It's CHRISTMAS!!!!

The first of the Christmas lunches took place today and hopefully put a few smiles on a few faces and some good tucker in some famished bellies! Thank you to all the fabulous gentleman and ladies that have worked their asses off this year in the name of Key Skills Recruitment, we salute you! .......Check out the pictures....

The Toy run

What an awesome day!! The Harley Owners Club sure can organise a good gig. The weather held out and apart from being a little blustery things went swimmingly. We must mention DJ in particular and we hope that now that it is all over he can go back to having 8 hours sleep per night!

It was so funny seeing the juxtaposition of big burly bikers with cuddly stuffed toys strapped to their bikes!

We hope that all the efforts made by this very generous people helps spread a little more Xmas joy across the Wellington region...well done guys! ......and thanks for all the Key Skills plugs! x

Toy Run countdown

2.5 days to go until the Toy Run, thanks to DJ from the Harley Owners Group for wearing our VERY bright T-shirt today on the "Good Morning" show, TV1. All bikes welcome $10 entry fee, all proceeds go to the Salvation Army, see you at Mana, 6th December at 9am!

Toy Run posters

Don't forget to print a Toy Run poster and put it up at work, the more the merrier!! Ailsa has hard copies that can be distributed upon request. For more information on the event click here

We have arrived on You tube!

Click here to meet the founders of Key Skills, listen to what their Clients and Candidates have to say about them!

Wellington's 4th annual Christmas Toy run

Key Skills Recruitment are sponsoring Wellington’s 4^th annual Toy Run

This involves a motorbike ride from Mana to Queens Wharf on Sunday 6^th December. Registrations from 9am, $10 fee.

Toy collections are located at all branches of the Warehouse to be distributed by the Salvation Army to less fortunate children in the Wellington area, (look out for the Harley Owners Group logo...HOG).

How you can help.....

1. Join us on the motorbike ride (all bikes welcome).

2. Donate toys into the specially marked bins in the Warehouse.

3. Put the attached poster up in your smoko area to spread the word.

p.s. look out for the banner at the bottom of the Ngauranga gorge as a gentle reminder ;-)

Many thanks in advance for your support.

The Key Skills team

The debrief

What a night!!! Tradie for a Lady was a grand success! Lots of silly games thanks to the hosts - the morning crew from More FM, you boys are not shy eh?!! There seemed to be some love matches going on.... but generally it was a fun night and a chance to unwind after a hard weeks temping for some of our boys.

Final countdown

ONLY 4 DAYS to go!!

More FM's Tradie for a Lady 09 - 28th August at the Sportscafe, Courtenay Place, Wellington.

60 single Tradesmen, 60 single Ladies.......

Some of our Key Skills guys have been interviewed by the morning crew from More FM with hilarious results, listen in to hear the very regular repeats!

The ladies are queuing up to be a part of this so make sure you dont miss out!

...and here's the proof

Family and job satisfaction makes people happy

and......it's not all about how much you earn!

Click here

Trady for a Lady - sponsored by Key Skills Recruitment

We know how hard our guys work, and it’s important for them to have a work/life balance, so if any are finding it difficult to meet the lady of their dreams we are keen to help by promoting Trady for a lady!! See below for details of More FM’s latest Wellington event!

More FM are running a fun night of matchmaking between it’s audience of single females and the new “hot guys in town” Tradesmen!!

The “Tradie for a Lady” promotion has been run very successfully in the UK and Australia and managed to secure media attention from Press and TV.

Tarsh, Justin and Tim (from the More FM breakfast show) are running this promotion over a 3 week period in August, soliciting for 60 tradesmen and 60 single females to take part at The Sports Cafe on the 28^th August.

This will be a night of games, fun, food and prizes with a few drinks thrown in for good measure! Hosted by the More FM morning show’s hosts, we believe this promotion will not only be entertaining On Air but should prove to be a great night for all involved!

More FM will also follow up after the big night and interview some of the lucky contestants to see what they thought of the night!

Listeners will be able to nominate themselves or a friend via an online entry form.

In the week leading up to the event – Tarsh, Justin and Tim will phone some of the contestants and have a light-hearted chat to them about their best attributes and being single etc.

Register at http://www.morefm.co.nz/Regions/Wellington/Win/TradieforaLady/tabid/914/Default.aspx

...............and listen to the morning show throughout August on 94.7 – 100FM (boys you will need to be quick!!)

If you have any questions feel free to give us a call.

Please pass on to your friends, staff and/or colleagues – the girls and the boys!

Coming soon....!

Listen to Morefm (94.7 - 100FM ) throughout the month of August for news of an exciting Wellington event sponsored by Key Skills Recruitment.....

Light relief

This is definitely NOT the sort of behaviour we condone but we all need some light relief during a recession eh?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8rWbg4-dw1g

Key Skills around the world

To those lucky recipients of Key Skills apparel (hats, t-shirts etc) we are calling for a international photo extravaganza, have you picture taken in a foreign place (outside of NZ) wearing your Key Skills gear to be featured in the Christmas calendar.

