Interview Doctor

Job Hiring Process

Learn New Proactive Recruitment Techniques

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For a long time I have observed barriers between job seekers and hiring managers.

Kent State University Stark EventThese teams are on different pages. Maybe different continents. Both sides complain bitterly about the other.

Sometimes I feel like Don Quixote tilting at windmills.

Companies complain there are no skilled candidates out there. Candidates complain companies never talk to them. Their resumes go into a black hole never to be heard from again.

Both sides are right. And both sides are wrong.

Both sides are making the process more complicated than it needs to be, placing barriers between each other that prevent a clear sightline. We are going about job search all wrong! We need to stop slapping job descriptions out on Internet job boards thinking the same old technique will bring different results. If you want different results you have to try something different!

Whenever I get out my lance to tilt at this particular windmill I get eye rolling from human resource people and disbelief from candidates. They are each using traditional methods that have worked before. They send me a clear message that they know what they are doing.

Yet I continue to tilt because I see a better way!

Recently I began leading workshops on my controversial ideas at Kent State University Stark Corporate University.  If you are a hiring manager or an HR person who is frustrated with the status quo of reactive recruitment, consider joining me at the next session of “Search Techniques that Bring Results: Proactive Recruiting”.

In this session we will explore recruiting from workforce planning and position planning to simple ways to find and build relationships with candidates, tying recruitment to business marketing.

Search Techniques that Bring Results Learning Objectives:

  • Understand the comprehensive connection between image of your business in marketplace and candidates – tie business marketing with recruitment marketing
  • Better workforce planning to make the hiring process less reactive and more proactive
  • Discover other places to look for candidates – we no longer have to rely solely on advertisements on career boards
  • How to utilize social media and online resources to attract candidates then keep them close until you need them

Join me for “Search Techniques that Bring Results: Proactive Recruiting” on October 26, 2016 at 8:30am at Kent State Stark Corporate University in North Canton, OH!

A small investment in time and training can bring a wealth of new ideas to get better results from your hiring process! See you then!

Become the Candidate that Best Fits in with the Team to Land that Job

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become the candidate that fitsI talk to plenty of candidates who think they should get the job because they are the most qualified.

They are frequently disappointed. They are missing the personal factor, the cultural fit.

I have long believed that most hiring managers want to hire someone they like, someone they can bond with. The person they hire is not always the best qualified or the most skilled.

This is important news for job seekers. You can make this perception work to your advantage.

  1. Be open and friendly when you meet people at an interview, especially the receptionist and people you meet in the halls. These could be your future colleagues. You want to make a good first impression as a person they would like to work with. Many times after an interview I would check in with the receptionist to get her impression. If she did not like the candidate, he or she was out of consideration.
  2. Try to make a personal connection by finding something you have in common with the person you are talking to. Notice the pictures and decorations? Golf memorabilia? Ask about golf. I had pictures of my scuba diving vacations on my office wall. Only a few people ever commented. I really liked those folks!
  3. Comment on personal interests in LinkedIn. I once scored coffee with an HR exec who never took networking meetings because I commented on her interesting in scuba diving.
  4. Don’t be afraid to put a few personal interests in your LinkedIn profile if they are a little unusual. Now don’t go crazy here. Leave off the religious and political interests; these can only limit your contacts. If all you do is read and ride your bike, probably best to leave it off. But if you are a triathlete, ran the Chicago marathon, or just completed a circumnavigation of the eastern United States, consider adding those interests. Unusual hobbies can spark interest from viewers and help build a personal connection.
  5. Read some of the books and articles noted in LinkedIn and make comments either on your main profile or in one of your groups. Getting into a discussion with someone makes you more “real” and 3 dimensional than just a profile or a resume.

You can be the most qualified candidate but it doesn’t mean anything unless you demonstrate that you can fit in by making a personal connection with the hiring manager.

No matter whether you are a new graduate or have been looking to make the switch to another job or career, the new training class “5 Tips to Kick Off a Successful Job Search” will help you see better results from your job search. Register to guarantee your spot today!

What is your trust-ability?

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trustHow do you lead?

  • Command-and-control?
  • Inclusionary?

How would you rate your trust-ability?

I read post a LinkedIn Group (Center for Creative Leadership) post called . It reminded me of an interview I recently scheduled for a clever candidate, a one-hour phone interview.

‘I felt like I was being interrogated rather than interviewed. I think he may be a ‘command-and-control’ type of leader. I’m more of an inclusionary type of leader. That has worked for me. I’m not sure he would be comfortable with my style.’

When I shared this comment with the HR Director, he was intrigued with the candidate’s insight. He said ‘He’s the kind of guy we need. Let me get with my hiring manager; we want to bring him in for a face-to-face.’  My first thought, trust-ability, which this candidate displayed, sells.

It also caused me to think about how trust-able am I? Part of the solution is to be pro-active and eliminate-the-negatives steps, as mentioned in the article.

Some other ideas that came to mine to build your trust-ability:

  1. Just doing what you say you’ll do, every time
  2. Sharing the credit when what you do succeeds
  3. Owning what happens when it could have gone better
  4. Spending time listening to your people
  5. Becoming a coach and a fan of your team.

