Back in the day you wouldn’t see a schoolchild before the 1st of September but the school year seems to be earlier every year. Did any of yours get their Leaving Cert results? We hope all secured what they wanted. Did you understand the 'artificial boost'? No, neither do we!
August was the month that brought the US election front and centre. If you have ever watched The West Wing, or Veep, you’ll struggle to tell the news from the drama (or the comedy) anymore. Perhaps a little more scary is how hard it is to tell the news from the fake news (or deepfake AI) - see Trump claiming he had been endorsed by Taylor Swift based on some AI pictures.
Electric Picnic got a rare bit of lovely weather. We hope you benefitted from, as did the Horse Show (delayed this year due to the Olympics but it will be back on track next year). Did anyone get to the American College football game? Yours truly was in France, so missed the 25,000 Americans in Dublin.
Well that’s summer over, next stop…Christmas?!!!! - Roll on the ACA Annual Dinner and the ACCA Christmas lunch, both of which PeopleSource is sponsoring again this year!
As the Budget approaches, all the interested parties are coming forward with their agendas. One we have some sympathy with here at PeopleSource is the campaign to retain the 9% VAT rate for tourism and hospitality. Although we might change our mind if bookings for the weekend of the Oasis concert continue to be mysteriously cancelled!
Has anyone completed a course at the IMI in Sandyford recently? It used to be all the rage, to have studied up there. Interesting to notice that times are tricky in the corporate education and training space and an informal takeover offer has been made for the operation. Hard not to think that a 13 acre campus in the leafy suburbs isn’t an attractive site! No matter, the decision will be made by those at UCC who paid €20m for it in 2016.
So, where do you stand on EV’s? Misinformation, range anxiety, fears over resale values and hopes of falling prices are just some of the reasons behind the stalling EV car sales figures for 2024. Hybrid seems the most attractive option for Irish motorists until such time as the charging infrastructure is proven both widespread and robust.
2.75 million employed in Ireland, latest CSO figures released, This increase is largely attributed to enhanced female participation in the workforce and an influx of immigrant labour that responds to persistent demand.
Fascinated by all things tech?
- Houseful of gamers? – Check out the highest rated consoles
- Love your TV? – This will amuse you if you know your OLED from your QLED from your HD
- Upgrading your smartphone (or moving provider) - check out the best deals
- Wondering where your kids are? – stay in touch with these GPS smart watches
- Just love your gadgets and gizmos – loads of novelty items and gift ideas here
And a bonus link for when tech gives you a headache – Coillte's top 10 forest parks
Three news stories caught our eye and made us wonder, do you look after yourself? Do you value your time? Do you understand the true meaning of work-life balance? We ask because according to these stories, far too many people don’t!
Firstly, the survey that found 20% of workers have left up to a full week of holidays unused. For most people that is 20%/25% of their leave entitlement and while some may be able to carry leave forward, we have no doubt that many ultimately lose the days.
Secondly, Australian workers are being given the right to disconnect. Why did this need to be a thing? Everybody needs to be able to switch off, no matter your job or the hours you work: you have got to have time to regroup, family time, alone time, you time. Without it, there is sickness and burnout.
This third story brought it all together; the five top places to live in Ireland. Check these out, they are based on house prices, amenities, green spaces, connectivity etc. We hope you live somewhere like this, or are making the very best of your local facilities. Whatever you do, and wherever you are, take time out for you, for yourself, and your whole family.
Over the course of a year, Ireland plays host to so many concerts headlined by global superstars but none will be as eagerly awaited as the Oasis gigs in Croker next year. Will you be part of the frenzy? Speaking of frenzies, was it just us or was the whole Rose of Tralee ‘thing’ virtually invisible this year? We don’t recall seeing, hearing or reading much about it and it never once came up around the PeopleSource water cooler!
Early days but both Saoirse Ronan and the box-of-frogs that is Kneecap are both set for Oscar nominations according to early predictions, let’s hope they prove correct. We love to recommend low-budget movies here, where people rather than CGI take centre stage. And in that vein, we encourage you to catch To Leslie, on Netflix. Netflix is also bringing us a good old western blockbuster series, with Wyatt Earp and the Cowboy War, a ‘true crime’ series narrated by the always brilliant Ed Harris. And, finally, there’s a new series on Netflix called Kaos – Jeff Goldblum plays Zeus and it is tipped to be fantastic. Oh and another finally, Only Murders in the Building (Disney+) supposed to be fab too.
Last month we felt obliged to mark the passing of one literary female giant in Edna O’Brien and we are doing it again this month again, for a giant of journalism, Nell McCafferty. Check out this review of her life and pinch yourself that this campaigner and activist was once famous for taking the train to Belfast so she could legally buy the pill!!
Were you glued to the Olympics as much as we were here at PeopleSource. It’s funny the ‘sports’ you end up discussing in addition to the classics like athletics and gymnastics. We talked about shooting, trampolining, BMX, breakdancing(!), table tennis, and so many more. It was a brilliant couple of weeks, made all the more special by how competitive so many of the Irish athletes were. Did you get to the homecoming?
Let’s hope the country can get behind our Paralympians to the same extent. The Opening Ceremony was certainly a great start to the Games.You can find out all about our athletes here.
Blimey but the Premiership comes around quickly, let’s hope they can replicate the GAA 2024 and produce a few new names to contest this season. Spotted this piece about soccer mainstay Ronaldo, something of a ‘Marmite’ figure for many, with so many players retiring from International football to protect their club careers (i.e. money) we at PeopleSource have always been impressed by people who remain keen to represent their country (think Robbie Keane!).
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According to this month’s survey, almost a third of our readership is considering a career move in the next 12 months. Obviously this is good news for a finance recruitment specialist company like PeopleSource. However, we would caution people to think carefully about what they want, do their research and ‘be careful what you wish for’. For those of you certain a move is on the cards, perhaps your next role is among those we are currently working on:
To note here, we can't stress enough the difference between picking up the phone and talking to your recruitment consultant versus waiting to see your dream role advertised. The former is often very fruitful! Contact rtubridy@peoplesource.ie if you want arrange a call.
Each month we ask our readers to answer a question for a chance to win €100 One4all voucher.
Our question for the July newsletter was:
Are you planning to move outside of your company in the next 12 months?
Yes - 29%
No - 71%
Even though we are at the front line when it comes to job opportunities we still wonder if employers realise just how many of their key employees may be considering a move!
And the winner of our €100 voucher is – Gearoid Cunniffe – we’ll be in touch!
Our question for the August newsletter is:
Do you feel you suffer from being ‘always on’ at work with smartphones and 24x7 emails?
Yes
No
The winner will be chosen at random and will receive a €100 One4All voucher. Enter here to be in with a chance to win.
If you would like regular updates follow our LinkedIn company page - https://www.linkedin.com/company/peoplesource-ie/
PeopleSource is a specialist finance & accounting recruitment firm.
