A row with a bot!

I had an argument with Chat GPT.

Don’t judge me. I work alone; we all need an office chat occasionally.

I was working on a search and felt like I was missing something. That’s when I had the epiphany. I would brainstorm this with Chat GPT.

I gave it a detailed rundown on the job requirements, the location, market level, and asked it to come up with organisations where that talent might be working.

It thought for a moment, then churned out a list of companies.

There were around four independent luxury brands that I’d already considered. Then a long list of luxury retailers that don’t employ anyone in the job function I was searching for.

I gave the feedback to Chat GPT and it replied, “Of course you’re right, try this”, providing another list.

This time it gave me a list of international luxury brands, none of whom have the function in their London offices.

Again, I provided feedback, again I received “Of course you’re right, try this”.

I was starting to feel like there was something patronising, a little ‘gas lighty’ about “of course you’re right”. As if it was just testing me and knew all along it was dolling out duff information.

This went back and forth, the AI even removed some of its correct suggestions in its attempts. Frankly, it was a hot mess!

Increasingly frustrated, I finally suggested “I think I know more about this industry than you”.

The response?

“Of course you’re right…” (ARRGGHH!)

Every day I’m being marketed AI software to screen candidates. I see a recruitment platform that represents luxury brands, they proudly promote saving their advertisers time by screening candidates using AI. In our industry there is so much nuance, so many transferable skills, job titles that don’t always mean the same thing.  We also know that diversity of experience (both lived and professional) is essential for high performing workplaces. How can this be achieved when an algorithm is used to create a singular definition of talent?

Where is the creativity? Where is the humanity?

So, please know this, when a job seeker sends their details to LIFE you are not screened by AI, your worth is not decided by an algorithm, you do not receive an “automated response”. Every email and CV are looked at by a person. At LIFE, AI is for back-office functions, not for people.

In case you were wondering, I found a great person for that job. I took the dog for a walk. Stepping away from my desk gave me the headspace to have a much better epiphany than fighting with a bot! It turns out decades of knowledge and experience does have value.

Faithful or Traitor? Lessons in hiring from a TV show.

The TV show “Traitors” has just returned for a new season, are you watching? I’m not usually a fan of reality shows but this one had me hooked from the start. It gives a great insight into human behaviour and motivation.

If you haven’t seen it, the premise is that a group of strangers meet, and bond, at a Scottish castle. They work together on tasks to earn cash. However, a few of the participants have, secretly, been made “Traitors”. They meet each night to “murder” a “Faithful” in a bid to claim the prize pot for themselves. The “Faithful” must work out which of these new friends is actually out to kill them!

So, what has this got to do with fashion recruitment? At the start of the show the host asks the contestants about their motivations, why they’re there, what is important to them in life, how it would impact them to walk away with the prize. It got me thinking how a business is about people working together as a team, yet everyone has their own motivations, their own needs that have to be met to keep them a “Faithful”.  

In the show, it’s amazing how quickly a faithful can be converted to a traitor if they feel they are vulnerable. This is exactly the same at work, if an employee feels that their job doesn’t meet their needs on ethics, quality of life, or sense of security then they’ll be off. In a study conducted by The Energy Project and The Harvard Review, only 29% of respondents felt a sense of safety and trust at work. Let that sink in for a minute – 71% of respondents did NOT feel a sense of safety and trust at work!

Almost always when an organisation first comes to me to recruit, they give me a job specification with a list of tasks. I’m usually met with a look of utter surprise when I ask, “why would anyone want to leave their current job and come do this one?” They haven’t thought about that at all. This understanding is absolutely key to making a successful hire. This is why, at LIFE, we don’t rely on job adverts and a database of people just looking for a job. This is why we’re VERY choosy about which brands we represent. Our methodology is all about approaching passive candidates and finding out their motivations, what makes them a “Faithful”.  I often wonder how much time companies waste by interviewing people who appear to meet the company’s needs without having first assessed if the business will meet the candidate’s needs. Without this understanding the hire is on shaky ground right from the start. If you’re responsible for any sort of hiring in your business, how do you assess if you can give the person you’re interviewing what they need? Most interviewers are simply trying to work out if the interviewee meets their tick list. We’re always happy to have a chat about how you can recruit for the first year of employment, not just the start date.

