Recruiters & Social Media – Love/Hate or Love/Love?

The most frequent comment I hear from recruiters when we talk about social media is that it takes too much time… they are super busy finding candidates and filling reqs and don’t have 2 -3 hours a day to spend on social channels, updating their statuses and sharing information. While I agree that it takes a bit of time up front, once you have all your social profiles completed you really only need to spend 30 minutes a day monitoring and updating them. 

I’m all about automation to save time.  My favorite tool right now is Buffer App.  This is a free tool that allows you to schedule up to 10 articles at specified times of your choice.  Use this scheduling tool with Feedly.com or whatever reader you use and set your updates to your social networks in advance.  By using a reader you can follow blogs and online papers like Mashable, TechCrunch, Fortune, VentureBeat, INC.com, Wired, Engadget or any of the many, many other great publications.  Then use RSS feeds to your reader or Outlook.  You can quickly scan and click on interesting articles and then use Buffer App to schedule sharing via Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook. 

HootSuite or TweetDeck are great tools to manage social feeds and schedule postings.  I use HootSuite and have linked it with my Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn Feeds.  I have tabs for each stream and can schedule posts to all of these networks, multiple times.  It’s easy to post your current job openings directly from HootSuite.  You can also schedule them to recur every week and keep them at the top of your social profiles. 

Use your downtime and leverage mobility.  While you are waiting, pull out your mobile device and check your social feeds and retweet, share, like and repost articles that you find valuable.  I’ve spent many hours at the salon, doctor’s office, auto repair shop, coffee shop or restaurant catching up on my Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn feeds and sharing content from them. 

If you decide to automate (and I hope you do) remember that it is best to read the content that you want to share first and then share with your network.  If you allow the tool to pick the content, you might end up sharing content that is not relevant to you or your network.  People follow you for a reason and you should be sharing what you consider valuable information.  If it’s not valuable to you, it probably won’t be valuable to your followers.  

"I’ll Be Back"… Don’t Take “No” For An Answer

What is your first response when a prospective candidate tells you “no”?  Remember in the movie, The Terminator, when Arnold said his famous line, “I’ll be back”?   All recruiters should take this to heart… it should be our mantra, especially in this market.  How many times have you had candidates tell you that they were not interested in your job?  Maybe they were happy with their current role, not the right time to make a move, looking for a different type role, couldn’t relocate, looking for a higher level role to make a move… we have heard them all.  If you haven’t then you aren’t doing your job properly.  And by your job, I mean building relationships with your prospective candidates.  

Being trained as an agency recruiter has many advantages.  We are taught never to take “no” for an answer.  In fact, on my first recruiting job they told me that I would hear “no” at least 5 times before getting to a “yes” and they gave me a long list of how to overcome typical objections.  The key learning here was that if someone said no, they were engaged in the conversation and giving me the opportunity to turn that no into a yes.  The rule of thumb was that you make your pitch and then shut up… the next person to speak loses.  This brings back memories of very, very long silences over my desk telephone while I was waiting for the person I was speaking with to say “no” or “not yet” or “not now”.  (Yes, I said telephone… we used to actually cold call prospective candidates to recruit them.  Does anyone else remember dialing for dollars???)

Fast forward many, many years to today and these principles still hold true as a corporate recruiter and perhaps even more so in the executive search world.  My world now is all about building relationships with the people I talk to, promoting my company, creating awareness, being a brand ambassador and helping them find the right opportunity here.  Just having conversations about our company values, new products and technologies, global expansion, company culture and personal growth and development can keep me talking to people for 10 – 15 minutes.  And they really get excited when they hear these things!  (Of course it doesn't hurt to work for one of the best companies in the world.) 

Many times just having that initial conversation with a candidate will get them thinking about outside opportunities and before you know it, they are looking at what else is out there.  Especially when they had a bad day, a change in work or family situation, were passed up for promotion… you get the idea.  It all goes back to building that relationship with the prospective candidate.  Really listen to them and figure out what they want and the best path to get them there. 

