Recruiting Resources

Working with Other Independent Recruiters to Improve Results

by Veronica Blatt

Today’s post is courtesy of guest blogger Kimberley Chesney. Kimberley is the owner of Prime Management Group in Canada, with offices in London and Kitchener (Ontario) and Victoria (British Columbia). Kimberley is a long-time volunteer for NPA, currently serving as Chair of the NPA Board of Directors.

Working as independent recruiters can be difficult.  We want to produce excellent results for our clients without the normal resources of large, international firms.  We know, all too well, that our individual reputation depends on the results we can achieve for our clients.  With the advent of social media, we are constantly challenged in differentiating ourselves from our competition.

How are we able to deliver excellent results and earn a respectable fee?

Understanding the complex needs of our clients is key to producing the outcomes that they are expecting from us.  Taking the time to meet with our clients (either face-to-face or online) will be essential if we truly want to put ourselves in their shoes.

Working through the process of recruiting, rather than seeing it as a transaction, is very important.  Aligning ourselves with other independent recruiters who value the personal nature of our role can be extremely helpful. It is essential to use every tool available in order to produce the results we are expected to deliver.

Often, we focus entirely on the “client” part of the placement and virtually ignore the needs of the candidates we are presenting.  If we would only stop and remember that we are in the “people” business and that both parties have special needs of their own.  Learning what your candidates are looking for as a package is much more than hearing about their salary expectations.  Often there are many other factors which affect the candidate’s desire and ability to say “yes” to an offer and yet we don’t take the time to really learn what is important to them.

If we are fortunate to have other independent recruiters as partners who want to assist us, we can better navigate through this complex business relationship.  If they have an existing relationship with the client or candidate, it increases the odds that you will be able to close the placement.  They may have some information concerning the client or candidate which provides the basis on which you can close the placement.  Imagine the power of knowledge gained in working in a cooperative placement process where your partner helps you with the entire recruitment journey!  Imagine if they have access to excellent candidates who provide exactly what your client is looking for.  You would be more than happy to share the fee and ensure you are serving your clients so they come back to you over and over again.

Being an independent recruiter can have its advantages, but networking with other recruiters who are like minded provides for excellent scope and results and keeps not only your clients happy, but your pocketbook too!

Image courtesy of digitalart / FreeDigitalPhotos.net


Independent Recruiters and Networking: 5 Quick Tips

by Terri Piersma

December and January are great months of the year to network as many holiday events are held and the mood is typically festive. Recently, I read a Forbes.com article by Darrah Brustein titled 16 Quick Tips to Become a Better Networker.

Darrah provided a non-recruiter perspective of networking. I thought her list was crisp and clear and explained well the value of networking. You will find below the five tips from her article that I believe are great reminders of how to effectively network your way through the holidays:

  • Remember that at a networking event, everyone is there meet new people.
    Going alone and walking up to strangers is the point. Everyone has some apprehension. Take the initiative.
  • Ask, “Why should they care?”
    Do you know how to describe yourself or your business in one sentence that demonstrates some value to the listener, not couched in industry-speak? Or, can you explain it so that they might be interested in continuing the conversation? Example: I help people to  . . .
  • Ask questions that are deeper than, “What do you do?”
    When possible, begin conversations with questions about someone personally, not necessarily their profession. Get to know them and attempt to find commonalities. They will tend to remember those conversations best.
  • Remember their Rolodex.
    The power of networking is the people your contacts know, not always your contact directly. Keep that in mind as you help guide people towards how to help connect you.
  • Listen more than you talk!
    People love to talk about themselves, and you can’t learn about the other person if you’re doing all of the talking.

If you would like to read the entire article about the 16 Quick Tips to Become a Better Networker, click here.

Are there any other of the 16 tips that you have found effective while networking? Do you have any additional tips not listed in the article?

Best wishes for a Happy Holiday Season and a Prosperous New Year!
Image:  FreeDigitalPhotos.net

 

 

 


Independent Recruiters: What Decade Are You Recruiting In?

by Veronica Blatt

I has a conversation with a friend the other day and she was saying that  her VCR broke and she was going to look for a new one. I thought to myself  “she means DVD player” so I corrected her and it turns out I was wrong. She was looking for a VCR because I can only presume that she’s been living under a rock for the past decade (my apologies to those of you that still own a VCR). I started thinking of all the great movies she is missing out on because she hasn’t adjusted to the changing technology.  I found this infographic, published by Atenta, this afternoon and I thought it would be interesting to post to see how many independent recruiters are still recruiting in the 1920’s.

