LeasingTeam

A professionally prepared CV is a form of first contact with a potential employer. The information it contains, as well as the aesthetic and modern appearance, determines whether the candidate will be invited to a job interview. So it is worth spending some time on its careful preparation. If the applicant remembers to include key information in it, it will become a gateway to getting the dream position. Here are the elements that, according to the IT LeasingTeam expert, should be included in a CV.

Personal data

In the upper part of the CV, the candidate should include basic data such as name and contact details, i.e. phone number, e-mail address, address of residence. A very common mistake is to include an unprofessional e-mail address in your CV, in which a diminutive or nickname appears instead of your name and surname. On the other hand, the e-mail address used in such a document as a CV should be professional and usually start with a name and surname, e.g. imie.nazwisko@gmail.com. Posting information about marital status, having children or age is not required

The top of the document is also the right place to indicate what form of work the candidate prefers, remote or on-site, and when they can start working for a new employer. In recruitment for IT positions, this is very important information, because most often candidates are sought immediately and their work, especially when they are programmers, can be done remotely. Many are eager to take advantage of this opportunity, considering remote work an important benefit – explains Sandra Olchowik, IT Recruitment Specialist at IT LeasingTeam.

Photograph

Including a photo in your CV may not be obligatory, but it is always welcome by employers. It is worth making sure that it is a formal, business photo. Photos from holidays or parties are better left for other occasions.

Information about yourself

This is a place where the candidate can write some relevant information about themselves. It is certainly worth showing why he cares about a given position, emphasize his strengths, e.g. describe specialist knowledge, knowledge of specific programming languages, years of experience in a given field or industry, and outline the direction in which he would like to develop. If the candidate has applied for a position to a company that is located outside their place of residence, it is worth writing that they are open to relocation.

Education

Information about education should include data such as the dates of beginning and ending education in chronological order, starting with the most recent, names of universities and schools, fields of study and degrees obtained. If a person has the right education, but is just starting to gain work experience, it is worth including information about education in the CV first, and then about experience. However, if the candidate already has extensive experience, but does not have the appropriate education, he should change this order.

Professional experience

The course of your professional career is the most important point in your CV, so it is worth devoting the most time and attention to its preparation. The candidate should include information such as the names of employers, start and end dates, arranged chronologically, always from the last place of work, job titles and responsibilities. This is where you can boast about your achievements.

Additional activities in the form of volunteering, internships, participation in charity campaigns, membership in associations or membership in student clubs are also a form of gaining professional experience and are worth mentioning. Especially when the candidate is just starting their professional career – comments Sandra Olchowik from IT LeasingTeam.

Projects

If the candidate works on a project, he or she should collect all the information about the completed projects in one place and describe the scope of work and the technologies that were used to perform them. The list of completed projects will be an excellent testimony to his experience and skills.

Abilities

In the IT industry, the description of skills is closely related to technologies. Depending on the position for which the candidate is applying, it will be necessary to describe the degree of knowledge of, m.in programming, databases, operating systems, analysis and management.

Courses, training, certificates

Having or not having a certificate can have a significant impact on the choice of a given candidate by the employer. People with similar qualifications will distinguish themselves from the competition by the courses they have just completed and the certificates they hold.

The description of the training should include information about the date and place where it took place, its topic and the certificate obtained. If the training was conducted by a person known in the industry, you can also add the name and surname of the trainer.

Knowledge of foreign languages

Knowledge of specific foreign languages is increasingly appearing in the requirements for various positions in the IT industry. The level of language proficiency is determined by a scale from A1 to C2. All you have to do is enter the language you know and add the appropriate designation next to it, which will determine your level. Knowledge of languages is also confirmed by appropriate language certificates, the possession of which is a great advantage for companies, so it is worth boasting about them in your CV.

Interest

Generalities such as a book, a film do not add much to the CV and interests can be an additional place where we show that our work is also our hobby. During the interview, the candidate is often asked to say a few words about himself.

If a candidate writes in their CV that they are interested in new technologies, they can be asked about how they develop their knowledge on the subject, what websites they visit and what magazines they reach – comments Sandra Olchowik.

Length of CV

In the case of CVs of IT specialists, the two-page rule does not apply. The length of application documents depends on the candidate’s experience, scope of responsibilities and the number of projects completed by the candidate. The CV of a person with many years of experience in the implementation of IT projects can take up to a dozen pages. Full information about the experience is the best testimony to the recruiter’s skills and knowledge, increasing their chances of getting a job.

Additional information

Here the candidate can add links to works and projects posted on the Internet, websites, profiles on Goldenline or Linkedin or more specialized portals such as Github.

Clause

Each CV must include a consent to the processing of personal data for recruitment purposes. The standard formula reads: “I consent to the processing of my personal data for the purposes of the recruitment process (in accordance with the Act of 29.08.97 on the protection of personal data, Journal of Laws No. 133, item 883).” Some ads require modified formulas, e.g. containing the name of the company. If the employer requires a modified formula, it should be inserted into the CV.

When the CV is ready, it is worth reading it carefully and correcting any spelling and grammar mistakes or typos. You should also remember to match your application documents to a specific offer. It is worth including phrases, words and phrases similar to those contained in the advertisement in the CV.

When saving the CV, the candidate should choose a file format that does not cause any problems when opening and name it with a first and last name, e.g. imie_nazwisko_stanowisko.pdf

A CV prepared in this way can be sent in response to job offers that interested the candidate.

Posting of workers to work in the European Union is a topic that is attracting more and more interest both among Poles looking for work abroad and foreign entrepreneurs. As the latest report of the European Commission shows, in 2015 Poland posted as many as 463,174 employees to work abroad. Invariably, for several years we have been the leader in the European Union in terms of the volume of posting. On the other hand, the country that accepted the largest number of employees in 2015, i.e. 418,908 people, was Germany. It is assumed that among all countries in the world, our western neighbors have the most complicated procedure for preparing tax returns. This is due to the complexity of some legal acts and declarations. The CPC Consulting expert explains the rules for preparing tax returns for people who have worked in Germany.

