Once a year, there comes a time that is crucial for any employee: the Annual Review. This is where everything that you have done for your company throughout the past 12 months is examined and discussed with you. It is also the perfect time to try and negotiate a raise, and improve your working conditions and prospects for the coming year. Below are some tips for keeping your cool and getting what you deserve at the Annual Review:

Maybe it's too early to ask

You almost definitely should be with a company for at least a year before broaching the subject of a raise. Wait until you've built up enough expertise, knowledge and customer relationships to be perceived as indispensable, then make your move.

Realise what's fair and reasonable

Before making your pitch, it's a good idea to do some research about the average pay levels in your field, both locally and nationally, so that you know what you're worth. It's also important to find out about your company's current situation. If the business is historically more cash rich at other times of the year, it might be wiser to consider asking then.

Know where to conduct your research

To gather information about your profession's salary range, check trade journals and salary-related websites with cost-of-living calculators. Also try contacting recruiters and local representatives of professional associations. To find out your company's financial performance, check out their annual report, or details on Companies House.

Preparation is everything

To help calm your nerves and make sure that you come across well, spend time rehearsing a brief presentation that stresses positive, measurable facts about your performance. It might be an idea to consider practising your presentation with someone you trust.

Think about your current status within the company

What is your overall position like with your employer at this exact moment in time? If you've just had a bad run in your performance, it's possibly not the best time to make the pitch for a raise. But if you're on a winning streak, or you've just been offered another job elsewhere, then the omens are good and your bid will be more seriously considered.

Make yourself more valuable

Within your day-to-day activities, try and take the initiative to learn new skills and assume added responsibilities without being asked. Your employers will make a mental note of your ambition and drive, and such steps could distinguish you amongst your colleagues and put you in line for higher pay.

Help out with your performance appraisal

There are very few employers out there who actively enjoy the interview process, so try and make it as easy as possible for them, especially if raises are only available during the annual review. A good way of doing this is to write an email outlining your key accomplishments over the past year. Make sure that you tailor what you write to fit the review process used by your company.

Have a specific goal in mind

After doing your research and assessing your situation, decide on a target raise percentage that seems reasonable. Sometimes it is a good idea to propose a higher figure and then settle for your original percentage. It may not guarantee that you'll get exactly what you want, but it could be a great source of clarity during your conversation with your boss.

Consider negotiating for benefits and perks

For whatever reason, perhaps a pay raise just isn't on the cards at the moment. But you can ask for other things, including an extra week of holiday, extra personal days, a future sabbatical period, training/education benefits or increased car or mobile phone allowances.

On the whole, working hard, doing a good job and getting results should translate into a good annual review and a decent salary increase. It is worth bearing in mind that employees who have stayed with one company and not sought out offers from other employers tend to earn less than their peers who have changed jobs at least once in their careers.

To discuss your future career moves, and to assess the opportunities for increased salary, benefits and personal fulfilment, get in touch with Regan & Dean.

As they say, it's often not what you know, but who you know that can bring about benefits to your career and future prospects. Having a broad base of contacts in diverse fields is an essential requirement of getting places these days, and networking is a key way to find and develop these contacts.

For the lucky few, networking is a wholly pleasurable experience, but for the rest of us it can be fraught with difficulties. From confidence issues to knowing what to expect at a specific event, the networking process can be a minefield, but one with significant rewards. Whether it be internal or external, large groups or more intimate environments, here are some tips on how to get the best out of a networking opportunity.

Always be on the lookout for opportunities to network

Even if you are happily employed right now, it doesn't mean you can't network. You never know when circumstances might change, or what opportunities exist for you around the corner. Be prepared to put yourself out there at every possible occasion, and you'll be surprised at the results you get back.

Do your research

A sound knowledge base is the key to confidence, so don't be afraid to research the companies, individuals or events that you are wishing to network. In virtually all cases, any extra research will pay off on the day, and you may find yourself gaining an extra edge in the conversations you have because of this.

Be helpful: Always look for the win-win situation

Networking revolves around the meeting of like-minded people for social, personal or professional gain, so in order to be a successful networker, it is helpful to first define what it is you have to offer to others. Creating a win-win situation, where you have successfully exchanged beneficial information with someone else is the key to productive networking.