If you don’t keep up with the changing times, you will be missing out on great candidates and opportunities. As an independent recruiter I can understand it might be hard to invest in every technical change that occurs so maybe you  need to do your research and pick the ones that will be most useful to your company. The latest wave of recruiting includes sourcing through social media channels, including LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter. Make sure that, at least, your visible through each of these platforms.

What are some of the archaic tools or systems you are currently using that might need a little makeover?


New Ideas for Independent Recruiters

by Dave Nerz

Effective independent recruiters need to stay current on the trends, tools and ideas being used by the competition.  With the growth of competition locally and from international recruiters looking to expand their coverage areas, it’s wise to be on top of all the ideas that might be used to maximize success.  Everyone uses the traditional tools of recruiting like referrals, LinkedIn, Twitter and all the other more traditional sourcing methods.  Here are a few off the wall ideas for the open-minded and aggressive independent recruiter to find and close new candidates:

  • The Buddy System.  When you find a good candidate, find out who their best friend in the workplace is and make an offer to both.  You will hopefully get a strong and effective team of new hires and instead of just one your client will get two.  Your fee?  That’s up to you but maybe this offers an opportunity to show the client a savings?
  • Push News and Openings.  If you are not sharing with the best candidates the placements you have made and the best opening you have, you need to start doing this.  A simple email list and newsletter can get it done quickly and effectively.
  • Create Skill Challenges and Contests.  If you hire accountants, create a contest that will challenge their knowledge and experience.  Offer a $500 to the best response to a question or problem.  You will engage many that are employed and top thinkers.
  • Create a Talent Space.  If you can create a space on social media like LinkedIn for people with the skill you seek to gather and connect, you will get a stranglehold on those in your targeted profession or skill area.
  • Experiment with Traditional Media.  No one is doing so any more so you will stand out.  Include direct mail in your efforts, now a days it is a unique way to capture those you seek.
  • Offer Interview Options.  Make the interview easy to do.  Offer interview outside of work hours, do it in casual setting on a Saturday morning, do it by Skype, do it at a location your candidate selects…you will learn something about them from each of these options.
  • Side-by-side Comparison Worksheets.  Create a sheet that describes what the new employer is offering…upside, benefits, market share, working conditions, hours, etc.  Let the candidate complete how the existing employer stacks up right in front of you.  It lets you know where the issue are in an instant.
  • Know Why They Said Yes.  As an independent recruiter are you doing ‘post-mortems’ on successful placements to see what were the 3 to 5 most influential things said or done to get a yes out of the candidate.  If you know what works for one the process may be more repeatable for many.
  • The Diminishing Offer.  I personally love this one.  Because you know candidates will string you out to get as many active offers in before deciding do this…make the offer tiered.  If they accept within 24 hours of the offer it comes with a signing bonus of X.  If they take from 24 to 72 hours it is X – 25%.  And if it is more than 72 hours it is X – 50%.  If it is more than a week it is X – 75%.  You will quickly know how serious the candidate is and they will be explaining the issues holding them back with greater urgency.  It is a gimmick but it is hard to create urgency particularly when the candidate is employed in a border-line acceptable existing situation.

Independent recruiters need to try new things. The competition from other recruiters including international recruiters is certainly not going to get much easier.

 


Recruiting Resources: Understanding the Millennial Generation

by Veronica Blatt

Young and old business peopleToday’s guest blogger is Rick Corey with OpticsProfessionals, LLC in Rochester, New York, USA. OpticsProfessionals specializes fields of optics, photonics and imaging technology. OpticsProfessionals, LLC assists employers in staffing key talent, while helping individuals with career transition and growth opportunities. Rick is the immediate past chair of the NPA Board of Directors.

Recruiters who have been in business for some time understand the differences in the expectations of “Baby Boomers” (born 1946-1964) and “Gen Xers” (born 1965-1979). A new challenge for recruiters is being able to understand the next generation… the Millennials (born 1980-2000). How we connect with them, what their needs and expectations are, and what type of corporate culture is the best fit are all recruiting resources that will help you work effectively with Millennial candidates.

