Posts tagged Arras People
Arras People Seeking Views on Higher Education and PPM
Aug 4th
Arras People, the project management recruitment specialists, are currently soliciting the views of a variety of personnel affiliated with both higher education and project management ties to better understand where the development of tomorrow’s project managers is heading in the near future.
Using tools that include – but are not limited to – a survey, a discussion within various relevant specialist interest groups in the LinkedIn community, and various other social media, Arras People is engaging with personnel in higher education, project management, human resources/hiring capacities and students both full-time and in a continuing professional development manner. It is our goal to share the data and expand further through expert contributions on the ties between universities, professional development and PPM in the September 2011 issue of Project Management Tipoffs, the UK’s leading newsletter on issues pertaining to both recruitment and project management.Here are some of the areas available to those who wish to make their voice heard on these matters:
- Take part in the short survey (takes just 3 minutes!) about the training & development preferences on PPM personnel, including those who use training companies, higher education, CPD, on-the-job experiences and many other tools in their development (the survey can only be taken once).
- On LinkedIn, we’ve started a discussion on degrees & PPM that has grown considerably in popularity. The discussion leads the action on the Arras People Group page, but we’ve also received some early feedback from other groups as well, including The Association for Project Management, Project Managers on Twitter and the PMOSIG. Members of LinkedIn are encouraged to join any or all of these groups to add your two cents.
- At the APM website, we’ve opened up a dialogue within the Association for Project Management’s forum community on this topic, hoping to better understand the organisational view.
“Social media outlets have shown themselves to be a great way to gather the pulse of what is going on in the PPM world, particularly as the industry moves toward professionalised accreditation status,” says Dan Strayer, editor of Project Management Tipoffs, and coordinator of media projects for Arras People. “We’ve long believed that a universities directory is overdue for public consumption, and it’s our feeling that the information from our social media undertakings in the weeks ahead will provide the directory with a great lead into the collective PPM students’ conscience.”
The September Tipoffs issue, which is available free to subscribers, is due to be released 15th September, with the directory for Higher Education’s release date still to be announced. Previews of the Higher Education issue and other upcoming editions are available on the Tipoffs Production Schedule page, and you can also have a look at past issues in our Archives section.
Arras People Release Report of the UK Project Management Market 2011
Feb 18th
Heywood, Lancashire, UK, 18th February 2011: Arras People, the project management recruitment specialists, used independent research company Benchpoint’s™ unique real time polling technology to question 1525 permanent and contract Programme and Project Management Professionals during January 2011.
The Project Management Benchmark Report 2011 shows how the UK’s economic turbulence is affecting project management practitioners’ earnings, aspirations and professional life.
As we entered 2011 talk still abounded about a possible double dip recession and levels of business confidence were questioned; VAT increased to 20%; food and energy prices were on the up, and a raft of other tax changes appeared in the pipeline. Added to all that, the wider impact of the deficit reduction programme started to become apparent as news of cuts and job losses started to appear.
So overall we had lots to ask our respondents about their economic well being and job security through our survey. This year we also took the opportunity to revisit training and accreditation, professionalism and explored the impact of social media in the world of project management.
Survey highlights:
- For 83% of practitioners, remuneration was down during 2010 both in real terms and against increased levels of inflation
- Amongst the public sector employees, 14% of respondents entered 2011 under the threat of redundancy
- Unemployment amongst the PPM respondents recorded at 15%
- Practitioners reported an increased feeling that ageism is once again flourishing in the recruitment process
- After a tough couple of years contractors report seeing light at the end of the tunnel with more opportunity, though rates are still under pressure
- Private sector confidence rising, though pay is not; whilst the public sector prepare for hard times
- Training budgets under further strain in 2011, but Prince2 still holds it dominating position as the de-facto standard
- Only 37% of respondents are aware of their organisations social media policy
- One respondent reports that the much maligned “office smoker” has a new challenger in the form of “social media users” in respect of time off the job!
Commented John Thorpe, Managing Director of Arras People, “This is our sixth annual survey of the project management profession here in the UK, and we are continuing to build an unparalleled repository of information which gives both employers and practitioners a valuable insight into what is happening in this important market.
“Whilst the current market is still tough for many practitioners in both the public and private sectors; we can see clear indications of rising confidence and increased opportunity in the private sector; at the same time the public sector is moving in the opposite direction with low confidence, stagnant earnings and the anticipation of job losses.”