Connecting people: Establish links in the chain

You never know who might be helpful to you, or at what time, so be prepared to actively introduce people to others, even if there is no obvious immediate gain to you. Next time you arrange a meeting with a friend or business associate, try and invite another along, and connect the two together.

Pay attention, and use your ears more than your mouth

Everybody likes talking about themselves to a certain degree, so using your networking opportunities to listen to others is bound to make a more lasting impression. In addition, you'll learn more, and if you pay attention, you will be more likely to pick up on information that might be useful, either now or in the future.

Express yourself, and don't judge others

If you are involved in a networking opportunity, make sure that the people around you understand what you do. If they don't, they can't be expected to look for opportunities for you, so make your skills and talents clear. Try not to judge others based on their apparent usefulness to you, as you never know who they might be friends with, or go on to become themselves.

Be yourself

The most important aspect of any networking opportunity is that you remain genuine and reliable in your dealings with others. No matter how unconfident you may feel in certain situations, there is no point in being anything other than yourself. The biggest complaint about networking, is that it encourages a superficial and false persona, so be genuine and you'll find that you attract other genuine people.

Following up: Keeping the momentum

As with any relationship, contacts made through networking need to be followed up and maintained. There is no sense in making a good impression if you allow the relationship to wither through lack of subsequent contact. Stay in touch, invite them to a different event, introduce them to someone, or even just send them a news story that might be interesting to them. A little bit of follow up can go a long way to creating a true network around you.

In any career path, there are certain core skills that are universal to all roles, and developing these areas will always be of benefit to an ambitious professional. Of these core skills, an ability to be an effective time manager is probably one of the most important.

Whether you are looking to progress in your current role, or are potentially seeking a move to another company, good time management is central to your current and future effectiveness, even when under pressure. Here are some tips:

Glance at your week
Get your hands on a week-at-a-glance appointment book or diary and use it whenever possible. Put everything that you want to achieve in this book, it will give you the structure to plan more effectively.

Distinguish what's important 
Make sure you can differentiate between tasks that are urgent and that are vital. Urgent duties may seem crucial to complete immediately, but it is rarely vital that it has to be done right now or even at all.

Schedule your priorities
Keep track of your time by half hour increments for 2 weeks to see how you actually spend your time. Compare this to what you should be or want to be spending your time on. It might surprise you and will give you the tangible motivation to make needed changes.

Learn to say no 
Many time management issues stem from an inability to turn down work requested from peers and co-workers. In controlling your time, it's important to say no to the project, not the person. You cannot do everything everyone asks you to do.

Effective delegation helps everyone perform better
For whatever reason, many people find it hard to delegate jobs to others, meaning that workloads can become unnecessarily severe. Learning how to effectively delegate, by picking the right person, giving clear directions, setting benchmark and due dates, and then letting them do it, is a remarkably empowering aspect of time management.

Procrastination - the thief of time
We all do it from time to time, but successful time managers ensure that it is kept to a minimum. Fear, boredom, perfectionism, an overwhelming task and unclear goals can all add to a desire to procrastinate. It truly is the thief of time, so identify the reason behind the procrastination, and make sure that you are solving the right problem when dealing with it.

The 80:20 Rule
The 80:20 rule occurs in many aspects of life, and says that typically 80% of unfocussed effort generates only 20% of results. The remaining 80% of results are achieved with only 20% of the effort. While the ratio is not always exactly 80:20, it can be helpful to recognise this truism within your own time management.

Put a value on it
If you earn £10,000 a year, each minute is worth £0.09. If you earn £30,000 a year, each minute is worth £0.27. It can be helpful sometimes to use these thoughts to help you prioritise your activities and to determine whether, and to whom, you should be delegating. Any time you are doing work that someone at a lower wage could be doing, you are losing money.

By incorporating some of the time management tips and skills in this piece, you can optimise your effort to ensure that you concentrate as much of your time and energy as possible on the high payoff tasks. This ensures that you achieve the greatest benefit possible with the limited amount of time available to you. Set goals and stick to them.

There are 1,440 minutes in a day and 29020 days in an 80-year lifetime, so take control of your time and make this year the year you do and get what you want.

Darwin famously once said that it was not the fittest that survive but the species most responsive to change. This fact has now become synonymous with business evolution, placing a compelling need on companies to fully embrace change or risk falling by the wayside.

