som3 Recruitment

Third Place In BSB Title Race For Brave Irwin It has been an exciting season as sponsors of Glenn and the PBM Ducati team and som3 were proud to see Glenn on the podium. It may not have been the first place they were hoping for, but Glenn and the team should be very pleased of all they have achieved this season. We have enjoyed following them and look forward to next season! Official report from the team below Glenn Irwin and the Hager PBM Ducati team came up just short in their quest for the 2024 Bennetts British Superbike Championship at the final round at Brands Hatch this weekend which saw them end the season in third place overall.   Both Glenn and the team had a good start to the weekend when they topped Friday’s free practice sessions but fine weather gave way to mixed conditions on Saturday when a technical problem caused the Carrickfergus rider to crash out of the qualifying session.   That put him back on the fifth row of the grid for Saturday’s 20-lap race when wet, autumnal conditions were the order of the day. Irwin worked his way through the field and was challenging for the podium but just when third place was within his reach, he crashed out on lap 15.   With 70 points available on Sunday, the title remained mathematically within his grasp and he started the 12-lap Sprint race from the front row with conditions sunny but cool. A sluggish start saw him drop back to tenth on the opening lap and although he soon fought his way up to eighth, he had to settle for tenth at the chequered flag with any hopes of the PBM team retaining their title gone.   Starting the final 20-lap race of the year from the front row again, a much better start saw Glenn work his way to the front of the pack but with some ferocious racing between the leading group, he found himself shuffled back and eventually took the chequered flag in seventh place.   With eight wins and two additional podiums, it meant Glenn ended the year in third overall with the title going the way of Kyle Ryde by one point from 2023 champion Tommy Bridewell.    Glenn Irwin: “It’s nice to end the season in third in the championship and that makes it two second places and a third in the last three seasons. Bike racing has a lot of highs and lows, and we didn’t have much of the middle ground this year with a few big crashes along the way, some of which weren’t of our doing. We’ve won eight races, only one less than Kyle, and had three wins at the North West 200 and that’s no mean feat for a team that didn’t exist until March. Full credit to Jordan and Frank Bird for getting the team together and we’ve grown as individuals and as a team this season. Finishing third overall in BSB is something we can be proud of and the series has again delivered and we’ll be back for more next year. I’ve no doubt I’ll win the title one year!”

What A Weekend For Glenn! som3 and guests witnessed an amazing weekend of races and enjoyed the hospitality as one of the sponsors of Glenn and the team A victory, a podium and a fourth-place finish at Donington Park this weekend saw Glenn Irwin and the Hager PBM Ducati team remain well in contention for the 2024 Bennetts British Superbike Championship with one round remaining. After taking a solid sixth in qualifying, Glenn was hoping for more in Saturday’s opening 20-lap race, held in sunny, but cool conditions and he didn’t disappoint. With main championship rivals Kyle Ryde and Tommy Bridewell ahead of him, Glenn fought off the close attentions of his brother Andrew to finish third and claim 20 valuable points. That race saw Glenn set a new lap record which put him on pole position for the final race, held over 20 laps once more, from which he led for the first five laps before Ryde overhauled him. With temperatures dropping, as the race entered it’s final third, the Carrickfergus rider ran in fourth place, but before he could mount a podium challenge, the race was stopped due to a three-rider crash one lap short. As a result of a solid weekend, Irwin heads to the final round at Brands Hatch in third place, 46 points behind series leader Ryde and with 105 points still up for grabs, Glenn is still in with a shout of the title.

Salesforce buys Own Salesforce announced on the 5th September it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Own Company, a prominent SaaS data backup, management, and recovery solutions provider, for $1.9 billion. Own enables organisations to ensure the availability, security, and compliance of mission-critical data, while unlocking new ways to gain deeper insights from this data Salesforce’s own CRM platform will therefore boast stronger data security features without needing a third party. Salesforce itself already offers a native backup solution (Salesforce Backup), but there are a variety of third-party applications available with more capabilities. One of these is Own, which was founded in 2012 as OwnBackup. It protects data within Salesforce, as well as other SaaS platforms such as ServiceNow and Microsoft Dynamics 365 The Own acquisition will help Salesforce better protect data and keep customers compliant - key in todays world of increased importance of data security. Steve Fisher, President and GM of the Salesforce Einstein 1 Platform and Unified Data Services  said “Data security has never been more critical, and Own’s proven expertise and products will enhance our ability to offer robust data protection and management solutions to our customers” Sounds like 2025 is shaping up to be an exciting year for Salesforce. As always, we would love to hear from anyone looking for a new position using their Salesforce skills or companies looking to expand their team!