The full version of the report can be downloaded from the Arras People Website at: http://www.arraspeople.co.uk/project-and-programme-management-resources/the-project-management-benchmark-report-from-arras-people-2011/
NOTES ABOUT THE REPORT
Survey methodology and demographics
- Arras People carried out a Benchpoint™ on-line survey in January 2011. Emails were sent to eligible respondents and 1525 responses were received.
- There is a confidence level of 95% and a error margin of +/- 2.49%. (We are 95% sure that any given answer is within plus or minus 2.49% of what the general population of project management professionals would answer).
- Survey demographics:
- Status – Employee 56%; Contractor 29%; Unemployed 15%
- Gender – Male 70%; Female 30%
- Age – Under 34 24%; 35-49 46%; 50+ 29%
- 60% from London & South east, the rest evenly distributed between the regions
- Sectors – Private sector 52%; Public sector 28%; Charity/NFP sector 4 %
About Arras People:
Arras People is the Project Management Recruitment Division of Arras Services Ltd. Arras People provides programme and project management professionals and professional project office support personnel across all industry sectors, for either permanent, contract or interim positions.
Arras Services began trading in February 2002, and now provides its services to many of UK’s leading blue chip organisations in the UK, as well as public sector (central and local government), IT, engineering, marketing and media organizations, not for profit and charities.
Contacts:
Richard Gaunt MCIPR
Gaunt Corporate Affairs and Business communication
London
W4 3AP
0771 1691928
Lindsay Scott, Arras People
47 York Street
Heywood
Lancashire OL10 4NN
Tel: 0845 680 6444
Fax: 0845 680 8047
Does Size Matter?
Oct 28th
A recent edition of Recruiter magazine (13th October) included an article entitled “Piecing together a staffing dilemma” which investigated whether organisations should pick a super agency or select a group of specialists as they look to staff up for the future.
Overall the arguments fell into the usual entrenched positions with the advocates of the “super agency” pitching savings in costs and time alongside the marketing muscle that their
size brings to the table. The specialists on the other hand naturally pushed their ability supply high quality candidates through their “intimate knowledge of a sector” and their ability to identify and attract relevant talent.
Whilst the article itself drew no conclusion as to what is best, it indicated that few organisations end up with a single supplier solution. However within the article there were some specific points well made that I wanted to share – especially as Arras People is a specialist agency, supplying what is generally a non-volume specialist skill in the form of Project Management;
- The strengths of a specialist boutique is in its niche branding which may be stronger than the client’s (and /or super agencies) in attracting the right applicants
- Candidates with specialist skills eg. Project Management are more likely to take a call from a specialist rather than a generalist recruiter.
- Many clients feel that a smaller agency is easier to hold to account through the direct relationship
- Small consultancies are as much about the individual as the brand where larger agencies have a significantly more turnover of staff.
- Large agencies are accused of taking a “never mind the quality, feel the width” approach, seeing costs and volumes as the prime concerns of their clients.
- Larger agencies try to be both big and bespoke at the same time
In my own mind the argument basically boils down to devising a strategy that recognises the type of candidates that you are looking to attract and the volumes that you are likely to consume. Ultimately for all organisations the resourcing decision should be driven by the desire to attract the best available talent into their open roles at an acceptable level of cost.
So in the case of recruiting Programme and Project Management (PPM) staff the approach needs to consider;
- Do we view PPM personnel as a general or a specialist resource?
Hopefully the answer is that you see PPM personnel as a specialist resource. So to draw an analogy with how you would shop for other goods and services, would you go to a “supermarket” or a “boutique” to buy specialist goods? - How many PPM practitioners do we recruit per annum (Interim, Contract, Permanent, and Temporary)?
For many organisations the requirement for PPM practitioners over a twelve month period is relatively low when compared to other areas of non-specialist staffing requirements. It is highly unlikely that this volume will impact the pricing that a “super agency” can deliver over a twelve month period for your total recruitment budget if it was excluded!
- How do we access the best talent?
As we saw above the both approaches feel they can attract talent. However if you have identified PPM as a specialist resource the boutique or niche supplier is more likely to have the knowledge and understanding of the marketplace. Attracting talent requires a lot more than just placing adverts (if it was that easy, recruitment agencies wouldn’t exist!) and companies like Arras People make a significant investment in building talent pools upon which they can draw. The key is attracting and tempting talent that is inactive in the market; these are the people who do not look at the general job boards and are certainly invisible to generalist recruiters! Each specialised recruiter has a contact book and network that many super agencies would die for. - What is an acceptable cost for these services?
