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TalonZahn wrote:
You should hire someone that has a better grasp on writing job postings. The wording in several areas is bad and doesn't even make sense in other areas. One example is; "Play at fitting". What does that even mean?

Also, it's not a good idea to say things like this; "However, it is only fair to say that people who don’t fit with our culture, or who play at fitting, will be unhappy and consequently unsuccessful. "

I think you answered your own question.

Play at fitting means you don't fit into their culture and are only pretending to in order to get the job.

 spaceelf wrote:

Only GW would think up with a pipeline made of human beings.

It was the cheapest way they could think of to get enough skulls on a pipeline.

 spaceelf wrote:

TalonZahn wrote:

Also, it's not a good idea to say things like this; "However, it is only fair to say that people who don’t fit with our culture, or who play at fitting, will be unhappy and consequently unsuccessful. "

It basically translates into a couple things; "Tow the line or we'll get rid of you." and "If we don't like you, we'll get rid of you."

Now that may be the truth, but you shouldn't post that in a Job Listing asking people to apply.

I would not rank on them for this. At least they are being open and honest.

Funny thing about "The Truth" is, even though it's true, most people don't want to hear it. So, I'm just suggesting that even if it IS the truth, they either don't say it or they word it differently.

Despite the fact that GW could probably never match my current pay, I'm actually interested to know what the "People Pipeline Coordinating" job is. What level of the organization does it sit at, actual job duties, etc.? You know, things that the Job Description should actually say. I've been through Memphis enough to like certain areas, I enjoy the GW hobby, and it could be interesting.

[Edit]
@ pretre - You are correct that they probably mean "pretending to fit in, in order to keep your job", which just brings me back to the entire point of just not putting that in the Job Post to begin with. Along with the fact that it doesn't fit well in the Posting or the wording they used.

Pipeline is a common recruiting term. It describes the hiring process from start to finish.

The Games Workshop: People Pipeline Co-ordinating is the person that manages the information and the process so as an Employee goes through the interview process, offer phase, into the training process, to the store there is someone managing that information so all parties know what is going on. They also handle travel for Recruiters and Trainers along with arrangements for the locations of where our assessment centers take place. They will also fill in as needed for Recruiters helping with projects as the need arises.

So it's an HR Coordinator or possibly an HR Generalist.



For the record, in 22 years I have never heard the term "Pipeline" used in recruiting, unless someone is trying to throw around buzz words or the job invloves an actual pipeline.

How do managers both set their own goals and be expected to maintain a minimum percentage growth rate?

These seem like contradictory statements to me.

TalonZahn wrote:
For the record, in 22 years I have never heard the term "Pipeline" used in recruiting, unless someone is trying to throw around buzz words or the job invloves an actual pipeline.

Maybe catch up with the current cool HR speak then...

http://blog.lloydstaffing.com/candidate-pipeline/
http://hrdelight.blogspot.com/2009/05/build-candidate-pipeline-for-just-in.html
http://www.bridgespan.org/Publications-and-Tools/Hiring-Nonprofit-Leaders/Hiring-Strategy/Building-Talent-Pipeline.aspx#.UPWNm5JQTjU




Automatically Appended Next Post:

agustin wrote:
How do managers both set their own goals and be expected to maintain a minimum percentage growth rate?

These seem like contradictory statements to me.

Have you worked in a corporate environment before?

I have to do this every year. My manager and I set goals for the next year (generally in Q1). It ends up being a negotiation where he and I share input on what I think I can accomplish in the year. I certainly can't tell him 'Meh, I think I'll set my goal for 0% accomplished this year.' There's definitely minimum expectations.

No, I own my business, so I have remained pleasantly unaware of what the life of someone who has to deal with the inside of a corporate environment is like. I do business to business sales though and I've found there's actually surprisingly little difficulty in navigating the environment as a vendor once you know how to identify the real decision makers.

I just think its disingenuous to both tell candidates that they'll get to set their own goals and then tell them, by the way, your goal is 5% growth over the previous year.

Not that it's in any way unreasonable. With 10% a year price hikes, you can actually lose volume in terms of customers and units sold by a few percent and still hit the +5% a year goal that GW needs to keep their revenue from collapsing.

agustin wrote:
I just think its disingenuous to both tell candidates that they'll get to set their own goals and then tell them, by the way, your goal is 5% growth over the previous year.

