“In some respects, this industry likes to think of itself as unique,” says Peter Hunt of MorePeople. “But so does every industry. Fresh produce is the same as any other sphere in that the cyclical nature of recruitment is affected by external factors.”
The economy and its effect on the retail and wholesale trading environments is the over-riding external factor for fresh produce and it has forced a rethink of the entire recruitment process. “Traditionally, this is a very individualistic sector and there has been a tendency to treat recruitment of staff on an ad hoc basis,” says Hunt. “Now, with category management the order of the day, the emphasis seems to have moved more to team building, which focuses on stability and group effort rather than an over-reliance on one or two key individuals.
“The ideal scenario is of course to be as prepared as possible for any changes. Companies obviously like to be lean and mean, but there are times when that can be taken too far with staffing levels.”
At every level of this industry, there is a temptation to trim staff levels because this is seen as the speediest route to cut costs. In some cases, a member of staff can be dispensable, in others it may be possible to lose a member of staff and plug the hole by giving existing employees added responsibility. But when a vital employee decides to leave, it is not simply a matter of replacing them overnight and continuing as before ñ it can take months to find the right person and there should be an element of flexibility built into the team that fills the gaps temporarily.
Ideally, if a structured approach to HR and recruitment has been taken a replacement should be readily available to be promoted from within.
However, back in the real world this is not usually the case. This has led to a notable amendment to many of the contracts of employment being negotiated in recent times, says Hunt. “Companies are recognising the need to retain people for longer and three-month notice periods are more common in many of the key roles, at all salary levels ñ certainly this is a lot more of a factor than when MorePeople started three and a half years ago. It is beginning to filter down through the business as increasingly it is seen as being beneficial to both employer and employee. For the company it can be as hard to replace a qualified technical manager as a high profile national account manager.”
“As the demands of customers increase, more companies are trying to hold on to their employees,” says Victoria Gipps, md of Grade One Search and Selection, “and this makes it less easy to move people around.” She adds that people are still looking for jobs, but that it is extremely difficult for an employee to leave an existing job if the employer turns round and “offers them the world” once they find out.
“You need to cut that option off at an early stage and we therefore advise clients to go in with their best offer straight off. It is not just the person, it is what they are worth, what the job is worth and what it would cost to replace them that must be considered. The first offer should be the final offer ñ being a trader doesn't work anymore when it comes to recruitment. Clear decisions are needed not protracted negotiations.”
The demands of the customer are also necessitating a longer-term approach to recruitment. “We are still seeing consolidation of the client base with the “winning” companies getting larger,” says Redfox director Max MacGillivray. “What is probably new in comparison to previous years is the spinning off of defined retailer specific facing business units within these larger companies. As a whole they may deal with three or four major retailers, but those retailers want/demand a complete focussed approach and do not want to share their key supplier staff with other retailers. So although consolidation occurs, we have the odd scenario that costs are being built up as these new “sub-companies” are formed.”
Gipps says: “We all have different styles of working and for us it's very much horses for courses. The fresh produce industry has companies of so many different sizes and our relationship with each client is different.
“Our main strength is our discretion. I am not for one minute saying that other companies don't show discretion, but we tend to get more involved in the sensitive roles. Confidentiality and integrity are extremely important and gear us up for the particular sensitivity of an industry where everybody knows everybody. We assure clients and candidates alike that we are there to protect them all.
“There is no cloak and dagger ñ we do headhunt, but not from any of the people we recruit for. I think the clandestine nature of our business works in our favour at the top end of the produce ladder.”
The issue of an imbalance in supply and demand for high calibre staff from graduates through to directors in all disciplines is increasing, says MacGillivray. “Clients should therefore be aware that the “ideal” individual may not be sitting on a recruitment agency's database. It is more likely that they will have to undertake a professional recruitment campaign utilising the likes of Redfox to advertise and research the market to find the best individuals they require from the UK or from overseas.”
There has been more willingness shown by fresh produce companies to look outside the box for their recruitment needs, says MacGillivray. “Clients are now requesting to meet individuals from fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) backgrounds at senior commercial levels, to see if they can add a different commercial perspective to their businesses. But for other positions, ideally clients prefer that candidates are sourced from the fresh produce sectors.”
Hunt adds: “There will always be a shortage of the highest quality staff. On the technical side, for instance, there is always a demand for commercially minded technical people, especially at the higher levels, where good communication skills are seen as being of equal importance to technical ability.”
“It actually still boils down to product knowledge in the end,” says Gipps. “Rather than extending their product portfolios, most suppliers are consolidating and concentrating on fewer lines. It is not difficult to identify who does what in the industry and the pool of specialist people is decreasing. At Grade One we have all been in the industry for a long time and have a strength and depth of product knowledge that gives us a certain pedigree.