Job hunting has changed over the years - are job boards still useful? Do you get better response and relevant jobs on LinkedIn? Or do you find you are now one of hundreds of applicants so you reach out to old colleagues? Where is the first place you look...?

SAP – Certification in 2024 SAP have made changes to their certification portfolio to refocus on the jobs that they believe are most important to enable successful cloud adoption and SAP S/4HANA Cloud transformation. Last year, a role-based certification module was introduced that focuses on the entire skill set required to run a job instead of product features. The Get and Stay Certified model will support that, in response to new and fast-changing technologies. There are many modules in SAP, which ones will be best for those looking to build or expand on a career in SAP? ·      SAP S/4HANA: SAP S/4HANA is an integrated enterprise resource planning (ERP) system designed to run exclusively on the SAP HANA database. It enables companies to perform transactions and analyse business data in real-time. As businesses migrate to S/4HANA, demand for professionals skilled in this cutting-edge technology is soaring. ·      SAP FICO (Finance & Controlling): This core module is critical to any organisation’s financial management. SAP FICO covers financial accounting, controlling, and management accounting, allowing businesses to manage financial transactions, generate reports, and gain insights into financial performance. ·      SAP SuccessFactors (HCM): SAP SuccessFactors, the cloud-based human capital management (HCM) solution from SAP, is transforming how businesses manage their workforce. SAP HCM deals with automating human resource processes, including hiring, payroll, performance, and employee retirement. ·      SAP Sales & Distribution (SD): This module facilitates all processes of order to delivery. It integrates sales, shipping, and billing processes and is tightly integrated with other SAP modules like FI and MM. In today’s competitive landscape, optimizing sales processes is essential. SAP SD professionals can help businesses achieve this by ensuring smooth order management and customer satisfaction. ·      SAP Material Management (MM): This module handles procurement and inventory functions, crucial for supply chain management and operational efficiency. Effective supply chain management is crucial for businesses to maintain optimal stock levels and reduce costs. SAP MM expertise equips professionals to optimize these processes. There is also continued demand for other modules such as SAP Supply Chain Management (SCM), SAP Supply Chain Management (SCM) and SAP Business Intelligence (BI) so you can’t really go wrong improving and updating your skills in SAP ready for 2025! If you are looking for your next SAP career move, or planning on expanding your team – please get in touch with Chris Finch

Irwin Back To Winning Ways At Oulton Park   som3 love to see our logo on the podium! A win and a second place at Oulton Park this weekend saw Glenn Irwin and the PBM Hager Ducati team thrust themselves firmly back into contention for the title at round nine of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship.   Fourth in qualifying got the weekend off to a good start for Irwin and it looked like it would get better still in Saturday’s opening race, held over 18 laps in dry conditions, when he took the lead from Josh Brookes on the third lap.   Despite his best efforts, the Carrickfergus rider was unable to get back to the front and he had to settle for second place behind Ryde.   On Sunday, wet weather delayed the race by more than two hours and the first race cut to 10 laps. Starting from fourth, Glenn was quickly into the lead on the opening lap but lost a few places but made them up - the final lap saw him take a brilliant victory.   Glenn is now just 45 points behind series leader Tommy Bridewell with two rounds and six races remaining with battle recommencing at Donington Park in two weeks’ time.

AI is a hot topic, but are people just talking about it or using it in recruitment? We have seen a few people using automation to apply for jobs, but not many clients using AI for hiring - unless you include using key words to screen out CVs which isn't always intelligent....

