I was reading a piece from Lou Adler, one of the most published head hunters out there, on the best interview question of all time. The one thing that as an interviewer you should ask a candidate to evaluate their fit for your company and role. As a potential candidate it is instructive, have a read of it here and consider the following. If you can answer this question and deal with the 20 or so follow up questions then you are prepared for any interview.

This really is the most insightful interview question I have ever read. A quick heads up for job seekers, an interview question is only the beginning, it is the follow up questions that your first answer allows that are important. This is a leading question and it is followed by a deep dive. Any gaps will be exposed and it shows the benefits of preparing for competency questions with really strong examples from your career planned using the STAR model.

Also, check out part 2 where Lou shows you how to answer the bloody thing! Very insightful and this could help you land a job (if the interviewer goes down this route).

Edward Conmy is a Director of Alternatives Digital, the digital recruitment specialists in Dublin.

Here at Alternatives Digital we consistently ask senior budget holders commercial questions to help us understand our market. What they are prioritising their spend on and their focus. It help us keep a handle on the types of skills that are in demand and that will soon be more popular. As spring has arrived and we are all looking at our plans with a fresh pair of eyes I thought it would be a good idea to share some of the topline insights from our recent survery.

The survey is with senior business managers and we speak with them twice a year. These are our key clients and they represent the blue-chip brands who command multi-million euro marketing budgets. As we all increasingly incorporate digital channels into our marketing and communications plans it is nice to know what your peers are doing and what trends are emerging. If you are in the process of redoubling your commitment to delivering better cost per acquisition and better ROI for your spend it is useful to know where the consensus on achieving this is heading.
A hundred senior budget holders were asked the pertinent questions with a digital focus and we hope that sharing them with you will be instructive for your own thinking and plans.

First things first, marketing leaders will continue to focus and spend on multiple channels, there is no one area completely dominating focus. We should note that the most selected area of focus for 2013 is digital.

However, what is really interesting is the overwhelming response when the budget holders were asked what areas of spend will stay the same, decrease or increase in 2013. The clear winner is digital, in fact no other channel increased, with the other mostly remaining static or decreasing.

We should counsel a little caution here. The final two insights point to above the line (ATL) advertising still maintaining the largest amount of spend but digital representing a healthy 10-35% of total budget spent for 64% of respondents.

And the percentage split of budget being spent on digital committed to?

So as you take a second look at your plans and priorities for 2013, or perhaps as you embark on H2 planning, bear in mind the continued rise in investment and focus on digital channels from your peers and feel free to get in touch with Edward to discuss your talent or consulting needs to address these opportunities in digital.

Edward Conmy is the Director of Alternatives Digital Recruitment, the digital strategy, sales and marketing jobs arm of Alternatives Group, and can be reached @topdigitaljobs or on (01) 661 8889.

As a marketing professional in 2013 you are already fully immersed in digital marketing communications. Although it is still an emerging area in terms of your budget commitment it is increasing all the time and you may be asking yourself if a paid diploma is the way to stay on top of opportunities for your brand. I would always say that continual professional development is very important and postgraduate diplomas in digital marketing from the likes of DCU and DIT will suit many people and will help many people. However, before running down that road I would suggest you can do some of your own cheap (often free) up-skilling first. This will help you really understand where your own competency is benchmarked versus some of your colleagues selling and marketing to people online. Best case scenario? They will help you transition to a more forward focused marketing role with a digital emphasis. At the very least they will improve performance in your current role.

If you are still interested and committed to learning more the above steps will set you up to succeed in paid digital education and will also prove you have the discipline and time management skills to make sure you don’t waste your money.

Edward Conmy is Director of Alternatives Digital, a division of the Alternatives Recruitment Group.

We deal with the full range of interview types and formats here in Alternatives Digital everyday. From a manager who would like a cup of coffee off-site, a half hour HR telephone screener to a full competency based multi-functional panel interview. We even organise full day workshops for some clients, where candidates are put through their paces over eight hours of intense interview and case-study work. Over the years working in recruitment I have seen people succeed and fail at junior and senior level in all types of interviews. What are the common reasons? The top two are below. Address these when entering any process and you are increasing your chance of getting that job, I guarantee it.

1. No matter how formal or informal

My advice to candidates is to approach any interview as a final interview. It is never informal. You always need to make an impression. Don’t go over the top of course but this focused approach will increase your chance of success. Another thing, going to an interview is not like going to a meeting. You need time to decompress and prepare. Do not book an interview soon after another meeting, if possible take a morning off. You should have at least an hour to get yourself prepared. That means all distractions are put aside (travel, phone, emails and so on).

