Nissan has had such great success with the production of its Qashqai model that it is has been able to announce the increased production at its production plant in the north of England.
The 2010 Qashqai has had such unexpected success that Nissan has been able to re-instate three shifts at their Sunderland plant creating 400 jobs and retaining 160 workers on fixed contracts.
Regeneration projects in the London borough of Newham will create more than 62,000 jobs by 2025. The council is working hard to ensure that Newham residents will benefit from the opportunities that arise.
The regeneration of Newham is creating employment opportunity and growth in construction, retail, tourism, hospitality, leisure, finance, business, health and social care.
Typical jobs will include jobs in Logistics, General construction and Project management for Plumber’s, Electricians and Civil Engineers as an example.
Researching an employer is a distinct skill many take for granted. I read an article yesterday stating “search for the company name in Google” as a top tip for interview preparation. Now I’m not suggesting you avoid Google, I just don’t believe this is valuable advice. After all, Average Joe does not land the job.
We all know applications should always be tailored for each specific company. We also know if you turn-up to interview armed with facts, able to talk fluently about the organisation you stand a far greater chance of success. Actually making this happen relies on strong research skills.
This task should be split into 2:
Firstly, define your research objectives.
A good start is to use the below template:
Describe the business activity in no more than 2 sentences
What industry do they operate in?
How many employees?
How many offices and located where?
Is the business owned by another company?
Who are the customers? (TIP – if the answer is people e.g. for Tesco, then what type of people?)
Why do the customers buy from this company?
Who is the competition?
Has the company been in the press recently and if so, why?
Are there stories about the industry or competitors in the press?
What skills does the company look for?
Secondly, spend your time online wisely. This means using reputable websites and services. From personal experience I recommend the following:
Company website: focus on the ‘about us’ page, the products/ services, read client testimonials (if they exist) and spend considerable time on the press / media page reviewing all the text since this should represent the image the company likes to portray.
NewsNow: great resource for industry news, links to trade magazines, competitor information http://www.newsnow.co.uk/h/Industry+Sectors
Hoovers: a paid for service but use the free search facility to get key information on millions of companies without having to subscribe http://www.hoovers.com/freeuk/
Trade Association Forum: link to the trade associations related to the company, learn about the industry http://www.taforum.org/searchgroup.pl?sector=1;n=500
Glassdoor: Review insider information on companies, interviews and more http://www.glassdoor.com/Reviews/index.htm
There are plenty of useful ‘premium’ sites, willing to offer free trials if you register. The most useful, insightful and valuable information is usually not freely available online. Take advantage of free trials targeted at businesses and get ahead. Search for “employer research” and you will see what I mean.
Fillcare, a French company that purchased a former L’Oreal factory close to Llantrisant in Mid Glamorgan has announced that it will create almost 200 new jobs in the area.
Fillcare now runs the plant in Talbot Green, Rhondda Cynon Taf and will invest £7 million in the development of the site.
John Lewis is to open another store exclusively selling homewares. It will create 220 jobs in south London. The firm’s second so-called “at home” store will open in Croydon during the autumn of 2010. John Lewis are thought to have identified some 50 locations where they will further the role out of the At Home format stores bringing more job opportunity to the regions.