The Millennial Generation is the most connected generation in history, with connections and networks globally through social media, young professional organizations, alumni networks, etc. Partially because of this, they are group/team oriented, and believe a team can accomplish more and better things. They are confident in their abilities, and are ready to take on the world. Millennials are multi-taskers on a scale never seen before. (I learned this when my daughter was in high school…doing homework, playing Xbox, and texting with friends all at the same time.) The first recruiting resource that will help you is to master social media to connect with Millennials.

When it comes to their work life, Millennials seek challenge and do not want to experience mundane assignments or boredom. They seek leadership, and even structure, from their older and managerial coworkers, and expect to have their ideas respected. If older senior management does not relate to them, or understand the way they use technology at work, they will look for new opportunities. Effective recruiting resources include ensuring that your client is equipped to welcome Millennials into the work environment.

Millennials prefer to communicate electronically at work as opposed to face-to-face or even over the telephone. They routinely make use of their own technology at work and most believe that access to technology makes them more effective at work. However, technology is often a catalyst for intergenerational conflict in the workplace and many feel held back by rigid or outdated working styles. From their employer they want to see where their career is going and to know exactly what they need to get there. At least 70% want assignments abroad to enhance their career. So, another recruiting resource is to help your client understand that “different” doesn’t always mean “bad.”

Millennials are used to balancing many activities such as teams, friends and philanthropic activities, and they expect flexibility in scheduling and a life away from work. If their needs are not met in their current work environment, they will network their way out of that workplace and into one that meets their needs. Recruiting resources will need to accommodate these increased demands for balance and flexibility if Millennials are part of your candidate pool.

Millennials are… Confident, Connected, and open to Change. What recruiting resources have you used to source top-notch Millennial candidates?


Recruiting Franchise Opportunities will Benefit from the War for Talent

by Dave Nerz

open signMany say it is a great time to start to start a business and in light of the long-term demographics a recruiting franchise or staffing franchise is a good bet for success. Recruiting and staffing franchises help employers find workers either as full-time company hired employees, as temporary contractors, or as full-time contact employees.

Because of the uncertainty in the economy, many employers are looking for less permanent types of arrangements with employees. They want to pay someone to implement a project, lead a launch or manage a program but want to “rent” employees rather than “owning” them for the long haul. Demographics point to a long-term shortage of talent due to the aging baby-boomer generation leaving the work place and insufficient talent in the pipeline behind them. This is more real in technology, engineering, healthcare and science than it is for service-type jobs. But regardless, if the economy gets moving again, the demand for talent (aka skilled and talented employees) will be overwhelming. It is projected by many to be a “War for Talent” that will play out both locally and across borders and continents. And according to a report by The Bureau of Labor Statistics, the employment services industry is expected to be the United States’ 9th-largest in terms of job-creating industry over the next 10 years.

When I look a the money MRI, Spherion and others are charging for a recruiting franchise, I wonder why more are not going it on their own with the help of a peer group for support. While the turnkey option offered by the big boys is appealing, it also has its own unique risk. Because owners go into to it with a large debt to service, the success must come faster and the profits must be shared with the franchising operator. The success these major operators have is tough to argue with if you are relatively new to the recruiting business.  f you value independence, the recruiting franchise option will be somewhat frustrating as you are really a part of a bigger operation and must do certain things to honor the relationship bought into with the franchisor.

A seasoned recruiter, who knows the tools of recruiting, has a recruitment process, and just wants to strike out independently may value a peer group and some partners to help along the way. Vendors to the industry act as a great support mechanism and can provide ideas and support if a relationship is nurtured with your ATS provider, your accountant, job board partner, etc. Online networks, organized recruiting networks, trade associations and trainers to the industry are all excellent options that, while not fully replacing a recruiting franchise, certainly offer an option to those who want to be more independent.

What kinds of numbers have you heard that a recruiting franchise from a major brand costs in today’s market?

Would you pay the price or start the business independently?

Any resources that are a must for a new independent recruiter?

Recruiting franchise opportunities and the opportunities for starting a staffing business are good. Franchising, while not for everyone, is an option that will prosper in the war for talent.