2. Answer questions using the STAR model

Once into the meeting with your potential manager of the HR advisor you need to start talking like an interviewee. The one common mistake in interviews comes down to not answering questions with specific examples. Conversely the candidates who ace interviews tend to answer with examples (good examples!) that address the key point of the interview’s question. This is taking a competency based interview approach to any interview you are in. So, no matter what type of interview you must think about the professional and personal traits they will want you to demonstrate (leadership, stakeholder management, commercial awareness, team-work, crisis management and so on). Then you need to demonstrate these traits with examples from your professional and personal life. To do this you set the context (Situation), discuss your plan (Tactics), let them know how you executed the plan (Action) and what the results were (Results). This is STAR.

Easy right? Well if it that seems complicated it is not. Read the following articles and you will be well on your way to interview heaven. It is all about having short sharp and impressive competency examples chambered. Happy interviewing!

http://lifehacker.com/5960201/use-the-star-technique-to-ace-your-interviews

http://www.rightattitudes.com/2008/07/15/star-technique-answer-interview-questions/

http://upgradereality.com/star-model/

Every year here in Alternatives we take the pulse of the marketing community with our Marketing Watch survey. It is a chance for senior marketing professionals to reflect on some big issues in their industry for the past year and to look ahead to 2013. I am writing this summary with a digital angle as each year we build on our knowledge of this emerging channel as it becomes more integrated.

Macro level summary and sentiment

As we go into 2013, despite ongoing difficulties in the Irish and international economy we are seeing more positive signals from the marketing community than at any other time in three years (since we started to this survey). There is cautious optimism about their businesses and the market for their products. Many are eyeing or currently experiencing a return to growth. There will still be some cuts to marketing budgets but this is in the minority of cases now. The areas of focus are overwhelmingly digital integration, brand development, strategic planning/ innovation and customer relationship marketing.

The survey was conducted between the 6th and 20th of December 2012 and the respondents are senior marketing managers and directors across a broad spectrum of industries including financial services, FMCG, telecommunications (accounting for 60% of respondents) and the rest made up of pharmaceuticals, education, healthcare, utilities, retail, professional services, IT and motor. The majority of the respondents control multi-million euro budgets and all manage large teams.

Snapshot of results

• 86% of senior marketers reported that their business was the same or better than a year earlier, with business improving for an encouraging 55% of respondents. So finally a positive sign for businesses after years of decline.
• 42% expect trading conditions to stay the same and 27% expect them to improve this year-again a more positive outlook than a year ago when only 4% expected any improvement.
• In terms of the economy in general, 30% expect to see growth in Ireland again in 2013 and 34% in 2014, again more positive views than a year earlier.
• However consumer sentiment remains an issue with 38% finding it still a little or a lot worse than a year ago.

Top three

Of the top 3 issues marketers face in achieving their objectives, the economy unsurprisingly remains the biggest issue for 60% of respondents. Marketing budget issues remained in second place, followed in third place by people and skills issues.

The top 3 areas of focus for senior marketers in 2013 will be digital marketing, effective brand management and strategy and planning.

Figure 1 shows the evolving areas of marketing focus between 2012 and 2013.

Money

• Marketing budgets remain under pressure in 2013, with 45% decreasing budget levels. 21% of respondents however will see their marketing budgets increase from 2012, with 28% retaining their existing budget.
• Above the line (ATL) comms remains in the top spot for marketing spend followed by digital.
• The percentage of digital spend for 2013 is significantly up versus a year ago.
• ATL comms was the area of spend that was most disappointing in terms of results for respondents (22%), followed by consumer promotions and sponsorship (both at 14%).

Teams and resources

• The outlook for teams in 2013 is positive, with 86% planning to keep team numbers at the same level (61%) or to increase numbers (25% mainly in FMCG and financial services). Only 6% plan to decrease numbers, down significantly from other years.
• Half of respondents do not have adequate resources to effectively implement their plans in 2013 and despite a perceived wealth of talent and available people, 41% of respondents still find it difficult to find good talent, particularly at mid to manager level.

Figure two shows a commitment to increasing team size across respondents. The figures in the above table are percentage points.

Salaries

• With regard to marketing salaries, they have stayed quite static since 2010, with 66% staying at the same levels as 2011 and 2010.
• 15% reduced marketing salaries in 2012.
• A lucky 19% had salary increases, although most of these in the 1-10% bracket. About half of respondents companies paid bonuses to their marketing teams.