Rules for settling taxes in Germany

Both the companies posting workers and the workers themselves are obliged to comply with the employment regulations in force in the host country, i.e. the country where the person is to work. An employee employed by a Polish employment agency who goes to work abroad must know that from the first day of work, the agency is obliged to tax his remuneration in the host country. In the case of Germany, tax contributions are deducted from the employee’s salary to the German tax office, i.e. the Finanzamt. If the contract, and thus the length of the work performed, exceeds 183 days, the employee is obliged to settle the tax in Germany.

The tax return should be submitted to the tax office in Germany by 31 May of each subsequent year following the tax year at the latest. According to the German Tax Ordinance, a person permanently registered in Poland must indicate his tax representative in Germany, who will not only prepare a tax return for the taxpayer, but will also be responsible to the tax office for its quality. A tax representative can be a natural person with permanent residence in Germany. It can be a friend or family member who, on the basis of an authorization, will make a tax settlement for the taxpayer. It is worth noting that the tax representative must know the accounting rules in force in Germany, which are quite complicated. For this reason, people who have worked in Germany often prefer to entrust the settlement to certified accounting or tax offices, which can also be a tax representative. The tax office, acting on the basis of an authorization, is responsible for completing the necessary documents, settling the tax as well as correspondence with the tax office. There are also many tax offices in Poland that specialize in tax settlements in Germany and in conducting full correspondence with the German tax office. Before starting cooperation with a tax office, it is worth making sure that it is a certified office, with authorizations, knowledge and experience in preparing tax returns in Germany.

CPC Consulting informs employees on an ongoing basis, whom it delegates to work in Germany, about the obligations that they should fulfill in connection with the performance of work in Germany. This also applies to the obligation to settle taxes. We are always at the employee’s disposal if they ask us for support in finding a reliable tax office, both in Polish and in Germany – says Agnieszka Nocuń, Key Account Manager at CPC Consulting.

If the employee has not yet settled the tax paid in Germany, he has up to 4 years to do so. This means that if you worked in Germany in 2015 and in 2017 you remembered that you had not yet filed your tax return, you can still do so because less than 4 years have passed. Failure to submit the tax return on time is associated with the need to pay high financial penalties imposed by the German tax office on the taxpayer. Failure to pay them, on the other hand, may prevent the employee from performing further work in Germany.

How to settle correctly?

The basis for making a proper settlement is to obtain two documents from the employer, i.e. in this case the employment agency. The first is the Lohnsteuerbescheinigung, which summarizes the period of employment of the employee, the amount of gross remuneration and the amount of taxes paid. The second document is a certificate of the amount of social security contributions paid. It should also be remembered that immediately after arriving in Germany, the employee should register at the appropriate City Hall/Municipal Office. In this way, the Finanzamt records the date from which the employee in question stays and works in Germany. It also gives it an individual tax number, i.e. Identifikationsnummer, necessary for later settlement with the tax office. Regardless of whether a given employee has already been assigned an Identifikationsnummer, whenever he changes his place of residence, he is obliged to register again at the Town or Commune Office appropriate for his place of accommodation and deregister from the previous place.

Any employment agency that is aware of the rights and obligations related to living and working in Germany should also support employees in matters for which they are not directly responsible. CPC Consulting informs employees about the documents they will receive as part of the summary of their employment in a given tax year, necessary for later tax settlement in Germany – comments Agnieszka Nocuń from CPC Consulting.

What can be deducted from tax?

Proper documentation of the tax return consists of a number of statements by the employee regarding his or her individual professional, family, tax or religious situation. Examples of statements may concern the taxpayer’s family status, costs of travel to the place of work, costs of accommodation, income earned in the settled tax year, costs of work clothes, bank account, residence in Germany or change of place of employment. The taxpayer himself or a tax representative appointed by him is responsible for completing the statements concerning the individual situation of the taxpayer. In order to obtain a tax refund, the employee should take care of certain documents during the employment and stay in Germany. Therefore, he should remember to collect receipts confirming running two households, in Poland and in Germany. These can be bills for commuting to work, car repairs, phone calls or renting a room or apartment. In the tax return in Germany, you can also include the costs of travel to the family, e.g. a ticket to Polish or the cost of fuel calculated on the basis of the number of kilometers traveled.

Tax settlement in Germany and the obligation to file a tax return in Poland

Under the double tax treaty between Poland and Germany, work performed in Germany is not subject to the obligation to file a tax return in Poland. It is also not necessary to report income from work abroad in the return if the employee did not earn any other taxable income in Poland in a given year. If the employee generated income during the year, both from work in Polish and Germany, he is obliged to settle the tax in Polish. In this return, the employee settles the income earned in Poland, and the income obtained from work abroad is only indicated.

Timely settlement with the tax office in Germany may be a more complicated task for the employee than settling the tax in Poland. All the more so, even before starting work in Germany, it is worth considering employment in a professional employment agency. Thanks to its support, throughout the entire period of employment, the employee will be kept informed about the most important issues, including those related to tax settlement in Germany.

A temporary employment contract, due to the flexibility it gives to both employees and employers, is an increasingly popular form of employment in Poland. Currently, the percentage of temporary workers in our country is 1.30%. According to the Act of 9 July 2003 on the employment of temporary workers, employment agencies are the only entities that can employ on the basis of this type of contract. According to the National Register of Employment Agencies, there are 7,744 of them in Poland. Every month, throughout the country, they are looking for thousands of candidates to perform work, including temporary work. A LeasingTeam expert explains what temporary work is, what employment conditions it offers to candidates and how to become a temporary worker.

What is temporary work?

Temporary employment is a type of employment in which three parties are involved: a temporary worker, an employment agency and a user employer. Employment agencies operate on the basis of the Act on Temporary Work, which regulates the rules for employing temporary workers and the rules for directing them to perform temporary work for the user employer. An employment agency hires an employee and then delegates him or her to perform work for its client, i.e. the user’s employer. Under his management, the employee performs his duties. On the other hand, an employment agency, formally being an employer, deals with all HR and payroll services related to employment, i.e. calculating and paying remuneration, settling holidays, paying advance income tax, social security contributions, etc.

