2 heads are better than 1. CWC is in an exciting new partnership with Worcester College of Technology

Consultancy Helps to Improve Student’s Job Prospects

ClarkeWood Consulting has teamed up with Worcester College of Technology to help give their students even better job prospects. Our expert Consultancy agency has worked closely with the College for the last two years developing their IT curriculum by delivering CV workshops, tutorials and helping to host IT events.

James Duckhouse, Computing Lecturer at the College commented:

“Working with ClarkeWood Consulting has really helped us improve the experience our students get. They helped us deliver The Eye T Champions Project, where students from Worcester College of Technology supported visually impaired students at Sight Concern using computers. This was a fantastic opportunity for students to use their skills and put them to good use in helping others.

“They have supported us in so many other ways – from assisting us with our Geek Chic Conference aimed at encouraging more girls to study IT and consider it as a career, to setting up employability skills tutorials for students to help them improve their CVs. They have also advised us which skills employers look for, which has led us to alter our curriculum to teach new technologies that employers look for. This should make their job prospects even better when they finish the course!”

ClarkeWood Consulting is an independent specialist IT staffing business which works closely with both employees and jobs seekers to deliver quality IT placements for IT Professionals. They were also the finalist at the Worcestershire Ambassadors CSR Awards, which recognises businesses across the country that endeavor to support the local community. The support ClarkeWood has provided to the college helped them secure their finalist position.  

Victoria Taylor, our IT Recruiter and Head of CSR at ClarkeWood Consulting commented:

“We are really pleased to be working in partnership with Worcester College of Technology. Having IT at the heart of our business means that we are well informed of industry changes, skill gaps, trends and influences effecting employers therefore enabling us to advise and guide the College accurately in the hope of producing quality professionals to stay within the county for local businesses to utilise and hire.

“With projects such as Eye T Champions and Geek Chic proving such a success in 2013, we are certainly looking forward to starting 2014 with a solid relationship having been formed between the College and ourselves.

If you are interested in studying a Computing course at the college then visit their website at www.wortech.ac.uk to check out the full range of courses on offer. If you would like to find out more about ClarkeWood Consulting and the services we provide please visit: http://www.clarkewoodconsulting.com

Office room available to rent within amazing Worcester city centre building

Office room available within a Specialist IT recruitment consultancy based in the heart of Worcester.

We have ideal office space with furniture to accommodate 1 or 2 individuals looking for a professional environment to work from.

With access to a fully furnished well presented reception area with part time receptionist available to meet and greet customers/clients, and board room with enough space to accommodate 6 individuals for meetings or training.

The office is spread across one floor, with toilets and kitchen facilities. The building is glazed with large windows that open ensuring the office is open and airy as well as central heating for the winter months.

Based in the centre with access to two large NCP car parks within 2 minutes walk and the offer of discounted parking through Worcester bid, the office is located less than 2 miles from Junction 7 of the M5 making it an ideal location for clients to commute with ease.

The weekly fee of £100 per week includes 24/7 access, rent, rates, gas, electric, water, buildings insurance, maintenance, Wi-Fi broadband, furniture and nice people to share with. Incoming tenants will be expected to cover their own contents insurance, phone line install and bill costs, should you require – you could however operate from your own existing mobile phone and access the current Wi-Fi installed simply for system work.

The Office space would be ideally suited for designers, web developers, programmers, illustrators, freelancers, journalists, architects, photographers, tv/film/video producers, trainers, entrepreneurs etc.

You may be a new start up needing professional space where clients can come to meet with you and to operate from on a daily basis while you build your company or a small business with a team of two/three now looking for professional office space.

The environment is private and separate from the main recruitment company ensuring a secure professional working environment.


Email me for further details or to arrange a viewing: Victoria.Taylor@clarkewoodconsulting.com

The postcode of the office is WR1 2HB

Eye T Champions!