AI and Recruitment - a hot topic for candidates, recruiters and employers. We will look at some of the areas in the coming weeks, but we asked ChatGPT "How AI has changed recruitment" - always interesting to see what AI says about AI.... we would also be interested in your thoughts!! Over to you ChatGPT.. AI has significantly transformed recruitment in several ways: 1. **Resume Screening**: AI tools can quickly scan and analyze resumes, identifying keywords and qualifications that match job descriptions. This speeds up the initial screening process and helps reduce bias by focusing on skills and experience rather than personal information. 2. **Candidate Sourcing**: AI-driven platforms can search through social media, job boards, and other databases to find potential candidates who may not be actively applying but fit the job requirements. This helps in finding passive candidates who might be interested in new opportunities. 3. **Chatbots and Automation**: AI chatbots can handle initial candidate interactions, answer frequently asked questions, schedule interviews, and provide updates on application status. This improves the candidate experience and frees up human recruiters to focus on more complex tasks. 4. **Predictive Analytics**: AI can analyze data from various sources to predict which candidates are likely to succeed in a role. It can consider factors like past job performance, education, and skills to make more informed hiring decisions. 5. **Bias Reduction**: Advanced AI systems can help reduce unconscious bias by focusing on data-driven insights rather than subjective impressions. However, it's important to note that AI can also perpetuate existing biases if not properly managed. 6. **Improved Job Matching**: AI can analyze both job descriptions and candidate profiles to provide better matches, increasing the likelihood of finding candidates who are a good fit for the role and the company culture. 7. **Enhanced Candidate Experience**: With AI tools, the recruitment process can become more streamlined and responsive. Candidates receive timely feedback and updates, and the process is often more transparent, which can improve their overall experience. 8. **Data-Driven Insights**: AI can generate valuable insights from recruitment data, such as the effectiveness of different sourcing channels, time-to-fill metrics, and candidate engagement levels. This helps organizations refine their recruitment strategies. 9. **Skill Assessment**: AI-powered assessments can evaluate candidates' skills through simulations, coding tests, or other objective measures. This can provide a clearer picture of a candidate's abilities beyond what is listed on their resume. 10. **Diversity and Inclusion**: AI tools can help companies build more diverse teams by identifying and mitigating bias in job descriptions, sourcing candidates from diverse backgrounds, and ensuring fairer assessment processes.

A Return to Oulton Park! Away from the sheep sponsorship and back to the motorsport sponsorship this weekend. som3 and customers are looking forward to an exciting weekend for Glenn Irwin at Oulton Park for round 9 of the series. Oulton Park usually treats Glenn kindly, with him having won six races there in the past three visits, and they are hoping the success will continue. Heading into the business end of the series, Glenn does have some work to do. In recent races he hasn’t had the best of luck and currently finds himself in third place in the standings some 60 points behind leader Tommy Bridewell. But with the revised points scoring system of the Showdown coming into play and coupled with the fact that Glenn has won five of the last six Bennetts BSB races to be held at Oulton Park, then confidence is at a high as he looks to get back to winning ways this weekend. Oulton is the team’s hone round and they know what works on this track – Glenn has had a couple of weeks to refresh and get ready to attack the last part of the season, the championship points also change from now onwards which gives them a good opportunity to get our championship assault back on track

Don’t be a sheep… Unless you fancy a quick haircut! Making a change from cars, som3 are proud to be the main sponsors for the Cheshire Speed Sheep Shear which will be held at The Crown in Lower Peover, Cheshire. Luckily our MD Steve Morrisey isn’t one of the contestants as we all remember his lockdown hair efforts… In all seriousness, this is to raise money for a very worthwhile cause – Mid Cheshire Mind. Many farmers are lost to suicide each year, and a majority of young farmers in the UK are worried about the impact on their mental health. The aim of this event is to raise enough money to enable the charity to have their own counsellor to support farmers. It should be a great event – it is the first to be held in Cheshire and there will be over 150 contestants from all over the world. They are expecting over 1000 farmers to attend and there will be coverage in the national and farmers press. Both our northern and southern offices are a stones throw from the open countryside. The southern office is based in offices that are on a farm, our landlord was a farmer and so we hear first hand the struggles of the farming community. We do also get to see all the lovely lambs in the spring. In keeping with our traditional motorsport connection – Jeremy Clarkson will be making an appearance!! If you are in the area, please pop down to the Crown in Lower Peover on the 14th September – with or without your sheep.