RECRUITMENT organisations that remain driven to help organisations find and develop the best people will be those continuing to prosper, according to boutique consultancy Hines Management Consultants (HMC) managing director Nick Hines.

Mr Hines said executive recruitment was still undergoing a period of reorganisation, much of it brought about by technological development, but for HMC the tried and tested focus remained: talking to people and understanding their needs and goals. 

The Brisbane-based executive recruitment consultancy prides itself on sticking to the successful, personable formula pioneered by founder Geoff Hines 32 years ago.

The passing of Geoff in November 2014 meant his son Nick Hines has stepped up to the HMC managing director role, having previously been a director.

Nick Hines said the well-established, well-respected network cultivated by his father Geoff, over decades of hard work, is the key to the company’s longevity and the competitive advantage it has over its newer competitors.

“Every assignment is unique but our network base means we already have a head start on things like reference checks, making it easier to identify the right person for the role available,” Mr Hines said.

“The pressures are different when recruiting for high-level roles – you really only have one chance to get it right.

“If there is someone at an executive level who isn’t right for the job, that’s a huge cost to the culture and productivity of the company.”

Mr Hines said the boutique size and focus of HMC was also a contributor to the company’s longevity.

“A lot of consultancies come and go,” he said.

“But I think being boutique and generalist are very important in this instance as well, because the bigger or more specialised you are, the less effective you become.

“This is because many potential candidates are off-limits as they are working for your clients.”

Mr Hines said while he had seen the landscape of the recruitment industry shift over the years — particularly in the use of technology — ultimately, there was nothing more effective than picking up the phone and speaking to people.

HMC’s network of contacts is one element of its business that helps make this process easier.

“Other recruiters and head-hunters become candidate driven, and their focus is to help people find new jobs from a database of resumes,” Mr Hines said.

“In some cases that works fine, but for more critical roles, we firmly believe the best candidates are not looking for a job.”

www.hmcgroup.net.au

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IT HAS been called the ‘Rhodes Scholarship’ for everyday Australians and the Churchill Fellowships have a fine record of drawing out the country’s most innovative and progressive thinkers who want to enhance their societies.

More than 100 Fellowships are awarded each year valued at more than $20,000 each, for awardees to pursue an area of interest that will ultimately benefit Australia. It is a program that has endured and succeeded largely because of its own innovative nature – the Churchill Fellowships came out of a national doorknock appeal, five decades ago, that aimed to secure a foundation for the annual Australian program inspired by Sir Winston Churchill and endorsed by him before his death in 1965. 

“From scientists to artists, jackaroos to journalists, or any inspired Australian, a Churchill Fellowship is the research opportunity of a lifetime, a chance to truly advance the fabric of Australian society,” Winston Churchill Memorial Trust CEO, Paul Tys said.

Applications are now open for the 2015 Churchill Fellowships, which provide an opportunity for Australians with a passion to travel the world in search of new ideas, excellence and innovation.

“A Churchill Fellowship is a remarkable opportunity to research a topic or an issue that you are passionate about. They are recommended for anyone who feels they have exhausted opportunities within Australia and would like to see what overseas has to offer,” said Mr Tys.

“A Churchill Fellowship provides you with an opportunity to investigate the best ideas in the world, inspire people, and give back to Australia.

“If you’ve ever dreamed of travelling abroad to study ways of improving practices in your chosen field, a Churchill Fellowship provides the means and support to make this a reality.”

Mr Tys said the high international regard for Churchill Fellowships provide a pathway for Fellows to access expertise from around the world to expand their knowledge and experience.

It was almost five decades ago, just four weeks after the death of Sir Winston Churchill on February 28, 1965, that the Churchill Memorial Sunday doorknock appeal was held across Australia.

The doorknock was well promoted as raising funds for an unusual type of memorial to Sir Winston – something like Rhodes Scholarships, but more egalitarian, and available to all people and on a much wider basis. The concept, endorsed by Churchill before he died, was fellowships, bearing his name, for ordinary people – providing a unique opportunity to travel, learn, and bring knowledge back to their country.

Such was the admiration and respect that Australian fighting men and women of World War Two held for Churchill, that this became the greatest one-day doorknock in Australian history. Funds collected from everyday Australians together with donations from government and Australian companies totalled £2,206,000 ($4,412,000 at the time).

“That laid the foundation for fellowships to be offered annually and worth on average $20,000 each, available to Australians who want to make a difference,” Mr Tys said.

The Winston Churchill Memorial Trust was established to administer not only the total funds raised by the 1965 Appeal, but also the Churchill Fellowship award scheme.

Since the inception of the Churchill Trust, more than 3,900 Australians have identified projects where overseas research allowed them to bring back vital networks and skills.

