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LUKA BLOG.

Some Key Questions Founders Should Ask a Recruiter Before Engaging With Them

26/1/2023

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Recruitment agencies can be a valuable resource for job seekers and employers alike, but not all agencies are created equal. Before engaging with a recruitment agency, it is important to understand the different types of recruiters and what they can offer you.

Methodology: First, there are tactical recruiters and strategic recruiters. Tactical recruiters focus on filling specific job openings as quickly as possible, while strategic recruiters take a more long-term approach, working with clients to identify and address their overall talent needs.

Integrity: Learn the distinction between ethical and unethical recruiters. Ethical recruiters will always act in the best interests of both the job seeker and the employer, while unethical recruiters may prioritise their own financial gain over the needs of others. A recruiter with integrity will be honest and transparent in their dealings, while an unethical recruiter may be more likely to cut corners or bend the truth.

Commitment: Tenacity is another key trait to look for in a recruiter. A tenacious recruiter will work tirelessly to find the right candidate for a job, while a less committed recruiter may give up too easily.

Track Record: A high fill rate is also an important consideration. A recruiter with a high fill rate is likely to have a good track record of successfully placing candidates in jobs, while an opportunist recruiter may be more focused on making a quick profit.

Motivation: Another consideration is whether the agency is service delivery or sales focussed. Service delivery focussed agencies will work to deliver the best service possible, while sales focussed agencies will be more focused on making a sale.

Philosophy: Are you about to engage a consultant and a job filler? A consultant will work with clients to understand their unique needs and develop a tailored solution, while a job filler will simply try to fill any job that comes their way. They tend to take on every job and then hope to fill a small percentage of them through luck.

Specialisation: Finally, it's important to consider whether a recruiter is a niche or generalist. A niche recruiter will have specialised knowledge and experience in a particular field, while a generalist will have a broader range of experience across different industries and job types.

When engaging with a recruitment agency, it is important to ask the right questions to ensure that they are the right fit for your needs. Some key questions to ask include:

  • What is your recruitment philosophy?
  • What type of clients do you typically work with?
  • What is your process for finding and vetting candidates?
  • What is your track record of successfully placing candidates in jobs?
  • Can you provide references or testimonials from past clients?
  • What is your policy on candidate and client confidentiality?

By understanding the different types of recruiters and asking the right questions, you can increase your chances of finding an agency that is the right fit for your needs. 
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The Art of Bridge Burning - Why Accepting a Counter Offer is a bad idea

24/1/2023

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You've decided on a career move, and made it all the way to a job offer. You're excited about the new opportunity, but when you go to resign, your manager begs you to stay, offering a sweetener to encourage you to do so.

Accepting a counter offer from your current employer after you've already accepted a job offer from another company may seem like the best of both worlds, but in reality, it's a decision that can lead to many negative consequences. Here are a few reasons why you should think twice before accepting a counter offer:
  • Lack of Trust: By accepting a counter offer, you're essentially telling your current employer that you were looking to leave the company. This can lead to a lack of trust between you and your employer, and could affect your future opportunities within the company.
  • Short Term Fix: Many counter offers are made in an effort to keep an employee from leaving, but they often don't address the underlying issues that led to the employee's decision to look for a new job in the first place. As a result, many employees who accept counter offers end up leaving within a year anyway - often to a less attractive role than the one they turned down.
  • Damaged Relationships: When you accept a counter offer, you're not just affecting your relationship with your current employer, you're also damaging your relationship with the company you were about to join. They may be less likely to consider you for future job opportunities.
  • Limited Career Growth: If your current employer only makes a counter offer to keep you from leaving, they may not be committed to investing in your career growth and development.
  • Financial Gain: Counter offers are often accompanied by a salary increase, but it is important to consider that long term, you may be losing out on more than just money by accepting a counter offer.

Accepting a counter offer can have negative consequences that far outweigh any short-term gains. If you're truly unhappy in your current job, it's best to take the leap and explore new opportunities.

​If you're unsure about your decision, it's important to weigh the pros and cons and consider the potential long-term effects on your career and your relationships.
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Eight Tips on improving your LinkedIn profile for job seeking

19/1/2023

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With over 870 million users worldwide, LinkedIn is hard to ignore, yet job seekers neglect their profiles. If you are considering a career move, it is essential to ensure your LinkedIn profile is as strong as possible.
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Recently we ran an informal survey on LinkedIn to find out what hiring managers rely on most when deciding which candidates to shortlist.
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The results are illuminating. While resumes still carry more weight, nearly 30% of respondents say they would rather look at your LinkedIn profile first. This number was even higher for professional recruiters and talent acquisition professionals while hiring managers still favour the resume.