LIFE - A Recruitment & Retention Consultancy for Fashion Brands.

Are you harming your hiring with a hashtag?

Are you harming your hiring with a hashtag?

During the dark days of the pandemic, two hashtags gained prominence on LinkedIn - #opentowork and #hiring. The sight of #hiring became a beacon of hope that all was not lost.

However, is it detrimental to your hiring process today?

In today’s competitive talent market it’s essential to treat your Employer Brand with as much love as your Consumer Brand.

An appealing talent acquisition strategy is the first step in attracting the very best talent to your organisation. Yet, almost daily, I see LinkedIn posts like this:

“I’m #hiring a marketing manager, know anyone interested?”

Invariably there is a link to a job specification that’s drier than a 3-month-old cracker.

Can you imagine the consumer marketing of a luxury brand being presented in the same way? It might look like this:

“I’m #selling a dress. Know anyone looking for one?” – this links to the garment composition, 52% silk, 48% viscose.

Of course, this would be utterly ridiculous; yet demonstrates how poorly the job and the employer brand is being marketed in the first post. It unwittingly communicates a need, perhaps a level of desperation. Not attractive!

Great talent acquisition is marketing. It is about enticing talent to want to work for your business; in the same way great product marketing creates desirability.

When it comes to recruiting, it is essential to tell a story. Communicate why someone would want to work with you, what they will gain from the position (clue: this has nothing to do with your consumer brand or your needs).

At LIFE we can consult with brands to help them define their employer brand or how to communicate what they already have, even if we’re not directly managing the hiring process. We are always happy to collaborate with in-house recruitment teams or directly with hiring managers.

LIFE - A Recruitment & Retention Consultancy for Fashion Brands.

LIFE turns 17!

Today marks 17 years since I excitedly threw open the metaphorical doors of LIFE; utilising the knowledge of many years in luxury search and selection to go it alone.

Reflecting on these years I’m reminded of a song by the great Stephen Sondheim:

“Good times and bum times, I've seen them all
And, my dear, I'm still here.
Plush velvet sometimes.
Sometimes, just pretzels and beer, but I'm here”

There’s no denying that the pandemic certainly gave more “pretzels and beer” than “plush velvet”. However, despite the turbulence I’m relieved to say we’re very much back on an upward trajectory.

LIFE was named in recognition of how much our work defines and influences every aspect of our lives. Right from the start there has been one integral question that runs through every search conducted; “How will this match really benefit the candidate and add value to the client’s business?” Otherwise, really, what’s the point? I sincerely believe this has played a huge part in our longevity.

I’d like to say a huge thank you to all of LIFE’s wonderful clients, those who have trusted us to help them progress their career, and all who have supported us over the years.

Ultimately, it’s because of you that I’m still here.

Thank you.

Fashion's "Employer Brand" Conundrum

What is an Employer Brand and does a fashion business really need one? Frankly, if you are an employer, you have one whether you want it or not.

The CIPD describes an Employer Brand as “the way in which organisations differentiate themselves in the labour market, enabling them to recruit, retain and engage the right people.” A strong employer brand helps businesses compete for the best talent, hold onto them, and establish credibility.

In the fashion space I see so many organisations create amazing consumer brands yet present their “Employer Brand” disastrously. Equally, I see candidates express enthusiasm for businesses based purely on their product without exploring whether the employer brand meets their needs and core beliefs. This is particularly visible in the luxury sector. During the recruitment process, if the candidate fails to look beyond the organisation’s consumer brand, and the employer fails to interview beyond technical skills, we have a high risk of the engagement failing.

The latest Manpower employer survey for Q3 2022 showed that global talent shortages have reached a 16 year high, with 78% of employers having difficulty filling jobs due to a lack of skilled talent. With these alarming statistics it is more important than ever for businesses to really understand what their Employer Brand stands for and how it can be improved to allow the organisation to recruit and, importantly, retain the best talent.  This can only be done by truly engaging current employees to unlock perceptions of the business and understand what keeps the best performers in place. It is not something that is simply decided by the C-suite and HR. While benefits play a part they are only a tiny part, your employer brand will not be defined by break-out areas and fruit bowls. Communicating culture honestly from the start of the recruitment process is essential, even if it means putting off candidates that appear technically amazing. If they’re not aligned with your culture they’re not going to stay, no matter how good they are and how much you pay them. Successful recruitment campaigns are about communicating the opportunity and allowing candidates to understand who they are joining, the difference they can make, and if the brand aligns with their lifestyle and emotional needs. Here’s a hint, a product picture and a dry job spec won’t achieve that! However, that’s a blog post for another day.