Employers often use temporary work services when they periodically need to increase employment, e.g. due to upcoming holidays or seasonal work, when they need people to replace or perform additional work that full-time employees would not be able to perform – comments Marta Zbądzka, Project Manager at LeasingTeam.

Conditions of employment

Employment agencies, in the case of temporary work, sign a temporary employment contract with employees, which guarantees them the same benefits as an employment contract. After working for 30 days, the employee is entitled to two days of leave, and his contributions are paid on the same terms as in the case of an employment contract. If he falls ill, he will receive sick pay for the period in which he was on L4, i.e. sick leave. It is also worth knowing that the time worked on the basis of this type of contract is included in the pension.

The exact duration of a temporary employment contract always depends on the needs of the user employer and can be from a week to several months. However, it cannot last more than 18 months in the next 3 years. This protects employees against indefinitely extending the period in which they are employed under a temporary employment contract – says Marta Zbądzka from LeasingTeam.

A temporary employment contract can be terminated with notice, which is 3 days if the contract was concluded for a period not longer than 2 weeks and 1 week (counting from the next Sunday) if the contract was concluded for a period longer than 2 weeks.

Available positions and salary

The range of positions on which employees are employed as part of temporary work is very wide. Very often, employees are sought for positions that do not require very high qualifications, e.g. production worker, cashier, salesman, machine operator or telemarketer. In the case of recruitment for specialist positions, employment agencies are looking for employees with the appropriate qualifications: electrician, welder, e-commerce analyst or programmer. Management assistants, business process specialists, freight forwarders or specialists in the HR and payroll department will also find work on a temporary contract.

The rates for individual positions are different and depend on the experience you have. In production positions, they range between PLN 13 and 16 gross per hour. A hostess during weekend promotional campaigns in a big city can earn from 14 to 18 PLN net per hour. There are also offers of one-day promotions or guest service during special events, e.g. conferences, during which the salary is PLN 20 net per hour, with a nine-hour working day. In the case of other positions, the amount of pay depends on the experience and skills held. For example, a welder with very little experience will earn from PLN 15 per hour gross per hour, and a highly qualified one can receive up to PLN 5 to 8 thousand net per month.

Candidates should pay attention to whether the rates offered by employers are in accordance with the applicable law. It is worth knowing that from 1 January 2017, the hourly rate on a contract of mandate cannot be lower than PLN 13 gross, and the minimum amount of remuneration both on the basis of an employment contract or a temporary employment contract, as well as a contract of mandate, is PLN 2000 gross per month – informs Marta Zbądzka.

Benefits for candidates

Temporary work gives you the opportunity to reconcile many activities at the same time. It often allows you to adjust the schedule, e.g. to classes at the university, in the case of full-time students, or to reconcile professional activity with childcare, in the case of young mothers. It is also a very good solution for people who need extra money and would like to earn after hours. Employment agencies are open to hiring people of all ages under a temporary employment contract. A large group of employees are people 50+.

With the opportunity to work on interesting projects in a variety of companies and industries, temporary work allows you to gain valuable work experience and new skills. Especially for young people, this is a big advantage, because they can work in different companies and in different positions. This allows them to plan their professional careers more consciously.

How to become a temporary worker

Employment agencies conduct extensive recruitment activities in order to attract candidates. They publish their offers on job portals such as infopraca.pl or on portals with small ads, e.g. olx.pl. They also try to reach candidates through local web portals or advertisements posted on notice boards in towns located closest to the user’s employer’s headquarters. The most popular form of contact with an employment agency is to send your CV to the e-mail address indicated in the job advertisement or call the phone number provided. It is also worth following social networking sites such as Facebook, where recruiters are increasingly posting job advertisements. All you have to do is express your interest in the job offer in response and wait for the recruiter to contact you. Another option is to fill in the form available on the employment agency’s website and register in the candidate database.

We are aware that not all candidates have CVs, so we have created a portal with job advertisements www.praca.leasingteam.pl, which allows you to join the database of candidates without having to attach your CV. All you need to do is fill in a short form. It is also worth agreeing to participate in other recruitment processes and to send marketing information to your e-mail address and mobile phone. Thanks to this, recruiters conducting new recruitments will be able to contact people registered in the database via SMS to present them with job offers- explains Marta Zbądzka – It is a very convenient and quick form of contact for both the candidate and the recruiter – adds the expert.

From temporary to permanent worker

Still few candidates know that by deciding to work through an employment agency, they have a chance to get a permanent job. Every month, employment agencies send thousands of employees to work for user employers. Thanks to cooperation with an employment agency, companies have the opportunity to check how the employee is doing in a given position, whether he is engaged and whether his cooperation with the team is going well. If user employers can afford to increase permanent employment, they very often prefer to offer jobs to already proven temporary workers rather than start an external recruitment process. In such a situation, employees sign employment contracts directly with the user employer, who formally becomes their employer.

Employment agencies publish thousands of job offers for people interested in temporary work, becoming a large group of potential employers. If the candidate cares about flexible working hours, gaining diverse experience in companies from many industries, nothing stands in the way of sending their application. This can be the beginning of a very successful, long-term cooperation.

A long-term but flexible HR strategy is of paramount importance to an organization. The competitive advantage of a company is determined by employees – their knowledge, experience and commitment. Proper people management and all processes related to both hard and soft HR require not only knowledge, but also tracking the current situation on the labor market and in the industry. Knowledge of trends and challenges will allow you to adjust your management strategy to them on an ongoing basis. Here is a list prepared by a LeasingTeam expert.

Employee market

The year 2016 was exceptional for the Polish labour market. In November, the lowest unemployment rate in 25 years was recorded, which, according to the Central Statistical Office, amounted to only 8.2%. This information confirmed the trend that HR consulting companies and employers have been observing for several quarters. The labor market has become an employee’s market. The greatest difficulties are observed in middle and senior positions. This is especially true in industries where narrow competences are required, e.g. in IT. Engineers working for highly specialized industries such as metallurgy or foundry also have great opportunities on the labor market. Recruiting blue-collar workers is also a challenge for employers. The main criteria that candidates follow are salary, working conditions and a convenient location of the company.