But how do you manage change successfully? Whether it be personnel changes or IT, location changes or company process, below are some tips to ensure that your company survives and stays calm in the challenging business of change.

Omelettes and eggs
Real change, as opposed to cosmetic shifts in business culture, will by definition cause disruption within the working practices of any company. It's important to remember that the benefits of successful change management tend to arrive later than the process itself, so it is important to stick to your guns and embed the changes in your company culture, until they become anchored and indistinguishable from traditional processes.

Organisations are organic
Companies, as the Darwin quote above suggests, are like organisms. Most people imagine a business to be a rigid and inflexible structure, whereas it may be more helpful to conceptualise your business as a fluid, organic entity that is always changing. Viewed in this manner, it is possible to recognise change as being at the very centre of your company's future prospects, and larger scale changes can be undertaken confidently in a broader context of perpetual change.

Early wins
Whatever change you are considering, or actually going through at present, it is worth bearing in mind that your colleagues and you may well need to experience some 'quick wins' through the change management process. If people can see that the change brings benefits as well as disruption, it is much easier to establish an early buy-in to the change process from those around you that are going through it.

Resistance is futile
When placed in a position of change, many people resist the process as it falls outside of their traditional comfort zone. Not only is this counter productive, but it is often the case that the original fears that led to the resistance are unfounded. If the business reasons for change are robust, and well communicated, then this should keep irrational resistance down to a minimum, and ensure for a smoother transition.

Focus on one change at a time
Even for responsive companies that are the most adept at change management, it is important not to try and effect too many changes at any one given time. The destabilising effects of change can be managed more successfully with the presence of enough familiar and constant elements within the business.

Encourage feedback
The process of change within a business can only be deemed truly successful if everyone who it affects accepts it as a progressive improvement. A good way to ensure this is to encourage feedback from stakeholders at key stages. People respond better to change if they feel fully included within the process itself.

Be realistic
Generally speaking, things always take longer and cost more than you think they will. Be realistic about the changes that you need to make, the time it will take to make them, and the personnel skills needed to make the change a success. If your business lacks the skills base to effect successful transitions and changes, it may well be sensible to employ the services of a change management consultant during this period.

Unplanned change is a surprise, planned change is strategic
Remember to be extremely clear about the changes that your business requires, the process you intend to follow, and the results that you expect. This will limit the negative impact of the process, keep you sane through the duration and keep your colleagues focused and appreciative of the elements required.

As you rise up the ranks in your chosen career or company, there will generally be a greater responsibility placed on you to manage the needs and performance of others within the organisation. As with any skill, everyone has their own techniques and level of natural expertise in people management, and it is a skill that is a critical part of career progression. Here are some tips on how to manage the people in your organisation more effectively.

Everybody's different
Possibly the most important initial step in successful people management is to realise that people are, indeed, different. Whilst all professionals generally share some common motivations, desires and attributes, you will get the best out of people if you treat them as individuals. Management techniques that work with one professional may not work with another, so take time to get to know your team well, and you'll soon pick up on individual characteristics that can help you manage them better.

Set the standard
Good management techniques are borne out of mutual respect and appreciation between all parties, so all management should begin by the manager setting a standard that he or she would expect from others. Employees can quickly lose respect for a manager that doesn't display the abilities or commitment to undertake tasks that they themselves are required to do. If you want people to work long, focused hours and take pride in their work, then ideally you should demonstrate that you have these capabilities too, and are leading from the front.

Invest in good relations
It sounds obvious, but being a good manager of people is not merely about making successful demands of them. There are a few tried and tested ways of ensuring that your team performs well, but arguably the best way of achieving this is to invest in each personal relationship, going out of your way to do things purely for the benefit of the team and its individuals. If you don't manage to do this, there is a danger that your team will solely associate you with requests for work, and this may create a negative psychology in the very people that you are trying to manage.

Careful critiques  
Your evaluation and feedback of the work produced by your colleagues is one of the key areas by which you can either greatly increase loyalty, performance and respect, or greatly diminish it. Human beings hate to be criticised, and will generally go on the defensive when placed in this position, so choose your words carefully if you want to enthuse rather than deflate.

A helping hand
Successful managers have a tendency to be able to display empathy for a colleague's challenges, and in many cases are in a position to offer proactive help and support. This is an essential part of management, as people generally respond well to professional relationships where the other party seems to be doing things for them. Most employees will gladly undertake tasks if they feel that management is looking out for their own personal interests.

