Recruiting Trends provides a summary of CareerBuilder and USA Today’s Q4 Job Forecast and there are some interesting trends. First, according to the survey workers are postponing active job searches but are open to a change if the right one comes along. Of the 6,100 workers surveyed, 38% are planning to sit tight for the next year and wait for the economy to swing back while 41% plan on staying until retirement. This “squatting” will create some tension in that 23% of employers plan to add full-time, permanent employees in the next three months and 34% say they are having a hard time finding qualified candidates, especially in highly-skilled areas. Not… Read More
Continue Reading3.5 Years
That is the average length of a job in the U.S. according to The Career News newsletter (sorry, no link). I find that number almost shocking, but the newsletter does not call out the criteria for their average. I’m thinking part-time, minimum wage, seasonal and other positions could drag that number down. At any rate, it does provide a bit of an eye opener to how our job market is changing. Gen Y is typically not a generation to be known as “lifers.” They begin their work career without discussions of pensions and retirement. Those days are long gone. Instead, they are focused on skill development, jobs that interest them… Read More
Continue ReadingCraig’s List Fees
Last week Craig’s List job postings started costing $25 in Atlanta, Austin, Dallas, Denver, Houston, Miami (South Florida), Philadelphia, and Phoenix. These cities joined the following cities that already charge a fee for job postings – Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, NYC, Orange County, Portland, Sacramento, Seattle, San Diego, San Francisco Bay Area, Washington DC and NYC. I supposed it is not surprising with all the “get rich now” ads that are all over the sites. We are fans of Craig’s List and have had some decent success using their job board. Unfortunately, it does require some patience by the candidates since there is much garbage to sift through on the site. Still, it… Read More
Continue ReadingAsk The Tough Questions
In talking with sales managers over the past month or so there is one reoccurring statement that I am hearing – their sales cycle has been extended in this economy. It isn’t that they are not closing sales, it is just taking a bit longer. Buyers are certainly more deliberate, but as we discussed some of their opportunities, it was clear that their sales people are not asking the difficult questions that lead to a qualified deal. I came across this article from Kelley Robertson quite some time ago and passed it on to one of these sales managers – it is worth bringing it up again. The article provides a… Read More
Continue Reading6 Tips For Sales Managers
Sometimes these quick tip articles provide little usable information. This article at Eyes on Sales is not one of those articles – there are excellent suggestions within the 6 tips (pay special attention to number 1): Lack of Process – The cure for this problem is to take your time to document the processes associated with finding, acquiring and retaining customers. Don’t make the mistake of focusing only on sales processes, as there are sales support, customer service, operations and many other processes that need to be examined through this exercise. Lack of Proactive Funnel Management – The number one problem facing many sales managers in this area is the… Read More
Continue ReadingSloppy Speech
Is there anything more annoying than listening to someone use non-words in their speech? Well, there probably is, but this speech habit is a real pet peeve of mine. Saleshq.com provides a great article that calls out different sloppy speech habits. The article focuses on interview etiquette, but these patterns are applicable to all sales situations. One of the suggestions: 3. Grammatical Errors: The interviewer may question your education when you use incorrect grammar or slang. Expressions such as “ain’t” “she don’t,” “me and my friend” and “so I goes to him” aren’t appropriate. Be sure you speak in complete sentences and that tenses agree. The interview is not the… Read More
Continue ReadingSales Onramping: Pay Now Or Later
It has been a few weeks since we have touched on the subject of onramping of salespeople so it is time to return to this topic. All too often we see management waste an opportunity to set the proper tone with their new hire. They then spend months, even years, trying to correct bad behaviors they allowed in the first place. If you do a search on onramping or onboarding on the web, you will find many articles and all of them at some point will discuss the fact that setting the tone early is very important. So why is this a reoccurring issue for so many new hires? In my reading the… Read More
Continue ReadingTop Unusual Jobs
I’m surprised blogger didn’t make the list! CareerBuilder offers up an entertaining list of odd jobs: Hurricane hunter Wallpaper peeler Kitty litter box decorator Video game tester (”Grandma’s Boy,” anyone?) Nuclear electrician on a submarine Turkey wrangler (get yours now!) Parachute tester (yikes) Romance specialist Yawn counter at a sleep clinic (my personal favorite) I have been a yawn counter at some training sessions, but I’m not proud of that fact. I was presenting.
Continue ReadingiPhone Competition
If you are technical geek of sorts you already know about T-Mobile’s G1 and the Blackberry Thunder as a few of the first phones to try to compete with the iPhone 3G. According to a post on US News & World Report, Blackberry is introducing a new competitor, called the Storm that will offer 2 virtual keyboards. The Storm will be available exclusively to Verizon customers and features a unique clickable screen. They do not have an actual release date yet, just stating that it will be available sometime later this fall.
Continue ReadingThey Are Not Local
All politics are local according to the late Tip O’Neil. The same can be said of hiring which is why this employment ad is a mistake. The location listed for the sales position: Minnesota, MN I know they probably mean the entire state, but that is not the way to list it. It seems like a small detail, but it does make a poor first impression. My immediate thought was that the hiring company is not familiar with this area.
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