Applications are open for the 2015 Churchill Fellowships from until Monday February 16, 2015, for travel between September 1, 2015 and August 31, 2016.

“All Australian citizens aged over 18 can apply,” Mr Tys said. “No prescribed qualifications are required and the subject of the project is limitless – provided a benefit to Australia is evident.”

The application process involves completion of a two page application form, two references, a description of how the prospective recipient would contribute to Australia’s knowledge base, and an interview process.

 www.churchilltrust.com.au

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AUSTRALIAN businesses can now apply for support to boost workforce skills – with business leaders able to shape that training – under the Federal Government’s new $476 million Industry Skills Fund.

The fund will provide up to 200,000 training places and skills advice for businesses over the next four years, with businesses contributing between 25 and 75 percent of the training costs, according to Assistant Minister for Education and Training, Simon Birmingham. 

“This is a new way of providing support to businesses that need to upskill or retrain their employees to enable their business to grow, diversify, adopt new technologies, or take advantage of new market opportunities,” said Senator Birmingham.

“For the first time, employers will be supported to decide what training is needed in their business, and which training provider they want to work with, to boost their business productivity and competitiveness.”

Priority will be given to small and medium-sized businesses, including micro businesses, as well as to businesses looking to grow in the sectors in which Australia enjoys a competitive advantage, Sen. Birmingham said. The Federal Government saw those focus areas as advanced manufacturing, food and agribusiness, medical technology, mining equipment, and oil, gas and energy resources.

“The Industry Skills Fund is a key part of the Abbott Government’s ambitious program of vocational education and training (VET) reform to lift the quality of both training providers and their courses, enhancing the contribution VET makes to the employment prospects of students and the competitiveness of Australia’s economy,” Sen. Birmingham said.

Businesses wanting support to train workers will have to make a contribution of between 25 and 75 percent to the cost of training. The co-contribution rate depends on the number of employees, with smaller businesses receiving higher levels of support.

Applications are accepted on an ongoing basis, throughout the year.

www.business.gov.au

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EMPLOYMENT Innovations has launched Employment Hero – where employers can list jobs for free – calling it an ‘online ecosystem’ that also helps business leaders to navigate Australia’s complex regulatory environment.

“Employment Hero is much more than a job board,” Employment Innovations chief executive officer Ben Thompson said.

“It’s an engagement platform to attract and retain talent and to provide employers with a simple, effective way to comply with regulations and differentiate themselves as a best-of-breed business.” 

Employment Hero will help to break down barriers to employment, assisting the side of the market that actually creates jobs, Mr Thompson said, as well as employees.

“The Employment Hero online ecosystem enables employers to list job opportunities free of charge and subsequently manage all aspects of employment within a business,” he said.

“Employment Hero represents a disruption to the job market and we firmly believe that the traditional model of charging companies to place job ads is antiquated.

“We appreciate that businesses are looking for support to provide great jobs, while employees are seeking peace of mind.”

Mr Thompson said Australian businesses must comply with a complicated regulatory landscape – including legal documents that detail wages, loadings, allowances, penalties and other conditions that must be paid to employees. Compliance is critical, but most small business owners don’t have the expertise to correctly interpret, monitor and apply awards.

He said Employment Hero was designed as an accessible, cloud-based award compliance platform “to help employers and employees alike find their way through the complex world of awards, to remain both compliant and competitive”.

The Employment Hero platform has already proven popular across the retail and hospitality industries,” he said.

“These sectors are where Australians learn to work and Employment Hero helps businesses become compliant and gives employers – and prospective employees – workplace confidence.”

The employment platform is integrated and cloud-based, helping businesses manage the entire employee life cycle from hire to retire, including human resources (HR) services, live HR support and outsourced payroll services with rostering and award interpretation.

Employment Innovations is hardly new to the employment management scene – having succeeded in helping Australian employers to navigate the complexities of the employment landscape for more than two decades – but it has lately transitioned its services effectively to digital delivery platforms.

Mr Thompson said the Sydney-based company has deep expertise in connecting and supporting job seekers looking for the best places to work offering rewards, recognition and great culture. It also assists employers seeking to build the best workplaces by offering a deeper level of engagement, compliance and streamlined processes.

“Employment Innovations leverages technology to provide the best fit for employers and job seekers to connect,” Mr Thompson said.

“The company’s approach is predicated on a pivot within the industry that has enabled it to transition from providing professional services towards software and cloud-based products that solve real business and employee issues.

“Employment Innovations provides businesses with the tools to treat the workplace as a strategic asset and deliver an unparalleled experience to employees to help attract and retain the best talent.”

www.employmenthero.com

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