Interviewing is a 2 way street!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Most staffing professionals, hiring managers, and others who do interviews seem to be under a misunderstanding as it relates to interviewing. They feel that they are doing the interviewing and that is all. They do not realize that the candidate is interviewing us as well.

When you are interviewing a candidate the candidate is taking mental notes of everything said,…

Reporting, and matrices a hidden land mine!!

I have done several postings on reporting and on matrices. In all of them I stress the importance of not using the stats alone to make decisions. The reason for that is because stats alone do not tell you the whole story. It is imperative you understand the WHY’s behind the numbers. If not you will fall into the hidden land mind that these reports and matrices create. You will make choices based on half…

Technical testing when and how to do it!!!



Within the staffing community, Hiring teams (HT, (this consists of Hiring manager, and possible first and second level interviewers) and businesses themselves there has always been controversy over how do you determine the expertise level of a candidate. Interviews, technical testing, reference checks, and more are all tools that can be used. Some staffing professionals (SP), and companies…

I am a big Harry Potter fan and I am a sourcer - you might have noticed that I am part way through a monster Harry Potter marthon this week! I’ve tenuously linked the two together in order to impart a few talent sourcing tips – enjoy!

DEFENCE AGAINST THE DARK ARTS

Alistair “Mad eye” Moody had a point – it doesn’t hurt to always be vigilant. I’m not talking about keeping an eye out for Death Eaters or dark magic, but for…

Unemployed need not apply..Really…Really!!

You read it right, there are actually companies out there who are putting up signs or including in

their job descriptions that the “unemployed need not apply”.

How pathetic, how disgusting, how wrong. The bad part is because the unemployed are not a

Protective class, there is nothing that can be done about it. Now of course if the company must

Comply…

Process makes perfect!!

As, with anything, that involves multiple people or entities having to work together, it goes much easier when everyone understands the hows and whys of working together. As a staffing professional, we must ensure we establish the process we will use to help our clients fill positions. A well established and agreed upon process makes it easier all around. Everyone knows what to expect from you and what is expected from them. Go so…

"Treat them the way you would want to be treated"

Candidate and Client Satisfaction!!!- Well this is one of the most important issues for a recruiter/staffing professional. It is not just about filling positions. It is about having a good relationship with your client and ensuring you treat each candidate with respect. Remember it is a small world and I can guarantee you, candidates talk. You treat one bad and it will get…

The more things change, the more they stay the same – except when they don’t. Now how’s that for equivocation?

The results are in for the 2011 Online Recruiting Survey, and they are intriguing. We had a record 323 completed responses (a 15% increase from Fall 2010!), from three categories: HR and recruitment professionals, job board operators and employees, and job seekers.  We used many…

No such thing as too much communication!!

      As with any relationship communication is key. I have found it is far better to over communicate than under communicate. Clients appreciate knowing what is going on and one of the biggest complaints about recruiting is lack of communication. One of the biggest ways to do this is to manage your inbox. Do not let it become overwhelming and a place where emails go to die. Stay on top of it. Respond to…

My apologies for no post last week. I have been very ill. But am back up, sort of, and running so here we go!!

Change can be good!!!!

Change, one of the scariest words in the English dictionary, also one of the most exciting, and perhaps one of the most important. Change means - to become different, or make something or somebody different. For us in staffing it means the ability to be flexible. This means just…

Research - To find it, you must understand it!!!!!

Research Comes First – Research is the key to success for any great sourcer. Research to learn what you are looking for, what it might be called or known as, and were it might be found. Research is the beginning step for all great sourcers. Every great sourcer should have an organized library of resources. Whether this comes in the form of organized bookmarks and favorites or a notebook, it…

Friday was my last day at Microsoft. I was afforded a great opportunity to create and impact recruiting; an outcome that I did not anticipate when I joined the company five years ago. It was a humbling experience working with the best and the brightest; I was amazed by my colleagues. Amazed, not by just how smart everyone is; but by the quality of human beings they are and the values that are shared. We did some great work together that changed the face of recruiting not only at Microsoft…

I am currently doing some market research for one of the Portal Applications I am currently working on  and needed to pick your minds from a Marketing perspective.  Any thoughts, questions would be welcomed.  I am tied to a Non-disclosure Agreement (NDA) and I can’t get into too much detail.  Here goes..:

What if there was a Global Portal that allowed Recruiters to identify…

Mobile is omnipresent – at times it seems as though more people are on their mobile devices that actually talking to each other. Butwhat role is mobile playing in recruitment?

This was the question I set out to answer a few months back. (Thanks again to my co-sponsor on this endeavor, AllTheTopBananas!). The survey, which was targeted at HR and recruiting professionals in the U.S.…

There is a lot of great writing out there covering the job board and online recruiting industries – in fact, it’s easy to overlook good material. So I’ve rounded up some of…

I first published this post earlier today on my new blog: "Social Job Search."

The blog is primarily aimed at Jobseekers, so whilst I don't usually duplicate posts, I wanted to share my research and get some reactions from recruiters. The results surprised me.

I’ve been reading some well intended posts recently from Linked In experts Neil Schaeffer and Tim…

Hiring Managers, Please get a Clue!!!!!…

Staffing Professional, Recruiter, Sourcer and More!!!!…

The future death of social networking