Communication is king
Good communication is vital to good management techniques, and it is therefore essential that you establish a line of regular communication that suits both you and your team. Generally speaking, you should aim to set aside some dedicated time to communicating management news to the team, and allowing them to update you on their projects at least once a week. Sessions like this encourage team spirit, a feeling of togetherness and can be a highly effective way of identifying challenges and celebrating successes in a timely manner.

Get people to arrive at your conclusions
Instead of being a domineering manager who insists that things are done exclusively your way, it can often be helpful to use a little reverse psychology when managing people. If your approach is strictly to dictate, you may well encounter resistance, although if you set out your reasons for wanting something done a particular way, and encourage the buy in of your team, they will be much more willing to engage. Better still, create an open discussion where your team proactively suggest the route that you had initially intended. In this way, you can praise staff for their initiative whilst also getting things done the way you want them.

Do you have excellent written and communication skills? A creative mind? Confidence to sell ideas? Good planning and organisational skills? Determination and the ability to work well under pressure? Then a career in marketing could be for you.

We asked one of our marketing managers to run through a typical day. Marketing managers, sometimes known as brand or account managers, plan all aspects of an organisation's marketing. As the head of their department, they will research and analyse marketing trends; identify target markets; plan campaigns and develop strategies; manage a team of marketing executives and the budget, as well as monitoring and reporting on the success of campaigns. The job can demand long hours, especially in the lead up to a campaign launch, but the satisfaction of a happy client after a successful campaign is enough reward in itself.

In the morning I'll spend the first hour or so checking my emails and actioning anything that's necessary. Working at a global agency you constantly have to be aware of the time difference between you and each of your clients, so it can be important to respond more rapidly to some people than others. I'll then ring around any jobs I've been briefed on to get an update of any progress.

I'll usually receive one or two sign-offs every morning, so these will be next on my to-do list. This could be a proof to sign off and get to the printers, some copy from the copywriters or something along these lines. I'll then have a meeting mid-morning, usually with three or four offshore consultants, to get an update and make sure everyone is running to schedule. Then I'll head off to the gym for an hour and grab some sushi on my way back to the office.

In the afternoon I might have a meeting with a supplier, perhaps looking at a trade stand that's being built and checking the branding is exactly correct. I then usually have a meeting with an agency group, and will round off the afternoon by speaking to my team and ensuring everything is running smoothly.

As a career, what I enjoy most about marketing is the diverse nature of the job. Working with many different stakeholders means you have contact with a number of different people at all levels. I've also worked on some very exciting projects over the years. Whilst working in New Zealand recently, I worked on the America's Cup, which was funded in part by the New Zealand government, so we were essentially managing tax payers' money. Online is increasingly becoming an integral part of the job; as an agency you have to keep up with current technology. One of the interesting aspects of online work is that the success of a specific campaign is measurable, so it can be really satisfying when something goes to plan.

Marketing is notorious for its unpredictable hours, and when you're working with a global agency you are often required to stay late into the evening to have video conferences with people on the other side of the world. Unfortunately that is just the nature of the profession; it's a reactive industry, and that can often put a lot of pressure on the team. But if you're anything like me, you'll find that acts as a motivator!

Confidence tricks - creating opportunities in troubled times

The concept of confidence in today's commercial marketplace has become increasingly examined through the prism of an uncertain economic climate. Entire industries, such as marketing or banking, are built on an underlying foundation of confidence that circulates the very lifeblood of their industries. Once confidence starts to slide therefore, it brings with it no small amount of problems.

Many of the great UK banking institutions of the last century have either collapsed, merged or been nationalised, and this crisis of confidence is affecting every UK business and professional, both now and into the foreseeable future. So what does this mean for companies and individuals intent on succeeding through these troubled times? Below are some thoughts on why confidence is everything, and how you can use this mentality to create success, even during challenging circumstances such as these.

The sky is not falling on our heads
The most important thing to keep in perspective is that however bad things may seem, the situation will get progressively better given time. Although the nation's media, and some of its key politicians, are defining the situation with extreme language, businesses will still trade and smart professionals will still thrive.