Meeting the expectations of candidates will be one of the biggest challenges for organizations in 2017. A large number of offers and thus a wider range of professional opportunities means that candidates can look into the future and plan their careers much more calmly. Their negotiating position has also increased. They expect potential employers not only to pay a higher salary, but also to provide non-wage benefits such as a medical care package, a card that allows them to practice sports, training to expand their qualifications or at least co-financing courses – comments Andrzej Trela, Sales Director at LeasingTeam Group.

Rotation at all levels of positions

The employee’s market has made people willing to change jobs. As a result, counteracting turnover in companies has become another challenge that organizations have to face. Experienced employees who know the company and its environment well are able to perform their duties faster and more effectively than new hires. This applies to people in lower positions, as well as specialists or managers. Onboarding a new person always requires appropriate training, which involves an investment of time and money. Therefore, employers are increasingly wondering how to retain employees, not just how to attract them. In the case of medium and senior positions, companies m.in. create career paths, examine the level of salaries in the company and adjust them to market conditions, as well as adjust benefits to the needs of a given employee group. The type of action taken, of course, depends on the company’s capabilities and the practices used in a given industry. In lower positions, a competitive level of remuneration is primarily taken care of and additional benefits are increasingly introduced. For example, companies with company canteens very often subsidize employees’ meals.

High turnover means that the employer is forced to incur costs related to hiring a new person and their implementation. A new employee does not always work well in the position. In order to reduce the risk of recruitment failure, employers use external entities that support companies in acquiring the right employees as part of temporary work or recruitment services – says Andrzej Trela from LeasingTeam.

Diversity management

The employee market has also influenced companies to be more open about hiring employees of different generations, countries and cultures. As a result, diversity management in organizations has recently become a hot topic in HR. Organizations are more open to hiring people 50+, they also hire young people, generations Y and Z, as well as specialists and managers with several or several years of experience. The biggest challenge that employers managing a diverse organization have to face is creating working conditions in which representatives of different generations and cultures will feel comfortable. The first challenges arise already at the stage of communicating with such a diverse group. In this situation, it is necessary not only to choose the right way of communication, but also the form of communication adapted to the technological capabilities of a given group. Organizations employing foreigners without knowledge of the Polish language should remember to translate the most important documents, such as contracts or instructions, into the languages used by the employees.

Skillful management of a diverse organization can bring many benefits to a company. The combination of knowledge and experience with youth and commitment makes multi-generational teams do very well, are creative and effective. Older employees usually have extensive professional experience and high qualifications, which may prove attractive to the employer. They are also more loyal, and properly motivated, as mentors or trainers they can share their experience and knowledge with younger employees. On the other hand, young people are more familiar with new technologies, they are more active, full of new ideas – says Andrzej Trela.

Workers from Ukraine

Due to the persistence of the employee market and the resulting difficulties in recruiting employees, companies had to start looking for candidates for work among foreigners. This is confirmed by statistics. The number of foreigners who receive a residence and work permit in Poland is growing every year. According to a report prepared by the Office for Foreigners, in 2016 58,699 work permits were issued to foreigners, including as many as 42,334 granted to Ukrainian citizens. Compared to 2015, this is an over 50% increase in the number of work permits issued. This trend shows that Poland is an attractive country in terms of earnings and working conditions for foreigners, especially from Ukraine.

Candidates from Eastern Europe are valued and willingly hired by companies in Poland for several reasons. Firstly, thanks to the similarity of language and culture, they adapt faster to new conditions. After just a few months, they are able to communicate in Polish without major problems. They are highly motivated and effective. The place of work is not important to them.

In reaching and legally employing foreigners, entrepreneurs are more and more often supported by employment agencies specializing in recruiting employees from abroad. It is worth establishing cooperation with an experienced company that knows the specifics of the eastern labor market and the expectations of candidates.

Companies for which employment agencies such as Go West & Co carry out the search for employees in Ukraine reduce the high costs of legalization of stay and work as well as administration of the employed people – says Andrzej Trela – They also do not have to worry about the consequences of failure to comply with formalities, such as fines, which can be a heavy burden for them – adds the expert.

Flexible approach

Employees are aware that the situation on the labour market has improved in their favour. No wonder that they increasingly expect employers to be more flexible in choosing their working hours. Both young people, such as students or mothers, who would like to work unusual hours, and older people, such as pensioners, who are willing to take up part-time work, have requirements. Therefore, flexible working hours are perceived by many candidates as an important benefit, and even as a decisive issue when choosing an employer. Organizations with a hierarchical structure, which do not always accept this type of model, will be forced to change their approach over time. More and more companies agree to flexible working hours, coming at fixed hours, e.g. between 8:00 and 10:00. Some organizations allow their employees to work from home several times a month. However, we cannot talk about complete flexibility here, which is reserved for freelancers, i.e. programmers, IT specialists, graphic designers. Their work does not require presence in the office, because they do not take part in consultations, team meetings or negotiations with clients. They do not provide internal services, such as employees of financial or HR departments who serve other departments and cooperate with external companies.

Due to the strengthening employee market, in addition to the trends described above, companies must also pay attention to other areas such as employer branding, process optimization, the use of modern technologies or the search for new methods of reaching candidates. By observing trends and trying to forecast their impact on the functioning of enterprises, companies will be able to quickly and flexibly adjust their HR strategy.

The IT job market offers many forms of cooperation to both employees and employers. Each of these groups has its own interests, each pays attention to different aspects that a given form of cooperation imposes on them. In the case of IT specialists, we are undoubtedly dealing with an employee’s market, so acquiring a high-class expert requires a lot of flexibility from employers in many areas – salary, development opportunities, additional benefits and the ability to choose the form of cooperation. More and more often, experienced specialists want to work as contractors, hired only for the duration of a specific project, be able to choose an employer, and even work on several orders from different companies at the same time, which gives them the opportunity to earn extra money. Knowledge of the forms of cooperation available on the market will allow you to meet the expectations of employees specializing in IT, as well as to optimize costs.