Getting social

Key Skills are joining the social revolution by creating a page on Facebook. We encourage both temps, past candidates and employers to register as a "fan" for regular updates. Search for Key Skills Recruitment and you are bound to find us.

We are also available to talk to via Skype "key.skills"

Check out Ailsa's business credentials at http://www.linkedin.com/in/ailsamcgavin

Key Skills wins!

It may not be the grammys but we were very grateful to Natalie from More FM when she arrived this morning at our office in Lower Hutt with scones the size of frizbees and a tub of very creamy Mainland Butter soft. With that and the movie tickets Beccy won last week from a business card draw we reckon we should buy some extra lotto tickets!

http://www.morefm.co.nz/

http://www.mainlandbuttersoft.co.nz/about.html

Trademe agrees

Demand for flexible workers up

The number of permanent job vacancies has gone backwards at a rate of knots over the past year. In contrast, demand for part-time & contract workers has remained relatively robust, representing 18% and 19% of all advertised jobs on Trade Me Jobs respectively. With an uncertain outlook, it makes sense for employers to opt for a more flexible workforce. Ref. Trademe Jobs May Update newsletter, Fri 15/05/2009.

CV gold

Times are a changing!! We are being asked more and more to be given full histories of everyone we have registered with us by our employers and potential employers.

This means full, accurate CVs, skills summaries and references.

We realise that many Candidates have seen CVs as unnecessary as historically work comes through referrals and word of mouth but as I said at the beginning... times are a changing!

We can supply a blank CV format for anyone that has never made one of these up, if you don’t already have one this could be a good guideline. As the competition for available positions becomes tougher these will become more and more important to get your foot in the door, I can’t stress enough that time taken to do them thoroughly now will be well spent.

Applying for jobs

This is a contentious issue when unemployment is high but one we at Key Skills Recruitment have been analysing and debating about regularly over the past 3 months.

Firstly it should be noted that the number of people applying for jobs we advertise has risen sharply. Our vision is that everyone applying to our jobs should receive an answer, we hear all too often that recruitment agencies often fall down in this area.........but......... one Construction position recently advertised produced over 924 applications! There is a huge amount of working in replying to all of these before interviews are even arranged and references taken.

We will NOT fall into the same bad habits as our competitors however we make an appeal to everyone applying for positions to ensure their application is as accurate a match to the job outlined as possible. If you would like to know more about the job before sending your CV then call the consultant responsible, they will be friendly and as open as possible about the position.

Employers are being more discerning than ever about who they see for interview or accept for a temporary position. They are demanding that any CVs presented to them are a very accurate match to the skills profile they outline. They are much less likely to accept someone that for example is looking for a career change or a new start.

Please do not see this as discouraging, there is a job out there for everyone!

On the job tips

In todays market its not just getting in the door you have to worry about it's keeping your feet firmly under your employer's table, here are a few tips on how to put your best foot forward in a temporary position.

• Always be on time, (by on time we mean 5 minutes early!)
• Ensure you are always busy, if your current task is completed ask for more, if that is not possible pick up a broom, do the dishes etc.
• If you are sick or late tell the agency AND the employer in plenty of time and keep them regularly updated on your progress.
• Never take longer than the time you are allocated for your breaks
• Keep any equipment/workspace you use in tip top condition
• Always ensure your timesheets are accurate, if you are 5 minutes late in the morning take 5 minutes off your total time for that day.
• If you have ANY concerns about your pay contact the agency immediately, the employer is unlikely to be able to help.
• Permanent position opportunities are likely to be an option even when you are working through an agency, talk to your consultant for more details.
• Keep smiling and be positive!

Temporary Division

The temporary division of Key Skills Recruitment was launched officially in September 2008.

The general slowdown in the permanent recruitment market necessitated a move to supplying temporary staff. Employers demanded this as an answer to increasing worry over future workloads.

Excellent rates and service are offered to our employers, contact us for all the details.

Temporary staff have flexibility and variety, the best temps have the option of continuity of employment which is a rare commodity at the moment.

First quarter 2009!

January saw us finalising and promoting our new temporary division
February saw us rapidly expanding this offering, we were on to a winner!
In March we moved into larger more comfortable offices on High Street in Lower Hutt and introduced Grant Foggo to the team.
In April temporary numbers doubled again!

2008

2008 was a bit of a blur for Ailsa and Beccy at Key Skills because of the following:

• General slowdown in the recruitment market
• Ailsa disappeared to the UK for a month to attend a family wedding
• We upgraded our premises
• We expanded the services our business offered

It was a fabulous time for thinking, re-shuffling, expanding the realms of possibility and creating a plan of attack for what was going to prove to be a challenging business environment.