StlRecruiting

How to Get A Job As A Recruiting Salesperson

You're a hot shot account manager looking to move up in the world.  Maybe you're new in town, or your non-compete just ran out, or your recruiters all bailed for reasons beyond your control.  Whatever the reason, you're in the market looking for a job selling staffing.

How do you go about it?

Method #1:  The Sheep approach.

1) log-on to Monster. Look for jobs marked recruiting sales
2) log-on to Dice.  Look for jobs marked recruiting sales.
3) Fix your resume up, and apply online.
4) Make a huge list of everyone owner you know and recruiters you know from past jobs.  Call two people on the list, telling them you are looking.  Put the list away in a drawer, because you're done with your "networking"
5) Get a response from your application online.  Yes!  It's the perfect job for you!  Prepare to interview, confident that this job won't be any different than the last one.

6) Get the job.  Turns out it was not what you wanted. Repeat steps one-five, but with another non-compete to worry about.

or

6) Don't get the job.  Grumble about how you were perfect for it.  Repeat steps 1-5, worried that your current boss (and everyone else in the market) will find out you interviewed with another company because we all know recruiters are notorious gossips.

Does that sound about right?

Pay-For-Performance: Coming Soon to a Job Board Near You

The following is a BlogSwap guest post from Steven Rothberg of CollegeRecruiter.com

The ability of consumers to avoid having to pay for things that they don't want is being seen in the decrease in purchasing of advertising for traditional media like newspapers, radio, television, and telephone directories. Are job boards next? They are if advances in digital technologies and consumer purchasing preferences follow the patterns that can be seen in other industries. I believe that the time is fast approaching when human resource professionals force a change in the way that job boards do business with the result that job boards will either shift to selling their recruitment advertising services on a pay-for-performance basis or they will perish.

The Best Job Posting in St Louis

If you're a recruiter in St Louis, you ought to take a look at this, a job posting written by Sandra Hubert of Elite IT Services.

Durbin Media helped Elite IT set up their blog, and when they mentioned they were looking for a recruiter, I suggested they rewrite their job description to match what made their company special, and worth interviewing with.

Sandra came through with a job posting that is exciting, full of passion, and is definitely better than any other drab and recycled list.  Check out these calls to action.

When was the last time you felt like a champion? When was the last time you were proud of who you worked for? When was the last time your company believed in you?

We will believe in you and build your spirit up and give you meaning in your work and business relationships

Raw, emotional and honest.  The way job postings were meant to be.  And though I would have preferred a upfront salary range, I do like the use of attractive salary instead of competitive.  People who write competitive salary in their job postings are always the cheapest.

More on writing a good recruiter job posting at my sister blog, KCRecruiting.

Matt Martone: Job Search Marketing

It's always nice to see someone who gets it from big corporation. Matt Martone, who writes the fine blog, jobsearchmarketing, and happens to work at Yahoo HotJobs to pay the bills, sent me a quick note the other day to let me know he read and enjoyed a white paper I had written on starting a Corporate Recruiting Blog.

It's flattering to get that kind of attention, but more important, Matt is following the best practices for etiquette for bloggers.

Contact those you read and tell them you read them, leaving them your e-mail address and not asking for anything.

I counsel my clients to do this regularly.  Let bloggers know when they're doing a good job, and they will respond.  At least the good ones do.

Matt didn't ask for a link - but he's getting one - as well as my apologies, for not sending him a note for putting me in his blogroll some time ago.  See, I broke a best practice of blogging.

Send a thank you e-mail to anyone who links you.

There are plenty of ways to track incoming links, like technorati or yahoo (Matt provides the way to do this), as well as using "[link to]:  (site url)" on Google.  The point is that the blogosphere, and the benefits that flow from being part of it, run on good manners.

So thank you, Matt.  And let me know how I can help.

Mike Tiffany in the BlogSwap

Mike Tiffany of NetEffects has officially joined the BlogSwap revolution. The BlogSwap is a joint venture between Recruiting.com and CollegeRecruiter.com (it's actually BlogSwap II, Bigger, Better, and more something or other).

Mike contributed this article, which was published by Susan Strayer.