One of your goals has a minimum of 5% growth over the previous year. You have multiple goals in any job I've ever worked. That means you also set your other goals as well.

Perhaps further such discussion would be best carried out either through PM or another thread, don;t want to clutter this one up too much.

Thanks.

 Become Legendary NA wrote:
Ravenous D When did you work for the company what position and store?

Not a chance I'll tell you that one, Im not getting banned from every GW for the rest of time for telling the truth.

Im not saying dont work for you guys, all Im saying is do it for the right reasons and expect alot more politics then you ever thought possible for a gaming store. Its not sunshine and lollipops, its a lot of work for the pay grade.

When are you coming back to Massachusetts, it was the GW in my local mall that got me into the hobby when I was younger. Would love to see you guys return. ( I miss you )

My whole goal and reason for going to work for GW was to eventually move to Lenton and work in the studio as a sculptor, everyone knew that.The CMO, UK HR Manager, UK mold room manager and my old manager all said there was a job for me in Lenton, but the HR manager in Memphis and my (then current) manager in Memphis and some new schmuck from Canada (Martin?) told me "there was no job available for me in Lenton".

Working at GW everything will be fine, you'll love your job and think everything's going great, then without warning (or any real legitimate reason) you'll get fired.

It's not really Games Workshop's fault, I hold no real grudge for that, it's the other people you have to work with that can cause problems for you.

To be fair, the things that you are saying GW puts you through could apply to almost any Retail job.

They're all hell. If you work in retail, you either already know this, or are about to find out.

When I worked for Toys R 'Us and Babies R us, my managers hated their jobs, dealt with crap they didn't deserve every day, and worked their butts off to get only a minimal pay grade over me, some random schmuck working part time off the street.

What I'm trying to say is, saying GW is unique in these kinds of practices is kind of silly. Almost all businesses act this way. This is hardly something new sadly.

 Become Legendary NA wrote:
Announcing a new store

Louisville, KY - NEW STORE!!! - http://workfor.us/9i7qx

We also have several Hobby specialist positions

Hobby Specialists - Games Workshop: Orland Square, IL - Part time role - http://workfor.us/zs3xx
Hobby Specialists - Games Workshop: White Marsh, MD - Part time role - http://workfor.us/3z9l
Hobby Specialists - Games Workshop: Chinook Calgary - Full time role - http://workfor.us/37yk

Full time positions have full benefits.

Cool, Louisville is pretty far for me, Lexington is only slightly closer. How about a store in Ashland, Ky or Huntington, WV? The population density is there especially considering the outlying communities within a 30 minute radius. We have a decent gaming scene in the area, but no shop that services it, except for a Hobbytown USA and they don't have a full range. The next closest indy is in Charleston WV or Columbus (OH).

 MrMoustaffa wrote:
To be fair, the things that you are saying GW puts you through could apply to almost any Retail job.
They're all hell. If you work in retail, you either already know this, or are about to find out.
When I worked for Toys R 'Us and Babies R us, my managers hated their jobs, dealt with crap they didn't deserve every day, and worked their butts off to get only a minimal pay grade over me, some random schmuck working part time off the street.
What I'm trying to say is, saying GW is unique in these kinds of practices is kind of silly. Almost all businesses act this way. This is hardly something new sadly.

You have a very common misconception, unfortunately. Not all companies are like that. It's the people who work there that make the company, the company is just a name on paper.

I've worked for a number of companies that have treated their staff very well, some that haven't. I'm at Microsoft now and I was very surprised at how much everyone here likes the company, I've heard very few horror stories though I know some must exist. Many years ago working at Hot Topic was my favorite, working retail there sucked since you are at the mercy of the store manager, but at HQ it was run very well.

I was shocked by how MS HR handles complaints as well, they actually investigate them and make rational, impartial decisions using actual information; unlike the managers/HR at GW who treated every situation as though it happened in a vacuum using no background history and little investigation at all. When you are pulled into a meeting and asked to explain your side it's a formality, the decision to terminate employment was already made before they even heard your side. Every termination I was involve din at GW that was the case, the manager wanted you out, you were gone. Several times I knew the manager was full of it and was just trying to use someone as a scapegoat, but the HR manager we had didn't care. She just went along with whatever decision was made by whatever manager made it.