As an independent IT recruiter, Clarkewood Consulting are passionate about three things

Personal development

Pioneering technologies

Professional, local, relationships

Over the past 6 months we have been working with the above organisations to begin what we hope will be the start of an annually running project.

The aim of our project is to help local visually impaired people to reconnect with technology and help improve their lifestyle. The idea of the project came from working with Sight Concern and realizing the overwhelming number of users at Sight Concern’s Bradbury Centre, who have an interest in using a computer but a distinct lack of trainers who are able to help them learn.

We recruited a group of 7 volunteers who span the West Midlands. Our volunteers are aged from 18 – 60 and consist of IT students, unemployed people and people looking to build on their skills.

By December all of our volunteers began learning their way around Dolphins’ pioneering GUIDE system. Our volunteers spent two days at Dolphin Computer Access’ HQ in Worcester to master their new skills and to create their own lesson plans.

This is the first year for a local project of its kind and we are all very excited about what is still yet to come.

"66 per cent of registered blind and partially sighted people of working age are not in employment" (Douglas et al, 2006)

Our ‘Eye T Champions’ are ready to start improving quality of life for local visually impaired people; from increasing employability to being able to Skype or e mail loved ones and doing an online shop.

You can follow our volunteers on twitter @eyeTchampions and also check back on our blog to follow updates on how the project progresses, hearing from both trainer and user.

Meet The Team: Lauren Henley

Lauren Henley

Office Administrator

lauren.henley@clarkewoodconsulting.com

What is your biggest professional achievement?

Hitting the ground running with my apprenticeship!

Lauren, 20, is the Office Administrator and the newest member of the team; joining ClarkeWood in June 2012.

She joined Clarkewood Consulting as a Business Admin apprentice, of which she is half way through completing. Lauren has aspirations to learn more about Marketing and the more creative side of business. In November 2012 Lauren was voted the Worcestershire Apprentice Councilor by her training provider.

How would you describe yourself?

Part silly and part serious.

Lauren has a keen interest in fashion and studied at the School of Art & Design in Barbourne, Worcester. During her time there she gained a Diploma in Fashion as well as Art and Design. While studying she worked as a fully qualified bra fitter and is trained to fit women who have suffered with Breast Cancer.

During the weekend you will either find her digging for treasure at a flea market or socializing in the evening in one of Worcester’s bars. She also likes reading, writing and being a bit of a tourist! Her favourite place to visit is either New York or Berlin, as they are busy places with lots to see and do.

How would your colleagues describe you?

Lauren has been a really fantastic addition to ClarkeWood. 

She is a hard worker fantastic zest for social media and has become the ClarkeWood Twitter guru.  She always manages to complete even the strangest of tasks she gets given with finesse.

She is our resident chuckler who enjoys the office banter and has an infectious laugh. A bubbly personality means that Lauren is a really great character to have around the office and has been a blessing at keeping the boys in check!

By day Lauren is our Vivienne Westwood, leopard print wearing social media queen. Then by night she is a party animal always up for social events and trips to Heroes.

If Lauren is anything to go by, I would highly recommend taking on an apprentice to any companies considering it and would look to do so again in the future.

Sight Concern and Parkinson Wright Offer

Help us to support our fantastic local charity

  

ClarkeWood Consulting are currently supporting Sight Concern as part of our CSR and wanted to help spread the word on this amazing offer being run in conjunction with local Solicitors Parkinson Wright.

            Hurry and book your place to avoid missing out!

The Worcester office of Parkinson Wright is participating in a Make a Will promotion benefiting Sight Concern, Worcestershire’s charity supporting blind and partially sighted people.  Discounted wills are available for appointments during the week of Mon 11^th-Friday 15^th February 2013.

If this is of interest to your colleagues, family or friends, please do forward on the details below.

£70 for a simple single will, £100 for a double and  Sight Concern receives the whole donation (THIS IS AT A GREAT DISCOUNT, AT LEAST HALF THE  USUAL PRICE!!!)

