Negotiators Podcast

Sarah has been in recruitment for over 20 years. She worked for the largest agency in the UK, “Office Angels,” for 15 years as a recruiter before starting her agency.

In this interview, Sarah discussed the recruitment process as a continuous negotiation, with the total cost of the process often overlooked by businesses.

The cost includes the recruiter’s commission (between 20% and 30% of the salary), the cost of onboarding and getting the person up to pace, and the cost of letting them go if they are not the right fit, paying them off, and the related cost of de-motivation of high achievers.

Sarah and the interviewer Derek Arden, recently did a calculation that the cost of getting recruitment wrong in 2023 could be at least £50k.

In the interview, Sarah shared her experience in recruitment and explained her model of working on a retained basis in collaboration with businesses to recruit directly for them.

She believes that agencies have their place but their sales premise, based on a no-win no fee model, causes issues when candidates are forced onto people.

Sarah emphasizes the importance of a clear job description and a robust, fair, and consistent recruitment process to find the right person. She also believes that recruiters are valuable specialists who can help businesses to be successful and change people’s lives when they find them a job.

Sarah’s discussion with Godfrey, a private detective, included their experience in finding gaps and discrepancies in CVs that candidates left out, rather than what they included. They also talked about the importance of verbal referencing, which can reveal valuable information that might not be on a CV. Sarah believes in asking open-ended questions that allow candidates to talk about themselves and their experiences, rather than simply grilling them with specific questions.

The conversation included some questions for candidates, such as ‘What was your biggest challenge and how did you solve it?’ and ‘What do you like doing when you’re not working?’

Sarah stressed the importance of having a clear and accurate CV that matches up with a candidate’s LinkedIn profile, as this can be a major factor in the recruitment process. She also discussed the use of applicant tracking systems to sift through CVs and the need to adapt CVs for each job application.

Sarah believes that checking candidates’ qualifications and references is essential, especially for high-level clearance positions.

She emphasized the importance of being clear with candidates about the recruitment process and what to expect in terms of checks and verifications.

Finally, Sarah emphasized the importance of treating candidates with courtesy and the difficulty of saying no to candidates who are not selected for the job.

Derek Arden

In this interview, the guest speaker, Eva, discusses intuition, the small brain, and energy fields.

She explains that intuition is a form of energy that is emotionally neutral and non-verbal and that it can be experienced as a physical sensation such as a change in heart rate or goosebumps.

Eva emphasizes the importance of staying in one’s heart space and avoiding allowing the ego to hijack the process of intuition.

Eva also discusses the small brain or heart brain, which she describes as the ringleader of the brain. She explains that the small brain communicates with the larger brain through non-verbal means and that it is the source of intuition.

Eva argues that modern Western society has created an imbalance in which the rational, left side of the brain is honoured while the small brain is forgotten.

Finally, Eva discusses energy fields, explaining that energy does not have mechanical boundaries like matter and that energy healing is possible even at a distance. She notes that Western medicine often refers to energy healing as spontaneous healing and that it can be difficult to replicate in scientific studies due to the unique nature of each person’s biology and experiences.

Overall, Eva argues that accessing and utilizing intuition is crucial in decision-making and negotiation and that it requires quieting the rational brain and tuning into the small brain and energy fields.

She suggests that developing this skill takes practice and staying emotionally neutral while trusting one’s physical and intuitive sensations.

Derek Arden

Here’s a summary of the interview with Tim:

Derek Arden

Tim Durkin

He specializes in supporting people in creating instant interest and engagement, specifically for pitches to investors and high-value customers.

The speaker views ChatGPT as a useful tool for condensing and consolidating ideas into value-focused introductions that can be used in pitches.

They emphasize the importance of providing value to customers and creating engaging content

Derek Arden

Antonio White

She advised against using “hedge words” and suggested using validators instead.

Tracy also recommended replacing “I’m sorry” with “thank you” to express gratitude instead of unnecessary apologies.

She emphasized the importance of having a pleasant resting face and engaging body language during Zoom calls to show interest and enthusiasm.

Additionally, Tracy shared her thoughts on the use of foul language and its impact on communication.

Tracy’s insights and strategies provide valuable guidance for individuals seeking to navigate the evolving world of work with clarity and confidence.

Books on powerful words Tracy Hooper’s book, “The NOW Hello: What to Say What to Do in The World of Work: Remote | Hybrid | In Person,” builds on the principles outlined in her previous book, “The NEW Hello.”