“There is a huge shock in store for most people that come into this industry from other food sectors. The 24/7 relentlessness of fresh produce is significantly different to work in than the dairy or meat sector for instance. Plenty of people come to us from FMCG backgrounds and say ëI can do that job, I understand the requirements of supplying a supermarket' and they are absolutely right. But produce is so different in some respects. While we encourage looking outside the confines of the produce industry, most of our clients are looking for first-hand experience at the end of the day.”
The difficulty in attracting people to the industry is well-chronicled, but MacGillivray believes there is an answer. “Fresh produce has little branding on the supermarket shelf, so the uninformed consumer can tend to think that product is grown by the retailer,” he says. “With the 5-a-day programme and certain suppliers becoming more assertive in their marketing, it is hoped that the consumer will buy more product and gain a better knowledge of the sector. One would also hope that this understanding will flow through to graduates and the image of a career with the prospect of international travel, learning new languages and dealing with a fast moving innovative sector will become very attractive. We at Redfox also market our brand into non-related fresh sectors to source individuals that can bring new skill sets to the industry.”
A seminar earlier this year extolling the virtues of non-executive directors was one of the methods MorePeople has used to encourage the industry to spread its wings. “The produce industry should not isolate itself, but look at the wider food industry, the skills and abilities that are out there and as yet untapped by this industry,” says Hunt. “Non-execs can bring skills that can be used in a consultative or pragmatic way.” Guy Moreton, Hunt's partner at MorePeople, will be speaking at a Hargreaves Plants seminar on the day before Fruit Focus, addressing the subject of finding tomorrow's managers for the industry.
Like Jarvis Johnson (see box), MorePeople has also been involved “in an informal way” with sourcing interim managers for the last 18 months. “Some people look on interim managers as glorified temps, but true interim managers will be 20-25 per cent overqualified, be very hands-on and able to hit the ground running,” he says. “They are paid a higher daily rate, but there are none of the costs associated with a full-time employee. It is crucial that there is a specific job/task in mind for them and all parties concerned are clear as to what that is, how they will fit into the business and for how long.”
Rob Peters at Demos People set up an exclusive fresh produce division 12 months ago having specialised previously in IT and food manufacturing. He pinpoints the major difference in the fresh produce industry as being speed. “Fresh produce from a recruitment perspective is going through massive change,” says Peters. “Techniques that have proved very successful in the IT industry in the last five-10 years need to be addressed.
“Finding the niche, specialist staff is becoming increasingly important and the fresh produce industry has used too many large recruitment companies in the past that are not specialists in the industry. Fresh produce candidates are equally as important as anyone, but there appeared to be a lack of focus on this sector.
“This obviously wasn't working. Candidates were not getting the exposure they needed and clients were therefore not seeing the right people. Look at the trade magazines, there are 57 pages of recruitment ads in Food Manufacturer ñ you don't see that in this industry.
“The biggest thing the best players need to communicate is the difference between agencies and consultancies. We are not dealing with a huge number of companies with 300-400 employees, there are more with 10-15 staff and we are focused on not just filling individual vacancies but working closely with smaller companies to fulfil all their recruitment requirements.
“Yes we make a profit and yes we're doing well, but we are doing that by providing a tailored service to the fresh produce industry.”
In order to re-affirm its commitment to “people solutions” in the broadest sense, MorePeople also offers its established clients training and personal development courses and, says Hunt, “the more enlightened have seen this as an opportunity to develop not just their account managers and other front-line staff but their technical, operational and administrative staff too. External communication is important, but many have underestimated the importance of internal communication in the past. We are also looking to develop other courses in the near future”.
Redfox is one of the newer recruitment specialists on the block and has quickly established its identity across the market. “We have been in operation for over a year now,” says MacGillivray. “As the main director I have been in the fresh produce and food recruitment sectors for seven years having headed up the divisions for two other concerns. We set up the company to offer the best service to clients and candidates in the fresh and food sectors.
“I believe our main strengths are a combination of marketing techniques to source the best clients and candidates. This is dove-tailed with our in-house research team that works in the UK and overseas to identify the most suitable candidates for dedicated clients. Like the Journal, we are shortly to revamp our website to make it easier and quicker for all users ñ www.redfoxes.co.uk.
Grade One launched its website (below) earlier this year and, says Gipps, “it has really taken off. We have seen a huge upsurge in interest from a wide range of people ñ from graduates to senior managers ñ from all over the world. There is definitely increased global awareness of the fresh produce industry in the UK. The web was a whole new world to me and the number of visitors has been astonishing”.
Hunt feels that overall there has been a general uplift in the standards in recruitment for the fresh produce industry over the last few years. “All recruiters have a reputation to live down I suppose,” he says. “But hopefully we and the other newer companies in the sector have improved the overall level of service provided to both clients and candidates ñ perhaps a positive effect of increased competition. Our aim is to achieve the best results for all concerned through the development of close partnerships with our clients. We want people to see effective recruitment and people management as an integral part of their business.”