Digital insights and focus

Here at Alternatives Digital we have been tracking the growth of investment in online marketing across activity and talent. We have found in this year’s survey that digital is the Key Area of Focus for 2013. In previous surveys ATL communications were ranked first in terms of focus (for 55%). However this year only 29% said it would be the area their team would focus on most to achieve objectives. Digital marketing instead was ranked as a key area of focus for 57%, effective brand management by 44% and strategy and planning for 41%.

1. Digital
2. Brand management
3. Strategy & planning
4. Loyalty/retention
5. NPD/Innovation
6. CRM & data analysis

In real terms what we the areas where marketing spend was increased last year (by more than 30% of respondents)?

1. Digital- 80% increased spend
2. DM/ Email marketing- 39%
3. CRM-38%
4. PR-33%
5. Research-31%

Conversely, in real terms what are the areas where marketing spend was decreased last year (by more than 30% of respondents)

1. ATL- 46% decreased ATL spend (vs. 36% the previous year)
2. Agency fees-43%
3. Events-41%
4. Sponsorship-36%

Also one should note that when reviewing 2012 respondents said ATL communications was the area of spend that was most disappointing in terms of results (22% of respondents), followed by consumer promotions and sponsorship (both 14%).

So how does this bear out year on year in terms of actual budget allocation for digital and online spend?

Ultimately metrics such as focus and attention will always be high for digital. It is such a key area for businesses and brands to improve upon it is always top of mind. However, how is this reflected in actual committed spend? Here we see that ATL retains its biggest area of committed spend but digital (including PPC) is now second on its own. Quite astonishing when you think about how much budget is now being planned and spent by marketing teams.

Conclusions

So in summary there will be an increase in investment with regard to digital talent and digital budgets for 2013. This increase is significant now and we see that reflected through companies and marketing teams looking to hire in digital expertise or up-skill existing team members. We must temper this with some firms decreasing their marketing spend in 2013 and also the uncertainty in the Irish and wider economy. But to end on a concrete note of positivity check out statistics on teams below. We are all about jobs and talent here in Alternatives Digital and team size remains one of the most important barometers for confidence, bring on 2013.

86% of respondents are planning to keep team numbers at the same level (61%) or to increase numbers (25% mainly in FMCG and financial services). Only 6% plan to decrease numbers, down significantly from other years.

Edward Conmy is MD of Alternatives Digital

Edward Conmy – Director Alternatives Digital shares his expert opinion on how to optimise your professional profile with social media.

You are on the jobs market and on top of getting the new suit ready and dusting off a proof-read CV you now need to get a handle on what to do about social media. There are a couple of things to consider as a prospective employee in 2013.

The first thing to understand is that companies do not covertly check out your social media profiles. They overtly look into you. That is to say they are not hoping to catch a glimpse of that drunken night in Ibiza, they are looking to your online profile to show examples of your professional activity. It is a positive thing you can optimise to help your search, so don’t worry about that.

First things first, lock down your Facebook page to friends only. Secondly start looking at Twitter as a research tool and a place to post interesting non-offensive content that you are passionate about.

Finally and most importantly start using LinkedIn as your professional mirror to the world. Get a 100% completed profile, post some recent interesting slides you have developed, start looking for recommendations from previous line managers or clients (colleagues who recommend you are welcome but do not carry as much weight) and think about what you put in your profile.

You should be writing with one eye on the type of role you want to land. So use key words that you would search for if you were hiring for your ideal role. Put yourself in recruiters’ shoes and word-smith your profile accordingly; that is how you come up on searches. And finally, best of luck.

In the last couple of weeks here in Alt/Dig towers we have begun working with three tier one digital advertising agencies on numerous roles in three disciplines. Namely creative direction, account management and copy-writing for a digital audience. This is reflecting a wider trend we have been following for a number of months as clients are investing in online channel marketing activity in a more meaningful manner. The result of this is agencies are beginning to hire contract and permanent roles to service that increase spend rather than shovel it onto the current staff as they are now at capacity.

So whilst not very scientific there is a growing opinion backed up by conversations with both client decision makers and agency chiefs that investment is growing in the digital advertising industry. Whether this is reflected in an increase in overall marketing spend is not something I can confirm but my gut feeling is we are seeing a larger portion of monies being assigned to direct response online marketing activity and perhaps other channels such as TV and Radio are being reduced slightly.

If you would like to have a look at the most recent contract and permanent agency roles head over to our jobs board.

We have a really great 12 month contract open at the moment for a specialist online marketing exeuctive. We are working with a couple of the best German car brands and they want two young and enthusiastic marketing executives to join their marketing team. The job will include setting the online strategy and developing an acquisition campaign using digital channels to help achieve the objective of your strategy. This is a strategic role even though it is at executive level and offers someone the chance to really make their mark.

