CONTENTS

• My Favourites  
• Article One (Think before you write by Louise Fernandes)
• Article Two (7 Tips for Getting Past ‘Preferred Supplier Agreements’ by Mark Whitby - Part One)
• Don't Miss This (Recruitment Society Event, 4th September, London  - 15% discount on AIRS training, 25th September, London)
• Online Recruitment Update (Hitwise Top 10 Recruitment Sites - Louise's UK Recruiter Blog - Top-Consultant's salary benchmarking report - PR: Jobtonic Reaches Over One Million Passive Candidates Discussion Board Summary)
• Subscribe/Unsubscribe
• Feedback & Advertising Information

Visit http://www.careersinrecruitment.com for the latest recruitment industry jobs.

My Favourites

http://trustedplaces.com - If you want to take a client out for a meal in an area you aren't familiar with use this site for recommendations.  

http://www.touchlocal.com - Local and national online business directory - great for research in a geographic area

http://www.linkedin.com/answers/ - Useful for research into obscure areas outside your normal expertise.  Ask the question just to your network or the whole community.

Why not submit your 3 favourite web sites. See the guidelines at http://www.ukrecruiter.co.uk/articles.htm

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Article One: Think before you write by Louise Fernandes

Note-taking during an interview with a candidate is second nature for most recruiters. However, before you put pen to paper, it is worth bearing in mind that your interview notes may well end up in the hands of the candidate, as Louise Fernandes of Field Fisher Waterhouse LLP explains below. 

Interviewing a candidate without taking any notes is rare. Understandably, recruiters jot down impressions of a candidate and record details that may be relevant to the decision-making process. However, such interview notes are often considered to be personal documents, not intended to be viewed by anyone else, let alone the candidate concerned. It may therefore come as a surprise to many of those involved in the recruitment process that candidates will often be entitled to see interview notes. 

Legislative background

The relevant legislation for these purposes is the Data Protection Act 1998 (DPA), as developed by the Employment Practices Code (published by the Information Commissioner). 

Whilst a detailed discussion of the DPA is outside the scope of this article, it is worth covering some of the basic concepts. The DPA essentially places legal requirements on “data controllers” i.e. organisations that process “personal data”. Under the DPA, “personal data” broadly means “biographical” data which has the individual as its focus. All organisations processing personal data must comply with eight data protection principles. 

The first principle is most relevant to the interview process, stating that personal data must be processed fairly and lawfully (and shall not be processed unless at least one of a number of conditions is met). The remaining principles cover a number of issues, including the purposes for which personal data is obtained, and the requirement for the data to be adequate, relevant, not excessive, accurate and up-to-date). 

The DPA applies to personal data held on computer or in relevant filing systems, i.e. a well-structured manual filing system, the organisation of which mirrors the accessibility of computerised records. Well organised personnel files will ordinarily fall within the definition of relevant filing systems. The DPA therefore applies to most of the information held by an employer about its employees, and will extend to personal data held on job applicants.

The Employment Practices Code 

The Employment Practices Code applies the DPA in the employment context providing good practice benchmarks in a number of areas, including recruitment and selection. It can be accessed at http://www.ico.gov.uk/

In relation to interviews, it is important that personal data recorded and retained following an interview can be justified as relevant to, and necessary for, the recruitment process itself, or for defending the process against challenge. Whilst the Code is not concerned with setting out how to conduct interviews, the collection of personal data at interview and its recording, storage and use will all constitute processing under the DPA. 

Subject access requests

Under the DPA, individuals have a right of access to data that is kept about them by a data controller. This is known as “subject access.” Unless a set of interview notes is held on a file which is so unstructured as to fall outside the DPA, a candidate would normally be entitled to access notes taken during an interview process. 

To request such access, a candidate would have to make a subject access request in writing. Before complying, the data controller is entitled to request a fee of up to £10 and information to confirm the identity of the individual making the request and the location of the information. A data controller must comply with a subject access promptly and, in any event, within 40 days of receipt of the request (or, if later, within 40 days of receipt of the £10 fee, evidence to confirm the identity of the individual and any information required to locate the information requested). 

