Oct 11 Newsletter

Welcome!

Wow, what a month! Firstly, thank you to all our candidates and clients that voted for us in the SARA awards. We received a very nice call from Seek to confirm our place as 2011 finalists. We’ve already polished off our party shoes and fingers crossed for the 17th November when the winners will be announced at the Seek awards night being held at Dolton House.

Our branches continued to expand in October. Alex Turner and Cherie Bousfield joined our temporary division and Michaela Neill joined our permanent business services team, both in our CBD office. You can find out more about them on our website.

For the last four weeks our North Shore branch have been desperately missing their administration whizz Janine Hayne. This month they were very, very happy to welcome her back as the newly married Janine McLennan! Congratulations to Janine and John!

The next in our list of people getting married (and there is a long list!) is Janine Runaghan from our Not For Profit team who will be away for November in South Africa where she will become Mrs Birch. In her absence, the ever capable Michelle Maye, Rebecca Green and Vicky Alford will be holding the fort, so if you have any queries you know who to call!

Whilst all this has been going on we also organised a charity clothes swap party in aid of Dress for Success which raised $1465.25. We’ve also been wearing our loud shirts and selling cups cakes which raised a fabulous $320 for deaf children.

That’s us wrapped up for October….here’s wishing everyone a great November!

Patricia Leech
Operations Manager

market

Market Update

After a stressful period the Australian Financial markets have recovered from the turmoil of recent months, helped by stronger economic data in the United States and by signs that European governments are making progress in their efforts to deal with the sovereign debt and banking problems. According to Ric Battelino, General Governor of the Reserve Bank of Australia “2011 has been a frustrating year for the world economy. The recovery in most of the large advanced economies lost momentum in the first half of the year and financial market volatility and concerns about sovereign debt posed renewed threats in the second half however from October 2011 the markets are once again looking very positive”.

The Reserve Bank has cut interest rates for the first time in more than two and a half years, bringing relief to households and corporate borrowers. Though the news was received with mixed reactions overall the general Australian population was relieved with this development. Though most economists warn the nation to be wary, it is also important to note that the exchange rate has been very variable over the past few months, but on the whole has remained at historically high levels.

credit

Accredited and ready to help!

For the last two weeks Dawn Toynton (North Shore Branch Manager) and Patricia Leech (Operations Manager) have been working with Anthony Sork and his team from Sork HC to become Accredited Practitioners.

What this means to you? We decided to partner with Sork HC early this year to bring you, our client, a complimentary Employee Attachment Inventory for every new member of staff placed by Beaumont Consulting in an aim to help you reduce turnover within your organisation and increase performance and discretionary effort.

As accredited practitioners Dawn and Patricia will now be able to offer advice around the business case for measuring and managing Attachment, how to ensure you get the most value from using the EAI and how the reports can help you to achieve high levels of Attachment with your newly placed employees.

If you have any questions surrounding this please do not hesitate to contact Dawn Toynton in our Chatswood Branch on 02 9413 1311 or Patricia Leech in our City Branch on 02 9279 2777.

invest

Invest in short-term staff or risk long-term brand damage

Article by HR Daily

The tendency to invest as little time and money as possible in training and engaging temporary employees is understandable, but can cause lasting damage to an organisation's customer and employer brand, says Sork HC managing director Anthony Sork.

Whether it is a team of casual staff hired for the festive season, or a few workers contracted for a specific project, the view that "because they won't be sticking around they can be treated as second-class citizens" is common - and misguided, he says.

"Temporary workers suffer from this regularly," says Sork. "Even though they might actually be in an organisation for six months, they're still 'the temp'... something less than a valued employee."

It's also very easy for managers to inadvertently send the message to permanent staff that, "We don't really want you to get too close to this person because we're going to have to say goodbye to them", which further damages their employment experience.

In some cases, temporary workers are treated based on the task they have been hired for, "becoming a skill set instead of a person who actually has skills and experience", he says.