These days I’m finding that more and more of the candidates that told me “no” the first time are now actively seeking me out and asking for my help, even people I haven’t’ spoken with in years.  This is a win/win because it saves me time when they come to me with resumes in hand (most times they have seen a job posting that they are interested in and are asking for my help getting them to the hiring team) and I’m better able to help navigate them to the right group or business leader. 

Bottom line… the next time you hear “no” your response should be “I’ll be back”!  

Secrets To Successful Recruiting

Do you ever wonder what makes some recruiters so successful while others don’t seem to be able to produce great results?  I’ve been in the business for a long time and worked with many, many recruiters in both agency and corporate environments.  The great ones are happy to share their knowledge and secrets of success and I am an enthusiastic learner.  Allow me to share what I have learned with you and I would love to hear back what you have learned on your recruiting journeys.  What I have discovered is there are 4 basic skills that every successful recruiter has mastered.  They are; sales, smarts, savvy and storytelling. 

Sales:

Recruiting is basically all about selling… you sell the candidate on the job and you sell the hiring manager on the candidate.  Agency recruiters have to use super sales techniques to cold call into companies and sell the hiring managers on using an agency and paying a fee.  Corporate recruiters also face challenges in convincing hiring managers who assume calling their job out to an agency is the only way to get top tier candidates.  They have to convince their hiring managers to give them time to source, screen and submit qualified candidates that didn’t apply to the posting.  Then they sell them on why they should interview the candidates they have recruited.  Both face the ultimate challenge of convincing that perfect purple squirrel candidate to accept their role which, when successful, can be a feat of infinite magic and a wonder to behold.  This is one of the best feelings a recruiter will ever have… taking a stellar passive candidate, presenting them with their ideal job, arranging all the interviews, negotiating offer details and finally getting the signed offer letter… talk about time to celebrate and pat yourself on the back!  In the agency world we used to ring a bell when that happened and sometimes I feel like ringing a bell now when closing a really challenging req… if not ringing a bell then at least popping a cork.  J

Smarts:  

Recruiters have to be experts in their fields.  They are super sleuths like Nick Charles or Jake Gittes (“Forget it, Jake. It’s Chinatown.”), private detectives prowling the cities and cyberspace… first finding top tier candidates; researching where they work and play, finding contact information and getting them into a conversation before they can even present a job opportunity to them.  Some great recruiters can work without any tools at all… just their intellect and industry knowledge.  I know one recruiter who only recruits for specific industry professionals so he pretty much knows all the players and has their contact information so that when he gets an order from a competitor, he just picks up the phone and starts dialing for dollars.  Other great recruiters use all the tools available.  (I happen to fall into this camp.)  We need tools not toys.  ATS, LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Pinterest, Blogs, ZoomInfo, Boolean searches… you name it we use it!  We are building a social network and a personal brand to attract and engage with leaders in our industries.  I love it when I find people using new tools like Pinterest and can speak to them about their interests and interacting with new people who find me on Twitter and Google+. 

Savvy: 

To paraphrase a Kenny Rogers song… you won’t get very far as a recruiter unless you know when to hold em, know when to fold em, know when to walk away and know when to run.  You never count your money when you’re sittin at the table...  Recruiters are like gamblers in a way; they have to read people and know what motivates them, when and how to approach them and how to give them what they want so that everyone wins.  This is a fine art and a skill that is honed over the years.  Every now and then you will come across a natural born recruiter but most have been seasoned, tried and proven thru fire.  They know what works because they have made mistakes and had great successes and learned from them both.

