tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-65355771988117159422023-08-21T05:42:23.382-04:00David Graziano Social Recruiting StrategistSocial Recruiting Strategist and TacticianDavid Grazianohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12008076819283956959noreply@blogger.comBlogger16125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6535577198811715942.post-63824959640649057512011-03-29T19:26:00.001-04:002011-04-21T04:26:55.841-04:00Hey, Recruiters and Talent Acquisition Specialists do you "get it?"<b>What does it take for Recruiters and Talent Acquisition Specialists to "get it?"<br />
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There are Recruiters and Talent Acquisition Specialists, and there appears to be many, that have poor skills in contacting talent and sharing feedback with talent as they do with business partners and clients. It is not because they are bogged down or are too busy. The Recruiters and Talent Acquisition Specialists don't know what to do when faced with talent, business partners and clients that are initiating contact and asking for feedback.They lack the skills. For the most part, there is lip service paid to providing a "positive candidate experience" in the corporate, and third party Recruiting and Talent Acquisition space. Please, from the third party space, do not tell me the client is who you are working for, you are working for the talent also. Believe it!<br />
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These same Recruiters and Talent Acquisition Specialists are not sharing information in a timely manner with there internal business partners or clients either. How do I know this? I ask the people I have relationships with questions to gather the data. I have many examples that support my assertions stated here gathered from my own experience in securing engagements, hearing such from internal business partners and from talent I am acquiring for clients.<br />
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My thought is "best practices" that are initiated to manage the communication of information that begins with the Recruiters and Talent Acquisition Specialists is a solution. Everyone will be surprised how the quality of the activity/productivity arc will increase if the quality of timely communication is increased. Yes, this will result in a shorter time to fill and higher retention rates (the two staples of best practices). Having said that, I would also dare to say that metrics are misinterpreted to mean "best practices."<br />
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That is it, as simply as I could state it. If you want to discuss this please accept my invitation to. Too bad only the Recruiters and Talent Acquisition Specialists that "get it" from organizations that "get it" will want to discuss.</b>David Grazianohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12008076819283956959noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6535577198811715942.post-59756140768022759282011-01-19T10:49:00.010-05:002011-01-19T11:03:06.798-05:00An Interview Case Study:More techniques that work.<b>This interview was conducted with Bob Tarver, a Sr HR Professional with experience in all aspects of HR to include national employment laws; proven ability to ensure compliance with all regulatory bodies, including OSHA. Bob has worked to reduce expenses by reducing worker's compensation claims and avoiding fines. Bob also has experience in managing full lifecycle recruiting efforts. <br />
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Bob may be contacted at: LinkedIn <a href="http://www.linkedin.com/in/roberttarver"> Robert Tarver </a> Twitter <a href="http://http://twitter.com/#!/BTarver">@Btarver</a> or email <a href="http://RATarver@gmail.com">RATarver@gmail.com<br />
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Bob demonstrates how he prepared his "interview blueprint" and how this aided him.<br />
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<i>1) Bob how did you use your network to secure your exploratory interview?</i><br />
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I have been active on several social media sites: Facebook, Twitter, <br />
Plaxo, Zoominfo, HRM Today and LinkedIn. For this interview, I developed my contact via user groups on LinkedIn. I had participated in answering a question from member whom I was not connected with. The question was: How to find candidates in tough locations and what methods could be used? I provided my opinion on what could be done. Later, I had remembered that I had several colleagues that lived in the areas that the company in question was looking to break into and I wrote an email suggesting that we should connect on LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook. I also made several suggestions as to what other HR and Social media pros they should connect with on those sites. Then I stated looking at the companies’ job site where my connection worked and applied for them and let my connection know via e mail.<br />
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<i>2) What interviewing techniques did you use?</i><br />
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One idea was to show connection/employer is that I could be a problem solver and not just another job seeker. In addition, I looked for several blog articles on interviewing and tough interview questions to answer. By reading the articles plus reviewing my resume matching up my accomplishments to the answers given.<br />