In this book, Tracy focuses on how to carry oneself with confidence in the modern workplace, which has been significantly impacted by the global pandemic.

The book provides guidance on speaking with influence and impact, leading remote or hybrid teams with confidence, promoting accomplishments while working from home, and communicating effectively with co-workers, prospects, and clients.

Tracy also shares strategies for networking with confidence in any setting.

Overall, “The NOW Hello” aims to help readers navigate the evolving world of work and communicate with clarity and confidence, whether online, in person, or in a hybrid environment.

Derek Arden

Joanna Gaudoin helps bright, knowledgeable people with great technical skills and experience, improve their non-technical skills so they can progress their careers and boost their firm’s performance.

With a career in marketing, Joanna made the decision to work for herself setting up her own business in, “People development”.

Derek Arden discusses her experiences and they talk about topics in her latest book, ‘Getting On, Making Work Work”

1 – Trust

2 – Reading others

3 – The power of a phone call

4 – Meetings

5 – Networking

6 – Office Politics

Derek Arden

Lorraine Ellisonis a winner of the Top Women in Accountancy award and now leads her accountancy practice in the North-East of England.

She has worked for Dunlop, Sunderland Echo and Pickerings.

Lorraine has also been a leader in the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants, where she has organised conferences and conventions.

Find out tonight a number of key issues and some interesting leadership experiences.

Negotiations and tax tips only reserved for her clients.

Derek Arden

When Justin was last with us in September 2022 Liz Truss was the Prime Minister. The pound had crashed with near parity to the dollar and we were wondering what was going to happen next. Dubbed “Trussonomics” she was sacked a week later after 44 days as Prime Minister.

Justin returns to Monday Night Live to update us on –

1 – Investments;

2 – Interest rates;

3 – The economy here and worldwide;

4 – Trends we should be looking for;

5 – Geo-political situations;

6 – Ponzi schemes;

7 – Why before you do anything? It would be best if you protect your capital.

Derek Arden

Derek Arden – Improving performance with Steve Head.  

One of our original speakers from 2020 on Monday Night Live returns, to tell us about the work he did with the English Wheelchair Rugby League team as one of the mental performance coaches.

England won the world cup in Manchester just before Christmas.

Steve will also be reminding us of his simple but effective 4X4 = 15 signature story and the work he has been doing with vulnerable staff working in the NHS.

Derek has known Steve for over 20 years and he is an in-demand speaker, trainer and coach.

Bullet Points of this interview:

– How to improve performance,

– England Wheelchair Rugby League,

– Mindset and Connectivity,

– Coping with pressure,

– 149 versus 15,

– Emphasise behaviours and practices in 149 versus 15,

– Emphasise wins,

– Mindset when under pressure,

– Self-confidence but also connectivity,

– Steve Peters Chimp Paradox,

– Focus on what you can do something about,

See this lively and amusing interview with questions asked by Derek Arden,

Derek Arden

In his presentation titled “Everyone wants to be Warren Buffett”, Independent Financial Advisor (IFA) Matt Tumbridge delves into safe investing strategies for the future. He has a wealth of experience in the industry, having run his own sales and marketing business, worked as an MD in a large insurance operation, and now running his own IFA business.

Matt starts by discussing the image of Warren Buffett, often portrayed as a “lovely gentle granddad type character” who lives in Omaha, Nebraska, but notes that there are some aspects that are left out of that story, such as his $8 million California and holiday home. He also stresses that Buffett’s best returns have not come from reading accounts and PR, but from having people in the field gathering intel and understanding the business more intimately.

He advises looking into blue-chip index funds that are invested in the world’s best companies and making sure they are within the financial services compensation scheme for added protection. He also mentions venture capital trusts, real estate investment trusts, and crowdfunding as options to consider but cautions that they may not always result in a positive return.

He also highlights the importance of having a tightly defined fund objective and having a sound financial plan in place before investing. Additionally, he mentions the importance of understanding one’s risk appetite and using a risk profile questionnaire to determine it, but notes that some advisors don’t find them to be very effective.

Furthermore, Matt emphasizes the difficulty of predicting how long well-known companies such as Amazon, Microsoft, and Apple will be at the top of the market. He also stresses the importance of understanding what’s happening behind a company’s report and accounts and not just relying on the trade press.

In summary, Matt’s presentation emphasizes the importance of understanding risk and investing in a diversified portfolio of blue-chip index funds that track the world’s best companies and are within the financial services compensation scheme, to ensure safety and beat inflation in the long run.

Derek Arden