Storytelling:

If you can’t tell a story about the company you are representing or why this particular job is so wonderful for that particular person at that particular time in their career, you probably won’t see stellar results.  On the flip side, you have to tell the candidate’s story to the hiring manager so that they will understand how that particular candidate will successfully meet their needs for their team at that moment.  Great recruiters use their storytelling skills to paint a picture of the role they are recruiting for, the company culture, innovation in the industry, career path, success stories from former people in that role, what it would be like to work with that team, current projects and cool new projects on the horizon that they can be a part of from day one… you get the picture.  Some people think that if you offer a candidate enough money they will take your job.  They couldn’t be more wrong.  People change jobs for many different reasons but in my experience only about 20% or less focus solely on salary… it is usually the type of work they will be doing, who they are working with and if they will be challenged and afforded new growth and learning opportunities.  My hiring managers are interested in why candidates do what they do… what motivates them and gets them out of bed every day.  A passion for what they do and the fire to make things happen and make a difference… that’s what our hiring managers look for in potential candidates, we have even started hiring to our values in some roles over technical expertise, especially in customer care roles.  You can teach technology but you can’t teach desire, drive and a heart for the customer.  

What Do You Want To Be When You Grow Up?

I would wager that it wasn’t a recruiter.  This was a question I used to jokingly ask my potential candidates to break the ice, get them relaxed and open up.  Usually they would say something like “I’ll let you know when I decide to grow up” or “retired” or simply “employed”.   Funny, they all seem to hold true, even today.  I don’t ask that question anymore but the “retired” answer seems to be more and more attractive to me now.  If not retired, then maybe ready for my next stage of life that allows me to work part time from a remote tropical location and do what I love.  That could include recruiting or something to do with social media… maybe I’ll be like Bethenny Frankel and have an online empire and fabulously successful blog… WHAT… it could happen! 

My friend, Dennis Smith, recently posted an Infographic on his blog jobgeeks.com of the most popular jobs since 1970.  His comment was that he didn’t see “recruiting” anywhere on the list.  This made me smile and reminded me that when I graduated college with a BFA in Advertising Art, the world of recruiting was as unknown to me as outer space.  After all, I was going to be an advertising executive for the Richards Group working on incredibly creative campaigns like Chick-Fil-A and winning CLIO awards that I would display in my super chic, urban loft. 

Two years later I was still tending bar (a lucrative skill I picked up while working my way through college) and doing small projects for friends and customers like designing logos, business cards, signs, flyers, etc.  Not exactly the career I had mapped out.  But I was getting by and had a flexible schedule, no bills to speak of and kept a bag packed in the trunk of my car in case a spur of the moment trip materialized (which they often did, usually scuba diving over the weekend in Cozumel).  One day a friend of mine (who had been trying to recruit me to work for her at a Personnel Agency for months) came into the restaurant and pointed to a 40 something waitress working there and said that was going to be me in 20 years.  Suddenly I was considering a career transition…

After all Patty pointed out that I would be a natural recruiter… I had the perfect combination of sales, smarts, savvy, and storytelling (another skill I picked up bartending).  Hey maybe I should trademark that as the 4 S’s of successful recruiting – that could launch my online empire.  Stay tuned for my next blog…   

The next week I was working in an office in the Galleria Tower I for $800 a month draw vs. commission.  Somehow this seemed like a step back but not one to wimp out, I persevered and was given a desk, a marketing script and the yellow pages and told to start “dialing for dollars”.   This was my introduction into the world of recruiting… I was now a Full Desk Recruiter!  Turns out I was a recruiting natural and indeed have become moderately successful in this unplanned career.  Even though at times the path has been rocky (2002 was a really, really rough year) it’s always been interesting and I have lots of wonderful stories to tell.  Case in point – let’s revisit an earlier blog posting.  

Of all the recruiters I know, only a handful actually planned for this career.  Most like me, stumbled upon it and found success and an aptitude.  It’s not for everyone, but neither is blogging or social media which is the turn my recruiting career is taking me at the moment.  I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t be writing this blog if I hadn’t made that decision 20 years ago.   

I’ve told you mine, now you tell me yours… what is your story… how did you become a recruiter?  

