January is the month when employees contemplate moving on to pastures new and being bored and needing a challenge would be the top reasons for seeking a new job in 2018 cited by a third (33 percent) of respondents to global research from Korn Ferry. When asked what their typical first step is when looking for a new job, almost half (44 percent) cited networking. And in terms of the top ways to network, reconnecting with current and former friends/colleagues and LinkedIn came out on top for 33 percent and 31 percent respectively.  The research found that while 23 percent of respondents said updating their CV is their first step to landing a new role, 19 percent said their first step is taking an inventory of what kind of job would make them the happiest. The grass isn’t necessarily greener however, as nearly half (46 percent) said they were turned down for a job because the interviewer did not take the time to fully understand their qualifications and more than half (53 percent) of respondents said that people who interviewed them for a job were only “somewhat prepared,” “ill-prepared” or “very ill-prepared.”

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Half of SMEs (50 percent) questioned in a new survey have changed the way that they recruit their staff as a result of Brexit. The Albion Growth Report 2017 of more than 1,000 SMEs suggests that for businesses which have changed their strategy as a result of Brexit, 15 percent have decreased recruitment resources, 10 percent have begun recruiting in different ways and 9 percent have made redundancies. A difficulty in finding skilled staff is one of the biggest barriers to growth, behind broader political uncertainty and cash flow, which the research claims could lead to a potential war for talent which is likely to become more intense in the post-Brexit environment. By contrast, SMEs view difficulty in finding unskilled staff as the least significant barrier to growth. The report finds that nearly two thirds (65 percent) of SMEs believe their business lacks expertise. More than a quarter (26 percent) of businesses lack marketing talent, followed by business planning (19 percent), IT (17 percent), and software developers and technology specialists (17 percent).  Despite critical skills deficits, only a third of SMEs (33 percent) are currently hiring new employees.

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There has been a rise in the number of people who believe businesses in the UK have a good reputation, with a significant number of younger people helping to create this positive picture. The research, comparing perceptions of businesses between May and November 2017, reveals 2 in 3 people think UK businesses have a good reputation, up 7 percent in 6 months. The tracker, conducted by the CBI in partnership with global PR agency, Porter Novelli, and research company, Opinium, revealed that the public are more aware of the value business provides in local communities with an increasingly vocal business community emerging in recent months. Importantly, the improvement in business reputation has largely been driven by young people and those in work, with a significant 15 percent rise in positive views among 18-34 year olds. This reinforces the view that younger people are more engaged in the debate about the UK’s future, with the Brexit negotiations and a sharper political debate intensifying the focus on jobs and the economy.

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