In catching up on some posts and articles from the weekend I came across a survey from CareerBuilder on Cheezhead. The survey is looking to see how many hiring managers use social networking sites for conducting background checks. Here are the findings: Of those hiring managers who have screened job candidates via social networking profiles, one-third (34 percent) reported they found content that caused them to dismiss the candidate from consideration. Top areas for concern among these hiring managers included: 41% – candidate posted information about them drinking or using drugs 40% – candidate posted provocative or inappropriate photographs or information 29% – candidate had poor communication skills 28% –… Read More
Continue ReadingThe Experience Myth
As you have probably ascertained, we are strong proponents of hiring for ability/potential that matches your sales as opposed to tenured experience in your industry. Naturally, this article – The Myth of Experience – from Managesmarter.com is right up our alley. Please allow me to reference an analogy from later in the article: Don’t fall into the myth of relying upon experience. Instead look for potential. That’s why there is always an image of flowers on a package of seeds. We don’t really care what the seeds look like. We want to know what they will become. I like that characterization even though I am not one to use “potential”…I… Read More
Continue ReadingWhen Hiring, Expect Success
Have you ever worked with a “glass half empty” person? They are something to behold especially if you are a bit of an optimist. We get the chance to interact with many leaders of both sales departments (VP of Sales) and entire companies (CEO). One thing that always catches my ear is the leader’s level of optimism. I find leaders who have a realistic level of optimism to be the most effective. I’m not talking about whistling through the graveyard, but rather a measured optimism that seeks positive solutions. The reason this is so important is that employees have a more difficult time rallying behind a pessimistic leader. I have… Read More
Continue ReadingOutside Managers Running HR
Here is a trend I have not heard of – managers without human resources backgrounds being moved into HR Manager roles. From the Wall Street Journal online: Of the 15 large-company chief HR officer changes that consultant Brian Wilkerson has tracked in the past five years, about one-third have been filled by non-HR executives, he says. That compares with maybe 10% of such appointments before… The driver behind this increasing approach is fairly simple: The shift reflects the increased importance that chief executives and boards place on recruiting, retaining and grooming employees. It also reflects a perception that some traditional HR professionals lack the deep understanding of business and financial… Read More
Continue Reading“You Can’t Grow If You Aren’t Selling”
Isn’t that the truth? Entrepreneur.com has an excellent archived article (from 2002) titled Hire and Hire that discusses hiring salespeople during a recession (no, we’re not in a recession). The point is valid – economic downturns are the best time to upgrade and/or expand your sales team. Pick the right talent, and your new salesperson will pay for himself or herself many times over. After all, Buckley points out, because your ability to make sales is the “engine that drives growth,” salespeople are “pay-for-themselves-type expenditures.” That “pick the right talent” piece is not so easy, but it is the keystone of the approach. Run a hiring process and make sure… Read More
Continue ReadingIt Ain’t Experience
BusinessWeek.com discusses recruiting strategies based on who you are trying to attract in Recruiting Today: What Are You Promising? There are some excellent examples of different programs initiated by different companies. However, this one jumped off the screen: In some cases, offering young employees a unique opportunity can have special appeal. DHL, which used to hire only experienced salespeople, offered nine recent college grads a shot at sales last year (and a comprehensive training program to support the move). The company, which is expanding the program this year, says the program not only attracted nine top candidates, but the new hires generated more revenue and more shipments per sale. Many… Read More
Continue ReadingEgomaniacal Business Beliefs
My father likes to state that your ego is your most expensive business partner. I’ve seen this firsthand in companies where the leader regularly proclaims their position or superiority. I’m all for it when it is accurate and not overstated. I’m thinking of one particular company where the President consistently stated: Our company does things better than any other company. We are the best in our industry. Nobody can do what we do. Unfortunately, in this instance, these statements were just not accurate. The outcropping from this situation was painful for us. We were searching for a regional sales manager for this company. We lost good candidates because the President… Read More
Continue ReadingCulling The Applicant Herd
Forbes.com offers up an article about companies hiring large numbers of employees. How large? Infosys received 1.3 million résumés last year. “In peak seasons we receive around 6,000-10,000 resumes in a day,” says Nandita Gurjar, vice president of human resources development at Infosys. And you thought you had a pile of resumes to get through. The article explains how many of these companies are using online tests or questionnaires at the first step in the process. Clearly, as cold as it sounds, they would have to do some sort of first-pass, automated filter to handle this level of response. After the initial culling, one casino uses a unique approach to… Read More
Continue ReadingRecessions Are Tactical Problems, Recruiting Is Strategic
Steven Rothberg over at CollegeRecruiter.com provides a money quote in his post Why Today’s College Students Need Not Fear Exploding Offers. Obviously, Steven’s market is geared towards college students, but this paragraph is applicable to all businesses when it comes to hiring (emphasis mine): The recession of 2001-03 was worse than the recession of 2008 and employers are looking backwards in order to better understand what to do as they move forwards. Although many and perhaps most employers have scaled back their college hiring plans for this spring, there’s little talk of exploding offers. More employers realize that recessions are tactical problems and college recruiting is strategic. You don’t solve… Read More
Continue ReadingOnline Job Ads Decrease
No question the economy is slowing down so this article from Forbes.com is not surprising: The Conference Board found there was a total of 3,733,200 online-advertised job vacancies, a 0.6% decline from March 2007 and the first year-on-year fall in total numbers since the index began in 2005. The Board said the decline reflects a slowing in annual growth in 42 states, with 14 states showing negative growth. Yes, I know, the index is only a few years old, but there is enough data to show the present-day trend. Here is some anecdotal information from the survey: The online-ad volume in California dropped 118,000, or 19%, below its March 2007… Read More
Continue Reading