My first week at MS I was in a meeting where two staff were accused of wrongdoing and I was very surprised at how much time they put into what was a reletively small incident. The HR manager said he wasn't going to fire anyone unless he was certain they had earned it, regardless of what the department manager wanted.

GW just doesn't work like that.

BUT, that being said. If you do want to work for GW do it in England. It's much harder for a manager or unscrupulous co-worker to get rid of you in the UK. Not saying it can't be done, but it's a lot harder than it is in the USA where we have "Right to Work" laws.

EDIT: I felt I should mention that I'm hanging out at Tully's in Bellevue with 3 other ex-GW staff. 2 I worked with previously, one I just met tonight, All 3 of them have similar stories about how they got fired and all 3 of them involved a manager who isn't a gamer, or into gaming, at all. Just some guy who applied for the job and couldn't care less if he worked for GW or FedEx or anyone else.

It just seems that most of the people I've met who've left GW were ousted by non-gamers, good people lost to unscrupulous ladder climbers. Since all 3 of these guys now work for other gaming companies in the area I was wondering if GW has now become it's own worst enemy. Think about how much competition there is now in the marketplace due to ex-GW staff, and now I wonder what the circumstances are around them leaving.

Maybe GW wouldn't have to go on recruitment campaigns if they'd stop losing so many good people to ladder-climbers.

I'm working at a translation company and it's not that far away from what Raven described before. There's 0 tolerance - if any employee fails to meet the timeline, he's fired. Immediately. No chance to get back. If you'd apply for a job, even if you were qualified, you'd have to wait for about 1-2 years before you could start working and thus, everyone in here is expendable.

It's how a business *should* run though, in my opinion. It's completely fair and I hate that "Man, those are people, you need to be all jolly to them!" attitude a lot of people have. Being harsh on the rules does not you don't respect them. People need to realize that it's a business.

Same goes for GW. GW is well-known for not caring about the customer's demand (and they are right about this) so what exactly do people expect from working at GW? A nice, family-ish atmosphere where your superior comes over for a cup of coffee and a slice of cake every so often? It's 2013, that's not gonna happen.

If you work at a company, you got superiors. They are superiors. Do what they ask you to do (as long as it's within legal rights) or quit the job. "Ladder-climbers" are good. They know what a business is about, they know what to do.

If you want changes, don't buy GW stuff. It's simple as that. As long as the cash keeps going, you will not see ANY changes towards a more customer-friendly environment; in the contrary, it will get worse.

That's the right way though. The customers decide what they want and as long as there's a profit, the customers agree with every decision the company makes. Vote with your wallet. It's a binary decision.

Buy stuff -> Yes, I fully agree with what you're doing.
Don't buy stuff -> I disagree and do not want to support your business decisions.

Nobody gives a flying cra...zy monkey about people who buy stuff and then complain about it. You bought it. Deal with it.

GW is a fair business. Don't like their way? Don't apply. If you really like GW and their products, I'd really suggest applying. It's similar to how most retail works and yes, you do get low wages, but at the same time, you made your hobby your job which is worth a lot already.

Here is another New Position

Support Manager
http://workfor.us/1m4f1k

This is a new position within Games Workshop NA and is number 2 behind Behind Games Workshop NA.

 Become Legendary NA wrote:
Here is another New Position

Support Manager
http://workfor.us/1m4f1k

This is a new position within Games Workshop NA and is number 2 behind Behind Games Workshop NA.

Hey BLNA,

does Games Workshop NA or even USA have a corporate listing or public company directory? If so, got a link?

 Sigvatr wrote:
I'm working at a translation company and it's not that far away from what Raven described before. There's 0 tolerance - if any employee fails to meet the timeline, he's fired. Immediately. No chance to get back. If you'd apply for a job, even if you were qualified, you'd have to wait for about 1-2 years before you could start working and thus, everyone in here is expendable.

I'd agree with you when it comes to work performance, but an employee should never be fired as a scapegoat or a living "look out sir" rule due to a managers' decisions, poor performance, incompetence etc. I saw that happen far too many times at GW for it to just be an isolated thing. It's a way of life at GW.

 Sigvatr wrote:
It's how a business *should* run though, in my opinion. It's completely fair and I hate that "Man, those are people, you need to be all jolly to them!" attitude a lot of people have. Being harsh on the rules does not you don't respect them. People need to realize that it's a business.