Five Reasons Why I Love My Job

All the headlines I read today seem to contain numbers; 13 Strangest Ways People Found Out Bin Laden Died, 3 Traits of the Most Compelling Internet Companies, 6 Tips to Improve Your Cover Letter, The 3 P’s of Success, 10 Tips To Get People To Act On Your Emails, Top 10 Corporate Blogs and 33 Clever and Creative Billboard Ads. Are we becoming a society reduced to getting our information fed to us in list form? This actually works for me as I constantly multi task and am easily distracted. (oohhh, something shiny...)

Sorry, where was I? Oh yes, back to numbers. If I can recall my numerology training, we could have a little fun figuring out the meaning of all these numbers. Today is turning out to be my day of Fives… which was actually the numerology value of my maiden name. Now 5 is the number of senses we have and is a very tactile number, describing feelings, sensations and emotions.

All my tweets so far today have been about Fives… 5 Ways to Be More Efficient on Twitter, 5 Top Mobile Marketing Myths and 5 Best Practices for Travel and Tourism Brands on Facebook. I must be feeling the love because to continue with this theme, I’m dedicating my blog today to the Top 5 Reasons I Love My Job. There are way more than just 5 reasons I love my job… there are many reasons why Intuit has been on Fortune Magazine’s Top 100 Employers List for the past decade. In fact last year, we moved up to number 44… not too shabby! So let’s have a big GROUP HUG and find out my personal top 5:

1. My passion: I love recruiting and especially enjoy my role as a strategic sourcing recruiter. We receive extensive training in cutting edge social media recruiting tactics, encouraged to blog, tweet, make videos, post on Facebook and YouTube.

2. My colleagues: I am working with the best group of people! They are truly supportive, helpful and appreciative of the work we all do, always ready to help out wherever possible and provide positive feedback

3. Company culture: We have a flexible workplace, collaborative environment that encourages innovation and personal development, and is friendly, open and positive

4. Our Products: Intuit has a suite of products that address almost every financial management need for consumers and small businesses. We have the opportunity to work on reqs for high demand, cutting edge technology and business processes in areas like; Mobile, Social Media, SaaS, Global and Data

5. Recognition: My managers are quick to respond, eager to assist, understanding of challenges, appreciative and recognize achievements

In over 20 years of work, I have had the opportunity to work for some amazing and some not so amazing companies. Intuit is right at the very top of my personal “Best Place to Work”!

Welcome to the Jungle... Rock On with Intuit!

As you may know by now... I work for one of the BEST companies in the world, Intuit.  Not only were we recognized by Fortune Magazine as "America's Most Admired Software Company" in 2008; we have been named by them as one of the "100 Best Companies to Work for" for over a decade.


One of the many reasons I love my job so much is that our senior leadership is awesome.  Leadership makes all the difference in a company's culture because it sets the tone for the rest of the employees.  Our leaders are all extremely sharp, approachable, really know the recruiting industry, always willing to help and most of all... they know how to have fun!  
   

Let me introduce you to two of our top performers in Recruiting: Axl and Slash. (not the original ones from Guns N Roses, but a close second, right?)  This picture was taken on Friday in our San Diego, CA location right  after lunch... looks like they were  brown bagging it that day. :-)


Maybe one reason Intuit is the best place to work, EVER, is that these are some of the people responsible for making decisions on who we hire and bringing new talent into the company?  I like their style and am happy to be part of the team... Rock On Intuit!

Purple Squirrel… Revisited

October is a nostalgic month for me. I was born in October and during this month I seem to find myself reflecting back on milestones of my life. (In between the month long celebrations of my birth:)

One milestone is the launch of my blog… it was on October 5, 2006, after a networking luncheon at the DFWTRN. The topic that day was blogs and how to use them as a recruiting tool to find candidates. The speaker was so motivating that I rushed back to the office and created very my first blog.

Flash forward to March 2010… I receive an email from a reporter in California working for the Orange County Register who was doing research on the term “Purple Squirrel” and came across one of my blog postings. She was writing an article on unemployment in the area and one of her candidates used this term. Not knowing what it meant, she contacted me for an explanation and for insight on employment in the current economy. We had a phone conversation and she quoted me in her article.

