RetailChoice.com caught up with Michelle Raleigh, recruitment officer at QVC to find out more about the company and what she looks for in a candidate
Q: How long have you worked for QVC and where were you before this?
A: Before joining QVC in April 2009, I was at Kurt Geiger. I‘ve worked in the retail sector since 2006.
Q: What are the key skills and qualities you’re looking for in QVC employees?
A: At QVC we employ very talented, enthusiastic and driven people. Our employees love being challenged and thrive in a fast-paced live TV environment. We look for people who have a commitment to excellence, are great team players, customer-focused and enjoy fun along the way.
Q: What kind of experience would your ideal candidate have?
A: It’s an exciting time to be joining QVC, the UK’s number one shopping channel. Within buying and merchandising jobs, we’re interested in people who have experience from the high street but we also look at people who come from wholesale and supply jobs. We value online experience as that area of our business is growing rapidly, so people with online retail experience are always of interest to us.
Q: Is retail experience essential or can someone without it still apply?
A: We’re interested in candidates from all sectors, however, for our buying roles we would certainly look for someone who had experience on a buying floor. It’s not the only thing we consider – we also look for great leadership skills, good negotiators, people who can work with margins and budgets and are keenly aware of market trends.
Q: What other skills are important?
A: Our buyers and their teams need to be very hands-on with the products they’re buying, as most get involved in product development. They need to be innovative and imaginative, as they may also be responsible for creating their own brands that effectively tap into current market trends.
Q: What top tips would you give someone selected for interview at QVC?
A: They should come fully prepared for all types of questions as we carry out competency-based interviews which match the role that the candidates have applied for. I would advise all candidates to do as much research as possible on QVC as a business and get a really good understanding of the QVC model before their interview – even if they don’t have it on TV at home, footage is available on our website 24/7 so there’s no excuse!
Q: How can a candidate really stand out and impress you?
A: A candidate who has a good understanding of the business, understands our customer base and wants to improve QVC stands out from the crowd. We like it when people point out our opportunities to change and develop and the ways they would maximise them! We’re always impressed by people who can think outside the box and have ideas ready for us about how they think we can improve our customer experience.
Q: What’s great about working for QVC?
A: We strive to make QVC a great place to work. In fact we believe it’s a crucial part of us achieving our business goals. If we look after our people, they’ll look after our customers and that’s what our business is all about. We provide our people with the necessary training to do a good job and place a strong emphasis on career and personal development. QVC is a fun place to work and we have a health and wellbeing scheme which takes on a different theme every quarter. This includes activities like a running club, yoga, Pilates and on-site pampering sessions. We have low staff turnover, which shows how much people like working here – in fact our first and second UK employees are still with us, 17 years after QVC started in the UK!
Q: What kind of training and development do you offer your staff?
A: Everyone gets a QVC induction on their first day and within the first year everyone goes on a two day, off-site called ‘The QVC Difference’. This gives our new starters an opportunity to learn about our corporate culture, values and get to know people across the business. All employees are instrumental in deciding how they want to develop their career at QVC and objectives are set in twice-yearly performance development reviews. From these reviews, training and development needs are identified and development plans set in place. We also have a specialist training department in-house which caters for individual training needs as well as offering tailor made department team development.
Q: Anything else you think it would be good for potential candidates to know?
A: QVC UK made its debut on ITV in May of this year. This was a great milestone for QVC; it’s allowed us to welcome a brand new audience. In 2012 we’re moving to a new building in Chiswick Park that’s been especially designed for QVC and it’s going to be a great working environment. You can get more information about Chiswick Business Park on www.enjoy-work.com
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