Exhibiting at this year’s Offsite Expo

There’s nothing like chatting with fellow exhibitors, learning what they do, and seeing the range of materials and solutions in real life.  Not just from a website or brochure.

Set up

Setting up our stand gave me a sad moment when I saw a picture of my dog Mo, who is no longer with us. But there were plenty of happy moments once the Expo got started. It was a real privilege seeing people we first placed into jobs when Mo was a puppy, who have stayed with us across their career, risen to become leaders, and now come to us for talent.

Adding the value

Many candidates came up to tell me what great service they received from our staff. Quite a few clients let us know they will only ever deal with ARV Solutions – despite there being a little more competition around these days. And we really caused a “hubbub” with our salary guides (we don’t make up the numbers – they are real! Pay your staff properly!)

Visitors to the Offsite Expo seemed to come in waves. During busy times, we were hard at work reinforcing the ARV Solutions brand and sharing our successes and developments.  Particularly with ARVIEW, our innovative recruitment solution with advanced video portal. During the lulls, we enjoyed some lively banter. Another recruiter had a darts competition on their stand, which I was determined to win… Oh well, can’t win them all!

On that note, thanks a lot to the Radar team for setting me up for the “party guy” award at the Offsite Awards! I do enjoy a party, and one of the highlights of my Expo was the social get-togethers with clients in “overtime”, getting to know each other for real! I wish I’d had time to catch up with absolutely everyone. It was also great fun meeting new people and finding companies I didn’t know about (future opportunities!)

Business!

In between the fun and games, a surprising amount of business went on at the Expo. We picked up some new business opportunities from employers approaching us on the stand.  Some of whom were looking for unicorns. We realised we might actually know one or two! We had interviews going on discreetly behind the scenes, getting feedback in person straight away.

Listening and Learning

It was also a great chance to talk to the leading industry influencers and pioneers. We all enjoyed breakfasting and suppering with industry leaders and CEOs. Chatting with Pioneer of the Year Oliver Novacovic.  Listening to such a wide range of speakers with such expertise in their subjects, and being in the room for the Offsite Awards. I’ll admit I might have enjoyed the awards a bit more if I wasn’t so hungry! But seeing so many of our clients as finalists and winners was incredibly fulfilling.

The Team!

Perhaps the biggest highlight of all was seeing our team engage with clients and candidates, developing new relationships and re-enforcing old ones. It’s not all about me!

Its all over

Finally, the Offsite Expo was over, and the weather did its best to dampen our spirits while we packed up. But we’re already looking forward to coming back next year!

  Author: Jim Roach | LinkedIn