To learn more about BlogSwap, check here.

Recruiters As Spies and Informants?

There's a fascinating article today in the print version of the Wall Street Journal about a new company who taps the information and expertise of middle managers to help make investment decisions for large hedge funds.

Big Investors Turn To Network of Informants (subscription required).

A networking wizard has done for professional investors something akin to what Match.com has done for the nation's singles. He hooks up middle managers from hundreds of companies with professional investors desperate for an investing edge.

The gist of the article is the success of 34 year-old  Mark Gerson in building a network of informants for investment representatives to call to get "real" information about companies the investors are looking to put money into.

There are of course some serious ethical questions at play, namely whether the information provided by this network of informers is a breach of company confidentiality laws, but there is that grey area between illegal, frowned upon, ethically wrong, and traceable.

With pay rates of $100/hr and more, can middle managers at companies like Bed, Bath & Beyond, Applebee's, or Penske Auto Parts walk away from casual chats with information hounds?

More important for our audience, what is the role, and indeed the responsibility of recruiters if approached about information gathered during a recruiting call?  Recruiters are excellent sources of information because a) they have access to time sensitive projects throughout the enterprise, b) they have access to a wide variety of contacts, and c) they are trained to pull information from people.

That sure sounds like helpful traits for someone searching for competitive intelligence.  So is there a clear ethical line on the information we gather from clients, prospects, targets and candidates?

1) The Client:  Passing on information about a client (defined as someone you are under contract with) is pretty clearly taboo, seeing as it is specifically covered by the contracts we sign (recruiting companies are required to safeguard confidential information).  A recruiter passing on information about any client is often someone who doesn't stay in business too long.  Gossips are notorious in our business, but sharing gossip is a quick way to destroy a client's trust that you will keep their secrets close to the vest.

2) Targets: Targets are companies that are identified as possessing people with the skills we need for clients, with a low probability of signing on as clients.  Whether bad blood or another vendor in place, a target is considered fair game for competitive recruiting, so why wouldn't information gleaned from a target company be available for trade? 

This is a personal ethical choice, but the most likely for recruiters and sourcers who move into the intelligence arena.  Is it wrong, or is it just business?

One Thing Wrong With Recruiting Today

Hiring Manager:  And that sums up what you're looking for.   
Staffing Account Manager: I think we can find what you're looking for.  Let me ask you, what salary range are you looking at and do you already have an approved budget for this position?
HM:  We're looking for someone in the $60-70,000 range, preferrably the 60 - that's what we start people out at in this department, and they'll need about five years of experience.
SAM:  $60,000-$70,000 is a bit low for this position - especially if it's as important as you say.  Do you have any flexibility?
HM:  My best developer is making $70,000 right now and he has 12 years of experience.  If I bring someone else in higher, my whole team will be at my door hollering for a raise. 
SAM: What about someone with good potential but maybe not the degree of experience you just detailed.  Entry level programmers are making $50,000, and that's just with an IS Degree.
HM:  I don't need entry level - I have to have someone with real experience who is going to stick around and finish this project.  Send me what you have.

**Back at the Staffing Office an hour later**
Staffing Account Manager:  And that's what we need - in the $60-70,000 range.
Recruiter:  Does this one have to walk on water or would the trick with the fishes and loaves do it? 
SAM:  Let's just send him what we have.

That little scenario is fictitious, but it plays out at staffing firms across the country every day.  Salaries and job skill lists are written for positions and sent out to third party firms with the hope that a firm will turn up the diamond in the rough who has perfect skills and doesn't know their own worth.  Recruiters out of desperation send what they have, and hiring managers, desperate themselves, often hire whatever they can get.

It's a bit like a woman asking you if she looks fat in her pants.  If you're a contingency recruiter (dating), you'll be booted out the door.  If you're in house (married), you can't be honest without taking the blame for the nice dinners and never going with her to the gym.

Honesty.  Is that what we really want in business and life, or do we just want everything to magically work out?

Blogs Can Make (Or Break) Your Reputation

You know how you ony have "one" chance to make a first impression?  Sometimes that One (or Bank One) Impression isn't exactly what you want downloaded 78,000 times and counting.

