The Recruiting Inferno

Thanks Rob – getting far too many emails from folks wanting to know how to find the name of your dog. It’s definitely more challenging than it was finding the names of your kids – that was easy (the person who asked me wasn’t hired by BillCo).

But your challenge got me thinking and I’d like to share some thoughts with those looking for bowser’s name…

Are you absolutely certain Rob isn’t throwing a curveball? Afterall, he doesn’t know Christmas from Bourke Street. I mean, he is a crazy Aussie (who believes that Seattle reminds him of Sydney, meat pies are superior to Filet Mignon, and well, he probably drinks too much beer so you know where his judgment lies) and being that recruiters need to be aware of cultural issues, are you certain that he’s using the word “dog” in the same sense that us Americans would?

Are you certain he didn’t change his name from Macintosh to McIntosh when he crossed the border to the states because he found that the former was trademarked by Apple (as well as the Apple Growers of America)?

He’s playing you people, he’s playing you… wait until the ad agency in California takes down the mathematically inclined Google billboard and replaces it with the mug of our favorite crazy Aussie. “Don’t be a dog, find my dog” it’ll say…on the very same day he’ll wind up on Geraldo, Oprah, and the newsletter for the RNC as demonstration that our economy is growing.

That Rob is a sly one – remember, use your time wisely.

lol

Have two recruiting planning pieces I’m completing – one healthcare related, the other technology based. They’ll demonstrate some key strategic planning processes I go through, albeit in my head at this point – when I receive a new search. For you strategic planning junkies out there (that’s probably just you Russ – lol) , I’ll be referring to Michael Porter’s Five Forces Model as well as the venerable SWOT and PEST analyses. I know this sounds horribly academic but once you’re able to inculcate it into your recruiting brain, it will become second nature. The greatest benefit is that you’ll never run out of sourcing and hiring ideas – a bold statement but a truism.

In the interim, received a call from a friend who is sourcing those ever-vexing auditor positions (I’m being coy here because I promised the person I would not use their name). Discovered that that nearly 100 people were sourced by email and phone yet none took the bait. My RECRUITDAR was going wild.

Hmmm. let’s take a look at the email. Mind you, this recruiter has a tremendous track record in both boon and bust times and is a wildly successful recruiter. Nonetheless, my RECRUITDAR was telling me that this time of the year is hell for auditors – and she knew this, so any communication with them must be “special” (actually, communication needs to be special all the time). At the same time, received my friend Ari Galper’s monthly sales newsletter with an article about how most emails sent as intro are tediously boring and are almost instantaneously deleted. By the way, I strongly believe anyone out there who sells for a living (that would be recruiters) should subscribe (no monetary benefit for me) to both Ari’s newsletter as well as Jeff Gitomer’s monthly Sales Caffeine.

So my friend sends me the following email (I’ve changed some things to protect the innocent):

Subject: Internal Audit Role in NYC

Jack:

My company, GreatRecruiters, has been retained to fill a senior level Auditor role in NYC.  I have taken the liberty of attaching a brief position description for this newly created role that reports directly to the head of Audit for the entire company.  I am sure you are contacted daily about these roles in the current climate.   But in any event, any networking assistance is sincerely appreciated.  This is a great role for someone wanting to be a “bigger fish in a smaller pond” taking.  Please feel free to pass this along and contact me with any questions.

Kind regards,

Anita Job
etc.

Wake me up please! As if auditing isn’t somnambulant enough (jk), I’ll bet “Jack” read this, took one look at the audit software in front of him, another look back at the email, and decided that audit was better where he already was.

So let’s add some life to the audit email (reminds me of a currently running TV commercial about making accounts payable exciting again):

Subject: Jack – Please stop the audit for just one moment. Thanks!

Warmest regards,
Anita, etc.

Better? More personal? A bit less sales-y? I’ll report back ASAP with results of how well the new sales-less emails do. Until then, think a bit more outside the box, ok?

I grew up during the civil strife era. My parents, one a direct immigrant the other one generation removed from Ellis Island, reared me to think openly, to treat people as I wanted to be treated, and to believe in the impossible. I remember the days JFK, RFK and MLK were assassinated by people who didn?t believe in the impossible.

Monday we remember Dr. King.

