My first piece of advice would be to do your own research on IESA. Don’t just believe all you read on here. Take a little time and find out for yourself.
Talk to recruitment agencies. Talk to more than one. What do they have to say? What is their feedback? What is the consensus? These are people who deal with job seekers and organisations on a regular basis. They know the companies that look after their staff and they know the ones that don’t. Ask them what kind of reputation IESA has in the marketplace.
Look at the benefits offered to staff. How many days holiday? Christmas party? Christmas bonus? Death in service? Sick leave? Do they believe and invest in their people and their careers? Do employees have a good work/life balance? Are they flexible for all staff with families? Do they have a dedicated training department? Are the managers empowered to manage their own teams or do they just carry out the CEO’s wishes?
What are the directors/CEO like? What is their motivation? Is it to grow the business organically to make it a long term, stable concern or is it to cut costs to the bone and push up the value of the company as quickly as possible and then sell up, having made a fast buck for themselves?
Does the organisation value its clients? They have a few massive clients. How long do the clients stay with the business? How many have been with the business for over 5 years? How many signed up to a contract on the basis of promises made, which were subsequently not delivered upon? How many renew at the end of the initial contract? Speak to some former clients. They will give you an insight into why they no longer deal with IESA.
How long does a client relationship manager last on average at IESA? The people at the sharp end who have the job to deliver on the promises made to the clients before they sign up?
What is the staff turnover in general like? A quick look online reveals respected sources quoting around 15% as an industry average? Ask IESA for their figure? Would you be surprised to find out it was over 40%? Find out the answer to the question yourself. Any organisation will happily share this information with you as this is a benchmark of how well they value and retain their employees.
When was the last staff survey done to ask the staff, the lifeblood of the organisation, what they think? Are exit interviews done to find out and root cause the reasons for staff leaving? All good questions to ask.
And what about the suppliers? Does it pay them on time? Or does it have a raft of pro forma suppliers due to poor payment history? All this information is out there in the public domain if you look for it. Have a look on any well know, industry respected credit referencing website and you’ll find your answers.
So, in summary, my advice is to do your own research and make up your own mind.