One of the positives of using a super agency was quoted as; “One real advantage of dealing with a large agency is its competitive rates.” This may be true for volume and non-specialist roles but what happens when the role becomes “hard to fill”? In our experience as a boutique or niche supplier the rates we charge are not significantly different than those charged by super agencies if the role is deemed outside of the norm. A potential hidden premium cost that should always be considered! - What brand image do I want to create in the marketplace?
“People buy people” is a common saying when discussing service provision and it is especially true in the recruitment of specialist resources. In a specialist agency it certainly is about the individuals that work within it – one to one relationships are forged, not just with the client organisation but also with the professionals looking for work within the specialised field. Where you advertise and your recruitment partner has a significant impact on the perception of your brand as an employer with PPM resources especially as many super agents carry low credibility with the professional specialists that you want to attract.
So whatever you require, consider the facts and adopt a strategy that fits your environment. Don’t be lulled into a false sense of security, cost is important to us all, but not at the expense of failing to secure the necessary talent to drive our organisations forward.
Image - sinanyuzakli and used with permission
Scott Amongst Judges for IPMA Young Crew Finalists
Sep 28th
Arras People’s Lindsay Scott was among five esteemed judges for the finalists for the 2010 International Project Management Association (IPMA) Young Project Manager Award.
The award, charting the achievements of project managers between the ages of 25 and 35 from 20 member countries, will be given at the Young Crew Workshop Gala Dinner Thursday evening at the Hilton Hotel in Istanbul on the 1-3 November 2010. It endeavours to recognise “rising talent in the project and program management industries by honoring young project managers that have demonstrated invaluable impact to the profession and for the companies for whom they work, and are on the fast track to becoming project leaders and influencers on an international scale.”
“We received the largest number of applications ever for this year’s award.” says Jhaymee S. Wilson, IPMA Young Crew Management Board Member and Coordinator for the 2010 award. “We are inspired by the high caliber of our candidates, and we have no doubts that among these names are some of our next great leaders.”
The finalists for the 2010 award are:
- Anne Hoffman; Siemens Wind Power A/S
- Saad Hegazy of United Expert;
- Shaliesh Nepal of China Engineering Railway Corporation and and Tundi Construction Pvt. Ltd.
“It was a really interesting thing for me to take part in and made me realise, once again, just how different and diverse the world of project management is” said Lindsay. “The final three young project managers are all worthy of the title (don’t they always say that in competitions!) and all three have a great future ahead of them”
The winners will be announced on the 1-3 November 2010 as part of the IPMA World Congress
About Arras People: Arras People are the UK’s leading Project Management Recruitment firm. Being 100% focussed on our field, we meet the demands of clients, both large and small, placing quality project management practitioners in to key roles across all industry sectors in the UK, across Europe and beyond. Learn more about what we offer clients and candidates alike online at www.arraspeople.co.uk.
About IPMA Young Crew: Young Crew is a key component of IPMA’s growth and development of the leaders of tomorrow. It is a global network for young project management professionals and students from 25 to 35 years of age. More information about the 2010 Young Project Manager Award is available at http://www.ipma.ch/crew/Pages/YoungProjectManagerAward.aspx.
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Arras People’s Michael Hides to Speak at BCS ASSIST Event
Sep 8th
Arras People senior project management consultant Michael Hides will speak to Association for Informatics Professionals in Health and Social Care (ASSIST) delegates from London and the South East at their event in London 22nd September.
Michael will be one of five different speakers at the one-day “Facing the dark clouds and winning” event for the specialist interest group chapter under the heading of the British Computer Society (BCS). His expertise in the job market for project management, particularly in healthcare and IT, will allow him to speak with authority on matters concerning market trends in Healthcare IT jobs. Michael intends to use his experience as a senior consultant at Arras People to show how prospective job candidates can exploit their experience and maximise opportunity in both their current and future roles.
Michael is currently scheduled on the itinerary (.PDF) to speak at 1.15pm. Those who wish to book a place at the event can do so whether they are an ASSIST member (free) or not online. Michael is also a chartered engineer that has worked on projects and in organisations both large and small. He joined Arras People in 2007, bringing with him relevant skills and experience from project management and in sectors including engineering and manufacturing.
Arras People’s bevy of project management consultants and directors are readily available to speak and present at events and conferences geared toward careers, recruitment, project & programme management, PMO and P3O (programme, project and portfolio office). We have previously spoken at events for:
- Association for Project Management (APM)
- Best Practice Showcase 2010
- APM Aberdeen
- Guardian Careers Live Forum
- Maven Training
- University of East London
- APM London
If you’d like book one of Arras People’s speakers for your upcoming conference or event, contact us today.