My favorite of all Dr. King?s speeches was the one he delivered at the Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta February 4, 1968. It was entitled The Drum Major Instinct. I was only 8 at the time but my father – who had escaped the Nazi occupation of France, was befriended by his black classmates at DeWitt Clinton High School in New York City, and enlisted as an original member of the Tenth Mountain Division to fight in Europe during WW II – sat me down at passionately educated me about the Civil Rights movement.

Towards the end of the speech came the following:

?I?d like somebody to mention that day that Martin Luther King, Jr., tried to give his life serving others.?

?I?d like for somebody to say that day that Martin Luther King, Jr., tried to love somebody.?

?I want you to say that day that I tried to be right on the war question.?

?I want you to be able to say that day that I did try to feed the hungry.?

?And I want you to be able to say that day that I did try in my life to clothe those who were naked.?

?I want you to say on that day that I did try in my life to visit those who were in prison.?

?I want you to say that I tried to love and serve humanity.?

?Yes, if you want to say that I was a drum major, say that I was a drum major for justice. Say that I was a drum major for peace. I was a drum major for righteousness. And all of the other shallow things will not matter. I won?t have any money to leave behind. I won?t have the fine and luxurious things of life to leave behind. But I just want to leave a committed life behind. And that?s all I want to say.?

What does this have to do with recruiting? Perhaps nothing, perhaps everything. A few hundred Executive Orders and laws later, the employment landscape and the impact and role of recruiters looks nothing like it did forty or so years ago. The way I see it, recruiters are responsible for helping others find a road to purpose and self-worth.  Recruiters are on the front line of relationship building, responsible for selling a company?s message to someone who is seeking a message and working with hiring managers to understand the needs of progress.

Truly savvy recruiters are in some ways catalysts for change because in their positions they confront dynamic talent pools as they are impacted by social, economic, political and technological issues. Today, remember that Martin Luther King Day is not about the end of a three-day-blowout-sales-weekend-extravaganza but the celebration of the continuing change in the employment landscape. The road ahead is in many ways still uncharted and requires real leadership from our profession.

Are you ready?

I am an American, fighting in the forces which guard my country and our way of life. I am prepared to give my life in their defense.

I will never surrender of my own free will. If in command, I will never surrender the members of my command while they still have the means to resist.

If I am captured I will continue to resist by all means available. I will make every effort to escape and to aid others to escape. I will accept neither parole nor special favors from the enemy.

If I become a prisoner of war, I will keep faith with my fellow prisoners. I will give no information nor take part in any action which might be harmful to my comrades. If I am senior, I will take command. If not, I will obey lawful orders of those appointed over me and will back them in every way.

When questioned, should I become a prisoner of war, I am required to give name, rank, service number, and date of birth. I will evade answering further questions to the utmost of my ability. I will make no oral or written statements disloyal to my country or its allies or harmful to their cause.

It’s a pretty simple equation whose mathematical impact is powerful if one’s underlying assumptions are sound and whose practical impact can be far more powerful. For example, does the equation itself accurately describe the phenomenon? When I discuss the equation, are my results generalizable to everyone reading this blog (which I believe is currently seven people – lol)? (I’m thinking about the transition from 2004 to 2005; is everyone else thinking about the same transition?) Do the variables “Old Year” and “New Year” as defined accurately portray the constructs we know as “Old Year” and “New Year”? (meaning which “Old Year” am I talking about and is it the same one that you are thinking about?)

Non-mathematically speaking, 2005 should be a watershed year for recruiting. Charles Handler wrote a very nice article on what should be the hot Best Practices for 05. In a similar manner, rush over and read John Sullivan’s article on recruiting and talent management trends in 2005 (I hope that “Workforce Planning” at number three was just a casualty of John’s stream-of-consciousness when he was writing the article and not a reflection on which position it should be on the list).

I digress back to the equation; the way I interpret it, I see the practical implication as being one of moving forward – not just staying the same. Or as I like to say, If it ain’t broke, then you’re not trying hard enough to break it.

Take any of the Best Practices identified by Charles and John, and implement at least one of these. Move forward rather than embrace the status quo. Join and participate in the ERE groups (please – do more than just lurk).

Personally, I’m going to look at assessment issues, the recruiter-manager relationship, name generation techniques, and development of new metrics (incidentally, I’m in on a conference call this Friday with the fine folks at Staffing.org to talk about efforts to develop better metrics and staffing benchmarking). I’m also going to get my arms around the concept of character in hiring and doing my part to help others learn about developing and implementing a Staffing Plan as well as strategizing before leaping into a search.

Peace.