Whilst no one would suggest that the current outlook is anything but bleak, it is a lack of confidence that caused the crisis and it is confidence, both on an individual and a collective basis, which will ultimately provide a large part of the solution back to prosperity. Fortune favours the bold.

True confidence is based in realism
The ability to make realistic, objective appraisals of both your own and your company's current situation will be invaluable over the coming months. The situation is likely to be very fluid, so accurately assessing your position within the business, and the position of the business within the market will enable you to make confident decisions that will only enhance your future prospects.

The certainty is, for example, that jobs will become increasingly scarce across virtually all professional sectors over the coming months. If you are a candidate, it may well mean that you will need to up your game to remain competitive in a diminishing pool of opportunities. If you are currently employed, it could be that you may be required to work longer hours to justify your position, or at the very least demonstrate flexibility in your approach to your role and responsibilities.

Whatever the scenario, being aware of the real effects of a downturn to your individual situation and making sensible decisions on how to counter them is a useful skill indeed.

Adapt and survive
It takes a set of heightened, sharper skills to truly thrive in a period of economic downturn. Businesses and individuals will not only be required to perform more effectively, but they may well need to change the way they see their business model or personal role. Whilst this will without doubt be demanding for all concerned, often it can be viewed as no bad thing, as it compels people to become more resourceful and industrious, qualities that are vital to successful companies.

Taking the initiative and reshaping your role or CV to reflect a more diverse and flexible skills base is a key aspect to creating personal opportunities in any economic climate, although it is an essential attribute in today's marketplace. If you are looking for work, be prepared to consider alternative options such as temping or part time positions, and be realistic and flexible towards salary aspirations.

Necessity creates innovation
As anyone over 35 will know or tell you, recessions are traumatic periods to work within, although they do eventually yield significant benefits to professionals and individuals flexible enough to weather the storm. The lessons learnt during recessions may be tough, but they can contribute greatly to the overall development of businesses and individuals alike.

Within recessions, professionals need to be proactive, resourceful, and adaptable. Perhaps most importantly, individuals and businesses need to rediscover the ability to innovate, pursuing fresh and alternative avenues towards personal and commercial success. Whether this means approaching the job market in a different manner, or thinking outside the box within your own business and its recruitment policy, it is clever, inventive thinking that will allow certain people and companies to prosper in a time like this.

Confidence works both ways
Despite the regular portions of impending doom served up to the hungry masses by the UK media (arguably creating a self fulfilling prophesy), it is more than possible to develop your career prospects, professional development and personal fulfilment, even during periods such as these.

Supported by the right people, such as a specialist recruitment consultant that knows the marketplace inside out, there are still some great opportunities out there for you to aspire to. All the recession does is make those roles that much more competitively contested, meaning that any approach to landing your ideal role must be sharper than ever.

A critical part of this approach will be confidence. Get yourself into a positive state of mind and stay there.

The ability to shine in interviews is a distinctly valuable attribute, and one that can make all the difference to your current and future career prospects. As with any skill, it can and should be consistently improved upon and refined by professionals of all ages and levels of experience. Particularly within the current economic climate, the ability to represent yourself well within an interview scenario is vital, and very often the key to excelling in interviews is an ability to do the basics well.

No-one can tell you how to conduct the absolute perfect interview, because this is entirely dependant on the role you are being considered for, the skills and experience that you possess, and the natural strengths to emphasise in your character. There are many different approaches that yield different levels of success for different people, although the tips below should allow you to approach any interview scenario with solid foundations, confidence and optimism.

Be yourself, condensed
If you are at the stage where an interview is required then congratulations, you have already represented yourself well, either through your CV or through positive personal association. This means that your interviewer will know something about you already, particularly if you have come through a specialist recruitment consultancy that thoroughly briefs both sides before the interview.

This allows you to professionally be yourself, to a certain extent. You should take confidence from the fact that someone has requested an interview, and let this dispel any nerves that might prevent you from expressing yourself to your fullest potential. Try to condense and communicate the most attractive elements of your natural abilities, learned skills and acquired experience into a coherent proposition for your potential employer, and let your personality do the rest.

Know more than your interviewers do
One of the most important common traits of a successful interview is the amount of research a successful candidate undertakes prior to the interview itself. It sounds obvious, but many prospective candidates will carry out only the most superficial levels of research, giving you a distinct advantage if you are prepared to dig a little deeper. The Internet is a powerful tool for this purpose, so use it to check out your prospective employer's business, the markets within which they operate, and the types of corporate values that they hold. All this will come in very handy.