Right or wrong, it is hard to ignore the fact that a solid LinkedIn profile is an important part of your application toolkit when it comes to job hunting.

With that in mind, here are eight tips to help you improve your LinkedIn profile:

  1. Make sure your profile photo represents you in the best light. You can use a website like www.photofeeler.com to get objective crowd-sourced feedback on different headshots.
  2. Keep your LinkedIn profile up-to-date by regularly adding new information and experiences. Set a reminder to update your profile every few months.
  3. Use keywords in your profile that align with the job you are looking for. This will make your profile more searchable by recruiters and potential employers.
  4. Make sure you use the 'About' section to showcase your personality, objectives and values.
  5. Include education and certifications: List your education and any certifications you have earned. This can help to boost your credibility and show that you are well-educated and qualified.
  6. Add skills: Include a list of skills that are relevant to your industry. This will make your profile more searchable and help to showcase your strengths.
  7. Get endorsements and recommendations: Get endorsements and recommendations from colleagues, supervisors, and other professionals in your industry. This will help to boost your credibility and showcase your skills and experience.
  8. Participate in groups and discussions: Join groups and participate in discussions that are relevant to your industry. This will help to increase your visibility and build your professional network.

Remember, the more effort you put into your profile, the better your chances of being contacted for new career opportunities.
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Entrepreneur, Know Thyself - Personal Attributes That Will Always Be Relevant In Start-Up

11/1/2023

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If you have aspirations to become a successful entrepreneur, or to work for a start-up, some personal qualities are non-negotiable. If you read this list and think to yourself, 'perhaps that is not me,' you really need to have a long hard think about whether this is going to be the right career choice for you.

Equally, if are a candidate applying to work in a start-up environment, then you should articulate these qualities in your professional profile and can back them up with examples from your life experiences. Your future employer will want to know that you have what it takes.

  1. Flexibility and Adaptability: Start-ups are often subject to high uncertainty and change, so adapting quickly to new circumstances and situations is crucial.
  2. Passion and Drive: Starting a new business requires a lot of hard work and determination, so being passionate about the work and having a solid drive to succeed is essential.
  3. Creativity and Innovation: Start-ups often need to come up with new and unique solutions to problems, so being able to think creatively and outside the box is essential
  4. Risk Tolerance: Start-up involves a certain degree of risk, so being comfortable with taking risks and not fearing failure is essential
  5. Strong Communication and Teamwork: Start-ups often require individuals to work closely with others to achieve common goals, so communicating effectively and working well in a team is crucial.
  6. Resilience: Starting a new business can be a rollercoaster of highs and lows, so having the ability to bounce back from setbacks is important to maintain motivation and drive.
  7. Self-Motivation and Initiative: Start-up environments may be less structured and more fast-paced. You will need to be able to manage your own time and initiative.
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Recruitment is a seasonal Sport - don't waste January

9/1/2023

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​The old year is done and the new one just begun. You're relaxed and focussed after the holidays and raring to go with your strategic plan for the year. But, day one back at your desk and... so many priorities! Here's why recruitment should be at the top of the list.

Whatever plans you have to grow your team there is really no time to waste. Do the math - on average it takes about 4 to 8 weeks to hire, so if you start today (let's assume it's mid-January) then you are looking at late February to mid-March before anyone signs on - at best.

Then there's the notice period - call it a month by the time your new hire has decided to take a short break between jobs. Optimistically, you are looking at an April start and, chances are, it will be after Easter. That's a quarter of the way through the year already!

Secondly - think about the candidate supply. January is a window of opportunity to pick up candidates that may not be nearly as receptive later in the year. Put yourself in their shoes. Those that love their job aren't looking. But if they're not so sure and they didn't quit before Christmas, then there is nothing more depressing than coming back to your desk after the holidays.

The reality is that many have either resolved to look for new work in the new year or become open to the idea as soon as they come back to work. By February, they are often too busy to think about it or back into the swing of things. Worse still, a competitor hired them out from under you while you were working out  your priorities.