Yes, this is the infamous Bank of America video playing where corporate culture meets, meets something.  You have to give it to the guy - he certainly gave it all. 

And now bloggers all over America are posting the YouTube video for all to see.  It's a minor PR embarassment, but could it, or should it have been avoided?  Yes it's corny, but this happens all the time in corporate America. 

Confession:  I was in a company choir many years ago, and we sang a bad, bad version of YMCA with company lyrics.   I believe they went something like.

Hey, Man.

How bout that guy they called Mark.

I said, hey, man.  He gave Crown it's big start.

And I'm thinking, it was pretty darn smart,

or else..we'd..all..be..un-employed.

Chorus:

As for B of A, most companies lack a sense of humor and tend to punish the people who are made fun of).  I wonder if the VP of HR is sending out an e-mail to these guys right now.

Well it's... Too late Tonight To drag the past out into the light We're one, but we're not the same We get to make fun of each other, and you'll both take the blame. You're D (one).  You're D(one).

They should make a commercial out of it and poke fun at themselves.   

ERE acquires the Fordyce Letter

David Manaster made a big play today, announcing the acquisition of the Fordyce Letter ( A St Louis-based company, located up off Olive on what it informally known as Recruiter's Row in Creve Couer).

The Fordyce Letter is one of those nationally known publications that old-school recruiters treat as the recruiting bible.  It has a tagline referring to it as the most widely known and most often quoted newsletter in the industry. 

I've been meaning to call Paul up and interview him, since he's in St Louis.  It has always fascinated me that so many national recruiting personalities have connections to my hometown, from Joyce Lain Kennedy (who writes the nationally syndicated Careers for the LA Times) to someone that Anthony always refers to as a guru who put out training tapes he listened to back in the late 80's (he didn't say if it was the 19980's or the 1880's).

Congratulations to both of them - and maybe I'll get off my duff and see if I can get that interview.

Interview With Doug Burris of Intronic Solution Group

The following is an e-mail interview Doug Burris of Intronic Solutions, a third party Recruiting firm in Kansas City.  Intronic Solutions is very forward thinking, including being current on online employment, publishing jobs as an RSS feed, and a host of other things that I can't tell you about.  They are the wave of small, independent recruiting shops throwing their weight around in local markets.  And soon they will be blogging. My interview with Doug:

1. Give me a thirty second pitch for Intronic Solution Group. What is your role at Intronic Solution Group? How long have you been there?

Intronic Solutions Group is an Overland Park, Kansas based consulting firm specializing in the areas of Information Technologies and Engineering. Intronic Solutions Group was founded in 2004, and the team we have assembled has worked together for nearly 9 years at other successful staffing companies. Our unmatched ability to understand our client’s needs and deliver has been the cornerstone of our tremendous success. We have a resounding network of both client contacts and candidates allowing us to deliver both candidates to clients and opportunities to job seekers. Personally, I have been with Intronic Solutions Group since it’s inception. My role is multi-fold. I operate as a Human Resources/Recruiting consultant for our clients both on-site and remote assisting them with best practice recruiting solutions and process improvement. In addition, I act as recruiter, account manager/consultant and assist Grant Gordon with Marketing/Advertising/Public Relations efforts in addition to web site design and blogging activities.

2. Every company says they are different in the way they recruit. We can't all be the best, so what makes you unique to the client. And for this question, you're not allowed to use marketing speak.

Our recruiting focus is based on our relationships with our long term consultants. We utilize our network first to get referral candidates, Network based tools such as LinkedIn second and the internet boards (monster, careerbuilder, dice, hotjobs, etc) last. We RARELY post our positions as we are usually seeking very specific skill sets and experiences and when we do utilize the internet resume databases, we do so as a networking tool. We recognize our competition is using the same tools we are. We put a focus on the candidate, what exactly they are seeking and who they know who may be seeking similar opportunities. We spent an inordinate amount of time with each candidate identifying their drivers for change, motivators for success and best working culture fit before we consider submitting them to a client. We feel these things are more important to the long term success of our consultant in their relationship with our client, than just the keyword skill sets.