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<i>3) How did I put your interview blueprint together for the interview?</i><br />
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I consulted my network of fellow HR professionals and Recruiters. First, I went to the corporate website of the company I was to interview with. Conducting research about any company that you want to work is very important. Show them in the interview that you understand what the company is about, understand their culture, their history and that you are not just looking for a paycheck, you are looking to make a difference/impact. The next step was to have a practice interview with a Recruiter. This is the best way to really prep for an interview. Who else would have insights into what another recruiter would ask, think, etc. For this I asked David Graziano for help. He had already seen my resume before and we spent close to 1 ½ hours discussing the job description, how my experience would fit and what potential issues that could arise and how to address them. We also discussed the usual questions that are asked and how to answer them without it sounding like the answer was a “canned” response. In addition, I spoke to my contact to get further insights about the culture and to learn more about the recruiter who was to conduct the interview.<br />
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<i>4) Bob, what worked, what didn’t work, what did you learn from your experience and how will you use it in your next interview?</i><br />
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I felt my opening response to the question “Tell me about yourself?” went well. I stated “I am a seasoned HR professional, strong in performing generalist functions to include implementing programs that have contributed to saving money for past employers. I’d like to discuss how I might be able to do the same for your organization.” I felt comfortable in answering the questions that were asked of me. The main concept was that I understood it was an information/exploratory interview, not the actual interview that one would associate with open positions.<br />
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What didn’t work…what was missing was a lack of specific industry experience; the interviewer felt I did not have the necessary strategic experience they were looking for in the position (HR Generalist/business partner).<br />
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What I learned: 1) Good preparation is the key for any interview, 2) make sure you do your research on a company that you want to work for now or in the future. 3) Make good use of your network to discuss your interview techniques, to get insights on how other interviewers think, if they know the interviewer. I’ll be using everything I learned from this interview in future interviews and having more confidence at being comfortable in the interviewing process.</b>David Grazianohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12008076819283956959noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6535577198811715942.post-90305650346099800642010-11-04T14:52:00.000-04:002010-11-04T14:52:53.153-04:00So the techniques actually work...<b><br />
This is a guest post by Assad Faquir. My appreciation and thanks Assad!<br />
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As one of the millions of people "in transition" I have experienced the highs and lows of "funemployment." As most unemployed people can tell you, one of the highest highs is when you get a call back for an interview. Similarly more than a few us can agree that the lowest low is when that same interview leads no where. For me, I had a few interviews that ended with a "your skills are impressive, BUT we are going with another candidate." Which I know is the professional version of "its not you its me." <br />
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After my 3rd or 4th dead end interview in 8 months, I changed the focus of my job search to selling my skills on a contractual basis. The change worked, but I was facing the same "interview" problem with the decision makers I was meeting. I simply couldn't get a commitment from any of them. However I was determined not to squander all of my new opportunities, so I crowdsourced my problem to the experts I know on Twitter. A few people offered advice but one, David Graziano, offered a few minutes of his time to give some techniques. I explained to him that I have a hard time selling myself, and since all interviews are sales calls he offered some good advice. I asked David at what point should I stop trying to sell and let the interviewer sell themselves? David gave me a tip from his personal bag of tricks. He said, when you reach that point of selling yourself too much, ask two questions: <br />
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1) What are the problems/issues you have run into trying to get the job accomplished currently?<br />
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And after they answer and you have some brief discussion, follow up with: <br />
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2) What solutions have you attempted to overcome these issues?<br />