Don't miss the January window to hire good people. It won't come around again for another year.
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A Start-up Founders Guide to working with Recruiters

28/12/2022

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​WHAT TO LOOK OUT FOR ... AND SOME SMART QUESTIONS TO ASK 

The world is full of recruiters, but if you're a company founder, you've probably noticed that they could do better at serving the needs of innovators and start-ups.

In truth, most serve corporate and multinational clients' needs, and their business offering is structured to reflect that. As a founder, this can be frustrating, so here is some context to help you understand how to choose and interact with agencies and some tips in the form of questions to ask a recruiter before engaging with them.

STRUCTURE: A typical recruitment firm has multiple offices and many recruiters - mostly junior - often in their first year in the industry. They hire for sales skills and attributes (not service delivery), which reflects their business development and remuneration model. They have a high turnover of staff.

HOW THEY SEE YOU: Start-ups are seen by some recruiters as low-value, price-sensitive and high-maintenance clients, compared to corporates with high volume and predictable recruitment needs. You will be low on their priority list.

HOW THEY ARE INCENTIVISED: Agency recruiters have high billing targets and are expected to pick up many jobs, hoping to fill enough (30-40%) to meet their targets. They compete directly with other agencies on the same roles, so candidates may be contacted by several agencies for the same position, leading to ugly disputes over candidate ownership.

NECESSARY EVIL OR VALUED PARTNER?: Recruiters are often opportunistic - an approach that can work for corporates, who favour their in-house recruitment teams and see agencies as a backstop when all else fails. However, as a start-up with limited resources, you need a much higher fill rate from your recruiter.

ADVERTISING OR SEARCH?: Because of their high volume and low percentage fill approach, agency recruiters tend to rely on advertising more than search. They use 'blind' advertising (they don't mention your company by name) as a defensive move to keep competitors at bay rather than for your benefit. 

FEE STRUCTURE: Recruiters typically base their fee structure on percentages of salary packages. This model works for high-volume corporate clients where salaries are predictable. However, for a start-up, there may be a wide variance in compensation for a particular role leading to uncertainty around where the final fee may land.

QUESTIONS TO ASK YOUR RECRUITER

As a start-up founder looking for a recruiter to help you source talent there are some good questions to included on your briefing process:

Will you fix a fee? This clarifies exactly what the hire will cost you, irrespective of the package the candidate ends up taking. Also don't be afraid to ask for staggered or flexible terms if this helps you with cash flow as a small business.

What are your refund terms? Be clear to understand what you will get if the candidate is unsuitable or pulls out early. Make sure to keep track of deadlines for refunds so you don't get caught out.

What search methodology do you use?  This will help you understand to what extent the recruiter will be pursuing multiple channels to find candidates and not just posting an ad and hoping for the best. You really want to know that they are actively precision-targeting candidates  on your behalf.

What percentage of your jobs do you fill? This can give you some indication of how committed they are to filling your role proactively rather than just running a desk with lots of prospects and oping that some of them will work out.

How will you present the candidates to me? Just resume? Resume and report? Video of the candidate? Make sure you know what will help you determine if the candidate is suitable for your needs before you commit the time to interview them.

Have you worked with start-ups before? This will give you some insight into whether they understand the challenges that a start-up faces when recruiting and whether they know which candidates will thrive in a start-up environment.

Who will be working on my job? Make sure you know which team member is going what are the recruiter end. Make sure you are dealing directly with the person that you brief and not a sales person who will pass the role onto someone that does not understand your needs.

How will you sell my business to candidates? You want to know that the recruiter will positively reflect on your business and employment brand. Make sure they have supporting material to share with candidates.
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Hiring Board Members for Start-ups - a Guide

22/12/2022

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A curious thing about start-up board building is that it often seems to circumvent the principles of recruitment best practice. Not a great idea.
 
Board recruitment is a specialised discipline, but it is a recruitment process none-the-less and should have all the right checks and balances, particularly given that recruiting the right board for your start-up is so critical to success.
 
Early-stage founders may feel that they need to approach potential board members with a level of deference that can rob them of objectivity. In our experience potential board appointees are, in fact, flattered to be approached, realistic about their suitability and magnanimous when not appointed for rational reasons. After all, they are generally world-wise, successful professionals with little to prove.

​They are rarely motivated by financial gain (a red flag if they are), have a genuine desire to help start-ups by sharing their knowledge and will only take on projects that they find inspiring.
 