There I disagree with you. A business should be run so that there is a comfortable atmosphere for the staff and a sense of job security otherwise it affects morale and inevitably will cause tension between staff. Can you imagine going to work everyday with the first though on your mind is "I have to protect myself from everyone else"? Staff need to be comfortable and be able to concentrate on doing their job instead of always havign to worry about being fired for ridiculous reasons.

 Sigvatr wrote:
Same goes for GW. GW is well-known for not caring about the customer's demand (and they are right about this) so what exactly do people expect from working at GW? A nice, family-ish atmosphere where your superior comes over for a cup of coffee and a slice of cake every so often? It's 2013, that's not gonna happen.

Again I disagree. GW was a very nice place to work. but over time so many staff left for various reasons and the new staff that came in were not exactly what I would call a "good fit" with the gaming community. They were there for their own advancement and nothing more.

[quote=Sigvatr 494695 5181825 d01b56a3d225495143a19d8d47e90f62.jpgIf you work at a company, you got superiors. They are superiors. Do what they ask you to do (as long as it's within legal rights) or quit the job. "Ladder-climbers" are good. They know what a business is about, they know what to do.

No editor jobs open? Clearly they are still in need of 1-3 of them.

 Goat wrote:
No editor jobs open? Clearly they are still in need of 1-3 of them.

This is a US hiring thread. I imagine the UK folks would have the design/editing jobs.

Just to throw in my 2 cents....I worked for GW both in retail and Direct Services. I loved the job, had great co-workers, got bonuses and raises and lots of free loot, got to travel all over America, spent a whole night drinking and chatting with Jervis, who is really a good guy. Did I see people get shafted....yes, and they usually deserved it. If I could work for them again, I would in a heartbeat.

Don't let the naysayers dissuade you from applying ( yes you...over there with the funny haircut).


Keith

++EDITED OUT++ Sorry, that was uncalled for.

 Sigvatr wrote:
I'm working at a translation company and it's not that far away from what Raven described before. There's 0 tolerance - if any employee fails to meet the timeline, he's fired. Immediately. No chance to get back. If you'd apply for a job, even if you were qualified, you'd have to wait for about 1-2 years before you could start working and thus, everyone in here is expendable.

It's how a business *should* run though, in my opinion. It's completely fair and I hate that "Man, those are people, you need to be all jolly to them!" attitude a lot of people have. Being harsh on the rules does not you don't respect them. People need to realize that it's a business.

Same goes for GW. GW is well-known for not caring about the customer's demand (and they are right about this) so what exactly do people expect from working at GW? A nice, family-ish atmosphere where your superior comes over for a cup of coffee and a slice of cake every so often? It's 2013, that's not gonna happen.

If you work at a company, you got superiors. They are superiors. Do what they ask you to do (as long as it's within legal rights) or quit the job. "Ladder-climbers" are good. They know what a business is about, they know what to do.

If you want changes, don't buy GW stuff. It's simple as that. As long as the cash keeps going, you will not see ANY changes towards a more customer-friendly environment; in the contrary, it will get worse.

That's the right way though. The customers decide what they want and as long as there's a profit, the customers agree with every decision the company makes. Vote with your wallet. It's a binary decision.

Buy stuff -> Yes, I fully agree with what you're doing.
Don't buy stuff -> I disagree and do not want to support your business decisions.

Nobody gives a flying cra...zy monkey about people who buy stuff and then complain about it. You bought it. Deal with it.

GW is a fair business. Don't like their way? Don't apply. If you really like GW and their products, I'd really suggest applying. It's similar to how most retail works and yes, you do get low wages, but at the same time, you made your hobby your job which is worth a lot already.

This is getting a little OT but this statement was so breathtaking in its naivety I had to say something.

It's a simple equation happy employees = a happy and therefore normally successful company.

If you treat your employees well then people will fall over themselves to work for you and allow you to cherry pick the best of them, further strengthening the organisation.

I was a good manager, my retail stores regularly hit their targets, but the fact I remain most proud of is that in around 7 years I never lost a team member through them choosing to leave or disciplinary reasons, the only time team members moved on was due to promotion, something that happened regularly. I believe this was in no small part down to my opinion that an employee is an asset to be nurtured and not a resource to be exploited.

The evidence suggests GW do not share my opinion.

As for the example you cite in your own job, I'd still rather have a team of experienced veterans than a constant influx of new blood, but YMMV.