PR, marcomms, recruitment and all the bits in between

Picking on the wrong person

PR Week carried a feature last month on the dangers to employers of letting clients ‘harass’ their staff (it all seemed to be about male to female harassment, inferring that it didn’t happen the other way around, or are we just being naive?). As anyone who has read any form of legal media will be well aware, complacency in this area can lead to rather unpleasant financial shocks. Although perhaps not quite as momentous as the shock that finance company, F&C Asset Management, is facing. The firm is currently contemplating a £19 million bill for allegedly driving the head of its in-house legal team out of her job. Failing to spot the lack of wisdom in taking on a top lawyer, who had been described as a ‘whirling dervish’ by her peers, the firm apparently made Gill Switalski’s life more than a little difficult over an 18 month period by constantly querying her expenses and working methods, asking for her mother’s death certificate when she cancelled a business trip after the bereavement and asking her to come into the office when she was still connected up to a drip after a serious operation. If the case succeeds it will swamp the previous record for a gender discrimination case - a paltry £6.5 million won by a bond trader at Morgan Stanley. So do be careful out there.

The most difficult job

We all have different ideas about what would be the most difficult job, but according to The Times, it is currently held by a certain Katharine Witty. Those of you who spent the early months of the year asleep may have missed the (hopefully) final instalment in the ‘who killed Diana?’ saga, where at the bargain price of £7 million worth of tax payers money we got to find out that it was an accident after all (bargain). Featuring prominently in the background of these events was said Ms Witty who is Mohammed Al Fayed’s official spokesperson. Given the nature of some of Mr Al Fayed’s public pronouncements (suggesting the Duke of Edinburgh was a closet Nazi and related to Frankenstein, for example), it’s perhaps not surprising that Max Clifford described the role as ‘challenging, very difficult’ and as The Times puts out, he is a man who should know as he represents Kerry Katona. A graduate of well-known hot house, St Paul’s school and Oxford, Ms Witty cut her teeth in local newspapers before moving to the BBC and then Sky as royal correspondent. Sounds like an excellent CV and when she’s ready to move on we’d be  more than pleased to hear from her.

Career anticlimax

Is it better to work hard for and aspire to a bigger and better job rather than to get it? In his recent Times2 article, http://women.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/women/the_way_we_live/article3970359.ece, Matthew Syed argues that maybe it is. Instead of inciting feelings of happiness and success, he says that winning something or achieving a goal can actually cause a sense of emptiness and disappointment as well as the stress of having to deal with this new role. His prime example is Gordon Brown, who after years of wanting the job of PM, is now probably thinking that it’s not all it was cracked up to be. Many people will agree that at some point they been given their dream job only to find that they don’t actually enjoy it. So if you are upset about missing out on a promotion, then don’t be too despondent - maybe it was for the best.

Brain enhancers

Forget those cups of coffee to get you through the day. There are now “smart drugs” called cognition enhancers, created from research into diseases like Alzheimer’s, which can improve memory, attention and speed of thought in healthy people. According to the Academy of Medical Sciences, students could take them to help them do better on exams and likewise employees could use them to make them more productive at work. According to the FT, the Academy’s report also says “no one should be compelled to take such drugs as a condition of employment”. It’s a good job really – I don’t think that employers would have many staff left. As interesting as this sounds, caffeine and willpower seem to remain as the best options for succeeding at work.

Fail to prepare? Then prepare to fail

Research by the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC) has shown that many job applicants need to spend more time preparing for interviews, with many recruitment consultancies saying that they have had complaints from clients about the behaviour and appearance of candidates. Nearly half of the firms surveyed said they had received complaints about “off-putting personal hygiene habits” in interviews. Other criticisms included strange outfits and peculiar answers to interview questions. With this in mind, here are our top ten tips for dazzling your interviewer:

1.       Leave plenty of time to get there – a delayed train or a traffic jam can easily make you late

2.       Dress to impress but keep it simple

3.       Do your research and make sure you know who you’re meeting and that you have some knowledge of the company – what do they do and what are their key values?

4.       Think about your CV and how it shows what you can bring to the role

5.       Turn off your mobile phone!

6.       Be confident (although not over confident) and just be yourself

7.       Be honest and think clearly about how you are going to answer the questions

8.       Listen and show interest

9.       Don’t fidget and don’t smoke beforehand – small things can make a big difference to a first impression

10.   Leave questions about salary, bonuses, holiday etc until a later date

War for talent?

We are always talking about the raging “war for talent” and how there is a great demand for, but short supply of, skilled personnel in the marketplace. However management ‘guru’ Wayne Turmel takes a different view in his recent article on management-issues.com: http://www.management-issues.com/2008/4/28/opinion/what-war-for-talent.asp. He argues that organisations should be investing in training - both for current employees so they can move up the company ladder and for new recruits who may not tick all the boxes but with a little help can get their skills up to scratch. So does the war for talent exist? And if so, is it the employer’s fault? There may still be problems finding the perfect candidates to fill new positions but maybe Turmel is right in that we just have to approach the situation from a different perspective. Salary increases, training and the help of recruitment professionals should ensure that you can recruit the best talent. As Turmel says, “there's very little…that a little more time, money, or forethought (mostly forethought) wouldn't cure.”

Go green in the office

Feeling ill, stressed or tired? The solution may be easier than you thought – get some plants to brighten up your office. Research by the Agricultural University of Norway has shown that the more plants workers could see from their desk, the less self-reported sick leave they took. Plants in the office also appeared to reduce fatigue, headaches and even dry skin. Washington State University found that greenery also improved staff reaction times by 12% and lead to a quicker recovery from stress. Apparently this is a combination of plants’ ability to remove toxins from the air and the positive psychological affect that plants can have. Although we don’t recommend going over the top – an office resembling a jungle can’t be good for productivity – if a plant can brighten the office up and maybe be beneficial to our health, then it may be worth a go. Just don’t get distracted and procrastinate by watering it or deciding which corner it looks best in…we already have the internet for that.

Roll on Tuesday

In a new survey, workers have voted Tuesday at the most productive day of the week. Nearly half of all those questioned by Peninsula said that they feel Tuesday is when they get the most done. Five years ago in 2003, Monday was the winner, but this now seems to be spent catching up on emails, gossip and the likes, with the hard work getting started the next day. The most unproductive days with 1% of the vote were Saturday and Sunday, closely followed by Friday afternoon. Big surprise there. So if you have that piece of work you keep swiftly moving to the bottom of the pile, maybe have a go at it on a Tuesday. 

Spring clean your keyboard

Feeling under the weather at your desk? Research this week shows that your keyboard could be to blame. Which? Computing magazine examined 33 keyboards and found a variety of bacteria which can make you ill – one keyboard even had to be removed from the office as it was five times dirtier than a toilet seat. As well as dust and poor personal hygiene, the main culprit was people eating at their desks. So if you want to keep on fighting fit it might be an idea to give your computer a clean – and save your sandwiches until you’ve finished writing that email.

Partners keep salaries secret

With more people turning to the convenience of internet and telephone banking, couples will find that they are less likely to know their other half’s salary figures. With one in 10 people currently keeping their salary from their partner, it is believed that this figure is soon to rise.

According to the Century of Savings report by the Future Foundation of National Savings and Investments soon one in four people will be keeping their wages to themselves as there becomes less and less reason to share this information.

This kind of secrecy has not been around since the 1950’s, but with the growth of modern technology it is no longer compulsory to be so open about what you earn, even with those you love.