The ultimate realisation of accomplished research is to know more about certain aspects of your prospective employer's business than your interviewers do. If you can demonstrate a depth of knowledge about the employer, this will enable you to have a much more sophisticated conversation about the ways in which your candidacy can help them achieve their commercial objectives. It will impress them with your initiative, allow you to ask intelligent, informed questions and go a long way helping you to secure your new role.

Match yourself to the role
Once you've done your research, you should have a pretty good idea of why your prospective company is keen to recruit, and also of the types of professional skills and experience that they might require in order to be satisfied that they made the right choice of employee. Because you now have a clearer idea of what they are specifically after for a particular role, you can then try to highlight areas within your own personal experience that match these criteria in order that you can communicate these during the interview.

Make a few notes about the role's requirements, and then add further notes regarding your own skills and experience that meet them. In this way, you will be accentuating your suitability for the role, and thereby heightening your chances of convincing interviewers that your candidacy 'ticks all the right boxes' on a practical level. On a personal level, look back on your research to tell you the type of personality, ethics and working values that your prospective employer promotes. This will give you an angle on the types of characters and personalities that they would wish to employ too.

The moment of truth
Once you are actually conducting the interview itself, there is very little margin for error, so any preparation beforehand is time well spent, including perhaps even practising your technique with a friend or family member. During the interview, it is important to strike a balance between different instincts: you must remain alert enough to think on your feet, and yet at the same time be relaxed enough to remember to breathe and not trip over your words when giving answers,

Any answers that you give must be concise and considered, although expressive enough to allow the clarity of your thoughts to shine through. You should also take a notepad to jot down any thoughts or questions that you might ask your prospective employers at an appropriate moment during the interview. Your interviewers will have little choice but to make fairly quick judgements about what you have to offer, so it is important that you keep your nerve, remaining positive and professionally impressive throughout.

As the interview concludes, be sure to enquire as to what the next steps are, and ask whether there is anything further you can do to support your bid for the role.

Following up
One of the most important things to do after any interview is to obtain some feedback on your performance. In this way, even an interview in which you did not land the role can be successful in providing quality tips and advice that will only improve your abilities over time.
If you are working with a quality recruitment consultant, they will be able to talk directly to the employer on your behalf after the interview and gain some valuable insights into how well you were perceived.

The Basics - Regan & Dean Interview Check List 
The following quick tips may sound obvious but…

- Don't be late - always allow extra contingency time to get to the interview unflustered (and if you are running late, ring ahead to let them know)
- Dress smart (ask your Consultant for any guidelines on this depending on the type of role)
- Ensure you've got all required details of the address/map/who you're seeing, etc. with you, and take a copy of your CV (and portfolio if you have one)
- Review the job spec and the company's website thoroughly in advance, discussing the position in depth with your Consultant if necessary
- Check websites of competitors too, in order to get a good general feel for their market
- Make sure you can confidently and succinctly explain what your current and past roles have involved (a well structured CV is a great basis for this)
- Prepare for any competency-based questions by identifying examples from your own working life that illustrate your skills/abilities. These examples must be prepared in advance, so that they readily spring to mind during, rather than after, the interview!
- Develop a robust case in advance of why you think you'd be good for the role, and what key skills and attributes you have to offer your prospective employer
- Take a list of questions about the role/company to the interview
- Make sure you listen carefully to the interview questions, and focus your responses on directly answering their enquiry - you can always check with them to see if you have answered a question to their satisfaction - don't waffle.
- If you're nervous, remind yourself to take deep breaths - it can often lighten the atmosphere if you explain to your interviewer that you are feeling nervous
- Round up the interview by asking if there are any areas that your interviewers feel you haven't covered fully enough for them, or areas of concern
- Give a good positive end to your interview by restating your strong interest in the role, and thank them for their time
- Phone your recruitment consultant asap after the meeting to give them your feedback

What is a conference producer?

A fascinating blend of research, planning, people skills and intuitive management, Conference Producers are professionals that take ultimate responsibility for the success of an individual or series of events by making sure the intellectual content is right.

A good Conference Producer will have an input into virtually every aspect of a Conference's development, from inception, through marketing to eventual delivery. They are often the primary stakeholder as to the essential details and components, and as such must have a keen eye for detail in addition to being able to look at the bigger picture.