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I took David's advice and ran with it. The next morning when I had my 2nd interview with a local bank I reached my maximum sales volume and deployed question 1... and the interviewer ate it up. The interviewer confessed all the struggles they had with the job. It gave me a chance to both empathize and dialogue my experience with similar problems. Then came question 2...again the interviewer ate it up and shared with me all of the solutions that led nowhere. The answers provided by the interviewer allowed me to again empathize with the struggle, but now I could offer some real examples of how I could solve the problem beyond what they had already attempted. In other words I was selling myself as the solution without making it obvious. <br />
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Well needless to say David's trick worked to perfection and within 2 days I had a 4 month contract offer in hand. The advice David gave me broke my habit of focusing on ME in the interview and allowed me to focus on the real needs of the company. Which when you think about it is the key to any interview or sales presentation...focusing on the problem and becoming the solution, not assuming you ARE the solution to an unknown problem. <br />
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</b>David Grazianohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12008076819283956959noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6535577198811715942.post-88312849426762668792010-08-30T06:54:00.000-04:002010-08-30T06:54:41.340-04:00The Journey Takes An Interesting Turn<b>In my previous Post, “You won’t believe this…” I shared with you my experience of directly contacting the VP of Talent Acquisition and my subsequent experience. Well, my journey with the same organization takes an interesting turn.<br />
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I was contacted by a colleague, not employed by the organization, and informed that another VP in the same organization (Talent Acquisition) was interested in speaking with me about providing Consulting services to the Talent Acquisition team. I am sure you that you can appreciate the irony in the twist of events. I was interested and excited to meet with the VP and begin to develop a strategy of how we could partner together to work with the challenges that we were going to face.<br />
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Our meeting lasted 35 minutes (scheduled for 30), it was professional, cordial and open. I was impressed with the philosophy of the Talent Acquisition team in partnering with the Hiring Managers in the supported line of business within the company. It appeared to me, based on my brief discussion, that the “partnering” was challenging on a behavioral level for the Talent Acquisition team. The Hiring Managers were saying; “This is the way that it is and will be.” The Talent Acquisition team was saying; “Okay, but…” I will not bore you with the particulars; I know that you all understand.<br />
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I inquired about accountability of the Talent Acquisition team and the accountability of the Hiring Managers to each other. I was informed: “The Hiring Managers are challenging at times.” I continued to probe and received the same reply.<br />
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I then suggested that this is where I viewed our first challenge: Gaining a commitment from the Talent Acquisition team and the Hiring Managers to ensure each other’s success. I framed this by stating that we had to engage the Hiring Managers and Talent Acquisition team in discussions about specific behaviors, time frames and deadlines to occur. This is when the VP said that there was another meeting that needed to be attended. Thirty five minutes had passed. We thanked each other and I said I would follow up by phone the next day and we agreed upon a time. I followed up with an email summarizing our conversation and stating that “mutual accountability” was a key to success.<br />
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Upon my next day’s follow up, I was informed that the Hiring Managers would “never buy into an aggressive approach” and they would be “too uncomfortable” with the approach. I attempted to overcome the objections and was unable to.<br />
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Here is my take. We, as Talent Acquisition Specialists, must hold ourselves accountable for our behaviors. We must take ownership and make commitments to the Hiring Mangers that are mutually agreed upon and that we know we can keep. We need to model the desired behavior. We can begin this modeling by facilitating a dialogue and process by asking two very simple questions of all involved: “How can we help each other and the Talent in hiring for the position(s)?” and “What do you need from me to ensure our success?”<br />
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STOP pointing fingers at each other and engage each other thru helping each other to be successful by sharing meaningful content. Partner, eliminate the “uncovered agenda” of the hiring and interview process.<br />
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Yes, I have a template for this; yes it is going to be uncomfortable for us as Hiring Managers and Talent Acquisition Specialists. Change and growth always are. We (Hiring Managers, Talent Acquisition Specialists and Talent) are in this together. Are we all committed to our mutual success? I am. <br />
