Review Job Postings for Bias and Exclusionary Words

by Veronica Blatt

Recruiters need to be the instruments of change as it relates to employer position/job postings.  If your employers have not yet done so, you need to suggest that hiring documents be examined to remove exclusionary words and language.

The trouble with documents like these is, sometimes, when employers try to make the document more “folksy or salesy” boundaries are crossed. Their efforts are intended to make the job and the company feel fun and approachable, but the language used can be exclusionary. The chart below will show you some real-life examples of words pulled out of job postings and advertisements in the recent past. Read the rest of this entry »


Are Your Job Postings Attracting the Right Candidates?

by Veronica Blatt

Job postings are intended to inform potential applicants of an opening and induce them to apply for it. Unfortunately, many of these fall short resulting in too few qualified applicants. There is definitely both an “art” and a “science” component to crafting compelling job postings. Here are a few tips to get you on the right path. Read the rest of this entry »


How to Get a Thorough Job Req

by Liz Carey

As we embark on a new year, new jobs and hirings that were placed on hold at the end of 2021 are being resuscitated by employers and hiring managers. New positions need a job description, so recruiters can find the suitable talent and the candidate understands the responsibilities. But when obtaining a job req from a client, it’s important to get more than just a cut and paste job description.

A trading partner will not want to work with you if they do not understand the full picture, and it behooves you to give them as much information as possible so they can target the right candidate for the position and your client. You need certain information to be able to “sell” the position to a candidate.

Here’s an example of what one member of NPAworldwide uses to dial in the conversation about a position and get all the info they need to recruit:

Read the rest of this entry »


Independent Recruiters, Do Your Clients Insist Industry Experience is Required?

by Veronica Blatt

Today’s post is from Russ Bray with Southern Recruiting Solutions in Tampa, Florida. Russ is a two-time member of the NPA Board of Directors, as well as a long-time member of the network. Southern Recruiting Solutions specializes in placing professionals in the chemical, oil/gas, and manufacturing industries throughout the U.S.

image of newspaper career sectionAs independent recruiters, how often do we hear from clients that industry experience is REQUIRED? A lot! Because of that I wanted to share with you a little detail about a split placement I just did. A trading partner placed a candidate of mine into a maintenance manager position with a chemical industry client of hers. What was interesting is my candidate had no prior chemical industry experience! She also told me she placed someone from the aerospace industry into chemical.

The candidate and I had talked about this during my initial phone screen. He had done some job searching on his own, talked to some other independent recruiters, and knew the scenario. Chemical and oil/gas companies would not consider his background because he worked in the steel industry. (Note: I’m not picking on the chemical industry. It just so happens that’s the area I’m working in currently. In my previous experience recruiting in information technology and aerospace/defense, I heard the same thing.)

Everything else about him looked good in my opinion. Good tenure, degree, reasonable salary, professional to work with and we both felt a lot of the equipment in the steel plant was similar to what is used in a chemical facility.

Well, kudos to my trading partner for giving him a shot. Her client saw the value in the candidate as well.

What makes this a more critical problem today? Earlier this year, NPA members listened to an industry speaker quote some Department of Labor statistics about the talent shortage. Some of you will also know what I am talking about. From now until about 2020 we are facing a shortage of professional personnel in the 6-20 million ranges. Share that with your clients next time you speak with them. Also let them know that other companies are making some concessions for this very reason. It’s a variation on the saying, “Don’t let perfect get in the way of good.” Lou Adler would say this is what is wrong with skills- and experience-based job descriptions, which focus on what a candidate HAS instead of what a candidate can DO. By helping clients define success based on performance instead of on skills and experience, independent recruiters might find a lot more opportunities for great candidates who come from similar – but not exact – industries.

Obviously there are jobs where industry experience is mandatory and you’re not going to change their mind. But in addition to listening to your client (regardless of the industries you work) remember that as independent recruiters your job is also to advise your client on whether their expectations are realistic. If the job has been open for six months, obviously there is a problem.  A good question to ask when taking the job order is, “If I can show you a candidate that meets the vast majority of your requirements but comes from a different industry would you like to see him/her? This could allow you (the employer) to fill this position much quicker and stop the job vacancy from costing your company money.”

What is your experience with clients hiring candidates from a different industry? What do you hear from other independent recruiters? Comment below!

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