Posted By Charley Farley-Trelawney
Stuart
I guess it all comes down to experience, qualifications, whether the company like the person, their age (can't believe I just said that last bit!) and the overall responsibility of the job and size of support team you have available.
I have just assisted a board on the employment of such a person, the job for them will be easy as the team they have to support them is vast, the salary on offer was negotiable, we thought 50 - 70k would be perfect for the position, after extensive interviews a final selection was made and that person has been brilliant, when asked the salary they were looking for, a figure of 40 - 50k came back, so not only did they get the right person they came in well under budget, making my % all that bit better.
I understand your involvement, lets face it, if you want to employ an expert then get an expert to assist in the selection process. Where did we advertise, we did not, we phoned around and word soon spread like wildfire, we had over 30 applicants, whittled down to 3 then 1, it worked for us.
In your situation you can do no worse that SHP, here at the world famous IOSH Careers forum; and possibly a national such as the Times, me, I would prefer word of mouth, you surely must know someone that you have met in your travels, think hard, I bet you know several people, they may even be employed, but would jump at a change and an increase in salary, go on, I bet you have someone in mind!
A person who was perhaps a student 15 years ago, an ex HSE or EHO who moved on and has worked in several different industries, an ex consultant who maybe prefers a bit more security etc etc.
Good luck, and be prepared for many hours of interviewing.
Charles