HR departments and third-party recruiters often go at it with hammers and tongs since each side thinks the other side is…problematic. You don’t need an organizational development specialist to tell you this is not a healthy business relationship. BusinessWeek.com approaches this topic in How Recruiters and HR Can Work Together. The article starts with a tactical point that we encounter during every negotiation: In my experience, the greatest service a third-party search partner provides to the organization, besides the strength of his or her candidate database and relationships, is the intermediary role a search pro performs during offer negotiation. I pride myself on good listening and negotiating skills, but if… Read More
Continue ReadingResults Orientation In Sales
One of the most important aptitudes in sales is a proper results orientation. The key word is “results.” Oftentimes we encounter sales managers who place their focus on activity orientation instead of results. An example would be a salesperson who has a furiousness to their work…almost like their hair is on fire. But no significant deals seem to close despite their frantic pace. I used to work for a sales manager who would describe those salespeople as a horse-drawn wagon. There would always be a cloud of dust around them, but at the end of the day, the wagon hadn’t moved. Salespeople who lack a strong results orientation are often… Read More
Continue ReadingThe Reason Behind Ruts
Totally fascinating post from Steve Clark titled Why is change so difficult? The human organism is resistant to change. The body tries to maintain what physiologists call homeostasis. This is the physical state of equilibrium or status quo. The body is designed to operate in a very narrow range of physiological processes. The brain is no different. And now for the explanation: Change creates psychological stress. Change engages the prefrontal cortex, the conscious part of the brain that is responsible for judgment, planning and decision making. The prefrontal cortex is like RAM memory in a PC. It is fast and agile, able to hold multiple threads of logic at once… Read More
Continue Reading9 Common Hiring Mistakes
A perfect list from HR Chally Group via Recruiting.com: Relying on an Interview to Evaluate a Candidate Using Successful People as a Model Setting Too Many Criteria Evaluating “Personality” instead of Job Skills Using Yourself as an Example Not Using Statistically Validated Testing Not Researching the Reasons People Have Failed in a Job Relying on General “Good Guy” Criteria Not Doing A Careful Background Reference Check They are all excellent points and ones that we have experienced first-hand with our customers. Pay special attention to numbers 1, 2 and 5. Those are the most common mistakes we see in our daily experience.
Continue ReadingMonologue Communication
JustSell.com’s latest newsletter has a quick-hit tidbit that caught my eye: Be careful to avoid working to get the needs of your paying customers and highly qualified prospects “off your plate”. These are the people who deserve your attention and time. Technology has allowed us to communicate by monologue – in one direction – sending or leaving a message in the written form (email) or oral form (voice mail) and then moving on until we receive a response. This can cause us to get lazy in our service efforts – creating gaps of needed care and attention and subsequently weakening relationships that might otherwise build stronger barriers to competitive entry.… Read More
Continue ReadingNo Way They Would Stay
From the Herman Trend Alert (sorry, no link): A global survey of 4,500 workers indicates that more people anticipate leaving their employers this year than last. In the 2006 BlessingWhite study, 65 percent said that they expected to “definitely” remain with their employers through the year. In the 2007 study, that number was down to 58 percent. Also of interest, more respondents in 2007 said that there is “no way” they would stay (eight percent up from six percent—a 33 percent increase). European employers face the greatest threat: eleven percent said there is “no way” they will stay. Moreover, employees in Europe and Asia appear less content with their current… Read More
Continue ReadingHow Candidates Interpret Job Ads
Ok, this is a bit dated, but still funny: “COMPETITIVE SALARY” (We remain competitive by paying less than our competitors.) “JOIN OUR FAST-PACED TEAM” (We have no time to train you.) “CASUAL WORK ATMOSPHERE” (We don’t pay enough to expect that you’ll dress up; well, a couple of the real daring guys wear earrings.) “MUST BE DEADLINE ORIENTED” (You’ll be six months behind schedule on your first day.) “SOME OVERTIME REQUIRED” (Some time each night and some time each weekend.) “DUTIES WILL VARY” (Anyone in the office can boss you around.) “MUST HAVE AN EYE FOR DETAIL” (We have no quality control.) “CAREER-MINDED” (Female applicants must be childless and remain… Read More
Continue ReadingDefining The Sale
Salesopedia.com offers an excellent article titled Top Salespeople Win at the Numbers Game. The article is a bit of a promo for a specific selling system, but the author provides a list of questions that all sales managers should retain. In the last 6 months: 1. What is the average number of prospects that you attempted to call (dials per week?) 2. What percentage of those dials resulted in contact with a decision maker (not voice mail or a gatekeeper)? 3. Out of all the dialing you did in #1, what percentage resulted in talking to the person who could sign a contract, issue a purchase order, or cut a… Read More
Continue ReadingThe Most Influential Headhunters
BusinessWeek.com offers the top 50 most influential headhunters in the business world. Lee didn’t make the list so there goes his top contractual performance incentive. I’m not sure how one determines these lists based on influence, but it seems appropriate that a huge company like Korn/Ferry would put 7 recruiters on the list. If you are interested, you can read the list in it’s entirety here. Now on to devise a new unattainable incentive for Lee.
Continue ReadingThe Demand For Salespeople
Salespeople, with strong skills, are always in demand in any economy. Certainly some sales opportunities have an ebb and flow tied to the current economic conditions, but those are mainly business-to-consumer positions. From that understanding comes a 2008 sales hiring outlook from Monster.com. First key graph: In 2008 as always, salespeople in nearly any industry will find work, if they’ve got the contacts, the product knowledge and the street savvy. “Any successful salesperson in any industry is able to write their own ticket,” says Brandon Gutman, director of marketing and business development for recruiter Stephen-Bradford Search in New York. Couldn’t agree more. As companies make difficult decisions, some strong salespeople… Read More
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