Some of you may be used to working from home already but
it’s very likely that the current situation will mean many more of us will be
doing this from now on for some weeks.
If you’re used to working with a team in an office, working on
your own at home can be a culture shock. It’s important to keep communicating
with your colleagues and manager to ensure you feel engaged and motivated. Here
are a few ideas and tips to help…
Checklist for companies / managers
Think about what equipment, software, access and
logins your team may need to do their work remotely
Do a quick check on laptops, chargers, headsets,
webcams etc to make sure they’re in working order before giving out
Ask your team to share their home/mobile contact
numbers and circulate this list
Check your office can forward calls to another
number and ideally turn the function off outside of work hours. Can people log
in to check voicemails if left?
If people don’t have an unlimited phone package
agree to cover expenses for usage
Keep a record of important stakeholder /
supplier contacts and share with your team
Get everyone to access / download a video
conference app like Zoom so you can have video meetings with each other and
customers
Decide on an instant messenger eg Skype /
LinkedIn etc so your team can communicate amongst themselves without clogging
up emails
Agree guidelines on checking in to confirm
you’re well and able to work that day / when plan on taking lunch / arrange
cover for time off
For when working you’re at home
You’ll want to be as effective as possible, so
make sure you have a clear workspace with suitable work surface and chair
Think about structuring your day – you might be
able to start and finish earlier if not commuting
Try not to get distracted with household chores,
factor in some break times and if possible take a proper break outside at
lunchtime and get some fresh air, go for a walk etc
Communicate with your team on your movements and
any successes / useful tips that have worked well for you
At the end of the day, make your to-do list for
tomorrow and pack up the desk so you have clear free time separate from your
working day
We are all aware of the Coronavirus and how it is impacting us all on a
global level. As a company, we are taking measures to ensure that we can
continue running as usual under these difficult circumstances. We are fully
cloud based, so our team now has the option to work from home and you will be
able to contact us on our usual phone numbers and by email during normal
working hours. We are holding meetings and candidate registrations by Skype or
Zoom if not able to meet in person.
We are staying vigilant and keeping up-to-date with advice from the
government, Public Health England (PHE) and the World Health Organisation (WHO)
and will be following all advice given.
We are confident that any further developments will have little effect on
our day to day operations, including; Accepting new recruitment briefs
(temporary, contract and permanent); Shortlisting and registering candidates;
Organising interviews (potentially virtual); Managing offers; Payroll processing;
General compliance.
We will do our best to keep all our stakeholders, including contractors
and clients up to date with the latest government guidance in terms of
recruitment and to support any queries you may have.
If you have any questions or concerns, please don’t hesitate to contact us.
Employment legislation based on European law e.g. holiday pay rights
Following
the UK leaving the EU at 11pm on
Friday 31 January 2020, the EU (Withdrawal) Act 2018 and EU (Withdrawal) Act
2020 contain provisions that do not allow changes until the implementation
period is complete. However, the
UK will not be allowed to take part in EU institutions, governance structures
and decisions etc.
What is the
implementation or transition period?
From 11pm on Friday
31 January 2020 to 11pm on 31 December 2020. During this time, the UK and the
EU can negotiate on the new terms of their future relationship and until the
transition ends, most things will stay the same including:
Freedom of movement (the right to live and work in
the EU and vice versa)
UK-EU trade
Travelling to and from the EU
Could there still be a no deal?
Yes. The UK and EU reached an agreement for
the UK to leave the EU but the future relationship is subject to negotiation
between the UK and the other EU member states. There are currently 11
months left to reach an agreement so if no deal is agreed, contingency plans
may have to be implemented. If so, the government would likely default to
the World Trade Organisation terms.
We will keep you
posted on any major updates over the course of 2020 and share useful
information so we can all prepare, whatever the outcome. Atwood Tate has access
to the REC’s Legal Helpline and we undergo relevant training to ensure we’re
compliant.
Don’t worry if you’re already working here in
the UK, you will be able to stay!
The rights and status of EU, EEA and Swiss citizens
living in the UK will remain the same until 30 June 2021. If you apply to the EU Settlement
Scheme successfully, you’ll be able to continue living and working in the UK
after 30 June 2021. You’ll be given either:
settled
status
pre-settled
status
Which status you
get depends on how long you’ve been living in the UK when you apply and your
rights will be different depending on which status you get.
If you do have
questions, please do get in touch with us and we can clarify on some of this
advice and hopefully point you in the right direction!
Is
it difficult to get an editorial role in publishing?
