Lee and I had lunch with a customer of ours who is the VP of Sales for a medium-sized business. We were discussing why candidates lie about their education, primarily stating they have earned a degree when they have not. This information is easily confirmed so lying about it seems foolish. We had one candidate who has been in the workforce for 30 years yet lied on his resume about earning a B.S. degree from a local university. A degree was not a requirement for this position. Besides, 30 years of sales experience easily trumps a degree in our world. My only thought on this topic is that candidates must… Read More
Continue ReadingTelecommuting Toolbox
It is difficult to classify telecommuting as a trend – it is more than that today. We encounter telecommuting in almost every position we source, even some where you wouldn’t expect to find it. Managers must have the skills to be effective with their team even though they may not seem them face-to-face on a daily basis. ManageSmarter.com offers up Talking Telecommuting which provides some excellent tool suggestions for a manager faced with a geographically-dispersed sales force. The example company is Cisco which obviously has some powerful tools for keeping remote workers informed. Check out this proprietary tool: Cisco ensures it’s easy for mobile workers to find and use internal… Read More
Continue Reading3 Words You Don’t Want To Hear In Voicemail
I just listened to a sales candidate’s initial message in response to one of our ads. He described his experience by saying: I’ve been in the _______ business for 20 years. Yada, yada, yada. Funny on Seinfeld, painfully bad on an approach call.
Continue ReadingNow THIS Fact Will "Surprise" Economists
From CNNMoney.com’s Jobs gains back on track: U.S. payrolls posted a net gain of 110,000 workers in the month, according to the Labor Department report. That’s roughly in line with the forecast of a 100,000 gain by economists surveyed by Briefing.com. The Labor Department also now estimates that August had a gain of 89,000 jobs, a big upward revision from the originally reported 4,000 job loss in August. … The July payroll reading was also revised higher by 25,000 jobs more than the earlier report. That means that there are 228,000 more Americans with jobs in this latest estimate, based on the September gain and the revisions, compared to the… Read More
Continue ReadingAnd The Economy Rolls On
The latest Q4 hiring survey is out, this time from CareerBuilder and USAToday. From the press release with my emphasis: The survey, titled “Q4 2007 Job Forecast,” was conducted from August 10 through September 4, 2007 of more than 2,700 hiring managers and human resource professionals in private sector companies. “Given the housing slump and tight credit market, caution is to be expected when it comes to hiring in the fourth quarter,” said Matt Ferguson, CEO of CareerBuilder.com. “While employers are keeping a watchful eye on economic indicators, they are still planning to expand staffs at a steady pace and are actively competing for qualified labor. Forty-four percent of employers… Read More
Continue ReadingSales Traits Series – Role Awareness
This week we focus on a unique trait in that it is usually low amongst jobseekers. They are confused or unclear about their current role and looking to find clarity in their next role. This fact is the reason why we stress a strong onramping program for all new sales hires. A clear program immediately sets the parameters of their new role – something that was most likely missing from their previous position. Role AwarenessThe ability of a salesperson to be aware of their role in the world or within a given environment. This is the ability to understand the expectations placed on a position and to clearly see how those expectations… Read More
Continue ReadingThe Hand That Rocks The Cradle
I may be alone here, but I found this information remarkable: Looking at statistics from hotels and resorts worldwide, about “43 percent of business travelers were recorded to have been women”. Moreover, according to American Airlines’ director of women’s sales and marketing, women are responsible for 70 percent of travel decisions. … Interestingly, two key characteristics distinguish women travelers from men. First, according to Marybeth Bond, a consultant who has advised hotels on marketing to women, “Women will take more time for themselves than men if they are traveling for business. Men will rush home, but women will stay an extra day.” The second is that women appreciate the details,… Read More
Continue ReadingOnline Job Postings Continue To Rise
From the Career News newsletter (sorry, no link): In September 2007 there were 4,270,000 online advertised vacancies, an increase of 165,200 or 4 percent from the August 2007 level, according to The Conference Board Help-Wanted OnLine Data Series released October 1, 2007. In September, 2,934,100 of the 4,270,000 unduplicated online advertised vacancies were new ads that did not appear in August, while the remainder are reposted ads from the previous month. Online advertised vacancies were up (17.5%) over the year (September’06 – September’07). There were 2.78 advertised vacancies online for every 100 persons in the labor force in September. I suspect this information is illustrative of the migration from newspaper… Read More
Continue ReadingLawyers, iPhones and Money
In case you haven’t noticed, senseless lawsuits absolutely push my buttons. So now this comes along – Woman sues Apple for $1M over iPhone price cut. The gist of her complaint: A New York woman is so angry at Apple Inc. for lopping $200 off the price of the iPhone that she’s filed a lawsuit seeking $1 million in damages. Dongmei Li of Queens, N.Y., claimed the company violated price discrimination laws when it slashed the price of the 8-gigabyte iPhone by a third, from $599 to $399, within two months of the gadget’s June debut. … According to Li’s lawsuit, filed on Sept. 24 in the U.S. District Court,… Read More
Continue ReadingCreativity In Selling
Much of the filtering that occurs in sales hiring incorporates the all-too-familiar standards of industry experience and college degrees. The interview follows a step-by-step history of their career much like the old TV show This Is Your Life. The candidates have learned the proper rote responses to most of the questions. It is a dull process that leads to marginal results. But what about creativity? Creativity often gets overlooked or ignored in sales hiring. “Creativity belongs in marketing.” “Salespeople should be money-motivated, driven hunters who complete one-call closes.” Boring and antiquated. Creativity is the overlooked, undervalued aspect of selling that can be the differentiator between an above-average salesperson and a… Read More
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