With that in mind here are a few pointers on to how to approach board recruitment so that you get it right first time and treat candidates with the respect that they deserve.
 
DO’s

  • Start with your needs in mind, not a person – it is easy to identify an individual that you respect and build a job description around them. Better to map out your needs first, then measure candidates against your criteria to avoid ending up with skill gaps on your board.
  • Search for candidates based on your criteria – use personal recommendations, internet searches and even advertising if you wish, but make sure you consider candidates from varied backgrounds and sources. A strong shortlist allows you to benchmark and strengthens your negotiating position.
  • Make contact directly, with a clear proposition – make sure you share as much as you can. Board candidates are always busy and will not be responsive to an obtuse approach, nor will it reflect well on you. Be upfront about the fact that it is a competitive process. They will expect you to be looking for the right person.
  • Put them through a formal interview process – base your questions on your selection criteria and ask every candidate the same questions so that you can benchmark their responses.
  • Seek opinions from other board members, advisors, and mentors – you will need the counsel of more experienced allies, and other board members will have a strong interest in who they are to collaborate with on your board.
  • Reference and credential check – don’t miss this part just because your preferred candidate is senior. If they object that is a concern. Bear in mind that your board has legal, governance and fiduciary responsibilities for your company and you must make sure that its members are unimpeachable.
 
DON’TS

  • Purely rely on your own network – this is a like deciding to only marry someone from your own village. Your network may well have someone perfect, but it makes sense to widen your search to make sure that you find the best person for the role, and they may well not be known to you or your immediate network.
  • Appoint anyone who has not been through your credentialing process – it’s easy to let someone bypass this because they were referred from a ‘reliable’ source, but this does not exonerate you from the responsibility of ensuring that your board is beyond reproach. You would not be the first founder to find out too late that someone on your board has a dubious past.
  • Let a third party impose a board member – it’s inevitable that at some point an interested party will expect a board position, whether an investor or alliance partner. It may be hard to refuse, but you have a right to do your own due diligence on whomever they recommend. You want to feel a high level of comfort that every board member has your company’s (and your) best interests at heart.
  • Appoint someone who is not approved by existing board members – not to say that you can’t have some 'creative tension’ on your board from time to time but nothing renders a board dysfunctional quicker than antipathy between board members.

If you wish to enquire about how Luka Bio can assist you with the search and appointment of a board member or chairperson contact Dr. John Bethell here.
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We asked AI software to design our holiday card. This is what happened...

15/12/2022

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The holidays are nearly upon us and 'tis the season to kick back and have some fun. Every year we design a card to send well-wishes to everyone. This year we thought we might go with one of the major themes of the year - the rise and rise of AI.

It's everywhere. Most of the start-ups we work with seek AI or ML programming skills and popular culture has fully embraced it. Alexa and Siri seem just a little smarter and publicly available on-line AI software seems to be doing everything from writing poetry to composing music to creating visual art.

So what does an AI-designed seasons greeting card look like? Well this is where we landed...
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A bit freaky, huh? That's what it looks like, but we thought it worth explaining how we got there.

Basically we wanted to blend some of the typical themes of the holiday season with some deeptech ideas, so we signed up to DALL-E and asked for designs based on words like "DNA" and "Phage" with "Christmas Tree". Some of the various iterations were truly bizarre...
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​To mix it up, we asked for some of the designs in the style of various famous artists such as Picasso, Van Gough and David Hockney - interesting to see how DNA is interpreted through some of those filters. Oh... and we threw in the occasional reindeer for fun.
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So there you have it. Happy holidays from the team at LUKA GLOBAL! Happy to hear your comments - both on the aesthetics and also the wider implication of the infiltration of AI into our lives. It's only going to be more prevalent. 

See you next year ...
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    Author

    John Bethell is the CEO of LUKA GLOBAL and a director of Wavelength International. He has 30+ years in recruitment delivery, coaching & mentorship.

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  • Home
  • ABOUT US
    • MEET THE TEAM
    • Testimonials
    • Why Luka?
    • WORK FOR US
    • SECTORS >
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      • HEALTHTECH
      • DEEPTECH
    • Privacy Policy
  • 🔥Jobs
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    • Recruitment Services
    • MANAGED SERVICES
  • FOUNDER COACHING
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