A Conference Producer's life is governed by deadlines, relationships and an innate ability to capture the imagination of the target audience. It can be an extremely exciting and rewarding career role for professionals with the right blend of skills and experience.

What do they do in the role?
As with many roles within Events, the ability to manage people and contacts is a key and primary skill, although the remit of a Conference Producer goes much further, and begins much earlier in the production stages, than that.

Initially, a Conference Producer gets involved in writing Conference proposals and creating the actual shape and content of the event itself, so meticulous research and planning is central to the role.

They will also play a large part in attracting relevant speakers and building relationships with industry people in order to be constantly aware of the burning topics and influences that could potentially translate into a compelling, rewarding and successful Conference.

Marketing experience is also important, in terms of being able to accurately define the event's target audience and create communications material that will appeal to them and instigate a desire to attend.

Finally, a Conference Producer will be present at the event itself, ensuring that the Conference flows smoothly, that the speakers are looked after, and that the planning process is executed flawlessly in practice.

Who might they work for?
A Conference Producer could conceivably work for any organisation that had a requirement for, or a business model that includes, the staging of commercial Conferences.

A commercial events company is a business that exists to deliver bespoke events aimed at certain industry and interest groups, such as the Utilities, Finance, Education and Legal professions. The overarching objective for companies like this is to attract paying delegates to ensure that the event is successful, well attended and makes money.

A publishing company may have a similar requirement for a Conference Producer, although their objective in staging an event might be slightly different. Publishers might run an event that relates specifically to one of their media titles and the interests of its readership, which fulfils a dual role of generating revenue whilst at the same time developing the media title brand itself as a key player in the industry.

A Conference Producer might also operate in a standalone capacity for an association or institution that has a less directly commercial objective behind the event, to ensure an engaging and relevant programme of events and content is generated by the association on behalf of its members.

The key to success for all these different types of Producer however, is the ability to manage events that feature content and speakers that the target market genuinely want to see.

Who do they deal with in the role?
Externally, a Conference Producer will need to be in regular contact with influential industry figures, who may be useful either as speakers themselves or as conduits to other people or commercial entities. This will enable the Conference Producer to keep a 'finger on the pulse', stay networked, and develop ideas for conferences that are proven to be interesting.

A good Producer will also be in regular contact with sponsors and potential sponsors, who may wish to target the same audience as your Conference, providing them with regular updates and opportunities where they may be able to get involved.

Internally, a Conference Producer will be constantly liasing with the Sales and Marketing teams to ensure that the marketing communications are being managed correctly and the sales figures for the event are strong. Invariably, the Conference Producer may well have an obligation to report to the board of directors, or senior management, in order that they may be presented with a top line summation of the event's practical and commercial progress.

The Producer will also link into the Operations team - who will be responsible for all logistical aspects of the event, the venue, catering etc. (In some companies the operations role may also fall to the Producer, but normally this is a separate function).

What skills, experience and qualifications are required?
A degree is normally required, although not essential, for any Producer position of responsibility, as it demonstrates to a certain extent (dependant on the degree) the ability to employ strong research techniques and abilities to a focused endpoint.

Good copywriting skills, excellent interpersonal skills and organisational skills are also core competencies that contribute to a successful candidacy. Above all else, however, solid industry experience (whether gained within the degree, reflective of a personal interest, or gained within past production experience) is highly prized, and will enable you to develop the confidence to deal with senior level contacts, also a critical skill.

Producers often develop areas of specialism in terms of the sectors they know - highly valued, some roles might demand this specialist knowledge as essential, but Production skills are normally viewed as transferable across sectors.

Career Path:
As with many roles, there is not always a straight, linear path towards becoming a proficient and respected Conference Producer. The traditional career path, however, consists of the following stages:

• Junior Producer
• Producer
• Senior Producer
• Conference Manager
• Conference/Divisional Director

Producers will tend to 'grow through the ranks' of a company - but they may enter the profession at a higher level from other areas of specialist topic knowledge.

There is also a strong freelance market for Conference Producers. This can be a very attractive option provided that you have good experience gained at a recognised company.

What other roles are there out there similar to this?
Event Manager - some, although not all, Event Manager roles can require some Producing elements, particulary within Associations or similar content/interest-led organisations.

