As much as we might have hoped, 2021 hasn’t quite been the year where we’ve been able to wave goodbye to the ongoing pandemic. Instead, it’s been more like 2020: the sequel.
Whilst we haven’t spent as much of the year in a lockdown (hooray!), there’s been plenty of restrictions and ever-changing guidance to keep up with. Businesses and employees have had to continue to navigate these new ways of working - and no more so with the late arrival of the Omicrom variant which has seen the return of working from home advice, coming at a time when many businesses had just re-opened the doors of their offices.
We’ve seen staffing shortages hit many sectors, with some businesses unable to source the numbers of staff required to maintain normal services. As the recruitment crisis intensifies, the market continues to be very candidate-driven – businesses offering higher pay rates, increased flexibility, and additional benefits to onboard the skills and talent they need.
Despite all the challenges that the year has brought, we’re so so proud of our teams who have worked tirelessly to make sure our clients have the staff they need to keep their businesses going.
Here are our 2021 best bits:
JANUARY
HUGE COMMERCIAL COMPETITION!
Our commercial team helped to alleviate everyone's January blues by running a HUGE competition! A daily riddle was posted online and emailed out with the chance to win £250 of gift vouchers.
FEBRUARY
TEMP OF THE WEEK WAS LAUNCHED!
For over 10 years we'd been picking one of our team of temporary workers to recognise as our 'Temp of the Month'! Of course, Covid-19 had put a stop to that. February seemed like an ideal time to re-launch this, and to make up for lost time, we decided to make it a weekly thing.
MARCH
LAUGHTER YOGA FOR COMIC RELIEF
In keeping with this year's Comic Relief theme to share a smile, we held a company-wide laughter yoga session via Zoom with Laughing Planet Yoga!
APRIL
MANDY HOSTED THE GREATER LINCS LEP ONLINE JOBS FAIR
Like many other events over the last couple of years, jobs fairs had been unable to take place in their usual format. Ambitions' Director, Mandy Watson, who sits on the board of the Greater Lincolnshire LEP, was asked to host one of their monthly online jobs & careers fairs. The events were vital in connecting local work seekers with businesses.
MAY
WE RECORDED SEASON 6 OF THE AMBITIONS PODCAST
Recorded and filmed in line with Covid-19 guidelines at the time, we were able to safely record our 6th series of The Ambitions Podcast, covering some of the most pressing topics at the time including labour market updates, an update on the legalities arising from the pandemic and the implications of the rise of remote working. All episodes are available on all podcast platforms.
JUNE
A NEW OFFICE FOR OUR COLCHESTER TEAM
Our Colchester branch relocated from their previous offices in the town centre to more accessible premises just outside of the town, enabling us to offer our candidates parking.
JULY
IT *NEARLY* CAME HOME
Ok not strictly work-related but we couldn't not give a mention to England's football team who gave us all a great few weeks of entertainment at the Euros. Sadly, we all know how it ended. But it was fun while it lasted.
AUGUST
A NEW OFFICE IN NOTTINGHAM
August saw the re-opening of our Nottingham office in a new location. Due to increased demand, we felt we could offer a better service to our clients and candidates with a presence in the city centre.
SEPTEMBER
WE HIT THE ROAD!
In September, we decided to bring our jobs to more work-seekers by going on a tour of the markets in some of our busiest areas - including Mansfield, Wisbech and Grantham.
OCTOBER
WE JOINED TIKTOK!
We decided to add to our existing social media portfolio by joining the popular video platform. We wanted somewhere to show a bit more of the 'behind the scenes' of recruiter life.
NOVEMBER
LINCOLNSHIRE SPORTS AND PHYSICAL ACTIVITY AWARDS
It was great to be back at an in-person event when we attended the Lincolnshire Sports and Physical Activity Awards as sponsors of the Special Sporting Recognition Category.
NOVEMBER
HELLO BURY ST EDMUNDS!
A double-headed for November highlights as we opened an office in a brand-new location for us - Bury St Edmunds! The office strengthens our offering down the East Coast, connecting us with our existing office in Colchester.
DECEMBER
WE HAD A CHRISTMAS PARTY!
Just before the arrival of the new variant, we were able to join together in Nottingham for a company-wide Christmas party! Our teams had a fabulous time celebrating!
DECEMBER
AN ELF INVASION!
December saw our teams spread festive cheer far and wide by delivering our naughtiest temp, an elf named Jingle McJobby, to our client's offices.
We ran a competition to see which elf could get up to the most antics - and were absolutely overwhelmed by the responses!