Permanent employment

An employment contract is the most popular form of employment. However, it does not work for most IT specialists, especially those with several years of experience. It can even be said that companies offering candidates an employment contract may have a problem with recruiting very experienced IT specialists, because they prefer self-employment or other forms of cooperation that ensure their independence. In addition, salaries for IT specialists working under an employment contract, due to the high costs of employment on the employer’s side, can be lower by up to 25-30% than for people who have their own business.

It is worth offering an employment contract to young people, students in their final years or IT graduates who are taking their first steps on the labor market. Usually, at the beginning of their career, this is a more beneficial solution, because it allows them to focus on their own development. Any aspects of running a business can interfere with gaining practical experience in your first job – comments Marek Mrozowski, Head of the IT Recruitment Department at IT LeasingTeam.

Project specialist

One of the most flexible forms of cooperation with IT specialists is hiring contractors for the duration of a specific project under the so-called body leasing. The biggest advantage of body leasing is its flexibility, which works best in the case of project work, but is also used in permanent cooperation. The duration of the project can range from a few days to even several years. For candidates, this is an interesting form of cooperation, because they do not have to cooperate with the employer on a permanent basis and can choose the orders in which they are involved. On the other hand, the company, knowing the candidate’s rate, can plan the budget for the entire project or, conversely, choose the right specialist for the budget. A great convenience for companies using this form of employment is the support of a partner specializing in acquiring and delegating employees for contracts. It is worth talking to representatives of several companies to compare the terms of cooperation, the method of recruitment, as well as the conditions offered to working contractors. The tasks of such a company include, m.in others, matching and recruiting the right person, handling all administrative formalities and settlements, and most importantly, providing immediate replacement in the event of illness or leave of absence of the contractor.

For a partner specializing in the secondment of employees on contracts, finding a replacement is not a problem, because it has its own database of freelancers. When the project is completed, the contractor terminates cooperation with the employer, and the company does not incur the costs associated with hiring a person for whom it may no longer have tasks to perform. However, for the duration of the project, it has at its disposal a high-class specialist with a variety of project experience, which would be difficult to obtain from one employer – believes Małgorzata Zalewska, Head of the Sales Department at IT LeasingTeam.

Outsourcing of IT staff

Another form of cooperation is the outsourcing of IT competences to an external company specializing in a given area. It is a solution used in both small and large enterprises. Depending on the company’s profile and the size of the IT department, we can separate one or several competence areas externally, e.g. helpdesk, tests, development of technology in which we do not specialize. In a small company, it may come down to hiring an external company offering IT support services (helpdesk). In practice, it is an IT service depending on the needs of users, consisting in the presence of a delegated specialist in the company for several days. However, in the case of a large company, it may be a team of several dozen people delegated only for its needs. Cooperation as part of the services provided is usually permanent, and the supplier is accountable for the effects of the work performed, its quality and reliability.

Employers’ practices

A few years ago, employers strongly preferred to hire all employees, including IT departments, on a full-time basis. Currently, this situation is different. The vast majority of companies in IT departments employ people in managerial positions and administrators on a full-time basis. Other forms of employment, on the other hand, are most often used by developers and testers, due to the specificity of their work. Companies benefit from body leasing and outsourcing of IT employees because they can focus on their core business. Choosing the right partner to work with is crucial to actually work with the best specialists providing high-quality services at an attractive rate. The model of cooperation should be selected individually and adapted to the current needs of enterprises.

The best solution for the employee

IT specialists have high expectations of their future employers and value freedom. The most important thing is to approach them individually, listen to their needs and, if the company has the opportunity, accept the form of employment preferred by IT specialists. Employers who can offer flexible forms of cooperation are better evaluated by potential candidates.

The form of employment preferred by the candidate very often depends on his current professional or private situation. Usually, IT professionals have a choice between working permanently, under an employment contract, or self-employment in the case of freelancers. Permanent employment is decided by people who care about long and stable cooperation. They are not interested in constantly looking for new projects. Such people usually establish cooperation with the employer for a minimum of 2-3 years.

Self-employment is most often chosen by people who like to work on projects and value freedom in choosing orders and performing work. It also allows them to participate in several projects at the same time and work for even several companies. Undoubtedly, this type of work is an opportunity to gain many different experiences. People working as freelancers perform a specific task or project at a time agreed with the employer. They are involved in the project, but they are not attached to companies – says Marek Mrozowski from IT LeasingTeam.

When looking for the best model of hiring IT staff, it is worth comparing different forms of cooperation, getting to know their pros and cons. This will allow them to make an informed decision about the forms of cooperation offered to IT specialists. Such action can not only increase the attractiveness of the company as an employer, but also optimize the costs of its operations.

Assessment Centre, or AC, is one of the most effective methods supporting the recruitment process, which reduces the risk of hiring the wrong person and the possible costs associated with it. AC is used both to support external recruitment and to select the best candidates from within the organization. Most of the tools used in recruitment refer to the candidate’s self-assessment, while AC refers to their behavior in a reality resembling a work environment. A well-prepared AC session allows for a thorough analysis of the competences, knowledge or attitude of the job applicant. At the same time, it allows candidates to take on the role of an employee and find themselves in a situation in which they could find themselves in the organization. AC sessions are very often created by specialized consulting companies, but it happens that employers prepare and carry out the assessment process on their own. If a company is considering using AC to support the recruitment process, it does not have to outsource the entire process right away. The employer can carry out the acquisition of applications, their selection, conducting interviews, selecting candidates for the session on their own, and the consulting company can only commission the preparation and implementation of the AC session. When and why it is worth using AC in the recruitment process explains Anna Kurczewska-Formela from LeasingTeam Group, an expert with many years of experience in constructing and conducting AC sessions.

When we need a “tailor-made” recruitment tool

The use of the AC method works well both in the case of mass recruitment and those related to the selection of candidates for strategic positions in the organization. Many companies want to use recruitment tools that are tailored to their business and current needs.

