It’s official - Xchangeteam is bigger and better!
The past couple of months have seen a flurry of activity in the Xchangeteam ranks as we welcomed on board an amazing 11 new recruits! - including, for the first time, two trainees.
Introducing...
New addition to the Design & Advertising team Gareth Wright, used to head up the digital team at a boutique recruitment agency, dealing purely with marketing and advertising agencies. Gareth's passion lies deeply within the creative discipline and he zealously follows newly emerging campaigns. Having achieved a MusB from the University of Manchester and Grade 8 in three different instruments, Gareth can still occasionally be persuaded to tickle the old ivories.
Kat Metcalfe joined as Agent on the Media team and is a graduate of Ravensbourne College where she gained a BA in Broadcast Operation and Productions. Before joining Xchangeteam, she enjoyed a varied career working across theatre and radio - not to mention a lengthy spell as a freelance TV production manager. Not one to go in for the usual hobbies, she is a devotee of extreme kiting, sings with various bands and is an electric violinist!
Katja Bresman came on board as Agent on the PR & Communications team and brings with her a mixture of both recruitment and PR industry experience. A graduate in English and Drama, she began her career working agencyside in the consumer/luxury lifestyle sector where her clients included John Lewis, De Vere Hotels and Club Med. Her last role saw her concentrating on permanent roles within London's top 150 PR agencies. In her spare time, Katja plays tennis, enjoys travelling and going back to her Finnish roots.
Gary Young is a brand new Agent in the Editorial team. He has over five years experience within recruitment, mainly covering allied health professionals such as occupational therapists and physiotherapists. In one recent role he successfully built up a brand new Speech & Therapy desk. In his spare time Gary enjoys visiting European cities and is a huge Tottenham Hotspur fan.
Rodney Crouch joined the Events team as Agent after three and a half years working within public sector and not-for-profit recruitment. He is experienced in setting up new recruitment desks and has successfully managed teams within the industry. Rodney is an avid socialiser, which is one of the main reasons for his move into the events industry. However, when he is not out on the town, he loves nothing more than snowboarding and wakeboarding or going to watch his beloved Fulham FC.
New Senior Agent Judith Patton has been recruited by Xchangeteam to increase business on the integrated marketing agencies side and brings extensive experience in recruitment and below-the-line marketing. Prior to this, Judith was a freelancer at Acount Director level for three years at various top agencies. Her extensive experience and great contacts are a real boon for the Design & Advertising team.
The Events and Marketing team’s newest member is Katherina Breen who will be tackling the world of client-side marketing and all things events. With six years solid industry experience, she has worked in both the UK and Dubai and brings with her deep knowledge and great contacts. For the past 18 months she has been working in recruitment, handling roles across event management, exhibitions and event marketing and is now looking forward to developing close relationships with some great new clients.
Jo Annycke has a very interesting background combining high-tech PR and recruitment. Her first PR role was for a Swedish mobile marketing firm back in 2000 before taking the jump and going freelance. In 2002 Jo changed direction and moved into recruitment, when she bought a franchise – a childcare recruitment company, which she ran successfully for 4 years. Most recently she has been working for Unilever in their internal communications department, and is now excited to be returning to the world of recruitment joining the PR & Communications team. Outside of the office Jo does her best to improve the image of Brits amongst French audiences (her husband is French) but the commander and chief at home is her 3 year old son.
Hailing from Co Antrim in Northern Ireland, Kirsty Davis has 7 years recruitment experience dealing with freelance and permanent roles. Since graduating in 2000 with an honours degree in Business Management & Sport Studies, Kirsty has also gained both b2b and consumer PR consultancy experience. Kirsty will be specialising in placing editorial talent of all levels into a wide range of sectors including, government and public sector, charities, agency, publishing and retail. She will also be developing freelance opportunities for editorial consultants registered with Xchangeteam.
Jake Surrey is the latest recruit to join the PR & Communications team and comes on board as one of our first Trainee Agents. Having worked in the events industry since graduating from the London School of Economics in 2004 with a degree in Philosophy, he decided to embark on a career as a mixologist. However working while the rest of the world slept lost its appeal as he began to crave daylight! So, he is now really looking forward to embarking on his new career at Xchangeteam and making a name for himself in his chosen sector.
And last but not least, Ronnie Smith has also joined Xchangeteam as a Trainee Agent in the Design & Advertising team and is really looking forward to making his mark in this sector. He graduated with a degree in Business Economics from Kingston university in June 2006 and has since worked in higher education within a design faculty, dealing with both administration and admissions. In his spare time he likes nothing more than going to gigs, clubs and festivals alike.
Statutory holiday pay increase for holidaymakers
October saw freelancers’ annual Statutory Holiday Pay increase from 20 days to 24 days and it’s set to go up yet again.
From 1 April 2009, freelancers will be entitled to 28 days annually, which equates to 1 day extra pay for every 8.29 days worked (which is 12.07% of their day rate). Good news for hardworking freelancers – more beach time all round!
Make Christmas cheaper – use your Xpoints!
The selection boxes are being piled high in the supermarkets, the turkeys are jittery and there’s frost on the ground – yes, it’s definitely approaching that time of year again..! So if you’ve started writing your Christmas list and wondering how you’re going to afford all those pressies, why not make life a lot cheaper and cash in your Xpoints...
For the uninitiated, you earn Xpoints in a host of ways by working with Xchangeteam, such as providing recommendations or receiving glowing feedback from an assignment - and you can then redeem them against a wide range of products from our online catalogue. Everyone who is registered with Xchangeteam - whether to find a freelance or permanent position - can take part.
You can treat yourself to DVDs, books, music, gadgets and much, much more - or use them to get gifts for someone else. Go ahead, we won’t tell...
To find out how many points you currently have simply login in to 'my xchangeteam' on: www.xchangeteam.com.
Xchangeteam investing in its Internal Communications business
Internal communications is a fast-growing part of Xchangeteam's business. So fast in fact, that it now has its own team of dedicated agents to work with our growing client base of plcs, agencies and public sector organisations. Xchangeteam has been working in the internal communications field for a number of years, placing people in all its various guises, from strategic and change communications to events (e.g. management and sales road shows) and all forms of internal editorial, both offline and online (e.g. for intranets, newsletters and channel management).
To learn more about our specialist internal/corporate communications services, or if you would like to register as a freelance consultant or a permanent candidate with Xchangeteam contact Deenita Pattni, Rodney Crouch, Susannah Langton-Jones or Jo Annycke for expert advice