From a financial point of view, it might benefit an organisation to prioritise results over short-term staff, working them hard and without regard for their wellbeing because they are easily replaced.

"[Employers] may not feel that's having a negative impact on the company's performance, but [eventually] their ability to attract future talent will be compromised," Sork says.

Even if supply is not an issue, as time passes an increasing number of candidates will have worked for the company, left with a grudge, and relayed details of their negative experience to others, he says.

"That expat post-employment group, which every organisation has, is a significantly influential group in the wider market."

Failing to invest appropriately in short-term workers can not only jeopardise the performance and satisfaction of an organisation's people and damage its employer brand, but also harm its customer base and product brand, Sork says.

"The risk is that they're not going to have the skill and capability to do the job for you, and they certainly won't have the desire to do the job to the best of their ability.

"That can cause, on face value, a loss of a sale in the moment, but it's actually going to also have an impact on your product and service brand as that customer walks away and tells everyone about the fact they just had such bad service."

It's up to the manager
Even if a worker is only there for the day, his or her manager should be striving to make them feel welcomed and accepted, confident in their understanding of what is required of them, and comfortable enough to ask questions along the way, Sork says.

"In most instances the workers - the existing social structure - very much take their lead from the manager's behaviour. If the manager just refers to a worker as the temp or a contractor, and doesn't make an effort to include them in wider team activities and discussions, then the rest of the social structure tends to take their lead from that manager.

"[But] if you invest in the growth and development of an individual - if you help them to apply the skills they've learnt in the environment you're in and create an engaging environment where they believe they can turn up and achieve their potential and feel satisfaction and fulfilment from doing their role - whether it's for a day or a month or a year or evermore, that individual is going to give you more than a return on your investment.

"There are some people in the market who intentionally go into periods of contracting with the view that at some point in that contracting experience, they will find an organisation and potentially a role that they want to do long term," he adds.

"It becomes a viable option both for the employee as well as the organisation... a 'try before you buy' approach. If you treat them fundamentally differently because they are a contractor or temporary worker, you're actually altering their opportunity to assess you as a viable employer, and potentially losing a source of great talent."

Another temptation can be to overlook under-performance or behaviour issues in short-term workers, because they will be leaving soon anyway. However, it pays to be vigilant, Sork says.

"If you are a manager who doesn't address under-performance, you are creating the perception with your other workers that there is a double standard when it comes to performance management.

"If an individual comes in and cannot do the job, or doesn't demonstrate they can learn how to do the job, the organisation needs to cut that relationship quickly because it's a wasted resource." The same goes for a worker whose behaviour is not aligned with the employer's values, he says.

For further information on this article, or to find others like it please visit www.hrdaily.com.au

temp

Temp of the month

This month our $100 Temp of the Month prize goes to Grainne Delaney
This is what the client had to say: ‘Fantastic worker who is loved by everyone.’

Well done Grainne from the team at Beaumont!

know

Getting to know you

Ever wondered what we get up to when we're not at work? This week we are getting to know Vicky Alford.....

1. What is your role in Beaumont Consulting?
Not for Profit Recruitment Coordinator

2. What was your first job?
Receptionist at a photography studio

3. What was your favourite subject at school?
Drama

4. If you were stuck on a desert island, what is the one thing you couldn’t do without?
People

5. What is the first thing you notice about people?
Teeth, I like clean neat teeth

6. Who is someone that inspires you and why?
My mum, she has just reached her 10 year anniversary of sobriety. She now talks regularly in schools and runs AA groups where she lives.

7. What do you do in your spare time?
I eat & drink A LOT and then to the gym to make up for it. I also like going to the theatre to watch musicals or watching reality TV like Beauty & the Geek and Xfactor

8. What was the last book you read?
A Million Little Pieces by James Frey

9. If you could be famous for anything what would it be?
My dessert bar called “Just Desserts” – one day I will make it happen!

10. What’s the best decision you have ever made?
To go travelling around the world.