Arras People Launch New Website
Aug 31st
Arras People launched its new website on the 27th August after several months of development. It’s been a long time coming but finally we decided the amount of information we have on project management recruitment and careers needed a refresh!
Candidates
The new website makes it much easier for candidates to browse the latest project opportunities; subscribe to the job alerts and register for contract or permanent work. We have also updated and reviewed all the project management careers advice and implemented a new system for our popular project management careers clinics.
Clients
For our clients, the new website holds details about the kinds of sectors we work in; the types of project roles we recruit; and previous work examples we’ve carried out. We’ve also launched our branded advertisements and featured employer sections which provide a cost effective solution to attracting project management candidates to active positions an organisation may have open.
Further developments and adds on for the website are already being planned and implemented so watch this space for new additions.
Let us know what you think about the new website; any comments would be greatly appreciated
Arras People’s Lindsay Scott featured in Project Magazine
Apr 6th

Lindsay Scott of Arras People was featured in the April edition of Project magazine as one of the UK's most influential personalities in project management.
Lindsay Scott, co-Director of Arras People, the project management recruitment people, was honoured in the April 2010 issue of Project magazine as one of the 10 “most influential figures in project management” this week. In a profile article titled “Social Climbing”, Lindsay’s prowess in the social media marketing field was lauded by Project “for blazing a trail in social media, working with project managers online to share knowledge and promote professionalism.”
Lindsay, who has spent nearly the entirety of her professional career in and around projects since being hired by Hewlett-Packard 12 years ago out of university, has since gone on to build a unique social media profile using popular tools including Twitter, LinkedIn and blogs in such an effective manner as to inspire a re-think about how social media can influence PPM professionals in a positive manner.
“Outlets like LinkedIn, Twitter, blogging and online resources are very important for us as a business,” Lindsay told Project. “We’re project managers first and its to our advantage to enhance the professionalism of the industry in any way we can. Social media is another great tool to push the message. We work with like-minded project managers to spread the message and share knowledge of how to go about it the right way.”
“When we learn, hear or observe things through other project managers in our networks, and that includes social media, that we deem to have integrity, we want to share that with the wider project management community. We use our own social media platform to enable project professions to share their experiences through things like blogging and newsletters.”
In addition to the possibilities for marketing and knowledge sharing, Lindsay senses great opportunities for better collaboration in project teams through improvements in online and social media communication tools.
“Project managers and their project teams should really look closer at the tools and software which allow for better collaboration. There’s a bounty of tools (which just keep getting better and better) for project professionals to pick up and use to drive better communication in a project setting. It’s what many projects have been waiting for really, something that helps improve that key element of successful project delivery – communication.”
The Project article on Lindsay is available primarily to subscribers, but those wishing to read the original article in its entirety can do so through the Arras People PM Industry Notes webpage. Further details on Lindsay Scott are available on About Arras People’s Directors page. You can collaborate with Lindsay via social media portals including Twitter (twitter.com/projectmgmt), the How to Manage a Camel blog and LinkedIn.
Arras People, PM Network Want Job Related Questions
Mar 11th
Arras People, the project management recruitment people, congratulates co-director Lindsay Scott, who is writing a regular Career Q&A advice column for PM Network, the American-based magazine published by the Project Management Institute.
The latest edition was published in February, where Scott answered questions related to a variety of questions from job seekers about the market. Answers to specific questions from the article are available in the Arras People Industry Notes webpages.
Both PM Network and Lindsay would like to answer the questions job seekers have at the moment regarding recruitment issues, finding the next great job opportunity, or improving skills as a job seeker. If you have a question for a recruiter, send an email to pmnetwork@imaginepub.com or simply drop a line to Lindsay.
Arras People Plans to Help Aberdeen APM Members Improve CVs
Jan 29th
Arras People, the Project Management Recruitment specialists, will host a CV Workshop at the Association for Project Management (APMs) Aberdeen branch conference in February. Leading project management consultants Michael Hides and Gary Holmes from Arras People will conduct the session as part of the “Development Your Skills for Successful Projects” one day conference.
The conference will feature a series of forums and practical assistance sessions in addition to the CV workshop from Arras People. Sessions from the event intend to address:
- Continuing Professional Development (CPD) and preparing for Chartered Status
- Assessing competence in a project team
- APMs competency framework
- Assessment of the attendees CPD profile
- Planning your CPD
Arras People have offered free CV workshops & reviews previously at Project Challenge in Birmingham last March, and were overwhelmed by the immediate response. Similar to the Project Management Careers Clinics on offer from Arras People, next month’s CV Workshop opportunity aims to help project professionals improve their attractiveness of their CVs in an increasingly cutthroat job market.
