Latest News

This month on the blog we spoke to four of our recruitment experts to get some tips and advice that you can put into practice to help you secure that next job. Thank you to Gabrielle Davies, Senior Recruitment Consultant, Paul Fletcher, Manager, Chepstow Office, Lisa Redmore-Elliott, Director of Business Development and Alaina Scriven-Risbey, Customer Service/ Business Development for their valuable input

Do your homework before you apply

It is wise, says Lisa Redmore-Elliott, Director of Business Development, to take some time to reflect on the type of work you enjoy doing before you start your job search. 

“Consider what’s most important to you. Is it money? Title? Promotion? The work itself or even where you’re based? Once you know what you’re looking for investigate the companies you might like to work for on Glassdoor. It will help you get a real feel for their company culture. 

“You should also think about developing a system to keep track of all your job search activities. A simple spreadsheet can work well, detailing which jobs you’ve applied for and the conversations you’ve had as well as where you’ve been invited to interview and when.

When you start looking for a job in earnest, things can quickly get confusing if you don’t organise yourself well.

Give your CV the attention it deserves

We often hear people say that LinkedIn is the new CV and that traditional CVs are going out of fashion. And while there may be some evidence of this in the creative industries, when it comes to manufacturing, logistics and services a good CV is just as important as ever. But ‘good’ doesn’t necessarily have to mean full of great school grades and impressive previous positions.  

Alaina Scriven-Risbey advises, 

“Make sure your CV is clear and precise. It should be no more than 2 pages (3 at a push), up-to-date and containing only relevant information. Read the job description and person specification thoroughly and make sure you’ve covered examples of how you meet the criteria they are looking for. Focus on the things youcando and not those you can’t. Finally, make sure your contact details are up to date – without that, you’ll never know whether an employer was interested in you or not.”

Senior Recruitment Consultant Gabrielle Davies agrees, 

“Make sure your CV is up to date with all your achievements and everything you’ve previously done. And make sure everything you include is relevant to the job you’re applying for. From experience, this really will help you to stand out from the other candidates applying with generic CVs.” 

But how can you make yourself sound like an exact match for every job?

“Well,” says Lisa, “you’ll need to tailor your CV for each separate job you apply for. Make yourself an obvious fit. Study the words and phrases that are used in the job description and include them in your CV (although don’t be tempted to bend the truth). Help the recruiter to find out, within a few seconds of looking at your CV, that you have the skills they are looking for.”

Find more CV writing tipson the blog.

But don’t simply fire off your CV in an email

Gabrielle believes, “a cover letter looks very professional.” And Paul Fletcher, manager of our Chepstow Office agrees – although he suggests simply including relevant information in the body of the email to which you attach your CV, 

“Instead of just writing ‘CV attached’ – it will be far more beneficial to tell the recruiter a little about yourself and why you fit the role - whether you are still working, how much notice you’d have to give, where you live, how far you’re prepared to travel and whether you have your own transport. You could also talk about the type of work you would consider and what shifts you’d be prepared to work as well as whether you know anyone else who works for the same company.” 

But of course, make sure you do a spelling and grammar check before you press send. First impressions really do count.

Preparing for interview        

Attending an interview can be nerve-wracking, but there are plenty of things you can do before hand to give you the best possible chance. And if you apply through us at Nu Staff we’re always happy to offer plenty of tips and advice. 

Gabrielle suggests that pre-interview is important to, “do your research on the company you’re applying for. Find out about directors, the team, the job roles they have advertised, how the company got established and what they’ve done since.” 

The more information you know, and can drop into the conversation, the better as it will make the interviewer feel you’re interested in thiscompany and thisjob. 

Give your CV the attention it deserves

We often hear people say that LinkedIn is the new CV and that traditional CVs are going out of fashion. And while there may be some evidence of this in the creative industries, when it comes to manufacturing, logistics and services a good CV is just as important as ever. But ‘good’ doesn’t necessarily have to mean full of great school grades and impressive previous positions.  

