April 2010

Win 2 Tickets for Social Media in Business Conference

Social Media in BusinessThe lovely folks at the Social Media in Business conference (SMiB10) have offered up two free tickets to their next conference taking place on May 21st in London. 

The conference examines how social media culture and social networking platforms are having a major impact on business communication, practices and processes.

Enter the competition now, just fill out the simple form below and we'll let you know next Fri (30th Apr) if you're the lucky winner, getting your hands on two tickets worth £345 each!

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23 April 2010 by Sam Michel

One Small £50k Step Startup Competition

a wheelbarrow of cash by racy3000The One Small Step competition from Barclays Business will see ten businesses collar £50,000 in funding for their startup.

With funding hard to come by, this looks like a good opportunity to secure that crucial initial cash to get the ball rolling. The competition has a broad remit:

"The brief is open - it could be a lifelong ambition or a recent brainwave. It could be a personal experience or a distant dream. Even a revolutionary concept that changes the world. It’s an open invitation and anyone with a great business idea and the drive to make it happen could win."

In an X-Factor meets Dragon's Den move, the One Small Step competition will sees the public vote on a shortlist of three companies from each region drawn up by the judges. Expect to see plenty of Twitter and Facebook canvassing for your vote over the next few weeks.

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22 April 2010 by Sam Michel

Job Interview Questions to Ask A Start-up

Interview Flickr image

If you're interviewing with a start-up, in digital there are thousands, there are a whole bunch of interview questions you should ask.

It's not just a chance to make yourself sound smart, but to find out if the company who are interviewing you are going steady, not just in the financial sense.

It's something you'll want to know before you commit yourself.

Interviewing; it's just like dating.

Things like burn rate, financial backing and their current profit/loss situation should all be subtly investigated.  Here's our list of the top questions to ask in a start-up job interview:

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21 April 2010 by Suzanne Morrow

Social Media Mentions Absent From CVs

Cool Blog Social job offer tshirt FlickrAs brands steadily move into social media and online PR Facebook and Twitter et al are no longer dirty words in the office.

But it's applicants who are missing a trick. A random CV sample by digital recruitment firm Major Players has found that social media mentions are missing in the majority of applications.

The survey sampled 4,500 CVs over the last two years. Only 6% referenced social media, 9% mentioned Twitter, a tiny 2% talked about blogging and only 13% included Facebook (often only highlighted in the interests section).

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21 April 2010 by Suzanne Morrow

Help Wanted: Chinwag Needs an Office Administrator

Chinwag Door SignChinwag's street cred has just taken a dip, with the news that the lovely Juliet is leaving our ranks to concentrate on her totally wicked music blog/A&R project, itsfreestyle.com (see earlier street cred reference)

We're going to miss her lots, especially her exasperated look, when I try and make a convincing argument that The Thompson Twins were the hipsters of their time, or cite the artistic merits of Girls Aloud. 

This also means we're on the hunt for a new member of the Chinwag team. It's a part-time role, that requires that special blend of organisation, efficiency, unflappability, brain power and occasional banter.

Working with our little gang, this person will be a critical part of keeping our multitudinous projects including Chinwag.com, Chinwag Jobs, Digital Missions and lots more running smoothly.

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16 April 2010 by Sam Michel

Channel 4 Launches Paid Internships

Channel 4 by James CridlandHot on the heels of our recent summary of juicy intern roles, news reaches Chinwag Towers from Channel 4 of their Generation Next Programme.

Focusing on potential rather than age, skills or qualifications, seven lucky interns will get an in-depth ten week placement,

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15 April 2010 by Sam Michel

Digital Internships & Work Placements Summer Round-up

Daffodils in Nowton Park by Andrew StawarzSpring has sprung. Even the plant life inside Chinwag Towers is showing signs of life despite its usual mistreatment.

It's also the time of the year when soon-to-be graduates, and those about to embark on their gap year start the hunt for a worthwhile pursuit to fill the coming months.

Following our call for internships and work placements a few weeks back, here's a round-up of the response we got. For enterprising souls, there's certainly plenty of experience to be gained at some great digital companies, check out the list of available placements: 

This list was put together purely as a rough'n'ready trial, it's a list of internships and work placements only. If you're looking for a full-time or freelance role, check out the full listings on our sister site, Chinwag Jobs (hint: there's a list of the latest and greatest to your right-hand side).

We'd also love to hear from employers and interns on their experiences, so do leave a comment or drop us a line. It's always good to get a steer on the state of the industry, both good and bad.

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13 April 2010 by Sam Michel