Some Editorial positions are notoriously competitive (particularly in trade publishing). But there are so many different types of editorial jobs, from editorial assistant, desk editor, project editor to commissioning editors, etc… and so many different types of publishing sectors, there must be an Editorial role waiting for you! Do not forget about educational, scientific or professional publishing, as these are very dynamic and rewarding areas of publishing. How do you learn about these? Research and networking! Talk to publishing professionals, attend events to get to know different markets, get in touch with your recruiter. Keep an open mind when looking for an editorial role as the right opportunity might be at a publisher you’ve never heard of before!
What
skills do I need to work in an editorial role?
It
really depends on the editorial role you are trying to get. If you are
intending to go towards commissioning, a commercial mind set and networking
skills are essential, as well as a strong relationship building aptitude. If
you are considering project editing, then project management and organisation
would come in handy. Generally a good attention to detail, strong interpersonal
skills and the will to learn are valued in an editorial role. Soft skills are
all the rage, and a positive, flexible and a proactive approach to work will
get you places!
Can
I change publishing sector later in my career?
Of
course you can! The first job you get doesn’t determine the rest of your
career. But try to explore a few routes at the beginning of your career maybe
to find that special publishing industry you love. Or be prepared to be
flexible if you are considering moving publishing sectors when you have already
gained solid experience. You will have developed transferrable skills and
valuable experience. But for more senior roles, publishers usually require
established knowledge of their sector/type of list, so you might have to take a
step down in order to break into a new sector.
So
just to sum up:
Be
curious and do keep an open mind when it comes to editorial roles
and publishing sectors
Do
your research and speak to people! It’s the best way to discover
what a particular editorial position involves or learn more about different
publishing sectors
Work
on your soft skills (we have a
blog on this)! You will develop many as you gain experience, but a
friendly and positive attitude is your best bet to start.
Be
flexible if you are trying to move into a new sector of publishing.
Have you thought about temping? Did you decide to focus on
securing a permanent role?
A common misunderstanding about temping is that it distracts
you from finding your dream job! This is not the case…
Temping is the perfect way to decide the kind of role you
would like, the type of company you would like to work for and where your skill
set lies.
Not only that but temp positions can turn into permanent
ones! If you work hard, stand out and prove yourself they won’t want to let you
go!
Here’s what one of our temps said:
`Atwood Tate were
really helpful and friendly when I first went to meet them and got me into a
temp role really quickly at a great publishing house… They were also really
enthusiastic and encouraging when my temporary role got made permanent (even
though that meant cutting my temporary contract short). Would definitely
recommend Atwood Tate for anyone looking to get into publishing!’
Once you are in, you get first pick of any internal roles and you can apply!
Temping also allows you to build up your publishing
knowledge and experience that will assist you in an interview along with
building up your network of contacts in a small industry.
Our temp’s team doesn’t stop assisting you once we have
placed you in a role. Instead we will continue to place you into temp roles to
build up your publishing experience which will secure you a permanent role!
`It has been a great
success since registering in May this year. The windows into different areas of
the publishing industry that assignments offered have proven invaluable for
securing a permanent publishing role. I’ve felt support from start to finish.’
Contact our temps team to register:
Novia Kingshott, Senior Publishing Recruitment Consultant on
0203 574 4421
Kathryn Flicker, Temps Coordinator on 0203 574 4427
Forget New Year’s
Resolutions and form just one or two good job hunting habits to land your
perfect new role in 2020
New Year’s Resolutions are often over-rated and
over-ambitious. How many times have you
resolved to do something in January, only to lapse before January is over? If your personal goal for 2020 is to find a
new job, we recommend spending a little time every day or every week on one or
two (or all) of these easily achieved activities and you will quickly find you
have formed some new habits that might just lead to you landing that perfect
new role. As with most things, “little
and often” pays off and helps you to feel positive and productive.
Sign up to targeted job alerts or make a list of
job boards to check daily – maybe on your homeward commute. For publishing jobs we recommend our own job
alerts and website in addition to Google Jobs,
the Bookseller,
Guardian,
Cision,
and the IPG
Log on to your LinkedIn profile every day, maybe
for ten minutes at lunch time, and give yourself the goal of liking or sharing
a post or connecting with someone new every day
Set aside time at the weekend for working on
your CV and personal statement or LinkedIn profile and commit to that hour or
so every week, even when you don’t have anything specific to apply for. Your CV is a living document, so if you’ve
achieved something at work that week, you might want to find a way of working
it in to a new version of your resumé
Make a list of contacts to keep in touch with
regularly, such as your recruiter or ex-colleagues or people you’ve met at
networking events. Add to the list as
you build new contacts and once a month review the list and contact anyone who
you haven’t spoken to in a while to let them know you’re still looking
Give yourself the goal of attending one
networking event a month. Check our events
calendar for some inspiration.