Now just this month, I receive an email from someone working for a company in Princeton, NJ who found my little blog while working on a marketing piece about what this company can do for its clients; i.e. serve as a purple squirrel by meeting their needs from the business side to creating the technology. We have connected; I’ve given him my input and am now anxiously awaiting his article. As they say in academia… publish or perish!

Who knew that my little blog would have such a far reach? I’m thrilled and encouraged to explore this further to see the impact in the blogosphere. What is the difference between “Best of the Best” candidates and “Purple Squirrels”? If you dig deeper, you will find that the purple squirrel candidates are not necessarily the Top Tier candidates but rather have a combination of rare or hard to find skill sets and company backgrounds.

In all my years of recruiting, I would much rather connect with a Top Tier candidate and establish a relationship; even if they don’t specifically meet the requirements of my job openings. I can’t tell you how many placements I have made from referrals… in fact; most of my best and most challenging openings were filled by referrals from my recruiting network. And I have found almost every one of my jobs from personal referrals. In fact, my current role with Intuit was presented to me by someone I met over 10 years ago. We stayed in contact and now I am happy to be working for a company that has been on Fortune Magazine’s list of Top 100 Employers for over a decade!

Surrounding yourself with quality is a good practice in both your professional and personal life. Purple Squirrels may get you a fee for a placement, but quality connections will serve you better in the long run. What do you think?

Video Resumes

The vote is still out on the advantages of having and sending video resumes. I have read many articles on this subject and the decision is pretty much split right down the middle as to whether they offer a real benefit as opposed to a traditional resume. I have diligently completed a Visual CV as well as profiles on LinkedIn, Facebook, Recruitingblogs.com and Twitter. I am socially networked and totally Googleable… do I really need another web presence to drive people to find/contact/reach me?

Inquiring minds like mine want to know… what are the benefits of having a video resume? As a consummate and intrepid recruiter, I have decided to put one together. (Go ahead, laugh if you must.) The content and format is decided and the video camera has been borrowed. Filming has begun! Help has been elicited from my daughter and my more technically savvy, Gen Y friends for editing, music, etc. I am extremely excited and curious as to how this project will turn out while keeping an open mind as to the infinite possible results. Stay tuned for updates… same bat time, same bat channel.

Purple Squirrel Candidates

Most recruiters know that a Purple Squirrel is a very rare, highly sought after, almost extinct species of candidate. In other words, the hire that requires very specific knowledge and qualifications and will most likely take longer, more efforts, and harder negotiations to recruit.

It seems that at least half of my clients are actually looking for Purple Squirrels now. With the economy problems and companies being cautious with hiring, these searches are becoming more and more the rule rather than the exception.

I was talking to a client yesterday regarding a Purple Squirrel search and why the 2 Purple Squirrels submitted were not moving forward. We had 100% of the requirements, the certifications, the industry experience and technical knowledge... now the requirements have been amended to limit us to candidates within a 50 mile radius of their zip code. Looks like this Purple Squirrel has just sprouted pink polka dots as a wardrobe requirement... wonder if they will consider a cutting edge, fashion conscious squirrel with lime green spots?

Job Descriptions – Easy Guidelines to Write and Reply

If you are going to write a job description for your company, the best bet is to keep it simple and to the point. Define what the company requires and expects for a person to successfully perform that particular job within your company. There are 3 main sections for a job description; Overview, Requirements and Qualifications.

The overview is the section where the company tells about the “big picture” role of the job within that particular company. In a job posting, this is the place where the company incorporates all the wonderful things about why someone would want to come to work there.

Next follows the Requirements or Duties section… this section outlines the day-to-day duties of the position. It also includes what the person in that position will be responsible for fulfilling for the company both short term and long term.

