“I’m so excited to say I have a job!” announced a delighted James Pemblington, who had not worked for around eight months, having been furloughed in March from his Technical Project Manager position at a theme park and was then made redundant in June.
James had tried everything to get another job. He had even sent a chocolate brownie with a QR code on it to potential employers. When the QR code was scanned, it revealed a website showing James’ CV and a video about him, his interests and projects.
Then James saw a competition run by Dragons’ Den entrepreneur, Ed Hollands of DrivenMedia and fast-growing UK job board, Zoek to have his image and a giant CV displayed on the back of a huge lorry travelling up and down the UK’s road network. It seemed to him like the logical next step to go from an edible CV to a giant CV on the back of a lorry! Beating almost 200 other job-seekers, James, who lives near Nottingham, won the competition because of his initiative and enthusiasm.
The innovative mobile campaign launched on a Wednesday, James was contacted the next day on Thursday, interviewed on Friday and, on Saturday, he’d been offered a three-month contract as a Deputy Site Manager with Serco at the Burton-on-Trent Covid-19 Track and Trace Test Centre. “It usually takes about three weeks to get a successful outcome through this type of advertising” said Ed Hollands. “But this campaign took only 48 hours!”
Ed confirmed that the giant CV on the back of a lorry was set to have been seen by at least 100,000 people as it travelled up and down the UK’s road network and, in fact, several drivers had called Ed to say that they had spotted the visual job-seeking message out and about on the roads. The mobile CV started its journey in Nottingham, making a delivery in Birmingham and returning via Burton-on-Trent before it was seen by the right person, in the right place at the right time. Ed was thrilled to have been able to help James and said: “We couldn’t have hoped for a better result.”
Diana Campbell, Zoek Managing Director said: “Seeing James get a job after only two days of the giant CV going on the road shows how he only needed to be put in front of the right audience! Everyone at Zoek wishes James the best in his new role and we are delighted to have been part of the team that made this a reality. For anyone who has lost their job this year – like James – Zoek can offer tips and advice for securing a dream position.”
James’ new job entails shift work of 13 hours per day with four days on and four days off, but James was used to working a 60 hour week in his previous employment. He is looking forward to starting with Serco in November after some initial training and is hoping that his contract may be extended at the end of the three months. “Yes, it is a short contract” said James. “However, I really appreciate being able to get back to managing a team, serving the local community and supporting this great company. I feel so lucky and grateful to Zoek and DrivenMedia for giving me this opportunity.”
In the meantime, James will be thinking up some more attention-grabbing initiatives to get himself noticed in the job market if his contract is not extended. “I was thinking of using smell,” joked James. “Perhaps a scented flower attached to my CV to indicate the ‘sweet smell of success’! Set your calendars for three months time, as I will be spamming your timelines with crazy ideas once again! Until then – I’m off to work!”