Made redundant from his job last summer, Richard Stevens has now found himself with a brand-new job, thanks to the help of his son Oscar and a song he wrote and sent to employers asking them to look beyond CVs and look at the person behind the paper when hiring. The track is Paper Me, written by Oscar and performed alongside his dad under the banner Uneven Stevens, both a brilliant Oasis-esque indie track and a vital message to employers at a time when more than ever, people and passion are more important to employers than paper and certificates.

Listen to Paper Me: https://bit.ly/3ikgyjl

After 30 years working in the medical devices sector as director of a company making heart valves, Richard Stevens found himself made redundant in the summer of 2019, part of a cull which left him dejected but determined to get back in employment. By Christmas he had still not secured a role and had a huge number of knockbacks without even an interview, each application judged solely on his CV and with no human interaction whatsoever. The redundancy pay-out was not going to last forever, and he started having to be very careful with money, the family becoming increasingly concerned and upset.

In March, just before all the lockdown, Oscar asked his dad why he couldn’t get a job. He explained that he had sent his CV to countless companies and recruitment agents and that they read his CV and threw it in the bin. Oscar asked if people really did make decisions just based on a piece of paper, and he confirmed what millions of people in the UK face every day when looking for work. Oscar suggested writing a song about it, which they did and so a remarkable turn in fortunes was set in motion. Having heard the track and making it his duty to interview everyone who applies for a job, Tim Coutts gave Richard the break he was looking for:

“He feels it's his duty to give everyone a fair chance, and more to the point, to give him the best chance to get the right person by actually meeting them! Who hasn't got a few hours in a day to do that? This is exactly what we want to convey to those people that call themselves "Talent Acquisition Managers" playing God by deciding what someone is like from a CV alone. More than ever before everyone must be given a chance to prove their worth, so they can put food on the table and feed their kids”