Qualifications or Experience is the section that defines the specific educational, years of experience, qualifications, certifications and career level for the position. It would also include any physical requirements or travel percentage necessary to perform the job.

If you are a job seeker applying to a job posting for a company, a good rule of thumb would be to incorporate how you have met those specific requirements within your resume. If you are using a generic resume to apply for multiple jobs, then you should always attach a cover letter or email stating where and when you have met those requirements successfully. This will get the attention of the recruiter or hiring manager who is really only interested in how you fit for that particular position. It may take a little more time but will be more effective and productive in the long run.

How can we help each other (and ourselves) in a down economy?

Most of the time I love my job... but this economy is making it more and more challenging every day!

As a recruiter, I get to help companies find great candidates to fill their open positions as well as helping candidates find better jobs. And the companies pay me for my expertise which provides me with a living. Recruiting is my chosen career and I have over 20 years experience here. My income is just as affected (if not more than some) by the down economy.

The recruiting industry is like a pendulum swinging from high good times (a tight candidate market with more jobs than people) to the middle range (just enough jobs as there are qualified candidates) to the other high side where we are now (companies downsizing and laying off with many people unemployed).

Most of my calls lately are from former candidates who have been downsized or friends of theirs who are out of work. And they are almost all good, skilled, experienced employees. These people would normally be my “most place-able candidates” in a good economy. Some of the resumes I am receiving are absolutely stellar and I want to do everything possible to help them find a job.

So my question to you is… how can we help each other in these uncertain and unstable economic times?

My advice to out of work (or transitional) candidates is generally to join networking groups, go on as many interviews as possible, take this time to improve your resume, use Internet tools like LinkedIn to research companies where you want to work and contact the hiring managers directly to sell yourself to them. I wouldn't recommend going through HR right now as they are otherwise occupied and most likely won't return your calls.

I would also recommend that you volunteer in whatever organization means something to you… whatever you are passionate about; church, civil, school, or social. Keep yourself busy… maybe take some continuing education classes and get that advanced degree you have been thinking about for years. You can also use this time to re-evaluate your career choices and perhaps change fields altogether.

Whatever you do... helping someone else is the best way to help yourself. And you never know… the person you help today may be the exact person in a position to help you later on down the road. Treat everyone with respect and do your absolute best... the pendulum will swing back, I promise! Use the opportunities you have now to affect the lives of others while improving your own at the same time. You won’t be disappointed.

Working for the Weekend

Well, it’s Friday again and almost time to get started on my weekend. Naturally, my first thought is... who do I have to reach this weekend for work? Being a recruiter we all understand that there are times we have to make calls to candidates on our “off hours”… especially those that travel extensively, are passive candidates, hard to reach, or those who simply refuse to talk to you during business hours. As recruiters, are we accustomed and expected to work more than other professions? How does this “overtime” affect the standard 40 hour work week OR do we even have a standard work week? Does your family life/free time suffer from your profession?

RPO, Retained Search or Contingency?

Ere.net had a great article last week... Let's Revolutionize the Standard Recruiting Model. The author, Mark Bielecki, posed some interesting solutions to recruiting in a down turned economy. One possible solution was to have the client's pay the contingency recruiters a lesser fee for the qualified resumes that are submitted or interviews scheduled rather than a larger fee only when a candidate is hired. This solution would allow the recruiter to be compensated for their knowledge and efforts even if circumstances beyond their control prevent a hire from being made. What a concept... I like it!

Having come from a contingency agency background, working for RPO's the past few years has been an absolute breath of fresh air. While contingency searches bring in more money in fees, the percentage of hires per job order is much lower. After all, who hasn't had that contingency search where you worked for weeks to find that purple squirrel the client demanded only to have the hiring manager decide to put the position on hold during the offer stage or decide not to fill it at all?