Preparing an AC session tailored to the needs of the company is a time-consuming process and consists of several steps. In the first stage, people preparing tasks for the AC session should familiarize themselves with the specifics of the work, organizational structure, expectations towards the candidate, including the required competences, as well as get to know and understand the company’s strategy well. Next, select the key competencies to be assessed. It is very important to take care of this at the very beginning of the session preparation. Only after gathering all the information can you start constructing the AC schedule and tasks. Different tasks will be created for mid-level positions and others for managerial positions. The next, very important step, is the introduction of assessors and presentation of the entire scenario, which will include definitions of individual competences, their assessment scale, as well as the course of the entire process. Only when we have gone through all the stages related to creating a dedicated session, we can proceed to conduct AC in the organization. The last three stages are a summary of the results of individual AC participants by assessors, presenting the company with a detailed report comparing the results of session participants, selecting a candidate and providing feedback to all participants of the process.

The key to preparing a professional and customized AC session is a good relationship between the company and the partner, who will be responsible for developing and then conducting the evaluation process. It is very important that the relationship is based on partnership, mutual trust and openness – explains Anna Kurczewska-Formela, acting Director in the Recruitment Department, LeasingTeam Group.

It should be remembered that AC may extend the recruitment process. This is due to, for example, the need to plan additional time in the recruitment process to conduct sessions with participants, assess assessors and provide feedback to candidates. Depending on the level of the position for which the recruitment is conducted, the session may last 1, 2 or even 3 days. Usually, the higher the position, the longer the AC time. Assessors should ensure that the candidate spends no more than 8 hours on the session on one day, as fatigue can adversely affect the results.

When we have a dilemma which candidate is the best

Regardless of the level of the position for which the company is recruiting, AC is a method that will allow for an objective, impartial assessment of candidates. The employer may invite several best candidates to the AC session and ask them to perform a group task or conduct individual meetings. However, when all candidates meet in one place and carry out a task prepared by assessors, the future employer has the opportunity to compare them in terms of individual competences, skills and predispositions. On this basis, it can be easier to make the right choice.

When we want to observe the candidates’ competencies in business realities

Conducting AC sessions gives the employer a unique opportunity to observe candidates in situations very similar to their daily work: check how the candidate behaves during presentations, negotiations, teamwork, etc. It is worth remembering that different competencies will be examined in the case of conducting the process for sales positions and different for director positions. And so, in the case of positions related to trade, competences such as communication skills, goal orientation, relationship building, pro-customer attitude, and stress management will be important. On the other hand, in the case of managerial positions, competences such as team management, leadership, presentation, management by objectives, motivating employees, conflict resolution, working under time pressure, and communication will be taken into account.

Thanks to AC, we gain valuable information on the basis of which we can predict how the future employee will find himself in the new organization and how he will work. Properly constructed tasks will help to show what the motivation to work, attitude and competences of candidates are – says Anna Formela from LeasingTeam.

When an unbiased assessment is important

A great value of the AC method is that it is carried out by assessors who are not related to the company, and thus objective. Their participation in the assessment affects the reliability of the process, and looking at the results of the tasks performed gives a comprehensive picture of the candidates. Due to the fact that the candidate cannot prepare to participate in AC, he can only find out what the AC rules are, the employer, by using this recruitment method, the risk of hiring the wrong person is reduced.

Especially in the case of recruitment for higher positions, the proper filling of which is crucial for the proper functioning and subsequent development of the organization, the cost of hiring the wrong person may significantly exceed the cost of using the AC method in recruitment ,” says Anna Kurczewska-Formela.

When we care about the image of a professional employer

The use of AC is time-consuming and expensive, and its price depends on the level and number of positions being assessed, as well as the competencies that will be assessed. The approximate cost of AC can range from one and a half to several thousand zlotys for each participant in the process. On the other hand, the high accuracy of the AC method in the assessment of the candidate compensates companies for the costs incurred related to the possible employment of the wrong person, such as re-conducting the entire recruitment process, training a new person, the cost of time commitment of employees introducing the new person to work.

Professional preparation and implementation of the AC process in an organization can have an impact on the employer’s image. The very fact that a company is ready to invest in an additional tool can affect its positive perception by the participants of the recruitment process – sums up Anna Formela.

Recruitment is a very difficult art and sometimes it is worth increasing its accuracy by using additional assessment methods, such as competence tests or AC. Both of these methods can also be used. Nevertheless, the tests, unlike AC, do not provide a unique opportunity to observe the candidates’ competencies in business realities. By using AC in the recruitment process, the company increases its chances of hiring the best-matched, competent candidates who will contribute to its development.

The role of the HR representative in the recruitment process is very important and consists of finding candidates whose competencies and experience best match the job description and the company’s organizational culture. However, choosing the right people is not an easy thing. In particular, specialist and managerial positions, which are key for a given market segment, may be poorly filled. This may be influenced by the limited number of people dedicated to the recruitment process, lack of time or little experience. In such a situation, entrepreneurs seek help from personnel consulting companies, which not only help in reaching candidates with appropriate qualifications and experience, but also cover recruitment processes with a guarantee. The guarantee period depends on the level of the position for which the candidate has been recruited and usually lasts three or six months. If the candidate resigns from work during the guarantee period or the employer does not renew the contract with him/her, the HR consulting company is obliged to provide another candidate.

It also happens that recruiters have to face the insincerity of some candidates who embellish their CVs. As a result, an impressive-looking resume may not quite match the actual skills, knowledge, and experience of the candidates. Areas in which candidates may not be entirely honest are foreign language skills, references, degree of computer program literacy, time spent working in previous jobs, and reasons for leaving. These are very important selection criteria, often crucial for a given position. Unfortunately, checking the candidate’s truthfulness requires not only time, but also a lot of experience in conducting job interviews. HR consulting companies employ recruiters with many years of experience, who efficiently catch certain inaccuracies, e.g. in the candidates’ CVs or during a job interview. It is worth emphasizing that deviating from the truth in assessing one’s skills and experience may or may not be the result of conscious action. Various psychological studies have repeatedly shown that self-assessment of one’s own achievements is often not an ideal representation of them, both in terms of overestimation and underestimation.

