Jenrick IT recently ran an opinion poll within an exclusive Global IT Contractor Group on Linked IN. The Group has in excess of 550 members from a complete spectrum of IT roles and industries.

The findings clearly showed that over 1/3 of contractors were not updating their skills and accreditation’s frequently enough.

These statistics mean that 1/3 of the contractor marketplace are limiting their contracting opportunities and were not maximising their potential pay rates.

Philip Fanthom, MD of Jenrick IT, commented on why he was not surprised by the findings:

“It is very easy for contractors to get ’sucked in’ to the environments in which they operate. There can be an insular feel to the markets in which they operate due to the intensity of the projects they are involved in.

This often means that self-development, in terms of skill enhancement and the gaining of accreditation’s, is often neglected.”

He went on to explain why contractors do not place great importance upon this:

“By their own admission, contractors are more interested in the here and now. As a result they show far less interest in planning for the future, especially if you compare them to how a permanent employee plans for the future.

In addition, the contractor market of the past has been dominated by the use of referral and recommendation as a source for a new contract.”

Yet, Philip goes on to explain how the market has changed, warning contractors not to ignore the changing landscape:

“Contractors need to be aware of the external environment in which they operate. More and more Clients are seeking skill validation, in the form of external recognition through accreditation’s, as a core part of their initial candidate screening process.

Gaining accreditation’s are not about trying to impress fellow contractors, they are about communicating your skills with greater effectiveness to those not familiar with your specific experience.”

Phil also confirmed why skill development was also so important:

“Skill development is all about ’succession planning’ for your business. The product (ie. your current core programming discipline) that is your current best-seller, may not be in 3, 5 or 10 years.

As a contractor you are running a business and as such you need to consider how future market trends will impact upon your business success. Therefore, we always urge our contractors to expand and explore their skills plus keep one eye firmly on the future.”

For more details, please contact Jenrick IT

The latest charts have been released and Maximise Potential is ranked as the 2nd most popular podast within Careers.

Jenrick is the leading sponsor of the podcast, which only started back in May of this year, becoming involved with the project after agreeing to sponsor an aspiring triathlete, Elliott Cole.

The podcast is now quickly becoming associated with some of the most original, inspiring and educational content available on the internet with interviews from leading personalities such as;

• Pen Hadow - Record-breaking polar Explorer
• Greg Searle - Former Olympic and World Rowing Gold medalist
• Steve Davies - Global Management Consultant
• Bonita Norris - Youngest British Female to Climb Everest

With more exciting interviews lined up the podcast is due to continue to be associated with the very best podcasts for maximising your career, business and life!

For those that have not heard the podcast yet, click on the link below to hear a brief extract from one of the Pen Hadow interviews:

• Pen Hadow - how I deal with failure and turn it to my advantage

Jo’s full entry is detailed below:

After hearing Simon Murphy speak about the Jenrick experience and its true meaning, I went home and really thought long and hard about an experience that for me would truly be something to carry with me for the rest of my life and even, to a degree, be life changing.

After much thought, and at the risk of ruining my street cred (if I in fact have any!), showing myself to be a true geek and even (some might say) a little morbid, I have thought of something that would be the ultimate once in a lifetime experience for me.

I guess for me it started when I was very young, with my Uncle Jack telling me about his military service in Germany in the 1960’s. He was part of a team who were responsible for guarding Spandau Prison in Berlin, where the Nazi Commandant of Auschwitz Rudolph Hess was imprisoned following the Nuremburg trials in 1946. As a kid and a tomboy at that I was hooked and after that I visited the Nazi Underground Hospital in Jersey and the Allied cemeteries. I visited the Imperial War Museum and the British National Museum, I chose World War 2 as my GCSE History project (yes I can remember back that far!!!) and interviewed my friends’ grandparents who had lived and served through the war. I guess you could say I became a WW2 buff - I have watched and read numerous war documentaries, films and books - and was even lucky enough last year to meet John Boyne, the author of The Boy In The Striped Pyjamas, the book and film showing life in Auschwitz through the eyes of children.

I particularly became interested in the Holocaust, and how people could be cruel to the extreme in the same space as people who could be brave to the extreme against all odds. I have read survivor accounts and marvel at how these people walked out of the camps considering the inhumane conditions they endured and the losses they were subjected to. I have always wanted to visit the places where these atrocities happened, particularly Auschwitz Birkenau and surrounding Krakow where over 1.5 million people died. It is a place that at once I find terrifying and poignant but also inspirational and fascinating.

I would like my Jenrick Experience to be the chance to visit this place and document it in both pictures and words so both the objective and subjective are captured and contrasted. I would like to bring back my own personal journal of this amazing journey. Then I would potentially like to work with Kevin to blog this and share my experiences with not only Jenrick and Simon Holdings but to give access to any local groups and schools where it may educate and inspire an interest in this crucial and recent event in our history that really did lay down the roots for our current way of life. I personally feel it is a time in our history that should never be forgotten and I would gladly share my experience with anyone willing to listen!

This in honesty is probably something I will never get round to doing without this opportunity as even though I am a sales person selling this to your partner as your only holiday of the year is a stretch for even the best!!