What are the Salary & benefits within the role?
An entry level salary begins around the £18K pa mark, rising to around £23-35K pa for a Conference Producer. An experienced Conference Manager/Director can expect to earn in the region of £35-45K pa.

Bonuses are normally part of the package based on the commercial success of the events produced, and can contribute significantly to a high OTE.

What's it really like: Diana Dixon
Diana Dixon has worked as a Conference Producer on behalf of some of the most successful commercial events companies in the UK. With over 10 years in the profession, Diana now produces conferences on a freelance basis.

What are the best and worst bits about being a Conference Producer?
“I think for me one of the best parts is the high degree of autonomy and diversity within the role. A good Conference Producer needs to be able to take responsibility for, and deliver, a great many elements simultaneously, such as forecasting, budgeting, planning, writing, arranging speakers, and briefing the marketing team, and I enjoy the challenge of balancing these diverse areas.

On the downside, there is a huge amount of stress and pressure in ensuring that these things are delivered and create a successful event. In Conference Production, there are very strict timelines, and if you lose time in one area, it will start to compress the other areas, such as marketing, due to the finite, project based nature of the work. If this starts to happen, it can impact on the success of the event.

Does the role suit a particular type of personality?
There is a duality about the role, a need to be both introvert, in order that you can focus on the research and writing aspect, but also a real extrovert, so that you can network, create an energy about the project and persuade the right speakers to participate. Similarly, you need to be able to balance an eye for detail with an ability to see the bigger picture, often at the same time. This is quite a tricky ability to have, although it becomes much easier and more intuitive with experience.

I think that there is a parallel in skills with journalism - the ability to research, write and call people up cold and get them involved are very much part of both jobs, and not everyone can do this. I am also very much a project person, and I like the fact that a Conference Producer role has a defined start and finish point.

What do you think is hard about the role?
The job can be very frustrating at times, if a speaker pulls out of an engagement at short notice for example, this can be pretty stressful, particularly if you have already sent the conference programme to print. The industry is also pretty competitive, with many different people trying to put on conferences for the same sorts of people at the same time. This can lead to some fairly intense rivalry, which can be quite draining.

How did you get into Conference Production?
I started off working at (broadcasting company) ITV, before joining IBC, which then became Informa (commercial conferencing company). Working for two of the best agencies gave me a lot of valuable and varied experience, and also enabled me to travel, which can be a real perk of the profession, particularly when you are just starting out in your career.

Best lessons learnt/best advice could give
If you are new to the role, try to gain experience working within a larger, more reputable company that provides good training programmes. You may well get thrown in at the deep end, but concentrate on developing your writing ability, people skills, contacts and self-belief. Everything gets easier with experience.

How's the market? 

The last few months have been testing for us all - our clients, managing the business storm, with painful redundancies, revised business plans and very real worries about their company's current status and future - and our candidates, whether you've been made redundant, or finding career opportunities less readily available ...it's been tough.

The one thing we can all agree is that these are interesting times - some of the most challenging many people will have faced within their working lives. As a recruitment consultancy we are at the coal face of seeing these changes, having a daily barometer of the mood and the market. So what are we seeing now? .... the body blows suffered by many businesses do seem to be stabilising, with many companies having now gone through the pain, and working with a tighter ship, but a stronger ship - and candidates with a more realistic view of opportunities, flexibility on salary expectations, and for some a consideration of career alternatives. There undoubtedly does seem to be a sense of light at the end of the tunnel, that having weathered the storm thus far, things are taking an up. The noticable upswing in contract roles over the past few weeks has also indicated that there is now increasing 'work in progress', and as confidence returns we expect a rise in the number of permanent roles, particularly after the summer break.

This month's newsletter has three articles we hope will be of relevance whatever your current status - giving useful advice on 3 key areas in the job process...
 

1. In any job market your CV is the single most important tool, and in a difficult market place it needs to be more effective than ever - here are tips on how to make sure it's doing the job you need it to...
2. Giving your interviews an edge - with a tougher job market there is undoubtedly more at stake at the interview stage... employers are being more assertive in ensuring that you're going to bring value to their business - here's a few tips to help ensure you're raising your game to meet the mark...
3. In these challenging times motivation in the workplace has rarely been more important...click here for our tips on giving it an essential boost...