And you thought Gen Y was the gadget-driven, totally connect generation. I was utterly shocked by this Online Media Daily story: The Nielsen Co. released the findings of an in-depth study on the mobile media and cross-media behavior of U.S. “tweens” (ages 8-12). The report estimates that: 35% of tweens own a mobile phone, 20% of tweens have used text messaging, and 21% of tweens have used ring & answer tones. While text-messaging and ringtones remain the most pervasive non-voice functions on the phone, other content such as downloaded wallpapers, music, games and Internet access also rank high among tweens. According to Nielsen, 5% of tweens access the Internet over… Read More
Continue ReadingTalent Scarcity, But Plenty Of Grill Time
The recruiters conference I attended last Friday started off on the right foot – we calculated the cost of a bad hire (even for a $6 an hour employee, it can run $2400 or more), interacted with the moderator about CEOs’ perception of candidates brought in by an outside agency (79% unfavorable) and even discussed the challenge of finding “A” players in a tight talent market. But when the speaker explained their approach of grilling a candidate on each and every job back to high school (Tell me your bosses name. Spell it. Tell me your closest peer’s name at that job. Spell it.) during a 3 to 4 hour long third interview,… Read More
Continue ReadingWhen Experience Matters
We go after experience-only hiring in that it is overly subjective and wrought with pitfalls. But that doesn’t mean experience is irrelevant. There are certain aspects to an applicant’s history that is important for hiring decisions. I’m currently sourcing for a mid-level, B2B sales position in the Twin Cities’ market. Although open to less-experienced sales candidates, our customer still requires a certain level of sales experience for the position. This requirement means that the Best Buy salespeople, car salespeople and other retail-based experience is not a fit. I am certain there are talented salespeople within those groups, but the mitigating factor is that our client’s sales cycle is long (up to 2… Read More
Continue ReadingCandidates Are Negotiating Offers
No surprise here but the Career News is reporting that candidates are negotiating for higher starting salaries in this current market (emphasis mine): Job candidates are more apt to ask for higher starting salaries this coming year, and companies may have to up the ante to attract them. That’s according to an annual study on employment and compensation trends by Robert Half International (RHI) and CareerBuilder.com titled The (EDGE) Report. Fifty-seven percent of hiring managers polled for the project said it was difficult to find qualified candidates 12 months ago; 91 percent said recruiting is equally or more challenging today. More than half (52 percent) of hiring managers who are… Read More
Continue ReadingSupplemental Income
You know, I have had fourth quarters where I was tanking on my commission plan. Yet, I never thought of this idea to make up for it: A bank teller in Clearwater had a million reasons not to open an account for an Augusta, Ga., man Monday, authorities said. Alexander D. Smith, 31, was charged with disorderly conduct and two counts of forgery after he walked into the bank and tried to open an account by depositing a fake $1 million bill, said Aiken County Sheriff’s spokesman Lt. Michael Frank. Fantastic. My favorite line from the article is the last one: The federal government has never printed a million-dollar bill,… Read More
Continue ReadingThat Might Work With The Chicks…
I’m quoting Bill Murray from Scrooged in case that was a bit too vague a reference. We’re in a good sourcing window right now, a window in which we have success every year (from now until Dec. 17 or so, then it shuts down until after Jan. 1). However, I received an email from a gentleman responding to one of our ads. His email: sexysalesguy@domain.com Good grief.
Continue ReadingRecruiting Unconference This Week
I am a bit tardy in relaying this information, but there is an excellent recruiting conference coming up this Friday at Best Buy corporate headquarters in Richfield, MN. This is the second event in what is going to be a fairly regular conference. The first conference was excellent and this one looks to be no different. The topics for this conference: Talent Acquisition – “How NOT to put a Square Peg in a Round Hole” Top 10 SEO Tips For Company Job Boards Antisocial Networking: Getting Beyond Denial to Deliver a “Wow!” Experience I’ll be in attendance and I encourage any of you in the Twin Cities area to register and attend… Read More
Continue ReadingMy Vote For Dumbest Headline
Honestly, you can source check me by clicking here. This headline is running on the Pioneer Press website today – Black Friday – the biggest shopping day of the year: Shoppers are shopping today, sources say Apparently the headline writers have today off as well.
Continue ReadingTestosterone Humor
If you are stuck working today, I have something that may make you laugh. I found this site quite entertaining and have to give Stanley credit for a humorous advertising campaign: http://www.stanleyfubar.com/ I chose the toilet first and the rabbit second, if that says anything about me.
Continue ReadingBlack Friday Stats
Today is the biggest shopping day of the year and Maritz Research has some of the stats to define the day: A recent Maritz® Poll found that one-third of respondents (37 percent) plan to shop on the day after Thanksgiving. In last year’s poll, a similar number (34 percent) said they would shop on Black Friday. In addition, those who plan to shop on Black Friday say they will spend more overall on their holiday purchases – $790 compared to $637 for all shoppers combined. Black Friday also has generational implications with the majority of Gen Y respondents (59 percent), as well as a significant portion of Gen X (46… Read More
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