Here at HumCap, we typically fill every RPO order we receive. Is that because the customer is paying for our services on a time and materials basis and they have more invested in the process? Working within this more consultative model, we are truly partners in the process and are better able to advise, counsel and educate the hiring managers to ensure the success of the hire. I can remember the last time I did contingency searches, coming up with a "contained search" model... part retained and part contingency. This was way before the RPO concept and required the client to pay a partial fee upon initiation of the search and the remainder of the fee when the hire was made. This win/win approach gave me as the recruiter an incentive to fill the position quickly and the client a vested interest in working with me to accomplish our goals.

I still prefer the true partnership of an RPO project or retained search and believe this is the future of the industry but I'm all about being creative and making money... what about you?

Are You a Rock Star?

According to the recent post on ERE.net I am a Rock Star Recruiter as well as a Dinosaur. That would make me a Rock-a-Saurus... living proof you are never too old to rock on baby!

Is there really that much of a difference in the generations of recruiters? Do the “seasoned” recruiters have both feet in the past and the “recent” recruiters have both feet in the present? How do we take the best of both worlds and make them work? Do true Rock Star Recruiters straddle both timelines or can you be a Rock Star in your own world? (Which is not the same thing as a legend in your own mind;) Tell me your thoughts… Leslie

Are we a Society of Over-Achievers?

Tying in to my last posting on motivators… assuming we are all motivated and acting to our full potential, are we truly a society of over-achievers? If so, how does that apply to the generational categories in recruiting? According to all the studies I have read lately… the Baby Boomers were all instilled with a strong work ethic and think nothing of putting in 60 -70 hours per week. The GenXers are “all about me” and what will this job do for my career and my retirement. The GenYers are more about work/life balance and really have to enjoy what they do for a living… otherwise they will quit and never look back. The Millennials are just beginning to surface in the workplace and it appears that they are gravitating towards even more flexibility in their workplace. What do you think… can these diverse sectors all be over-achievers?

What are your Motivators?

I had lunch with Dennis Smith today from WirelessJobs.com to discuss his presentation for the IEEE CVT Chapter in April on LinkedIn, Blogging, and Social Networks. Besides the great company and an awesome Thai meal, an unanticipated result for me was the desire to come back to the office and blog. Dennis is a great speaker and motivator… you can’t help but catch his enthusiasm and excitement for the industry and his presentation should be very entertaining.

This also prompts me to ask… what inspires and motivates you? Either in your private or professional life… is it recognition, image, being able to add value to something, money, toys (tools/technology), being around good people, being your own boss, working independently, or helping others?

What can we do as recruiters to help get you out of bed in the morning?

HR vs Recruiting

In the past is seems that most of the time HR and Recruiting have been separate entities with vastly different goals. Now that companies are streamlining departments and cross training employees, I am finding more and more instances where HR and Recruiting are being combined into one department with a joint function. Even in our company, the outsourced Recruiting and the outsourced HR divisions have been combined to form just one Managed Services Department.

What do you think of this trend... care to comment on the good, the bad and the ugly? Can we really ALL just get along?

New FordyceLetter Blog

Many kudos to Jason Davis for putting together the FordyceLetter blog... what a great resource for recruiters. He has put together the best articles from the past 3 years in one convenient place. I was especially impressed with the articles confirming the value we third party recruiters add to a company and why our experience and expertise has worth. Great job Jason... keep up the good work!

2008 Recruiting Predictions

Happy New Year everyone... I cannot believe it is already 2008! Coming back from the holidays can often take time to get back into the swing of recruiting, so I thought I'd pass along this information from Zoom Info... it's a down loadable report from 5 recruiting gurus with their predictions for 2008. (Hope this helps get you jump started;)

How Social is Your Network?

After receiving yet another "invitation to join my network" from Plaxo, Zing, Zoom, Boom, et al... I wonder just how many social networks are too many? If I spent all my time joining networks, posting and updating bloggs, and attending networking events, there would be no time left for recruiting. This conundrum makes me wonder if all the really great, prolific bloggers out there are strictly in management, independently working or do they stay up late into the wee hours of the morning updating and posting?