Recruitment agency serving Milton Keynes, Northampton and the surrounding areas

When the UK officially left the European Union yesterday, there were undoubtably mixed emotions. We posted yesterday about how businesses can use this as an opportunity to thrive and grow, so we thought we'd follow up with some great tips for job-seekers so that Brexit doesn't have a negative impact on your career.

Since my career in recruitment started in the late 1990s, I’ve met hundreds of graduates and back then, it was the norm to get a ‘proper job’ when they left university (which means 9-5 pm, a permanent contract and some degree of job security).  But things aren’t like that now. More businesses are operating 24/7 businesses and need staffing around the clock. Job security is a thing of the past now and many businesses are relying on agency based, zero hours staffing. So, what can job-seekers and the working population at large do to make sure they’re getting the best possible opportunities?

Yesterday’s blog post talked all about flexibility being the key to success. Well, I think that this has never been more relevant for our candidates who are both graduates and people with an extensive career.

We’ve taken some great tips from The Big Choice who have written a blog post for graduates about how they can be flexible in their career choices.  

• Open-mindedness â€" consider new ideas and opportunities
• Positivity â€" be optimistic and forward looking
• Creativity â€" research and identify new ways of planning and working
• Adapting â€" change the way you work to suit the situation or environment
• Saying yes â€" give things a go instead of saying no straight away

For those of you with a number of years’ experience in your chosen field, there are some simple things that you can do to safeguard your position within your company. Make sure you’re equipping yourself with as many skills as you can that will make you stand out amongst your colleagues. If formal training isn’t an option, why not ask about job-shadowing with a more senior colleague or another department? This will give you more exposure to other parts of the business and will help to share ideas and opportunities within the business?

Volunteering is another great way to expand your skills and demonstrates your commitment to self-improvement. We’ve written a blog about the benefits of volunteering which you can read here (insert link). 

Use your commute in to work and your lunch break wisely. Listen to some podcasts that focus on either self-improvement or that are related to your industry. This will show your employer that you are taking your career seriously and are interested in progressing. Some great skills that you can develop through listening to a podcast include:

• Getting things done by David Allen
• The 5Am Miracle by Jeff Sanders
• Prod Pod (it’s only 2 minutes â€" super productive) by Ray Sidney-Smith
• Pivot with Jenny Blake
• Side Hustle School with Chris Guillebeau

There’s nothing that you can control about this ongoing political situation and the impact that it can have on the economy. However, you can control your reaction to any career-based curve balls by thinking flexibly, equipping yourself well in the work-place and having a positive mindset.

Now that we know how things are moving forward following Brexit, you might want to reconsider your current role? Our consultants can give impartial career advice and help you to secure a new role.

If you’re based in Milton Keynes, then you can reach our team on 01908 200270. 

For roles in Northamptonshire, our team are on 01604 439380.

We initially wrote this blog post back in November before the General Election. But, we felt that it would be good to update it and share it because there's still a lot of useful information and tips for UK businesses. Here's an article from the BBC  which outlines the current Brexit position.

Now that we have some clarity, this post focuses on how a business can survive Brexit. In the 16 years since I started Ascendant Recruitment, I’ve lived by one principle and it’s seen me through the worst recession in UK history and I’m hoping it will see me through the next one!

That principle is flexibility. There’s no doubt about it, the UK has never faced greater uncertainty and many critics of Brexit feel that it’s impossible to predict what the likely scenarios are. But if, as a business, you aren’t able to respond to changing market conditions, then you’re putting yourself at risk of not making it through the post-Brexit world. 

Here’s a few things I think are important that will help make sure your business is able to remain flexible and adapt during these changing times:

• Do a Brexit Impact Assessment. You’ll need to think about how this will impact how you sell your products, purchase your materials or your staff.  Understanding the risk to your business will help you adapt your business model, providing you with the ability to weather the Brexit-storm.
• Be a good employer. If you employ EU nationals, make sure you are able to support them to remain in the UK if they are eligible.  Make sure your HR team is up to speed with the details of the EU Settlement Scheme.
• Have a solid recruitment strategy. If you rely on agency staff, you may wish to think of a model that allows you to scale staff up and down as you need them, but offers you some stability from a workforce who’s loyalty to their recruiter may be tested if their life in the UK feels under threat.  Contract workers who sign up for a fixed period might be a better solution to a team who work on a day-by-day basis
• Attract the best talent. If your business is going to survive, you will need an engaged, skilled and motivated workforce. Make sure you’ve looked at your company culture, the package and benefits you can offer and ensure you’re progressing the right people â€" this will help to get your business in to the best position possible and make sure you’re as recession-proof as possible.
• Diversify and adapt. If part of your business is propping up another, then consider how long this is viable for. Work out strategies to make this area profitable or look at stopping this area so that you can focus on what you are successful at.

We can help you to limit the risk of Brexit impacting your business by advising you on your recruitment strategy. We’ve been doing this for a long time and have seen a lot of creative ways to minimise risk to businesses.  For an informal discussion, please contact me on nick@ascendantrecruitment.co.uk or send me a message on Linked IN.

Later this week, we’ll focus on how candidates can position themselves to get the best possible job as the Brexit debate rumbles on.