Are you trust-able? What are some ways you create trust? And how can these ideas help you in a job-search?

No matter whether you are a new graduate or have been looking to make the switch to another job or career, the new training class “5 Tips to Kick Off a Successful Job Search” will help you see better results from your job search. Register to guarantee your spot today!

Employee Turnover – What are they saying about your business behind your back?

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A client called me in to give him a talent assessment of his leadership team.

reduce your hiring turnoverThis was about a 50 million family owned business, growing very quickly. It was an interesting project. While conducting the interviews I observed that they were doing a lot of hiring. The business was growing but the amount of hiring seemed out of proportion to the growth.

I discovered that the business did not measure employee turnover. They just accepted that they had to keep hiring because people kept quitting.

So I did a simple analysis and discovered that the employee turnover was over 50% for their main category of employees. That means that they had to hire 50% more people every year than they actually needed to accomplish their business goals. That is crazy!

I did a little more digging and found problems with pay, work environment and most important management skills or better stated, a lack of good management skills.

It is costly to hire, train then replace people on your team. It can cost upwards of twice an employee’s annual salary to find and train a replacement. In this company, 50% turnover was costing them almost double their labor costs. Reducing turnover will reduce their labor costs, reduce training costs, reduce the time and cost of hiring and most important improve morale and the ability to get something done.

Seems pretty important, doesn’t it? Yet this company and many other companies do not measure turnover and even if they do, they don’t do anything about it.

Such a costly waste of time, energy and money.

It is important to measure turnover monthly and annually to see if you are having issues. If your turnover is higher than you can tolerate, you should figure out what is going on. Is it management skills, something in your environment or are you hiring the wrong people? Only by understanding the reasons behind turnover can you begin to address this insidious and costly problem.

Here are some tips to reduce turnover:

  • Hiring the right people is the single most important way to reduce employee turnover. Interview candidates carefully. Have a solid hiring process that ensures you understand the answers to the 3 most important hiring questions: Can she do the job? Will she love the job? And will she get along with the team?
  • Pay attention to employees’ personal needs and be flexible where you can. Get creative with work schedules or day care needs. Flexibility goes a long way but it costs very little compared to the cost of employee turnover.
  • Bolster employee engagement. Say thank you. Make your workplace fun. Be sure managers respect and recognize employees regularly.
  • Give employees room to grow with challenging positions, training and developmental opportunities that they value.
  • Be sure everyone on the team understands the vision and goals for your business. Don’t make assumptions that they know what you are thinking.
  • According to many surveys, the number one reason people leave a company is because their boss is a jerk. If you even sniff out a boss who is a problem, address it immediately with coaching, training and reinforcement.

Employee turnover is a signal that there is a problem in your business. Measure it then figure out what is going on. We are always here for you if you need some help.

To view this video, or to view other videos featuring other strategic job search tips and tools from The Interview Doctor click here.

Whether Chicken or Egg, you still need a Recipe!

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In our last post we learned about Joan who left the workforce ten years ago to raise her son. Now she is ready to get back into the workforce.

She is most concerned about stability. She wants a company that will be around for many years where she can make a good living to finance her son’s college education and her own retirement.

Last time we asked what you thought. We got some really interesting responses. Most people completely sympathized with Joan’s dilemma. Some people had been in that same position before themselves.

how to structure a job searchThe consensus was that Joan needs to figure out what she wants first then find a stable company where she can do it. I completely agree.

This is the beauty of sharing in social media. There is always someone out there who has had that experience who is willing to share what worked and what didn’t. We can learn from each other!!

Whether preparing chickens or eggs, we still need a recipe. We need a plan. In this case, Joan needs a Job Search Marketing Plan!

Here are some steps Joan can take to find the job she wants:

  1. Understand what exactly she wants. No one will help her find a job that makes her happy that uses her many skills if she doesn’t know what that is. Knowing what you want in very specific terms is the foundation of the Job Search Marketing Plan.
  2. Build job search materials around that ideal job. The more specific the better. Start with the resume, then the LinkedIn profile then the extra marketing materials. Use a scalpel to remove the unnecessary bits and leave the experiences and accomplishments that support the ideal job.
  3. Outline the dream company. What kind of people? What kind of products? What geography, size and structure?
  4. Identify which companies in your geography fit that profile. Prioritize them according to the ones that you like most. We start with the top priorities and work our way around.
  5. Research those companies.
  6. Identify people who work there.
  7. Now you can start networking. Reach out to people who work in those companies. Add them to your LinkedIn connections, start talking to them. Ask questions. Try to get coffee. Reach out in a way that makes them value you as a person because you value them. Talk professional to professional.

Joan started in the middle. She doesn’t know what she wants. She started reaching out blindly. That usually does not work.

As our readers know, Joan will be more successful if she does the planning first. Then she can reach out in a more methodical fashion to network her way to the job of her dreams. Or at least the job she can do in a stable company where she can achieve her personal financial goals.

The Interview Doctor can help Joan put together her plan. We are all pulling for you Joan!

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