Tell a friend that you’re committing to this, they might say they will
come with you, but even if they don’t ask them to hold you accountable, so that
you don’t wimp out. If you’re a
self-confessed introvert, don’t panic, networking can still be extremely productive. There is a lot of advice available on how to
network as an introvert, but you can start here: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/network-like-introvert-gemma-stow/
Of course there are plenty of other things you can do, but
start small, form a habit or two and see where that takes you! Good luck with your job search in 2020 and if
you would like to speak to one of our Publishing Recruitment Consultants, call
us on 020 3574 4420.
We are very festive here at Atwood Tate, and most importantly, we’re all such huge fans of books! I’ve decided to ask my fellow colleagues which book they would like to find in their Christmas Stocking this year!
“Because I loved `This is Going to Hurt’, which was
funny and heart breaking at the same time!”
Azraa Oozeerally would love to find Girl,
Woman, Otherby Bernardine Evaristo in her stocking this Christmas!
“I’ve been interested in reading it after seeing all the great reviews it received, especially after it won the Booker Prize! It sounds like an original read and I can’t wait to get my hands on it!”
Novia Kingshott our Temps Senior Recruitment Consultant is hoping to find Rick Stein’s Secret France in her Christmas stocking!
“I have been watching the series on BBC as he travels of the beaten track in France finding amazing restaurants cooking fabulous French
food!”
Our Associate Director, Helen Speedy is
hoping to finally get Jonathan Coe’s Middle
England!
“This novel has been on my wish list since it came out in 2018, but I still haven’t had a chance to read it. I love Jonathan Coe and his darkly humorous commentary on society and the human condition. I can’t wait to settle down in a cosy spot with a slice of Christmas cake and read Middle England cover to cover in one sitting, so I do hope someone puts it in my stocking!”
Catherine Roney’s Christmas stocking book wish is, Giver
of Stars by Jojo Moyes!
“I am a huge Jojo Moyes fan, and cannot wait to get a copy of her latest book. Set in England in the late 1930s, it is a story about two women and a mission to spread the wonder of books and reading to those who are poor or lost. This book is based on a true story and sounds exactly like the wonderful and motivational read needed to start off the New Year
“I couldn’t attend the Bloomsbury event on it but I’ve been interested in this since I first heard about it and it took home the title of Best Travel Book at last night’s National Geographic Traveller Reader Awards!”
Last but not least, our consultant Clare Chan is hoping to get 1Q84 by Murakami!
“I love his fiction, but I haven’t managed to get around
to this classic!”
If you’re in need of some great books as gifts this year
then here are some of the best books of 2019:
The
Beast of Buckingham Palace by David Walliams and Tony Ross –this
book would be great for the younger ones to find in their stocking!
Pinch of Nom:
100 Slimming, Home-style Recipes by Catherine Allinson, Kate Allinson,
and Kay Featherstone, is the perfect stocking gift for someone who is
passionate about cooking! (I have it myself and think it’s the handiest book ever!!)
The
Testaments by Margaret Atwood for someone who is a fan of Atwood this
would be the best gift to find in their stocking!
There have been so many amazing books released this year,
so there are plenty to choose from for the perfect literary gift! Here at
Atwood Tate we cannot wait to see what books we’ll be blessed with next year!
Wishing you all have a lovely Christmas and a wonderful
New Year!
Marketers
are responsible for promoting a publisher or client’s products or services in
order to reach their target audience. Marketing can be either traditional (e.g.
print advertisements, brochures, flyers) or digital (e.g. social media, email
campaigns, websites, SEO, digital advertising). The main goal of marketing is
to generate sales. Nearly all marketing roles that we recruit for do have a
strong digital element, so it is important to keep these skills up to date.
How
easy is it to transfer your marketing skills into a role in publishing?
The
skills and knowledge that you develop in marketing are highly transferable,
especially if you have particular expertise or a specialism that is in demand.
Marketers often need to have strong copywriting skills and a keen eye for
detail, as well as excellent communication and relationship building skills. An
up-to-date knowledge of the sector you’d like to work in as well as an understanding
of the company and its target market, will strengthen your application.
What
marketing roles do we work on?
We
work on marketing roles in book, journal, magazine publishing and events across
all sectors and related industries.
Content marketing is also a growing area. No matter the sector,
marketing is a highly creative role and publishers are always looking for
imaginative strategies and innovative ways to engage audiences. As there are so
many marketing roles, there are many opportunities for career progression. If
you’re interested in a marketing role or would like to find out more, we would
love to hear from you!