Appointments are available at Parkinson Wright offices in Droitwich, Evesham and Worcester

If you don’t yet have a will, you can Book an Appointment Now! 

If you would like to find out more about the work of Sight Concern, please do contact Fiona on fiona@sightconcern.co.uk or visit www.sightconcern.co.uk

How Long is Too Long to Stay in Your Job?

 Recently at Clarkewood we have been thinking…..

How long is too long to stay at one company?

Working in IT recruitment, it's common to pick up on trends emerging in the job market. With the average person spending 4.4 years in a job, we always see people who have worked in their current position for much longer than the average.

Furthering your career every 4 years, especially in a fast-paced sector such as IT, is vital to maintain personal development. The more jobs you invest time in, the more opportunities you will have to expand your skills.

Are you getting opportunities, access to the resources you need and recognition in your job role?

Why stay?

There are plenty of reasons why people stay in their current position, whether they receive job satisfaction or not. I’m sure we can all relate to at least one of these reasons with regard to our own career:

• ‘I’m sure my job will get better one day’

• ‘The current job market is full of doom and gloom, I’d be unemployed for months’

• ‘I’m comfortable in my position now so I don’t need a change’

• ‘Quitting a job might look bad on my CV’

In reality these aren’t good reasons for staying in a job for years. Sitting and waiting for a job to get better or being too ‘settled’ in a job role can result in a seemly unambitious person who is set in their company’s ways; thus leaving you virtually unemployable.

Why not?

Taking the leap to change career is a big, big decision and there are plenty of questions to ask yourself.

• Am I used to my fullest potential?

• Is my voice heard, can I raise queries and know they will be taken on board?

• How many times have I been promised opportunities and how many times has it actually happened?

If the answer to these questions are ‘No’ or ‘Not really’ then perhaps a career change should be considered.

There is also the issue of misplaced loyalty. Daily we speak to candidates who are facing redundancy from a company they have been with for sometimes in excess of 15 years.

With the Information Technology sector being the fasted developing and growing in the job marketplace, there really is no excuse to stay in a job for years.

So?

To answer our initial question, at Clarkewood we agree that around 4 years is a good amount of time to stay with your job. Any longer than that and you stand at risk of being unemployable and any shorter you could be seen as an unreliable, ‘job hopper’.

Changing a job every 4 years means you will expose yourself to new technology, different skills and opportunities plus making new connections along the way.

This is, of course, unless you work for a productive, progressive company where you feel though you are being used to your full potential and you are getting the benefits that a loyal employee deserves.

How long have you been at your job?

Worcestershire Ambassadors Ball 2012!

On Saturday Evening some of the ClarkeWood Team and our Guests enjoyed an evening of glitz and glamour!

From ball gowns to Bubbly.... this event had it all!

The 'Black Tie' Worcestershire Ambassadors Ball was certainly the place to be this weekend. The annual event is a fantastic charity fundraiser and a great celebration of local business and all things Worcestershire!

This years worthy causes are WRASASC and St Pauls Hostel. WRASASC is a specialist centre which helps victims of rape and sexual abuse by offering counselling and guidence among other valuable services. St Pauls Hostel is based just outside Worcester City Centre and gives homeless people shelter, food and training to help them back into the community.

The Ambassadors Ball was held at the fab Tree Tops Pavilion which is situated inside the grounds of the West Midlands Safari Park. The evening involved great company, lovely food and provided lots of different ways to donate to charities - including a Diamond Hunt, an Auction and a rather luxurious raffle!

Spectacular entertainment was provided by mesmerising magician David Penn and the utterly excellent 'In The Groove' who got us all up dancing dodgily!

The Charity Auction offered some incredible prizes! These included holidays in some of the worlds plushest resorts and VIP boxes in Worcestershires premier sporting venues. The auction raised a MASSIVE:

£47,000!

There are plenty of Thank You's and Well Done's to be said for the evening but we'd like to start with the award winners from the evening:

Ambassador of the Year

Philip Dutton

A huge 'Congrats!' to Philip who has done an admirable job as the Chairman of the Worcestershire Ambassadors for almost two years.