At LIFE in Fashion it’s an essential part of our process to help brands unlock a better understanding of their Employer Brand to allow us to communicate this to candidates when talent sourcing. This ensures we present clients with candidates that will stay. However, we can also consult with organisations that are not recruiting through us, providing workshops to help them define and improve their Employer Brand to attract the right candidates and retain talent. We believe this makes us the first Search and Retention Consultancy in the fashion industry.

Bridging the Talent Gap

We’re constantly hearing from fashion organisations that they are struggling to find the right candidates for roles requiring specialist skill sets. Having ridden out more than one downturn, we have seen this recruitment cycle in the past. During recession many people leave the industry, moving to different sectors. While companies streamline to survive, internal development of staff takes less of a priority so skills are not being improved and new talent is not being grown. This means that as the economy improves and businesses flourish again there is a severe shortage of candidates in many key areas.

A recent study, conducted by the Chartered Institute of Personnel Development, discovered that more than four-fifths of organisations found an increase in competition for talent, while more than three-quarters had experienced recruitment difficulties in the past year, citing a lack of specialist or technical skills. The vast majority described the current jobs market as candidate driven. This means that businesses have to do more to attract the best candidates, streamline their recruitment process, remain closely in-touch with candidates throughout, and act swiftly to ensure they are a highly desirable employer brand. Although, this can only done once candidates have been attracted and are on-board with the recruitment process.

Therefore, more than ever, it is essential to use strategic search methods to ensure vacancies and brand values are delivered to the very best talent in a professional and direct manner. It is imperative to seek out and approach ‘soft’ candidates i.e. those that are not actively looking, not reading job boards, and not registered with recruitment firms. This is where the search methodology, that underpins everything we do at LIFE, comes into its own to help fashion brands build the optimum team.

Celebrating 10 years of LIFE

As LIFE celebrates ten years of providing recruitment solutions to the best fashion brands in the world, what springs to mind is that great French epigram, ‘plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose’; ‘the more it changes, the more it’s the same’.

In marking our tenth anniversary we have a great new look for LIFE, we’ve created this shiny new website and branding. We’ve also invested in new back-end software that allows us to probe deeper in sourcing candidates digitally, makes us more time efficient, and offers clients interactive options to feed back directly onto our systems. All this allows us to react more dexterously to their needs. However, what has really set LIFE apart for the past ten years is the ability to understand brands, learn what clients need by building lasting partnerships, and digging deeper than any social media, advertising or digital sourcing can achieve. We do this by tapping into our close personal relationships to find talent that’s off the conspicuous radar. That hasn’t changed.

We strategically and carefully welcome new brands into the LIFE portfolio by ensuring they don’t conflict with existing customers. As a business that’s founded on search it’s essential to be able to source talent from our clients’ competitors unhindered. However, an analysis of our current business shows that more than 50% of what we’re delivering is with clients who were with us in year one! Despite the tumult of the past decade it’s great that these partnerships have remained consistent.

Our industry is global in terms of distribution and sourcing, but also staffing. LIFE constantly searches beyond British shores for relevant talent. Our home-grown luxury brands have been blossoming. This growth often benefits from the technical skills that can be brought in from more mature markets such as Italy or France. However, once more the fashion industry is poised for uncertainty as we experience the economic repercussions of Brexit. In facing this unknown change, one thing remains the same as in past periods of uncertainty, somehow the industry talent pool diminishes and it is ever more challenging to find skilled employees. This will be exacerbated if it becomes more difficult to move talent from Europe. Therefore, it’s even more key right now to invest in finding the best staff for your business and putting incentives in place to keep them! LIFE has been helping some of the best global fashion brands do just that for the past decade. We're ready for whatever the next ten years has to throw at us, and here to ensure you are too.