You can find out more and apply here. We would like to hear from you.

–

The Digital Marketing Specialist will be responsible for:

1. Owner of the Online Strategy for the business

Complete ownership and management of all aspects of the company’s online presence. Understand and keep up-to-date with developments and current trends in the online and digital arena to ensure you deliver a best-in-class online presence for the business

2. Management of company website

Key communications channel is optimized to deliver on KPI’s. Ensuring website is in line with corporate brand guidelines. Manage website on a day-to-day basis, ensuring content is up-to-date and accurate Ensure the website is optimized for search engine management and that all designs are delivered with the visitors experience in mind.

3. Social media

Develop the social media strategy for the business, aligning it with the overall Marketing strategy to ensure it delivers on business objectives
Become the champion and driver of the use of social media tools in the company’s marketing mix. Stay up-to-date with the latest developments in social media to ensure a best-in-class programme of activity is delivered

4. CRM

To devise, drive and implement an effective CRM strategy & structure, together with Group functions, which is pertinent both to the Irish market and in particular, our clients retailers. To ensure data management efficiency and to devise appropriate mechanisms to utilize such data in a tailored manner to heighten customer retention and prospecting and to subsequently measure effectiveness of such campaigns.

A minimum of 3 years digital/online experience is essential

About us:

Alternatives Digital is a recruitment and consulting business for the digital community in Ireland and abroad. We are completely focused on online and mobile professionals. If you are dreaming of a challenging, highly autonomous job where ideas are welcome and you have the development skills to back that up then please email edward@alternativesdigital.ie or call 669 8106 for more information.

Reporting from Digital Times, Fergal Gallagher runs his eye over some key areas of concern for all of us looking for a position.

The CV, or résumé, has long been the standard tool used to apply for jobs and to summarise a potential employee’s career. Serious jobseekers spend hours and often a lot of money on professional advice, to perfect their CV. But in an ever-increasingly digital world, where so much personal information is stored online, should people be concentrating more on their Internet and social media profiles? DigitalTimes.ie spoke to some industry experts about the role your online footprint plays in finding that job – and what you can do to improve it.

There are many ways to promote yourself online these days from hosting a website or blog, to posting on discussion boards and there’s the almost countless social networks proliferating the web including Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Tumbler, Quora and of course, the professional network LinkedIn.

Edward Conmy, MD Digital Alternatives

LinkedIn

Most jobseekers today have a LinkedIn profile, some jobs are advertised directly on the social network and it has become a vital tool for recruiters looking for talent, but according to Edward Conmy of recruitment firm Alternatives Digital it is not being used to its full potential. “A lot of people are on LinkedIn but they may not be active users or they are simply not engaging with it too often,” he says. “LinkedIn is now the first tool employers go to and the most important platform to get right. Recruiters will look out for active LinkedIn behaviour, so status updates, recent recommendations and adding new connections are all important,” he added.

Google yourself

Twitter expert and community manager at WorldIrish.com, Darragh Doyle says that even before LinkedIn the first step everyone should take is to Google themselves to see if they’re happy with the results or if there’s something they’d rather an employer didn’t see. “Just like you’ll put on a good suit for your interview, put your best side out for the Google search,” he says.

Doyle also recommends that rather than signing up to every social network, just to appear on searches, it’s important to keep at least one current, frequently-updated profile.

Of course the extent to which an online profile will sway an employment decision can depend greatly on the industry. Gareth O’Connor, formerly of RTÉ, and now with new media news agency Storful, says social media profiles are vital in most communication sectors. “Media and PR positions require applicants to be proficient in social media. Increasingly, other work sectors are seeing the value of a highly-connected and social workforce. Journalism, in particular, is moving towards a very open, social model.”

Gareth O'Connor, director of news gathering at Storyful

Social media that works

O’Connor admits that it was his work in social media that spoke for itself when it came to his appointment in Storyful. “I’ve been using Twitter to showcase my work for three years now”, he says. “My work in the area of news curation attracted the attention of Storyful.”

Doyle also says that all his recent jobs have come about because of his social media use and says these skills are becoming increasingly important in many different areas. “You need to be familiar with the web for anything where you’re dealing with the public online”, he says, “from restaurant owners seeing reviews on Yelp, or on Trip Advisor – to customer service, to musicians, to theatre people, to venue owners, to civil servants or to Government ministers”.

Edward Conmy recounted an innovative approach one candidate took to nail down his dream job. “He bought the name of a hiring manager he was looking to impress as a key word term on Google Adwords,” says Conmy. “So whenever the hiring manager Googled himself (we all do it) an advert ran in the top right of the page saying something like ‘Hire me John Doe…’”.