Where provision of the data will involve disclosure of data relating to third parties, it will be important to balance the access right of one person against the right to privacy of another. This may involve blanking out some data, or prior discussion with the third party.

Concerns about discrimination?

A candidate who requests access to interview notes may be concerned that he or she has been discriminated against. An alternative to making a subject access request is to serve a statutory discrimination questionnaire. The questionnaire procedure is available under all six strands of discrimination legislation (sex, race, disability, sexual orientation, religion or belief and age) and can be used to elicit a range of information, including copies of interview notes. 

If the questionnaire procedure is used, a recruiter would not be obliged to respond. However, a failure to do so within 8 weeks, or providing evasive or equivocal answers, could lead to an Employment Tribunal drawing inferences of discrimination in any subsequent proceedings. 

Way forward

After reading this article, those involved in the recruitment process may never want to put pen to paper again. However, the underlying issue here is not limiting what is written down at interview but rather ensuring that selection is made against objective criteria such as the skills and experience of the candidates relevant to the role. It then follows that interview notes will be valuable both for making that assessment and proving, if called upon to do so, that selection was objective and not influenced by conscious or unwitting discrimination.

Louise Fernandes is the Professional Support Lawyer in the Employment Department at Field Fisher Waterhouse LLP and can be contacted at louise.fernandes@ffw.com. 

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Article Two: 7 Tips for Getting Past ‘Preferred Supplier Agreements’ by Mark Whitby - Part One

“We have a Preferred Suppliers List.”
If you’re actively canvassing for new business, you probably get this objection every day. And this objection probably causes more frustration among recruiters than almost any other. But let’s get things into perspective. This is just a variation of the classic objection, “we’re happy with our current suppliers.” The truth is that this objection is less of an obstacle than most recruiters realise. 

What NOT to say…
Most recruiters fall into the trap of asking, “When is your PSL up for renewal?” or “How would we go about becoming a preferred supplier?” These questions may be useful at some stage, but not as your initial line of enquiry. Why? Because these questions implicitly assume that there is no possibility of winning business from this client in the short term. So usually when you ask these questions, you have already admitted defeat in your own mind. And you may be giving up too easily. 

The big lie 
If we hear something often enough we’ll usually start to believe it – even if it’s not true. Be aware that just because the client says they have a PSL doesn’t make it true. Many companies have discovered that this is an easy way to get recruiters off the phone fast. And even if it is true, it may not be strictly enforced. Often the PSL is applied selectively. A good CV will almost always be considered no matter where it came from – especially in a candidate-driven market place. So before you resort to arranging a call back or sending literature, try testing the strength of the PSL with one of the following strategies:

1. Remind them that there is no cost to consider your candidate
“It doesn’t cost you anything to consider our candidates. Let me send you my best 1-2 people. You can compare and contrast them against the applicants you’re already considering. If my CVs are no better to the ones you’ve received from other sources, then fine. On the other hand, you could be missing out on a real star that you would not have access to otherwise. And at the very least, you’ll satisfy yourself that you are recruiting from the best shortlist. You do want to recruit the best person, don’t you?”

2. Probe for problems with their current supplier
Now here’s the challenge. If you come straight out and ask, “What problems are you having with your current suppliers” you’re unlikely to get an honest answer. People don’t like admitting problems to themselves, let alone to a stranger. So we need to do some detective work. Remember watching Lieutenant Columbo on TV? He was a master at finding flaws in the suspect’s story. But he did it without them realising what he was doing until it was too late. In fact the secret to his success was that he was so polite and unassuming. He’d always start out with seemingly harmless questions, and these would inevitably lead to more challenging ones. Take a page out of Columbo’s book. Try questions like: “You’ve got a Preferred Supplier’s List? I’m glad to hear it! It tells me that you take recruitment seriously! Who do you use? What were your reasons for choosing them? If you could change one thing about the service you’re getting right now, what would it be? Is there anything else you’re not 100% satisfied with? Tell me, how well do they handle x,y,z (your area of specialty)?” Before you know it, you’re engaged in a meaningful business conversation with your client.

