Comment by J Stedman, CPC on February 5, 2009 at 8:42pm

7 Habits of Highly Effective Recruiters

By Arthur Young

Recruiting is one of the most difficult professions to conquer. There are numerous paths to take to success and a wide range of personality types that have found this profession to be their most significant life's work. Tenured Recruiters, defined by 5 years or more in the business, have experienced literally thousands of intimate business relationship encounters with candidates and clients. These professionals have a unique perspective on the industry specialties, the companies, their hiring managers, hiring processes and the candidates whose careers they impact.

Many articles have been written about the habits and traits of "Big Billers", "High Producers", etc.

It is not our intention to re-package this material. Our goal is to present a "Philosophy of Success" for the Recruiting business.

During the last 15 years, my team of associates and I have attended thousands of hours of intensive training, brainstorming sessions and conferences. We have studied the work habits of the best of the best, tested their personalities and studied their results versus the results of others. Although this analysis cannot be deemed a scientific study, scientific method was the fundamental tool used. Our team is well read; 5 or more business, sales, management and personal effectiveness books are ingested monthly. Individually, we enjoy many close business relationships with Retained, Contingency, Staffing, Contracting, Corporate/HR internal professionals, Hiring Managers and Venture Capitalists. These are leaders who are responsible for building world-class organizations through the acquisition of best of breed human capital. Our conversations, training materials, collaborative methods along with think tanks have produced the "Success Philosophy for the Recruiting Industry" copyright 2002.

Invest/research/study
Invest in education, learn the history of the profession; a very great master is a student of their craft.
Invest in improving sales techniques- role- play, read books, practice, maintain improvement logs, list the problems encountered and ideas to handle them. Invest in the profession and the career. Short "termers" are easily exposed and quite ineffective. Look around. How many of your peers, your clients, your counter parts were working in the profession: 5, 10, even 15 years ago? "When the going gets rough," Who gets going? Visit Industry Portals, frequent Trade shows. Keep abreast of the corporate movements; follow the funding, mergers and acquisitions. Track, study and analyze the trends and they will affect the companies and their players. Understand the needs and interests of the candidates and the people they work for and with. Identify the career paths and the pitfalls.
There is a voluminous quantity of public and private data available to recruiters. Data only becomes information when it's studied, processed, integrated, woven together and synthesized.
Recruiters can become a resource if they devote themselves to becoming thought leaders in their specialty.

Network/Collaborate-
Join Associations & formal networks in the Recruiting Industry and within your vertical market/ specialty. Collaborate with other recruiters for sales & marketing tips, candidate and job order referrals. Attend and enjoy conferences & seminars, breakfasts & dinners with other recruiters. Watch! What you ingest it could either impede or excel your performance.

Track performance-
Maintain activity numbers, ratios of activities to results. Learn appropriate ratios for your specialty and watch the trends. The numbers and ratios tell the story, period. Allow the numbers to do the talking. Pick a "rabbit to chase". Find a producer, track their performance and mimic their behaviors.

Spend Money to Make Money-
Purchase training videos and audio tapes; attend conferences, seminars and training programs. Improve the speed, breath and functionality of your tools.

Look out for Productivity Enhancements-
Productivity enhancements can be achieved in all areas of the process of recruiting they can be enabled by workflow, technology, ergonomics and other fascists of the job.

Objectivity-
Recruiters are deluged with choices and decisions. Setting priorities, assessing their candidates, clients 's motives, their activity numbers etc. Are we working for activity, to "show our boss or of client that we are trying, or to produce a positive result. Recruiters must access their behaviors and develop action plans with their eyes and ears wide open. The word "objectivity" refers to the view that the truth of a thing is independent from the observing subject. Objective truths are independent of human wishes and beliefs.

Enjoy your Job & your Life-
Dress for success! It's not the clothes that make the man or woman but the attitude they get when they put on their "skin" (business casual or three piece). Set up your routines and environment to support the days and weeks ahead. "Get a life!" and maintain it! Exercise, read, take a walk in the park, seek spirituality, whatever! We must maintain our composure in the face on constant "manufactured pressures" created by others lack of planing. If you need it and you can establish return on investment- get it! Be happy in your space, generate, that positive "vibe". You are what you eat and drink! This job requires a healthy constitution. We must maintain our sense of humor and remember we aren't performing a "brain surgery". Winning and losing any particular deal is not a reflection of who we are but rather what we have done so far and are willing and committed to do.

Comment by J Stedman, CPC on February 5, 2009 at 8:44pm

Go to my LinkedIn profile. I recommend two book...both those books are outstanding.

http://www.linkedin.com/in/jodystedman

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