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Original poster

We offer flexible working and want to employ mums but no one is applying!

21 replies

Bristolmum99 · 01/09/2011 23:56

i work for a fast growing and award winning company based in the South West. We have a talented team, with a few mums who work part-time / flexible hours - we believe in doing whatever we can to attract the right person and are prepared to be very flexible.

We are recruiting for a Marketing Consultant (specialises in lead generation), we can offer part-time or flexible working. We advertised in the papers, Internet and through agencies, but have had very few applicants!

On the other hand, I hear a lot of new mums (I am an old mum!) saying that they can't get work because employers are too inflexible. It doesn't add up! Where are all the mums who want flexible working? Where can I find you all? Please can someone tell me where the mums are looking for jobs and where I should advertise?

OP posts:

festi · 02/09/2011 00:00

maybe its not suitable for them. poor reputation, poor pay. who knows maybe its you and not them

LawrieMarlow · 02/09/2011 00:03

I'm sure I saw a post similar to this a little while ago. Can't remember what the concensus was on why the jobs weren't being filled.

TheMitfordsMaid · 02/09/2011 00:09

Are you one of those aloe vera people?

Original poster

Bristolmum99 · 02/09/2011 00:11

Thanks, festi. You may well be right. I am sure, like all employers, we can improve.

I am new to Mumsnet and, rightly or wrongly, thought it could provide a useful forum for information exchange. I do hope someone will be able to enlighten me on where mums are looking for work so we can advertise in the right places.

OP posts:

Original poster

Bristolmum99 · 02/09/2011 00:14

@TheMitfordsmaid: sorry, not sure what 'aloe vera people' means. If it's a company then it is not us, we are an IT technology company.

OP posts:

TheMitfordsMaid · 02/09/2011 00:15

Seriously, are you an aloe vera type? I meet people from those companies at networking events and they scare me. They feel like a cult.

TheMitfordsMaid · 02/09/2011 00:15

Good!

Why do you feel sure it is a mother you want?

TheMitfordsMaid · 02/09/2011 00:18

I am a mother and I look in the same places as I did before children. Have you looked at your terms and conditions, policies etc? Are they family friendly, flexible or do you keep them a secret? Do you have a good HR person who can design effective reward strategies?

DuelingFanjo · 02/09/2011 00:25

is this an advert?

madwomanintheattic · 02/09/2011 00:26

i'm a bit confused - is it one of these purely commission only things? is the pay so poor that you think only desperate mums who can't get anything else are going to bother?

it's too vague about what you're actually doing for anyone to offer contructive advice tbh - what are the adverts actually advertising for? job titles/ descriptions/ essential and desirable quals etc?

otherwise it just sounds like you might be being slightly less than open... i've no idea what the organisation is, but usually flexible and school hours employment opportunities attract a high level of interest. i've no idea why yours aren't.

do you require a very specific skill set?

can you provide a link to an ad that's currently running, or give us more of a clue?!

madwomanintheattic · 02/09/2011 00:27

it might be if she posts who's recruiting... otherwise tis a bit on the vague side. but it's not aloe vera.

chocabloc · 02/09/2011 00:31

Hi Ladies :) God haven't been on here in years..this was a support line for me for many years. Any way I have no experience in marketing, but am a youth worker and have a mature marketing graduate who is desperatley seeeking work. If your not looking for a mother then he would be the ideal candidate. What is your web address and can I have any more details on the role please. Bristolmum99.

Btw Aloe vera types i guess are the ones who try to sell to you like the avon of aloe vera. Skin cream etc ;)

festi · 02/09/2011 00:32

I would say location maybe an issue here, if specialised IT maybe in west country its either rural or inner city where these specific skills are not the particualr norm, ie either the population is non skilled or skilled in this area but in a rural location with good perks working from home or commuting for better pay.

festi · 02/09/2011 00:34

not It specialist but my reasoning would read same for marketing consultant I would guess.

Original poster

Bristolmum99 · 02/09/2011 00:36

I see what you mean by the aloe vera type!

We don't specifically look for mothers, my brief to the agencies was for any parents with children who may want flexible working. It is actually a full time position, but we are willing to be flexible for the right person. Our HR team is pretty good, we are going for Investors in People Gold standard at the moment. The benefits are quite clear in our Ts and Cs, but we are just not getting many applicants (apart from many fresh graduates). We filled six other positions recently, one was a very well qualified part-time working mum which was a real win-win for her and for us. It is just this Marketing role that is still not filled. May be we will have another look at the job ad copy to make the flexibility really obvious.

Thanks!

OP posts:

randommoment · 02/09/2011 00:40

I'm with madwomanintheattic - if your ads mention anything like 'OTE' I wouldn't bother to reply. At the moment your business is sounding a bit like those cards you find stuck to lamp-posts with 'earn £1000s' working from home', with only a mobile phone number. Only the desperate dimwits ever reply to those!

randommoment · 02/09/2011 00:41

Sorry Bristolmum99 cross-posting moment has just happened. Apologies!

madwomanintheattic · 02/09/2011 00:44

i don't understand why you are actively marketing for someone who needs flexibility? surely for the company it would be better to employ someone who can work the hours etc? i mean, it's lovely and all, but it makes me wonder whether your wages or benefits package is comparable to similar opportunities...

i have to say if you are just using agencies (ie those who have a list of people seeking employment, rather than open advertising) that's probably your answer. whilst i've sought employment with school age children, i didn't ever bother to register with an agency. in my experience, they can fit you up with regular f/t stuff, but don't ever have flexible parent friendly jobs on the books. waste of my time to register.

if you are open advertising as well, cancel my last. i would have thought a job ad running for a marketing specialist would have brought plenty of applicants.

why are recent graduates a problem, out of interest? you do know that some of them might actually be parents, right?

festi · 02/09/2011 00:47

I think using agencies is limiting your audience to graduates.

Himalaya · 02/09/2011 00:56

I'm wondering how can a brief to agencies for parents with children can be good Equal Ops policy - how does having children qualify them to do the job?

Is it commission only? That would put off anyone who has to shell- out for childcare.

RLHLW · 02/09/2011 11:04

Is there a job description for this? Please provide a link! I would be interested!

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