I can genuinely say that for me this would truly be a thrilling journey with a rollercoaster of emotions and something that would in the very least bring me home humbled and grateful, and with lifetime memories, and at the most be a truly life altering experience.

Thank you

Congratulations Jo from everyone at Jenrick and Simon Holdings!

To participate in more discussions regarding the IT contractor market and keep up to date with all the latest IT contracting legislation, join our Linked IN Group by clicking on the link below:

• IT Contractor Group on Linked IN

• Pen’s successful trek to the North Pole, solo and without re-supply, where he made history by becoming the first (and only) person to do so.
• How he had to dig deeper into his mental and physical resources than he had ever done so before
• How it felt to finally achieve the goal that had consumed him for most of his adult life.

As with our previous interviews, Pen speaks with an openness and honesty that really enables you to visualise the sheer extremities of the challenge that he successfully undertook.

Just click on the link below to listen to it:

• Pen Hadow interview - “how I claimed my place in history”

The Jenrick Recruitment Group is very pleased to be the lead sponsor of the Maximise Potential Website and Podcast - designed to help everyone Maximise Their Potential and be successful in life through listening and learning from interviews with inspiring people.

To participate in more discussions regarding the IT contractor market and keep up to date with all the latest IT contracting legislation, join our Linked IN Group by clicking on the link below:

• IT Contractor Group on Linked IN

A wide-ranging review of smaller business taxation will have implications for the way that contractors are taxed.

The IR35 regime, introduced to prevent contractors reducing their tax liabilities, has come in for criticism over the time it has been operating.

Mark Prisk, the small business minister, has said:

“We want to make sure that we could undertake a comprehensive review of small business taxation in a way that makes the need for the current IR35 legislation redundant. But we want to make sure whatever we change is a lasting settlement. One of the problems with IR35 is that it’s a constantly changing set of rules.”

Philip Fanthom (Managing Director, Jenrick IT - Specialist IT Contract & Permanent Recruiter) commented:

“We welcome this review and are more than happy to continue contributing to the debate, as we have done for a number of years. In fact, last year were one of a select group of agencies who attended the House of Commons to discuss this issue. There has to be a more efficient, user friendly and fair taxation system that works for all parties concerned. At least this government appears to be willing to listen to those who are affected.”

The small business tax review is to be carried out during the summer.

These roles are paying £30,000 - £40,000 per annum and £275 – £300 per day. The projects are challenging and the clients we are working with have some of the most energetic and innovative working environments we have ever come across.

Our problem now? Finding enough of these people!

That is one reason we are giving everyone an update through our blog.

Can you help?

Do you know of any Flash Actionscript developers who are currently looking for a new opportunity?

We know from experience that there are plenty of freelancers out there, but not many are registered on any databases. Most use their website showreel to promote themselves through a network of connections.

If you know of anyone who would like us to keep their name handy for permanent and contract opportunities, just forward them this article (it has our contact details at the bottom).

Also, if they want to have a look at an example job specification for the types of roles we have, just click on the links below:

- Senior Flash Actionscript Developer Jobs in London

Contact us for more information:

Please give our office a call on 01932 230 850 and ask for either Thomas Marcus or Stevie Lambert. We’ll gladly chat to you about the opportunities we have right now and the new projects that are coming on board in the future.

Manufacturing orders and ouput have risen to a 15-year high to accelerate a broad-based recovery for the sector, a new survey reveals.

Looking up: Study suggests strong recovery should continue through summer.

The Engineering Employers Federation found a growing number of firms are enjoying “buoyant” trading conditions following rising demand in overseas and UK markets.

Its survey of almost 550 firms showed that the recovery from recession had gathered pace in the last few months and is set to continue over the summer.

But the EEF said the forthcoming Budget would be closely watched by a sector keen for tax reform and a rebalancing of the economy in favour of manufacturing.

Chief economist Lee Hopley said:

“The steadily improving trends in manufacturing look set to continue in the coming months and the upswing is being felt right across industry.

Manufacturers are pulling in more export orders on the back of a recovering world economy and a better outlook for the domestic market is giving companies some confidence to recruit again.”

Ms Hopley went on: “But manufacturers are very aware that economic headwinds could still pick up again as there are still risks to a sustained recovery. Great importance is now being placed on the need to rebalance the UK economy.

“In the short term this requires a Budget which delivers tax reform and deficit reduction in a way which provides some stability and gives manufacturers the confidence to invest.”

The report showed that over the last three months both output and new order balances were at their highest levels since the survey began in 1995, while more firms had recruited staff.

Investment intentions remained “flat”, held back by uncertainty over domestic demand and future tax changes as well as lack of finance.

The EEF forecast a 3.5% growth in manufacturing this year and next as output recovers from the depths of the recession.

Article Source: SkyNews

It’s becoming an increasingly common storyline: job candidate loses job opportunity because prospective boss finds unflattering information online.

If you think you might be in the job market any time soon, or ever really, be sure that you think twice before you post anything online.

This applies to photos, comments on blogs, tweets — anything that can be linked back to you.

Even small bits of information or comments that you feel are innocuous could count against you with future employers.

This doesn’t mean you have to avoid all online activity, just be careful and thoughtful about the image you send to anyone who wants to know more about you.

Article Source: Harvard Business Review