Alaina Scriven-Risbey advises, 

“Make sure your CV is clear and precise. It should be no more than 2 pages (3 at a push), up-to-date and containing only relevant information. Read the job description and person specification thoroughly and make sure you’ve covered examples of how you meet the criteria they are looking for. Focus on the things youcando and not those you can’t. Finally, make sure your contact details are up to date – without that, you’ll never know whether an employer was interested in you or not.”

Senior Recruitment Consultant Gabrielle Davies agrees, 

“Make sure your CV is up to date with all your achievements and everything you’ve previously done. And make sure everything you include is relevant to the job you’re applying for. From experience, this really will help you to stand out from the other candidates applying with generic CVs.” 

But how can you make yourself sound like an exact match for every job?

“Well,” says Lisa, “you’ll need to tailor your CV for each separate job you apply for. Make yourself an obvious fit. Study the words and phrases that are used in the job description and include them in your CV (although don’t be tempted to bend the truth). Help the recruiter to find out, within a few seconds of looking at your CV, that you have the skills they are looking for.”

Find more CV writing tipson the blog.

But don’t simply fire off your CV in an email

Gabrielle believes, “a cover letter looks very professional.” And Paul Fletcher, manager of our Chepstow Office agrees – although he suggests simply including relevant information in the body of the email to which you attach your CV, 

“Instead of just writing ‘CV attached’ – it will be far more beneficial to tell the recruiter a little about yourself and why you fit the role - whether you are still working, how much notice you’d have to give, where you live, how far you’re prepared to travel and whether you have your own transport. You could also talk about the type of work you would consider and what shifts you’d be prepared to work as well as whether you know anyone else who works for the same company.” 

But of course, make sure you do a spelling and grammar check before you press send. First impressions really do count.

Preparing for interview        

Attending an interview can be nerve-wracking, but there are plenty of things you can do before hand to give you the best possible chance. And if you apply through us at Nu Staff we’re always happy to offer plenty of tips and advice. 

Gabrielle suggests that pre-interview is important to, “do your research on the company you’re applying for. Find out about directors, the team, the job roles they have advertised, how the company got established and what they’ve done since.” 

The more information you know, and can drop into the conversation, the better as it will make the interviewer feel you’re interested in thiscompany and thisjob. 

While Lisa recommends a few tips to help you perform your best in that interview situation, whether it’s on the phone or in person:

“Before you get called for your first interview, develop responses for common interview questions, and then practise them — ideally using a mock-interviewing technique with a friend. The more prepared you are for the interview, the more comfortable you’ll be – and the more likely you’ll succeed.”

It’s not over once the interview is over

However you feel the interview went, it is polite and courteous to follow up with a note. 

“By email is fine,” says Lisa, “Emphasise your interest and fit with the job and employer and thank them for the opportunity. I’m not promising it will get you the job offer, but it will help make you stand out from the majority of jobseekers who don’t bother.” 

It may even help to keep you front of mind should another vacancy arise. 

And never be afraid to follow up with the agency or direct with the employer. It shows your interest and enthusiasm for the job. The key is doing so in a way that is professional while not coming across as pesky or needy.

The importance of mindset        

No one is saying your job search will be easy, it can often take time to secure the job of your dreams. The most important thing is that you:

“Never give up, keep applying and keep positive,” says Alaina, 

“Take those temp jobs, they could lead to something permanent. And talk to us about how you’re feeling if you need to. Many of our staff have been in the situation where we have been searching for jobs ourselves. 

“I personally have been made redundant three times. The first time it took me 15 months to find a full-time position, taking on temp jobs in between. And the third time was when I was 25 weeks pregnant. That time I was lucky enough to get some temp work through NuStaff until my baby arrived. 

“A year later I ended up taking on a new challenge by joining the Nu-Staff Team in a permanent role.”

If you’re currently job hunting in Chepstow, Bristol, Gloucestershire, South Wales areas, why not check out our latest vacanciesor give us a call on 01291 628888/ 02920 2263365 or email us info@nustaff.co.uk to find out more about how we can help?