so you are prepared for any similar 'difficulties'.

cold

COLD & FLU REMEDIES

If your office is anything like ours the dreaded lurgy is doing the rounds again…and again…and again! We’ve found some good remedies that work:

A hot toddy's mixture of piping hot water, whiskey, and lemon can provide a lot of relief. Alcohol has an anti-inflammatory effect on mucous membranes and can help reduce fever. And according to Ron Eccles, director of the Common Cold Centre at Cardiff University, "Hot fluid has a demulcent and soothing action . . . those containing slightly bitter flavours such as lemon and citric acid are particularly beneficial."

Chicken soup. Research published in the journal Chest revealed that this traditional cure-all is the most effective remedy to help you recover from a cold. Heat is the key, so any soup will work to a degree, as it promotes airway secretions and has a calming action on inflamed throats. But chicken soup's combination of fats, spices, and water seems to work best when it comes to breaking up mucus.

Open a window. Stale, stuffy, recirculated air tends to make people feel sick for a couple reasons. One reason could be because the hot, stuffy air that you and everyone in the office keeps breathing is laden with germs. You can’t escape the germs unless you let the germs escape. Open the window and bring in the fresh, germ-free air.
The other reason you want fresh air from the outdoors is because it has some moisture in it. Your heated air is dry and that dry air is wrecking havoc on your nasal passages and sinuses. When your nasal passages and sinuses get dry your nose plugs up. If your poor nasal passages can’t drain, your head plugs up and you suffer. Moisture is key to keeping your nose running clean. Yucky, but true.

Eat a big breakfast. There is a Dutch study out that found eating a hearty breakfast increased blood levels of a virus fighting protein called gamma interferon. An interferon is a protein produced by cells that have been invaded by a virus, like the cold virus. This protein inhibits the replication of viruses. Your body needs fuel and a lot of it to keep from letting those little bugs get you run down.

…and if all that fails take the advice of our Accounts Assistant Rachel Hannah and rub Vicks Vapour Rub on the soles of your feet and cover with socks just before going to sleep at night.

Newsletter Archive

2010 July 2010 Newsletter