Tips for Independent Recruiters – Setting Your 2013 Budget

by Veronica Blatt

As we approach the end of the year here at NPA, we are working on our 2013 budget. I imagine many independent recruiters are in this same position. A budget that is feasible and realistic is probably one of the most important assets that can keep your independent recruiting firm on its feet. In larger firms, there may be an accounting person handling your 2013 budget. But what if you don’t have an accounting person? What if you are the recruiter, accountant, customer service representative, etc? I’ve included a few tips below for independent recruiters who are or will be working on their 2013 budget. Read the rest of this entry »


Hiring Trends for Independent Recruiters

by Veronica Blatt

This week I read an interesting article by Jason Warner, Founder at RecruitingDash, about trends that are creating a challenging landscape for employers and independent recruiters. Economic factors, candidate behaviors and increasing social media usage is reshaping the way independent recruiters connect with candidates and vice versa. According to Jason, “There’s a bit of a perfect storm that has happened as a result of all the trends that have played out in the last few years.”

Below are Jason’s three key trends. I’ve also included solutions for recruiters to ensure you present your candidates with the best and most consistent client information possible. Read the rest of this entry »


Will Semantic Searching Reshape Global Recruiting?

by Veronica Blatt

Today’s installment is courtesy of guest blogger Brock Vaughters. Brock is an Account Manager with Monster®, the worldwide leader in successfully connecting people to job opportunities. Monster Worldwide, Inc. (NYSE:MWW), is the global leader in successfully connecting job opportunities and people. Monster uses the world’s most advanced technology to help people Find Better, matching job seekers to opportunities via digital, social and mobile solutions including monster.com®, our flagship website, and employers to the best talent using a vast array of products and services. As an Internet pioneer, more than 200 million people have registered on the Monster Worldwide network.  Today, with operations in more than 40 countries, Monster provides the broadest, most sophisticated job seeking, career management, recruitment and talent management capabilities globally. For more information visit about-monster.com.

Google’s doing it! Apple’s doing it! Microsoft’s doing it! Oracle’s doing it! Are you doing it? Wait… Wait… What is everybody doing?

Well, it’s called semantic searching. It is hard to explain in words (because it doesn’t use keywords), but it uses the concepts behind words – and the context of those words in relation to every other word – in order to search information and return results. If that explanation is still a little fuzzy, let me give you an example.

If a recruiter were looking for a programmer’s resume, using semantic search, he could simply type in the word ‘programmer’, and the system will automatically find matching concepts like Software Developer, J2EE Engineer, and .Net Technical Lead,  without having to construct a complicated Boolean string.

At Monster, with our Power Resume Search, the best part about using semantic search is that you don’t have to understand the technology to use it effectively. Maybe the most surprising aspect of semantic search is that it lets you describe who you’re looking for, almost as if you were speaking with a networking contact who knew all the top candidates out there.

So let’s answer the title question of this post, “Will Semantic Search Reshape Global Recruiting?”

Do companies still need recruiters when semantic search is available? The fact is that most employers who have been using recruiters will find that these human experts will remain essential to the sourcing, recruiting and hiring cycles.

The goal with any advancement in technology is to improve the process and make it user- friendly. The key here is the word “user.” Semantic search will allow global recruiters to do what they do best, which is develop relationships, screen out candidates that look good on paper but aren’t a great fit for one reason or another. Remember that semantic searching using Monster’s Power Resume Search will bring the best candidates to the top of the list, but then the best recruiters take that list and make actual placements. At Monster, our goal is to give the best recruiters the best tools to find that best candidates. Recruiters are a big part of this process.

How much time would you save if your recruiters had a tool that could:

  • Recognize a candidate’s breadth and depth of experience?
  • Identify job hoppers from long-tenured employees?
  • Distinguish “must have” vs. “nice to have” skills?
  • Assess a candidate’s context of experience (i.e. 3 months vs. 10 yrs)?
  • Score a candidate based on recent vs. outdated skills?
  • Automatically identify related skills?
  • Understand the latest industry acronyms?

Monster Power Resume Search uses Monster’s patented 6Sense technology to do all of these things — at lightning speed. How much is your time worth?


International Recruiting News Round-Up

by Veronica Blatt
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