Michael Brinton Pride of Worcestershire

Dale Parmenter

MD at drp Group

Local businessman Dale's outstanding, inspiring charity work, including commiting to complete 30 charity projects each year, and his efforts towards supporting sustainability has led to him being awarded with the Pride of Worcestershire award!

We would also like to say a massive 'Thank you!' to:

Tracey Hopkins

and her team for organising the event and making it a huge success!

The board of Management at the Worcestershire Ambassadors

The Staff at the West Midlands Safari Park

and finally - The Ambassadors and their guests themselves for being fantastic party people and great company!

Hope to see you all again next year!

Meet the Team: Ben Proctor

Ben Proctor

Trainee Recruitment Consultant

ben.proctor@clarkewoodconsulting.com

What is your biggest professional achievement?

My best professional achievement so far has to be the deals I’ve helped the team make, with the candidates I’ve found and qualified over the last few months. Each placement motivates you for more.

Ben, 20, is a Trainee IT Consultant who is at ClarkeWood doing an Apprenticeship in Sales. Ben has been at CWC for just over 6 months and specializes in resourcing candidates for all of the current vacancies.

What is your biggest personal achievement?

My best personal achievement has to be getting my own place in town. Becoming independent has been such a thrilling experience and I’m loving every minute of it!

Ben was originally studying Chemistry at The University of Glamorgan until he moved back to Alfrick, Worcester and decided to try something different. Ben began his apprenticeship at ClarkeWood in April this year and is really enjoying it so far! Working full time has allowed him to recently move out of Alfrick and into Worcester centre.

How would you describe yourself?

Geeky, Geeky, Sexy?

Ben is ClarkeWood's (Self professed) ladies' man and always has anecdotes which wouldn't be out of place at the Playboy Mansion! If Ben was stuck on an island with someone, he said it would have to be Mila Kunis.

But when Ben isn't entertaining the ladies he is usually playing on his Xbox. He enjoys playing Call of Duty, Battlefield and also FIFA competitively. Ben also enjoys catching up with the latest scientific discoveries by reading 'New Scientist' magazine. As well as playing football on his Xbox, he enjoys watching it too and is a keen supporter of Arsenal F.C.

How would your colleagues describe you?

Ben is one of the newest recruits and brings a little bit of 'geek' to the team! He is an optimistic and hardworking member of the team. He adds a different spin on conversations and has interesting stories to share.

Meet the Team: Lee Clarke

Lee Clarke

Managing Director

Describe yourself in a few words:

I enjoy the good things in life and I am prepared to work hard to gain them.

Lee, 40, is the Managing Director of ClarkeWood Consulting therefore he has been in the business since the very beginning. Lee specialises in Contract IT positions around the West Midlands.

What is your biggest professional achievement?

Taking the initial leap to set up my own business, in one of the worst economic climates, and giving it a real good bash

After 15 years of working in recruitment, Lee decided to make the bold move of opening his own business. Through Lee’s hard work, ClarkeWood Consulting has successfully grown and furthermore has been running for just under 3 years; an admirable accomplishment in these financial times. Working with Lee is always a pleasant and unique experience due to his friendly, sociable nature.

What is your biggest personal achievement?

My four wonderful children, all of which I adore.

When Lee isn’t working hard he is a big family man and is usually enjoying quality time with his kids. He has four lovely children aged from 2 - 12 so there is never a dull moment when they are around!

If he isn’t working hard or enjoying time with his family, he is still full of beans and loving life! He states his business icons are Richard Branson and Hugh Hefner –  successful businessmen who still know how to have a lot of fun! Lee is the Grandmaster of Dad Dancing plus is always first on the dance floor; and doesn’t take himself too seriously! Already this year, for local charities, Lee has dressed up as a woman, completed a skydive and has been locked up in Worcester’s Town Centre wearing a convict jumpsuit. In his spare time he also enjoys Taekwondo, reading and watching films.