Hides, a chartered engineer that has worked on projects and in organisations large and small, joined Arras People in 2007, bringing with him relevant skills and experience from project management and in sectors including engineering and manufacturing.
“The CV Workshops for the APM are based on our popular project management careers clinics,” Hides said. “The session will be targeted directly at project management professionals which makes the opportunity pretty unique for conference attendees, there is no other careers advice and CV workshops specifically for project management professionals available in the marketplace.”
Holmes brings a solid background in Project Coordination and PMO Support to his work in helping candidates build and develop their CVs for better client attraction. Having worked primarily in the Financial Services sector, Holmes has experience using best practice processes and procedures whilst serving as the lone coordinator of the entirety of projects within a single programme.
“The advice we give to project management professionals is based on eight years experience of working within the project management recruitment field,” Holmes said. We know what organisations and employers want to see in professional CVs so the session is all about passing on advice, hints and tips that help job seekers make the most of their CV.”
The event is scheduled to be held from 9am-5.30pm 16th February at the Hilton Treetops Hotel, Aberdeen.
NOTES ABOUT THE ABERDEEN APM MEETING
“Developing Your Skills for Successful Projects” is not open only to members of the APM or even Aberdeen APM branch members. To learn more about booking your place at the event, go to www.apm.org.uk/scotland/eventDevelopi2.asp?pdate=0-0&branch=9.
For more information on the project management careers clinics at Arras People
www.arraspeople.co.uk/cand/careers_clinics.html.
Arras People Attains National Acclaim with JobCentre Plus
Jan 19th
Arras People, the Project Management Recruitment people, attained an unexpected high mark last week when they crossed a threshhold set by the Department for Works and Pensions (DWP) of 300 referred candidates to their JobSearch Support Services for Newly Unemployed Executives, Professionals and Graduates.
The revelation came to be shortly after advisers from JobCentre Plus branches across the UK brought to our attention that our accounts had been “suspended” last week. Puzzled, we got in touch with our contact at the DWP, who laid out what was happening. When a Third Party Provisions Provider like Arras People has received exactly 299 referrals for the Services, the reference code attached to that provider is immediately suspended from use, as computers have deemed it obsolete. Once the new reference code has been established in the database, JobCentre Plus advisers can go back to referring to the Third Party Provider as they did before.
Subsequently, the reference code has now been changed to BOY / 29867, and all referrals should run smoothly until the next 299 candidates are put through.
The need for the change illustrates that Arras People’s popularity as a provider had swelled to the point that accommodations had to be made. Statistics have illustrated this, primarily through the figures surrounding repeat referrals from both specific advisers and branches, which have been a constant since Arras People began providing the Services last April. The examples pop up each month, including an intriguing scenario early in January when an adviser made his first ever referral to Arras People, then quickly followed with three more that same day. It remains the highest referral day to Arras People since we’ve commenced offering the Services.
Other examples include the current list we have of referring branches, which list data as of Monday 18th January 2010. The findings denote that:
- Arras People have received referrals from 142 branches across the UK.
- 50 branches have referred to Arras People more than one time (35%).
- 25 of the branches have called in referrals at least three times (17.5%)
- 13 (9.1%) have at sent at least five candidates our way.
- Those 13 branches alone make up 38.4% of all referrals to Arras People.
- Three branches have referrend 10 or more candidates.
Other factors that drive the popularity include feedback from referred clients:
“Nicola’s forthrightness, attitude and demeanor are a breath of fresh air in the industry, and it does nothing less than give Arras a reputation for hiring quality people, in my humble opinion. Please feel free to ask me anything else about my experience with your company, or otherwise. I made sure I notified the JSA of the job you did, and recommended you for continuing services through them.” - LS*
“The CV feedback combined with other things I was doing enabled reformating the information, so people are now calling me about jobs. I think the service is efficient in terms of giving specific industry advice.” – FP
“I like the idea of the consultancy being quite flexible – it was advertised as improving your CV, but because I had already done that through Arras, I asked if I could use the consultancy for interviewing skills and Mick Hides agreed. I have told the JobCentre that I would recommend it to anyone and have asked them to flag it. I thought it was a great service.” - BM
“A highly professional service offered by experts in their specialist sector. With the job market providing so little feedback to enable candidates to revise their approach to be successful, the Arras service is invaluable!!” - MS
*Initials of commenters are used to protect their anonymity
For more information about the JobSearch Support Services from Arras People, go to our DWP web page.

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