A couple of months ago we posted on an article from the Pioneer Press titled Speaking Up Helps Keep Star Workers. One of the surprising findings was that 47% of the 16,273 stellar workers surveyed are mailing out resumes, going on job interviews, even contemplating other offers. I just recently caught up to an article from a WorkForce Management newsletter of a survey Yahoo HotJobs conducted on 5,300 people. They found that nearly two-thirds are open to switching jobs, with an improving job market cited as the chief cause for such optimism. Here are some interesting points they found: 39% cited unhappiness with wages as the chief issue 75% cited… Read More
Continue ReadingThe Errors In The Resumes
From a CareerBuilder survey: Sixty-three percent of HR managers report that spelling errors are the most annoying mistakes they see on resumes. Other top mistakes include: Resumes not customized to the position (30 percent) Lies (23 percent) Including too many insignificant details on job responsibilities (21 percent) Resumes that are more than two pages long (21 percent) Lies would seem to be a “most annoying mistake” on a resume if I took the survey and spelling errors would be second. From earlier in the article: If you’re looking for a new job this year, be prepared for some competition. Twenty-seven percent of human resource (HR) managers say they receive more… Read More
Continue ReadingFrom The Resume Pile
Not the abbreviation I would have chosen in the title: Legal Ass. needs work cheap.
Continue ReadingThe Sales Hiring Security Blanket
There is a security blanket in hiring salespeople and it is this – experience. Experience is the balm to bad sales hiring. Companies start with a desire to hire primarily from their industry. If someone has multiple years selling in the industry, skill and talent are assumed to be sufficient and transferrable. But this approach works far less often than you think. We see it play out almost on a weekly basis. There is no truer example than one of our customers who sells in a distribution market. They sell electronic parts that are integrated into larger machines. These parts can be purchased at numerous other companies in the Twin… Read More
Continue ReadingSpell-check Sloppiness
We’ve discussed the candidate faux pas of spelling errors in their resume. The resume is typically the most formal document the candidate will write themselves. Proof-reading and spell-checking should be standard practice. If you have read any bulk of resumes you know this is not the case. I have a real problem with employment ads which contain spelling errors. This morning I read an ad for a sales manager (reads more like a salesperson with a big title) that contained this error: “Develope” Honestly, how hard is it to run a spell-check before posting? Most of the boards have built in spell-checkers and if they don’t, write the ad in… Read More
Continue ReadingProductivity Loss Due To The Super Bowl
This story from Yahoo seems like a stretch – Super Bowl slowdown costs U.S. employers $800 million. Here is the logic behind the number: Assuming employees, for example, spend 10 minutes a day talking about the game, making bets, surfing the Internet or shopping for a new television, their bosses will lose some $162 million per day. In a five-day workweek, that adds up to $810 million, based on average earnings and expected viewership. The Super Bowl talk definitely dominates the water cooler topics for a couple weeks so maybe they are accurate in their estimate. The game comes around every year so “lost productivity” seems a bit nonsensical –… Read More
Continue ReadingThe Fine Art of Stalling
“Let me think it over.” “I’ll get back to you.” “We’ll take a look at it.” If you have been in sales more than a day, you are familiar with these sayings. They are the prospect’s attempts to “stall” a buying decision. These comments are trouble for any salesperson who does not get these fuzzy phrases qualified. And yet often the salesperson accepts these stalls and presumes a close date for the deal. This approach is almost always the explanation for a prospect making it through the sales funnel but never closing. These are the deals that hurt because they have been forecasted with a high probability to close. And… Read More
Continue ReadingPlanning For Turnover
Salespeople will leave your company – it is an undeniable truth. Selling Power offers this short article – Recruitment Planning 101 – that covers the basic points that all sales managers should be aware of. A couple of strong points: Keep your pipeline full of qualified candidates. Determine the skill sets for each sales position and keep your search open for candidates with these special qualifications. However, remember that top candidates aren’t usually available for long and you need to be upfront with them about what you’re doing. “Let them know that you are building a candidate pipeline composed of individuals that your company may have an interest in hiring… Read More
Continue ReadingSales Traits Series – Persuading Others
Sales is the art of convincing other people to change their behavior. Obviously, this ability relies upon the following sales trait. Persuading Others This is the capacity to convince others – to present one’s viewpoint in such a way that it is accepted by others. A salesperson with strength in this capacity can see and talk from another’s point of view. A person who has the ability to understand other’s objections and concerns and then respond to them effectively. A weakness in this area indicates a salesperson who is insensitive to others – not knowing what they want to hear. A weakness can also be due to having excessive role… Read More
Continue ReadingTop 30 Job Boards
Weddles.com has published their annual user choice awards. Here are their top 30 online job boards. Unfortunately their newsletter does not have a link but does have some interesting points worth noting: Nine of the sites are making their first appearance. Two-thirds are niche or specialty sites providing recruiting support in a specific career, field, industry, location or group. One-third are general purpose sites.
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