How would your colleagues describe you?

Lee has one of the strongest work ethics I have come across in a professional, let alone in a boss.

Leading from the front Lee always ensures that he maintains his work life balance in equal measure.

With a true innate passion and ability for what he does, Lee provides the team here at ClarkeWood with motivation and aspiration all rolled into one and manages to do so whilst maintaining a friendship with each one of us creating a fantastic work environment.

Meet the Team: Victoria Taylor

ClarkeWood's 'Meet the Team' series is well underway now and here is our third installment!

Today we will be basing our blog post on Victoria!

Victoria Taylor

Victoria.Taylor@clarkewoodconsulting.com

Describe yourself in a few words:
Fiercely independent, ambitious, considerate and easy going.


Victoria, 26, has been working at ClarkeWood Consulting for just over 18 months. Victoria sources Open Source, Marketing, Business Analyst and Project Management staff mainly in Worcestershire and the West Midlands.


What is your biggest professional achievement?
Setting up ClarkeWood's CSR strategy and helping to raise thousands for local causes over the last 12 months.


As Victoria said, she is a considerate person and this certainly shows in her charity efforts! She has arranged all of our charity events and is always thinking of new, fun and creative ways to make money for local causes. In her latest project, Victoria has used an existing bond with Dolphin Computer Access and a newly formed relationship with Sight Concern to encourage volunteers to help teach visually impaired people to use a computer.

Victoria also supports a charity in Guatemala called 'Education for the Children'  (www.eftc.org.uk/)  She is 'Godparent' to two children out there called Betty and Jorge who are both seven. She recently went out to visit them both in Guatemala!



What is your biggest personal achievement?
Gaining my skippers and diving qualifications


When Victoria isn't hard at work or helping charities she enjoys diving and horse riding. (which is why she has been dubbed the 'posh' one at ClarkeWood!) Victoria also has a big interest in fine Red and White wine and food. Her favourite feasts are seafood - especially shellfish - as well as Cheese and preferred drinks are Tia Maria and Port. When eating out she enjoys the restaurants: Loves in Birmingham and The Jolly Frog in Leintwardine.


How would your colleagues describe you?

Well what can we say about the “Posh bird” in the office?

Victoria believes in the smart appearance, smart mind philosophy of working. She's a professional in dealing with people and treats everybody equal.

Victoria throws herself into everything she does with 100% vigour and as the Companies head of CSR, she is always leading from the front whether it is jumping out of aircraft or other various charity activities we do.

Victoria is a dedicated member of the team BUT she also does know how to party!

So to sum up Victoria – Work hard Play Hard.

'Train a Trainer'

‘Train a Trainer’

ClarkeWood currently have an exciting new project which is about to take off!

We have teamed up with local company ‘Dolphin Computer Access’ and charity ‘Sight Concern’ to sponsor a handful of volunteers’ through their ‘Train a Trainer’ course.

‘Train a Trainer’ is a one day course held at Dolphin’s head office in Blackpole, Worcester. The course will teach you how to use Dolphins pioneering software, GUIDE which helps visually impaired people to use a computer, and how to relay it on to other people.

You will then be expected to teach small groups of blind or visually impaired people how to use the GUIDE software.

We have had a great response to the project, but we could always do with more volunteers – the more people who go through the course, the more visually impaired people can receive help!

  So, do you want to......?

Increase skills / build CV

Gain something attractive to an employer

Have the Feel good factor

Have the opportunity to learn for free 

You can gain a qualification that is not widely available

Have an In demand qualification for the future

We are holding an evening on:

Bradbury Centre (Sight Concern)

Sansome Walk,

Worcester,

WR1 1LH

 Tuesday 4^th September at 6.00pm - 7.00pm.

If you want more information, want to register your interest or to RSVP for the event please contact:

lauren.henley@clarkewoodconsulting.com