Knowledge of foreign languages

One of the criteria that employers take into account when selecting a candidate is the knowledge of one or more foreign languages. The most popular language on the job market today is English, although sometimes employers also require knowledge of German, French or Russian, as well as other, more niche languages. The degree of language proficiency can be confirmed by appropriate certificates and if candidates actually have them, they provide this information in their CV. Most often, however, we are dealing with a situation in which the candidate declares knowledge of the language at a certain level only on the basis of his or her own conviction on the subject. Candidates describe their language skills in different ways. Sometimes they give the level, e.g. B1, B2, C1, C2, and sometimes they describe their level of language proficiency, e.g. as communicative, fluent, etc. So how do you assess whether the knowledge of the language declared by a given candidate is really fluent? In the case of less popular languages, recruiters are often asked to allocate more time to the interview so that they can complete an appropriate test to check their level of knowledge. Usually, however, there is no time to conduct such a test during the interview. In such a situation, the best way to check the level of knowledge of a foreign language is to change the language of conversation from Polish to the one subject to verification, of course taking into account the candidate’s level. Thanks to this, we can gain some idea of whether the candidate can use a given language to the degree declared in his CV.

Another way to check whether the candidate is aware of certain linguistic nuances is to use words during the interview that sound similar in the native and foreign language, but have different meanings. In English and Polish, it can be, for example, the word “sympathy”, meaning compassion, and not, as many think, sympathy. However, it is worth remembering that in the case of candidates declaring a less advanced level, ignorance of these types of nuances does not play such a big role – says Artur Mańka-Chrzanowski, Senior HR Consultant, LeasingTeam.

Testimonial

Impressive or not, work experience should always be backed up by relevant references. In order to get contact details of people who could provide references about the candidate, simply ask the participant of the recruitment process for the phone number of the previous employer. If a candidate does not hesitate to provide the data he has been asked for, it can be assumed that he has nothing to hide. The person with whom it is best to talk about a candidate is his direct supervisor, although sometimes you can also ask one of your former colleagues for an opinion. It all depends on the competence or experience that the future employer would like to check. If they want to know whether the candidate met their annual goals or was effective in their work, they should talk to their supervisor. However, the answer to the question of what kind of co-worker the candidate is will certainly be given by one of the teammates. Ignoring a request to provide contact details to a person who could provide a reference to the candidate may be the first warning sign.

If a candidate with extensive professional experience does not provide a contact person to provide a reference, even though he or she was asked to do so, it is worth considering what the reasons for this may be and ask the person participating in the recruitment process directly. If the candidate’s arguments are not convincing, we can suspect that he simply does not want to give the contact person to the contact person. It is possible that he was in conflict with his previous employer or did not work well in a given position. In such a situation, you should consider checking this candidacy, e.g. with another employer. If you are unable to provide any references, you should seriously consider rejecting them from the recruitment process – believes Artur Mańka-Chrzanowski from LeasingTeam.

Degree of knowledge of the programs

As in the case of foreign languages, knowledge of computer programs is confirmed by appropriate diplomas and certificates. If the candidate does not have any certificate, and in their CV declares that they know very well, for example, Microsoft Excel, it is worth spending 5 minutes on a simple practical exercise. If a candidate claims to be able to use it very well, but in fact does not know how to perform the simplest activity such as summing up columns, it can be considered that he has unfortunately misled us. Similarly, if the candidate claims that he has already used several systems, e.g. for e-mail marketing, in his professional career, and does not remember the name of any of them.

Working hours for different employers

Some candidates sometimes deviate from the truth when describing their professional experience. Most often, they overestimate the period in which they worked for a given company, e.g. by giving only the year or years of work, but without specific months. For example, instead of writing in their CV that they worked for a given company from November 2012 to January 2013, they will only mention the years of service. In this way, they conceal the fact that the employment relationship lasted less than three months, which may have a negative impact on their perception by potential employers. If this fact arouses the suspicion of the recruiter, it is worth starting the interview in an unusual way, with a question about free time, interests, and daily schedule. In this way, we will create a space to ask ourselves a question about the exact working time in a given company.

Most candidates today have profiles in social media such as LinkedIn or Goldenline. It happens that candidates change certain data when adapting their CV to a specific job offer, but forget to make similar changes in their social media profiles. If you have doubts about some of the information contained in your CV, it is worth reading the career path available on LinkedIn or Goldenline – comments Artur Mańka-Chrzanowski from LeasingTeam.

Reasons for leaving your previous job

An important issue to raise during the interview with the candidate is the reasons for leaving the previous job. Most candidates mention the lack of development opportunities or the desire to change the industry, some have a fixed-term contract expiring and know that it will not be renewed. There are also situations when the candidate does not get along well at work, perhaps he does not have the appropriate qualifications, which means that he is poorly evaluated by his superiors or is a conflictive person and does not work well with him.

If a candidate has problems in their current job, they will certainly not tell the recruiter about them. In such a situation, it is worth starting the conversation not with specific questions, but with a general question whether he is or was satisfied with his work. After such an introduction, you can ask directly why he is considering changing jobs. Answers in which the candidate starts to speak badly about their employer or co-workers should raise concern. This may be the first sign that he is a conflictive person – thinks Artur Mańka-Chrzanowski.

Recruiting employees is a huge challenge and a big responsibility, it requires appropriate experience and knowledge. Candidates “insincerity is a factor that cannot be eliminated, but thanks to the knowledge of appropriate verification methods, it is possible to check whether the candidate’s declared experience and skills correspond to reality. Sometimes it is worth considering entrusting the recruitment to a personnel consulting company, which will not only complete the search process faster, but also carefully check the candidates” competencies and provide guarantees.

Recruiting and hiring the candidate best suited to the current needs and requirements of the company is not an easy task. To increase the chance of success of the recruitment process, it is necessary to think it out and plan well. Unfortunately, it is not always possible to predict whether the resources, methods and tools possessed by the organization will be effective in the case of recruitment for a given position. In a situation where a new employee does not meet the requirements set for him or her or turns out to be incompatible with the organizational culture, the recruitment process will have to be carried out again. This is not only time-consuming, but also expensive, so it is worth considering how you can increase the chance of hiring the right candidate. Here are 5 tips from a LeasingTeam expert.