So
just to sum up:
Marketers are responsible for promoting a publisher or client’s products or services in order to reach their target audience and generate sales.
The skills and knowledge that you develop in marketing are highly transferable, especially if you have particular expertise or a specialism that is in demand.
Marketing is a creative role so it’s important that you market yourself as well as your product. Be authentic and think about your personal brand!
PLANNING! Get a marketing plan at least 3-6 months ahead of publication date!
-Advice from our Publishing Recruitment Consultant, Catherine Roney
Did you know that the UK is
the world’s biggest exporter of books? Publishing
is a large and growing industry and the total number of books published in the
UK last year was 173,000. Publishing
businesses in the UK alone have a collective annual turnover of £6 billion,
making the UK the fifth biggest market in the world after the US, China,
Germany, and Japan. On average, the UK publishing industry employs 30,000
people directly and roughly 70,000 people indirectly spread across over 8,000
publishers. Publishing is now a multimedia business and last year digital books
accounted 15% of the 360,000,000 physical and eBooks sold. Ebook sales have
dropped a little in recent years from 17% to 15%, perhaps because they are
being rapidly displaced by digital audio books! These figures give you an idea
of the size and importance of the publishing industry.
Earlier in the month, Parissa
Bagheri from Atwood Tate was invited back to her alma mater, the University of
Greenwich, to attend an event they were holding to discuss Working in the Book
Trade: The Business of Selling Books. The panel of speakers included CEO of
Bonnier, Perminder Mann, CEO of Hachette, David Shelley, and the Ex-Chairman of
Blackwell’s Bookshop Trevor Goul-Wheeker. These leading figures in publishing
and the book trade shared their experiences and journeys into publishing,
offering advice to those in the audience looking to do the same. We know a lot of our followers are aspiring
publishing professionals or still young in their publishing career, so wanted
to share their insights with you too.
CEO of Hachette David
Shelley was first up in telling the audience about how he entered the industry.
David’s parents owned a second-hand bookshop, so he was exposed to the sales
side of publishing from an early age. He began his career as an Editorial
Assistant for Alison and Busby (a well-established small publisher). He kept the company running for 5 years and
encompassed problems along the way, such as the book distributor going bust and
relocating the office near to Brixton near to where he lived. The owner of
Little, Brown asked David if he would consider buying a few books a year as an
Editor and he joined the company, which eventually led to his promotion to
Publisher, then Head of Division, and finally to his current role running
Hachette UK!
Hachette publishes 5,000
books every year and has a staff of 18,000. David explained that the editorial departments
receive 1,000 applications for every editorial assistant job, whereas the sales
team often only receive around three direct applications. He emphasised the
importance of exploring different sectors; foreign rights professionals get to
read, travel and correspond with authors whereas, production departments,
whilst equally driven and creative focus more on the people and processes in
the background. David also advised that publishers are looking for people who
are keen to work in finance, also stating that the first two to three years of
entering the industry is all about grafting your way through. It is necessary
to differentiate yourself from others, don’t rely on just the contacts you have.
Don’t be afraid to be bold and fearless in your first year, don’t undersell
yourself, and be proud and show off your achievements. People love to mentor
younger people, so offer to have coffee with them to show your passion and
interest!
His tips for a good cover
letter are:
Look up the books
that your target publisher is publishing and research its heritage
Brilliant quality writing
– this is a reflection of how well you can communicate
Talk about your
favourite writers, what are they doing?
Be thoughtful and
considerate
Don’t follow the
rules strictly, break rules and disagree!
Bonnier is the sixth largest
publishing company in the UK and its CEO Perminder Mann also talked about her
experience in the publishing industry. Growing up, she spent much of her time
reading, making sure to build up her English vocabulary. She spent time
interning and eventually had an interview with Macmillan for a role in its in
Special Sales department. She was offered the job, which she explained was quite
challenging, but she used the opportunity to gain as much knowledge as she
could. Perminder was then promoted in sales and travelled throughout the UK to
meet buyers. Later she moved to Transworld (now part of Penguin Random House)
as an entrepreneur in a five person team, and faced the problem of not having
as much contact or support, constantly having to juggle between having a career
and being a mother. She survived that and then moved into children’s
publishing, but was travelling too much and decided to move out of publishing altogether. Publishing isn’t quite like any other
industry, though, and she ended up returning when she was offered a position at
Bonnier.
Perminder talked about how at
Bonnier you don’t have to choose between a career and family, as you can work flexibly
she has put benefits in place such as a good a maternity policy. This is something that Perminder is extremely
passionate about given her own experience throughout her career and she is now
in the middle of improving paternity pay and continuing to champion equality.
