Management Blog

Recruitment Becomes PC

Having just written a job description and then a job advert you become acutely aware of how politically correct we have become in this country. It's amazing how delicate you have to be when wording such ad's to ensure you don't fall foul of the law.

One of the greatest leaders of men has to be Sir Ernest Shackleton and how different it was in his day. When he was recruiting for his Imperial Trans-Antartic Expedition of 1914-1917 he didn't beat about the bush concerning the realities of what lay ahead. This is how he worded his job advert:-

"Men wanted for hazardous journey. Small wages.Bitter cold. Long months of complete darkness. Constant danger. Safe return doubtful. Honour and recognition in case of success."

I wonder how many responses you'd get today if you placed this ad in the recruitment sections of the Sunday Supplements?

Nail-Biting Wait For Stars of Team Building

The local regional newspaper has also picked up that Call of the Wild have been short-listed in the National Tourism Awards as Team Building Company of the Year. Here is the link and the an extract from the piece:-

"Local companies are facing a nail-biting month to hear whether they have won a coveted award for tourism.Three businesses from Swansea and two from Neath make up the 46 enterprises from across Wales which have been shortlisted in 10 different categories for this year's National Tourism Awards.

The winners will be revealed at a star-studded ceremony taking place at Bodelwyddan Castle, Denbighshire, on Thursday, October 4.

Assembly Tourism Minister Rhodri Glyn Thomas said: "The Welsh Assembly Government is committed to the continual improvement of quality in the industry, and these nominations for the National Tourism Awards are a clear signal of the efforts to drive standards ever higher in Wales."

Advice on Christmas Parties From ACAS

ACAS is providing advice on dealing with the Christmas period, which considers potential problems for managers and staff, aiming to minimise the risk of employment tribunal claims. ACAS's helpline receives 100's of calls every Christmas from businesses on the issue, so it has produced some frequently asked questions and answers so businesses can be prepared. For ideas for your Christmas parties look at the Call of the Wild website.

ACAS FAQs:

Q. We usually allow our social club to sell raffle tickets for prizes which are given out at the Christmas party - surely there's no problem with this?

A. Generally, no. However, some religions forbid gambling so no pressure should be exerted on staff who don't want to take part. It's also worth ensuring that the prizes on offer are not going to be unacceptable to those who do not drink alcohol or eat meat.

Q. What if an employee who has clearly drunk too much at the office Christmas party is planning to drive home. It's not my responsibility, is it?

A. In fact, it is. As an employer you have a 'duty of care' toward your employees and as it's the company's party, you need to take some responsibility. Think about travel arrangements and maybe end the party before public transport stops running. Or provide the phone numbers for local registered cab companies and encourage employees to use them. Hiring minibuses to take staff home is another option which would probably be greatly appreciated.

Q. We want to make sure that there isn't a repeat of last year when people failed to turn up for work the day after the party?

A. Make sure you provide plenty of non-alcoholic drinks and food. Before the party ensure that all staff realise that disciplinary action could be taken if they fail to turn up for work and there is reason to believe it is due to over-indulgence.

Call of the Wild - Natural winners

The success of the Company was picked up by our local regional newspaper last week. If would like to read the article then click here. here's an extract:-

What have the Ministry of Defence, Panasonic, England Rugby and the Llanelli Scarlets got in common?They have all trained at a Seven Sisters company offering outdoor and classroom-based personal and social development programmes.

Call of the Wild, set up by three old school friends from Neath, is contributing around £1 million to the local economy.

It is run by managing director Geraint Lewis, aged 40, a former European commercial manager at Sumitomo Electric Industries, director Mark Soanes, also aged 40, a former associate partner with property firm Knight Frank, and sales director Kevin Gould, who has worked for blue-chip companies including Glaxo Wellcome Pharmaceuticals and AstraZeneca.

Best Company in Wales For Team Building

Call of the Wild are delighted to announce that we have been shortlisted by Visit Wales in the National Tourism and Events Awards (formerly Wales Tourist Board) as one of the best companies in Wales providing team building events. the final awards ceremony is being held at the end of October 2007