Natalie Atherall
Consultant
Queens Court, 24 Queen Street, Manchester, M2 5HX
- Specialism: Legal
- Sector: Public Sector
- Roles: Locum, fixed-term and permanent
- Location: North Wales, Cheshire and The Wirral
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The latest
Insight in Legal
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Returning to work after a period of absence
I have recently returned to work following an accident which meant that I was unable to work in the office for a period of three months. It can be extremely challenging being out of the office for such a long period of time, having limited access to your work/life and generally being ‘out of the loop’ which can be quite demotivating. However, there are lots of ways to stay positive and focused while you are working from home, and I thought I would share my top tips from my experience below: Keep in touch with your manager and colleagues – I had several visits from both my manager and colleagues during my recovery period which really made such a difference. This meant that I was kept up-to-date with all aspects of what was going on within our team, and the wider business as a whole such as: Staffing changes and information around new people that had joined the business. Business updates including information on our new dress code policy. Recruitment updates – what roles the team were getting through and how those were progressing. Try to be as involved in your role as possible whilst not being in the office – once my initial recovery period was over and I was given the green light to start working again (albeit remotely), I knew I wanted to do as much as possible. I worked closely with manager and team members to ensure I offered as much help as possible whilst working remotely. I was given a laptop and mobile phone which enabled me to be fully connected to Sellick Partnership. It allowed me to act as if I were in the office which helped me a lot. I was able to log in to the system each morning, access my emails and take calls from clients, candidates and colleagues. This was a really key moment for me as I started to reintegrate myself into the working day. I also had a conversation with my manager twice a day to ensure that both the team and I were updated on our work and vice versa. Use the technology at your disposal – at Sellick Partnership we are passionate about technology and we are lucky enough to have all the software in place which made it possible for me to video call into training sessions. This was a brilliant way to ensure I didn’t miss scheduled training, and it helped to keep me on track with my training plan. Consider a phased return – as tempting as it is to jump straight back into full time work you should really support the idea of a phased return. It doesn’t have to be drawn out over a number of weeks, but easing yourself in gently is a must – you’ll be surprised at how much of a difference this makes. Having broken my foot, a phased return allowed me to physically reintroduce my commute to work (challenging when you haven’t been able to walk for months!) as well as getting used to the normal working hours. Don’t be scared – it is unnerving to have been out of the office for a long period of time but if I could offer one piece of advice it would be to embrace your transition back to the office and enjoy being part of the office ‘buzz’ again. Returning to work is undoubtedly daunting after any period of absence, but I really couldn’t wait to get back to work and am pleased to now be back in the office full time. Overall, having three months out of the office was a really challenging experience. My main piece of advice would be ultimately to use the tools at your disposal so you can stay involved in your role and the team, and keep in touch with your manager and colleagues. The combination of all of the above meant that something such as returning to work could have been extremely overwhelming, but by the time I was back in the office full time I was really ready, and two weeks later it feels as though it never happened! If you have any questions about your return to work please feel free to contact me on natalie.atherall@sellickpartnership.co.uk. Alternatively you can read blogs from my colleagues here.
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FAQs: Hiring a locum for the first time
Looking into hiring a legal locum can be a completely new experience for clients as it is a very different recruiting process to taking on permanent hires. I regularly get asked a number of common questions so I thought I would put a some frequently asked questions (FAQs) together to help if you have thought about locums but are not 100 percent sure they are right for your business. Why do I need a locum? Locums are available at short notice and are able to parachute into firms to assist in times of real need. This could be to cover; sickness, holidays, extended leave, maternity leave, project work, an influx of work or cover whilst the firm is recruiting permanently. This can be a great way to bring a legal professional in without having to commit to a permanent full-time member of staff. The locum will only stay as long as you require them helping you relieve pressures on your business. What’s the history of a locum? Our locum candidates usually have around 5 years PQE and are all highly experienced legal professionals. This is to make sure they have a wide range of experience in their practice area and will be able to hit the ground running with minimal supervision to progress matters quickly. When deciding on a locum you will be given a copy of their CV and details of the assignments they have completed for us previously so you can make sure they are the fight fit for your business. We will also ensure all major checks are completed before we send a candidate to you including; references, right to work, payment set up and checked their history with the SRA (finding or conditions). How much will a locum cost? You will be charged an all-inclusive hourly rate plus VAT, this includes everything (their pay, our fee, holiday pay, national insurance, apprenticeship levy, pension contributions and benefits etc). As they work on a flat hourly rate, you only pay for the hours completed and have no hidden extras such as sick pay, holiday pay, bank holidays, as these are all included in the rate we give to you. We will also pay the candidate so you don’t have to worry about adding them to your own payroll making the process as simple for you as possible. Do they have their own insurance? No. Legal locums will always be covered under your professional indemnity insurance. Depending on your insurance, you may need to inform your insurance company that you are taking on a locum so it is best to check what their process is. Some insurance providers may ask