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Despite the recent tumble in Midlands-based marketing jobs, one local recruiter has reason to remain positive

 

So what makes CV Bay stand out from the crowd?

 

We asked CV Bay managing director, Harry Vlahakis, for his thoughts:

 

What is CV Bay?

CV Bay is a Birmingham-based contingency Recruitment Company that has been established for 4 years.  We are made up of a team of 5 consultants of which 3 are hands-on Directors.  The 3 directors all have over 10 years experience recruiting for Midlands-based clients.  Our roots stem from an IT and sales recruitment background, but we have now added Digital, Creative, Marketing, Advertising and PR to our portfolio.

What are you are doing differently?

You may be of the opinion that all recruitment agents operate the same, but we believe that our approach is relatively unique.  Having spent time with our clients, we recognise that one of the key frustrations facing them is being inundated with CVs from candidates who don’t meet the recruitment criteria.  We can honestly say that this will not happen with us. 

Our approach is to:

• Provide clients with a dedicated Account Manager – this enables them to have a single point of contact and confidence that we understand the business and how it prefers to work, which in the long-term will significantly reduce time-wastage
• Invest time upfront – we love meeting our clients to discuss their requirements.  We believe it is important that we have a full understanding not just of the role but the personality fit of the ideal candidate; the soft skills required and the team dynamics in which they will operate.  This early investment will enable us to translate the requirement, allowing for a better selection process and so a smaller number of appropriately skilled candidates to interview
• Provide only relevant CVs – the investment of time up-front enables us to conduct a robust pre-screening process including meeting all our candidates face-to-face.  This saves time and money
• Offer technical pre-screening and testing
• Full candidate referencing 

Our significant USP is the integration of advanced video technology, which enables clients to view potential candidates BEFORE committing to a full interview.  Tailored to specific requirements, candidates can provide a video interview enabling the client to conduct an initial screening at a convenient time.  The use of this technology improves the efficiency of the candidate selection process and provides clients with an opportunity to work to a much shorter recruitment timetable.

Why did you decide to sponsor the Birmingham Link-up?

We are looking to expand our Digital, Creative, Marketing, Advertising and PR part of the business as we see the Midlands being a very exciting market place over the next few years.

What advice would you offer to jobseekers who are looking for ways to stand out from the crowd?

It is very competitive market for candidates at the moment and as always first impressions will count. Lots of candidates are rejected simply on the basis of their CV. So candidates need to make sure that their CV is as good as it can be and that is sell their skills effectively. The use of new CV tools such as video CV (so long as they are done professionally) will further advance any application. CVBAY actively promotes the use of video technology within the recruitment process and we use a company called Videocvsender.com.

What are your predictions for the Birmingham recruitment market in 2011?

Birmingham was hit very hard by the recession and as always seemed to have the least investment from Central Government.  However the West Midlands market is very resilient and has been hit hard before but always bounces back. I see this as being the case over the next couple of years. There is an increased optimism amongst businesses many of which are focussed on growth which will have a positive effect on the jobs market.

 

Edited by Simon Lewis | Only Marketing Jobs

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