How to boost your online profile

This is all evidence that social job-seeking works, and all three experts agree that the vast majority of employers are now vetting candidates through Internet searches. So what can you do to improve your online profile?

Darragh Doyle, communications manager WorldIrish.com

The general advice is to have social media profiles on platforms like LinkedIn, Tumblr and Twitter and make sure they match up to your current CV. Doyle urges people to be careful about what they post online. “Google Before You Post is the new Think Before You Speak. Being aware of all the facts before you interact is always good.”

Conmy also advises people not to jump in too quickly, to follow industry leaders on Twitter, create lists and join groups first. “Read, research, then read again. ‘If I am cutting a log I spend most of the time sharpening the axe’ is a good maxim to apply”, he says.

Of course the best way to find a job is through someone you know and social media gives candidates unprecedented access to all sorts of contacts. “People need to connect more and improve their networks,” says O’Connor. “Reach out to potential employers and showcase your abilities.”

Doyle says jobseekers often forget to tell contacts that they’re looking for work which is vital because you never know who could know somebody, particularly in a small country like Ireland.

End of the CV?

A current job advertisement albeit for a social media role with restaurant Yo Sushi reads: ‘We will accept CVs, but your blog/Twitter profile/YouTube account and other expressions of your personality across the internet are just as important to us.’

So is this the beginning of the end for the traditional CV? Gareth O’Connor says that as the value of public data becomes more important, it’s inevitable that the old model of the CV will be replaced by some sort of online profile. Doyle doesn’t see the CV disappearing, just yet, and sees your online record being demanded as “proof of your experiences and abilities”.
“It’s more about a combination of LinkedIn, a Tumblr/ EP blog, a Twitter account … examples of work and then a CV,” says Conmy.

So the advice is not to shred your old CV just yet, but be aware of your personal information on the web and shape it in such a way as to promote yourself and your skills. That reminds me, I think I need to go delete a few pictures.

Ninjamurai won Best Game

Ireland is fast emerging as a location for high-quality digital games developers, with graduates virtually guaranteed jobs in the local market.
Graduates from game developer courses in Ireland are “virtually guaranteed jobs in the local market”, say the leading national and international industry experts.
Speaking at the LIT Tipperary Games Fleadh 2012, Ireland’s showcase for digital gaming students, industry leaders predicted the sector will achieve accelerated growth over the next two years, with up to 1,000 new jobs coming on stream each year.
“Ireland’s reputation generally in the digital games developing sector is really on the up. As a result, I believe that pretty much all of the graduates in this area will secure employment and, furthermore, they will secure that employment here in Ireland,” says Jason Livingston, director of customer services BioWare Ireland, which has announced 400 jobs for its Galway operation over the past two years alone.
“We are headquartered in Silicon Valley but our company sees Ireland as a great place to do business. There is far greater competition in Silicon Valley for graduates and we have been able to hire quality engineers here who are driving a lot of our business,” says Chris Gregan, principal architect at Playfirst, which has a Dublin base and whose best-known game Diner Dash achieved over 500 million downloads.
Alan Duggan, CEO of Galway based independent game development company Tribal City Interactive, believes there are clear opportunities for graduates and people with great content ideas. “There’s no barrier in this industry for people with smart ideas and the skill to go with it. There are plenty of publishers looking for good content but because you can now publish directly, this is creating a really strong environment for start-ups in this sector,” he says.

Game Developer Awards
One of the highlights of the two-day event is the Engineers Ireland Game Developer Awards. Limerick based company Open Emotion Studios, which is currently designing the Rubber Bandits game for the mobile market, took three of the twelve awards, including the overall ‘Best Game Award’, while Dublin based Pufferfish Games and Bat Cat Games claimed two each.

The award winners were:
Best Game Ninjamurai (Open Emotion Studios)
Best Mobile Game Power Grid (Puffer Fish Games)
Best Console Game P-3 (BatCat Games)
Best in Animation Bubble Dreams (Super Fun Play)
Best RPG Game Allods Online (Astrum Nival/gPotato.eu)
Best Strategy Game Power Grid (Puffer Fish Games)
Best Casual Game Flip the Switch (Tribal City Interactive)
Best in Original Audio & Music P-3 (BatCat Games)
Best Shooter Reapers End 1 (Eysodic Games)
Best in Gameplay Ninjamurai (Open Emotion Studios)
Best Indie Game Revoltin’ Youth (Open Emotion Studios)
Best Windos 7 Game Plants Vs Zombies (Popcap)