3. Become a “Second Tier” supplier
Ask them, “What would you do if your usual suppliers were not able to provide suitable candidates? What’s your back-up plan?” Many clients will not have an answer for this. They’ll be forced to admit that IF their current suppliers could not deliver, THEN they would need to consider other alternatives. Then you can say, “Our intention at this time is not to replace your existing suppliers, but to complement them. Let us be your second tier suppliers.” 

This article is spread over two issues of the newsletter. The second part will be published in issue number 324 in two weeks time.

Mark Whitby is a coach, consultant and trainer who helps UK recruiters to maximise their performance. For more information, call 0800 019 8899 or visit www.recruitmentcoach.com 

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Recruitment Society Event, Extending Bright Ideas into Recruitment, 4th September, London 
The speaker is Tim Campbell, Winner, the Apprentice 2005 and Founder of the Bright Ideas Trust. The presentation will run from 6.30 – 7.45, and will be preceded by drinks from 6.00 pm and will be followed by networking and refreshments. The evening will finish at 9.00 pm. If you are interested in attending please contact Richard Taylor at admin@recruitmentsociety.org.uk  

This section is sponsored by http://www.alljobsUK.com "The UK’s Jobs Portal"

Online Recruitment Update (sponsored by http://www.broadbean.co.uk for "the UK's favourite job posting system")

Hitwise top 10 Recruitment Sites, week ending 18th August 2007
The most visited UK recruitment sites last week, starting with the most popular, were www.jobcentreplus.gov.uk, www.jobs.nhs.uk, www.totaljobs.com, www.reed.co.uk, www.monster.co.uk, www.jobsite.co.uk, www.jobs.ac.uk, www.cv-library.co.uk, www.s1jobs.com and my.monster.co.uk. Hitwise don't aggregate data from sites who form part of a network such as fish4.co.uk For more information about Hitwise, visit http://www.hitwise.co.uk

Louise's UK Recruiter blog
Since the last newsletter I've posted the following: 
- Top-Consultant's salary benchmarking report
- LinkedIn Tips for Recruiters
- Interview with a Blogger - Robert Baldwi
- National Online Recruitment Awards 2007 - Nominations
- Protecting your NetRep
You can read Louise's UK Recruiter blog at http://ukrecruiter.typepad.com  You can keep up to date with other the recruitment blogs from the UK via the UK Recruiter blog watch page at http://www.ukrecruiter.co.uk/blogs.htm.  

Top-Consultant's salary benchmarking report 
"Top-Consultant.com and sister site TopITconsultant.com have published their annual salary benchmarking report, detailing remuneration levels and trends in the IT consulting and management consultancy sectors. Based on detailed survey responses from over 1,600 readers, the report highlights that pay rises and bonuses in the last 12 months have been modest at best – with the biggest gainers being those who’ve secured a rise through a change of employer." The full report is available for download here: http://www.top-consultant.com/2007_salary_report.pdf

Press Release: Jobtonic Reaches Over One Million Passive Candidates
"Jobtonic, the UK's leading referral recruitment site now has over 30,000 referrers signed up and ready to tell their friends about jobs. Vacancies now stand a chance of being referred to one of over 1.5 million people within the reach of the ever-expanding site. That's one in forty of the entire UK population. Jobtonic rewards its referrers for successful recruitment matches with up to £2,000 in cash. Advertisers can set the level of the reward given to the successful referrer providing maximum flexibility. www.jobtonic.com" 

Discussion Board Summary
Don't forget to visit The Discussion Board. Current topics on the site include:
- Mag - Top 100 report
- Living Abroad - Working UK Market
- Working in Top Search Agencies
- LinkedIn for name gathering/headhunting
- Candidate Searching Software
- Help to go my own way!
Any postings you or anyone else makes will be included in the weekly digest. Sign up for the free digest here or hit reply to ask me to include your email address.  It is free to use the discussion board and you don't have to register to view messages. Visit the site, ask questions and share your knowledge

This section is sponsored by http://www.broadbean.co.uk; "the UK's favourite job posting system".

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