Analyze the expectations of the candidate

In order for the recruitment to be carried out effectively and the hired person to meet the current requirements of the organization, it is necessary to prepare a detailed job description. Determining the required skills, knowledge, and interpersonal qualities that the candidate should have can increase the chance of success of the entire process. The higher the position for which the recruitment is carried out, the more important it is to create a refined description. Internal HR departments usually have most of the necessary information, but they do not always use this knowledge during the search itself. When commissioning recruitment to a personnel consulting company, the recruiter will try to clarify the smallest detail of the job description.

It is worth for the employer to think carefully about what kind of person they are looking for, which competencies and skills are key for a given position, which can be resigned, and what interpersonal qualities will make this person best suited to the company’s organizational culture. In the case of cooperation with a personnel consulting company, it is very important for the employer to be open and good to communicate well between partners. The resulting job description will form the basis of the recruitment process – says Jacek Jackowski, HR Consultant at LeasingTeam.

Take care of the right resources

Recruitment is a multi-stage and often time-consuming process. Most companies do not have an extensive HR department, in which each employee is responsible for one or several selected areas of HR. Especially in smaller companies, recruitment, training, HR matters and payroll are very often handled by one person. No wonder that when the demand for employees increases, the amount of work begins to exceed the capabilities of one person. As a result, some organizations have much less chance of acquiring the best-suited candidate, because they cannot afford to conduct several recruitments at the same time.

Due to the high costs associated with hiring a new employee who would be responsible for recruitment, it often turns out to be more profitable for the employer to outsource recruitment. A big advantage of working with most HR consulting companies is the fact that you pay only for the effect of recruitment, i.e. for hiring the recommended candidate – says Jacek Jackowski from LeasingTeam.

Plan the process

Preparing a generally applicable action plan can positively affect the course of recruitment processes in the company, and even speed them up. This is especially true for organizations that conduct multiple recruitment processes at the same time. It is necessary to carefully determine the schedule of activities to be undertaken and to set aside time for individual tasks, such as, m.in, editing advertisements, posting them on job portals, conducting telephone interviews, meetings with candidates and selecting the best candidate. You should also consider that the process may fail and schedule time to redo it.

Use the right methods and tools

Conducting recruitment requires the recruiter to know the right tools and methods, from the most popular ones, such as placing advertisements on job portals, through using their own database with candidates “CVs, to direct contact methods. The most popular recruitment method is to post job offers on portals for people looking for a new place of employment. It is worth remembering to correctly match the portal to the profile of the person you are looking for. For example, if a company is looking for employees for middle and senior positions, it is worth using the most popular portals such as pracuj.pl or infopraca.pl. However, in the case of recruitment of a linguist, the advertisement can be placed on one of the specialist portals, e.g. LinguaJob, which is visited only by people who want to use their knowledge of a foreign language in their future place of employment. If the company is looking for employees for lower-level positions, it is worth taking advantage of OLX.pl. and consider posting job offers in local media or on bulletin boards. If a given recruitment is much more demanding, the recruiter should reach the candidates directly. For this purpose, it is necessary to use professional search engines available on professional and business portals such as LinkedIn or Goldenline. However, access to extended profiles is paid, so this solution generates additional costs that not all organizations can afford. Special IT systems dedicated to HR departments are also very useful, as they are used to manage the recruitment process, help simplify and shorten it. The systems allow you to collect CVs and then select them according to criteria relevant to a given position, such as specific skills and qualifications, education, years of experience or level of language skills. They also automate the entire process of contacting candidates. We should also not forget about the database of candidates” CVs, which most companies currently have. If you are starting a recruitment project, it is always worth checking first whether there are no applications from candidates in the company’s CV database that match the profile required for the position you are looking for.

Yet another, very effective solution is the so-called headhunt, which is one of the executive search methods, which involves identifying managers or key specialists, establishing contact with them in order to persuade them to change employers. Due to the complexity of this solution, it is most often used by professional HR consulting companies – comments Jacek Jackowski from LeasingTeam.

Verify candidates’ skills and competencies

An important stage of each recruitment process is to check the candidate’s skills and competences required for a given position. Unfortunately, it is very difficult to verify some of them. Experienced recruiters who have been conducting competency interviews for years know what questions to ask to check the candidate’s motivation to change jobs, find out how they deal with stressful situations, etc. Various types of competency tests or Assessment Centre programs can also be used in recruitment, which can increase the accuracy of the process and help you make the best choice. It is much more difficult to assess predispositions related to practical, technical or engineering skills, because it would require checking the candidate directly at the workplace. Unfortunately, this is usually only possible after employment. There are also competencies that can be verified much more easily. It is not a problem to check the language skills of a given candidate due to access to linguistic tests, thanks to which it is possible to verify the knowledge of virtually all languages, at any level.

Act fast

There are many job offers for highly qualified specialists and more are constantly appearing. The labor market in Poland is governed by the candidate, and employers compete with each other in order to attract the best specialists on the market. Therefore, it is worth taking into account the fact that some candidates, e.g. IT specialists with several years of experience, can choose between various job offers and it is up to them to decide whether to accept the offer, often from a competing company. The reasons for accepting another professional offer by the candidate may vary and depend on the amount of salary, the number of additional benefits, as well as the company’s position on the market or its prestige. Therefore, the speed of action is very important.

When looking for an employee, it is important to remember that candidates can take part in several recruitment processes at the same time. Reaching the candidate should be reduced to a minimum, as well as the time between individual stages of recruitment. Internal recruitment departments, due to the multitude of activities carried out, often do not have time to fully focus on just one activity – says Jacek Jackowski from LeasingTeam.

Hiring the right employees is extremely important for the proper functioning and development of the company. Offering a job to the wrong person may cause the company to incur not only additional costs related to the need to conduct another recruitment process. The lack of a specialist who, for example, could acquire new customers for the company, causes it to lose the opportunity to increase turnover and profit. It is worth remembering this when the need to hire more employees arises and follow the above advice.