There has been a discussion on the Linkedin AnswerHub which is clearly worthy of greater attention, concerning privacy.

I was sad to hear today about Baroness Thatcher.

The changes in people’s personal Linkedin pages have been much lauded, with accolades such as ‘clearer’, more readable, better searchable, however the change has resulted in the loss of one key fundamental area that may drive people away from Linkedin and generally reduce its efficiency as a networking and recruiting tool.

I recently wrote an article that I published on our Premier Consultant’s Blog (http://www.premcons.com/why-recruiters-get-bad-rep) which was reproduced in The Institute of Recruiter’s Discussion Group on Linkedin. This Group with almost 15,000 is widely read by recruiters as well as potential applicants. The premise of the blog was the fact that so few recruiters, either consultants or talent acquisition people bother to respond to applicants.

Two things have happened in the past couple of weeks that has made me realise why recruiters generally have a poor reputation amongst both clients and job seekers. This poor reputation is not confined to external recruiters but also internal recruiters or Talent Acquisition people. 

Linkedin is a powerful networking and social media tool which if used correctly can quickly enhance and build the reputation and profile of executives within their industry. Equally it can be ‘overused’ – too many updates i.e. ‘widgets’ posting to your profile will annoy your connections and when you do have something important to say will result in it not being paid any attention.

I was discussing with my wife (I still talk to her) last week about the general state of the market. Within our market sectors (digital, direct, CRM, analysis and insight) 2012 did start slowly but we are beginning to see a change in the mood of companies and people. With the advent of Spring, and the new financial year, there appears to be much greater enthusiasm about investing in the future. Of course some sectors are still struggling and will continue to do so for some time to come but in others, one feels, there is the beginnings of green shoots.

Cross-posted from The Green Suits:

Reproduced with kind permission of Dan Smolen, Managing Director of the Green Suits - a strategic partner of Premier Consultants

A belated Happy New Year, everyone! As you can see, we've not posted in a couple of weeks. And that is because we are quite busy. A good thing...eh? Along with some very positive signs in the 2012 executive hiring market, I am pleased to inform that a concept we first reported on nearly four years ago--the Video Interview--is at last gaining broad acceptance with hiring managers.

As another year draws to a close it is probably time to reflect back on the year and forecast what will happen in 2012.

At Premier Consultants, 2011 has been a challenging but successful year. Our new website – 1 year old in March has received many accolades, including being nominated and then reaching the finals of the MARA Awards. Alas we did not win but the recognition that our site is considered highly within our industry is praise indeed and we intend to improve on its functionality and content in 2012.  

I can receive up to several (dozen) applications in a week for a wide variety of roles, however I often reject CV’s based on the way I receive a CV or its content. Here are my Top Ten  most common mistakes people make when applying for a job.

1.      If you don’t have a work permit or right of abode for the UK you will be sent a no letter.