Finally, the ex-chairman of
Blackwell’s Bookshop Trevor Goul-Wheeker took to the floor to explain how he
fell in love with the publishing industry. Trevor started off as a bookseller
and fell in love with the book trade, partly because of the people involved in
it. Blackwell’s is a well-known book retailer, but as the digital publishing
industry gradually took over, Blackwell’s was forced to start closing stores
and were closing 16 high street shops every day. Currently, the UK bookshops
account for 41% of books sold with ecommerce accounting for 35% of book sales. However,
Trevor stated that bookshop recommendations are still the number one influencer
when people are choosing which book to buy. He believes that bookshops still offer
customer engagement and a valued experience and that bookselling and publishing
go hand in hand.
All three speakers did
emphasise that you do not need a masters to get into publishing; most
publishing companies prefer more hands on experience, which shows a variety of
skills. They also all agreed that ecommerce
and ebooks are slowly taking over from print as they are easier to access and
to read on the go. Audio books are now attracting a new demographic of “readers”
and enabling publishers to tap into a new market. Publishers are already and
will continue to learn about and develop in the area of audio.
What are soft skills? Soft
skills are defined as character traits or interpersonal aptitudes that effect the
ability to work and interact with others in a work environment. We most often
learn soft skills at school, in the classroom, directly or indirectly. They are not always “people skills” but are
abilities relating to emotional intelligence and can be useful for all industries
and job types.
Examples of soft skills
include:
Communication
Team Work
Problem-Solving
Work Ethic
Adaptability
Interpersonal Skills
Time Management
Creativity
Attention to detail
Hard skills unlike soft
skills are more job specific skills that are usually acquired through education
or training. They are based solely on technical knowledge. Hard and soft skills
complement each other in the workplace: hard skills reflect whether you would
be suitable for the job and the technical skills it requires, whereas soft
skills are unique and personal as they reflect the way you deal with situations
specific to a work environment or the role for which you are applying.
“94% of recruiters believe that soft skills outweigh
experience… 75% of recruiting professionals have cut an interview short because
a candidate didn’t demonstrate the soft skills needed for the position they had
applied for.”–Forbes
Soft skills distinguish you
from other employees as they are unique to your individual personality. They also
tend to highlight your leadership skills and this is what employers most often
look at. There are many ways that you can show off your soft skills to your
employer, generally this is usually over face-to-face interviews. Using
examples is a brilliant way to show off your soft skills as you can demonstrate
how valuable your skills really are and how these have aided you in many
difficult work situations. For example, it is particularly important that when
asked questions about difficult work situations you cleverly answer with how it got solved or what you would do
differently next time rather than just stating the final result.
Here are some examples of
common soft skills and their DOs and DONTs:
Team Work & Collaboration
Avoid ‘I’s’ and use
more ‘We’s’.
Make sure to mention
team accomplishments as well as personal ones, how you contributed to team effort.
Perseverance & Dedication
Show confidence in
why you made certain decisions.
Emphasise your
passion and dedication to work, as it is a reflection of your work ethic.
Give examples that
reflect your perseverance to accomplish anything, both work problems and
personal work goals.
Time Management & Organisation
Time management is a
clear representation of how efficiently you work.
It reflects an
organised candidate, who shows how passionate and seriously they want the role!
If you have good time
management skills, it reduces the likelihood of stress within the workplace.
Problem Solving
Describe how you solved a
problem step by step e.g. “First I spoke to my manager and then…”
Soft Skills in Publishing
Now that you know all about
soft skills, which of these will be the most important when you are applying
and interviewing for a role in publishing?
Effective communication and
emotional intelligence are important in the world of publishing. It is
important to understand the mood, tone and the values of those around us. Fair
and consistent communication is essential; being able to asses and attend to emotional
needs is integral to gaining understanding.
Openness and honest are also
very important. For those just starting a career in publishing it is imperative
to be open to the entire experience being a learning process. Being honest in
saying ‘I need help’/’I’m not good at that’ shows your interviewer/employer
that you do struggle but are willing to learn and grow within those personal
struggles.
Finally, learning with
agility is another key soft skill in publishing; everything is a trial and
error both in life and in the world of work. It is okay to fail in work tasks
as long as you’re learning quickly. Persevering demonstrates your potential and
growth in character. Always strive for better and work proactively within your
job. You may find that in publishing certain traditions are kept, but all
businesses look ahead, so having employees who are equally forward thinking helps
the industry to grow!
For
more information on transferable soft skills click
here!