for their CV, practicing certificate or a questionnaire to be completed etc. How quickly can I get someone in? Very quickly! Giving us plenty of notice about the need is always preferred but in a lot of circumstances it is impossible to tell when you will need a locum as your needs will change on a daily basis. We often get new instructions for a locum to start the following day so we can turn everything around very quickly. We’re a little different to other firms, will the candidate be able to adapt? Absolutely. Most of our locums have been professional locums for years meaning they have worked in many different sized firms across the UK. They have seen and heard it all, from firms that still don’t use emails to ultra-modern firms that have systems and new technologies in place. Our candidates will be able to work anywhere and usually we will be able to find you someone that has experience working in a similar firm to you. Do I have to give notice to end the contract? No. As the candidate is self-employed you do not have an employment contract. If you have booked the candidate in for specific dates and need to end the contract early, we would just ask you give us as much notice as possible so we can secure them their next contract. When you cancel the contract it ends immediately. I’m only looking for someone part-time, would that be an issue? Not at all. We have a wide selection of candidates that are all looking for roles that suit their requirements. If you only need someone 3 days per week, there will be a candidate that is only looking for 3 days. Similarly, if you need a full-time candidates we will have a locum to suit your exacting requirements. What will the candidate actually do whilst in post? It is completely up to you. Some firms only require someone in the office to answer the phones, return emails and sort out any very urgent matters, and some firms require that person to run a caseload an act as a permanent member of staff. Our locum candidates can incept new files, progress matters and close matters. They will do whatever you need whilst they are in contract with you. These are just some of the usual questions I am asked. If you have any more or would like to discuss employing your next legal locum I’m on the other end of the phone. Please give me a call on 0203 741 8189 or feel free to email me at michael.bailey@sellickpartnerhsip.co.uk. Alternatively you can check out more of our legal Insights here.
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The importance of company culture
Since I joined Sellick Partnership, the Private Practice Legal team has more than doubled in size and more growth is planned throughout the next year (and beyond!). As the team continues to grow in size and different personalities and backgrounds are added to the mix we have taken the opportunity to sit down and discuss our current culture. We have been discussing topics such as what we love about working in our team, what we need to monitor and improve and what we want to portray to new people joining the business. This has been a fantastic exercise for us to reflect on our team and has allowed us to pause and look at our working dynamic and what standards we want to hold ourselves to. This exercise also made me think about the importance of company culture generally and the important role it plays for both candidates and clients in the recruitment process. What is company culture? Company culture can often be difficult to explain but it is essentially a company’s ‘personality’ and how this forms its working environment. It can cover anything from core values and beliefs to expectations on staff and staff behaviour. A company’s culture will inform what it is actually like to work there day-to-day, so it is vitally important to get this right in order to keep employees happy and engaged at work. Why is culture so important? Culture has become one of the biggest deciding factors in the recruitment process. Culture and ensuring companies are the right culture fit rank very highly amongst our candidates (and indeed our clients) as it usually determines how comfortable candidates feel in their working environment. It can be the reason why a job doesn’t work out and as a result is often high on the agenda of most candidates seeking new employment. For this reason employers need to ensure they get this right and portray a culture that is favourable to candidates. Deciding if the company is the right fit for you. It is crucially important for candidates to ensure that the business they are applying for has the right culture for them, and that they are the right fit for the business they are interviewing for. Finding this out can be very difficult to assess and it is usually very hard to tell until you have a solid understanding of the business and the way it works. Despite these difficulties there are some ways you can prepare. I have put together a few tips on what candidates can do to try and establish whether a firm will be a good fit for them. Work out what is important to you – firstly sit down and work out what you are looking for in a role; is it flexibility with hours, clear team structures and hierarchy, lack of micromanagement or a combination of different things? Company websites – company websites tend to be a formal portrayal of how that company wants to be seen and may not necessarily give a you complete understanding of what it is like to work there day-to-day. However, they can be useful. Be sure to look out for any staff testimonials and use it to learn about the different backgrounds and structure of your potential team Asking around – speaking with your Recruitment Consultant and people who have worked at the company you are interested in can help you form a picture of what the company is like. However, it is important to remember that everyone is different, what didn’t work for one person might not be the same for you (and vice versa!) External websites such as Glassdoor – external review sites such as Glassdoor can also provide an insight into what it is actually like to work for a company but come with the same warnings as above. Asking questions at interview – in my experience interviews are the best forum for getting a gut feel as to what the culture of a company (and that specific department) is actually like. Make sure you use this opportunity to ask tailored questions that will help you establish if it will likely be a good fit. We appreciate sometimes this can feel awkward but your Recruitment Consultant will be able to help you if you are worried about how to phrase things. To discuss this article in more detail or for further information and advice on the recruitment process please get in touch by emailing catherine.wasilewski@hotmail.com. Alternatively, check out more blogs on the Insights section of our website.