</b>David Grazianohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12008076819283956959noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6535577198811715942.post-54307623940672671922010-08-23T07:39:00.000-04:002010-08-23T07:39:35.109-04:00You will not believe this....<b>Recently I was attempting to secure a position with a large financial services organization as a Sr Talent Acquisition Specialist. I did what I do and I went to LinkedIn and searched for the VP of Talent Acquisition and called. To my pleasant surprise I was immediately connected to the person, not a voice mail! In the course of my conversation I was told that the organization does not accept phone calls from candidates or resumes sent directly to the recruiters. I was told that if one of the "excellent recruiters on the team" determined that I was a "fit" for the position I would be contacted. This was stated in a very professional cordial manner and I was complimented for my tenacity. I did attempt to overcome the objection to the call and my asking to send a resume directly to a recruiter or calling the recruiter three times and was denied three times, again with the utmost professionalism. I do respect the VP's position. I was informed that because of the volume of applicants that managing individual contacts was unproductive. <br />
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Wait, this is a Talent Acquisition position we are discussing correct? Aren't Talent Acquisition professionals tenacious by definition? We hunt, source and seek out new Talent by definition, correct? When I was managing Talent Acquisition pros I was impressed if they called a Sr Manager directly to introduce themselves and the reason for the call. I encouraged and modeled the behavior. I have had a successful career doing this and I have trained others who are currently being successful using this technique among others to the "right thing."<br />
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If organizations want to Post and Pray when seeking a specialized talent/skill set so be it. I would be so bold as to say good luck and if you don't want to interview a Talent Acquisition Specialist that is tenacious, then you may want to re-think your Talent Acquisition Strategy or do much praying. Just saying... <br />
</b>David Grazianohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12008076819283956959noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6535577198811715942.post-58142095050923506632010-05-10T15:23:00.002-04:002010-05-11T16:29:15.776-04:00Announcing a Social Recruiting Strategy Service Offering<b>I am pleased to announce that I am now adding Social Recruiting Strategy to my portfolio of Talent Acquisition Services. If your organization is searching for a way to understand and implement a Social Recruiting Strategy I am inviting you to contact me and begin a dialogue.<br />
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If you are Talent seeking an opportunity I am inviting you to contact me and we can begin a dialogue regarding how I can assist you in developing your Personal Brand and marketing yourself using LinkedIn, Twitter, FaceBook and other Social Networking platforms.<br />
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I maybe contacted at 1 401 294-1079 or dgrazj@yahoo.com.</b>David Grazianohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12008076819283956959noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6535577198811715942.post-87421365712501854882009-11-17T20:33:00.003-05:002009-11-18T00:45:15.270-05:00Social Recruiting...Good & Bad GuysThis was an excerpt from my thoughts on the <a href="http://www.twitter.com/DavidGraziano">@Animal</a> Radio Show <a class="tweet-url web" href="http://bit.ly/4khIBF" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">http://bit.ly/4khIBF</a>.<br />
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I really am searching for what the Social Media Recruiters do and how they do it. Techniques, questions, recruiting skills.<br />
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Am I the only one that feels this way? Why do Personal Branding experts choose not to respond to a request for help in leveraging a relationship to facilitate gaining information? Inquiring minds would like to know...just saying.David Grazianohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12008076819283956959noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6535577198811715942.post-24927749595519600122009-04-21T07:31:00.005-04:002009-04-21T08:04:21.627-04:00A Warm Cold Call for the Passive CandidateI have never liked the phrase Cold Call. When I was trained to become a Recruiter, we learned to use the phrase Warm Call. Well, after all, that is what the inititial call is isn't it? If the call is cold you will, well be cold. The candidate or client for that matter will be cold. It is really that simple. I don't need any "guru" to tell me differently.<br /><br />I was recently interviewed on the <a href="http://www/twitter.com/Animal">@Animal </a>Radio Show <a href="http://snurl.com/fzl4i">http://snurl.com/fzl4i</a>. During the interview I was asked to Warm Call a Passive Candidate. This was unrehearsed and improvised. Here is the 10 minute audio clip <a href="http://cli.gs/coldcall">http://cli.gs/coldcall</a>. I will let the clip speak for itself and allow you to think what you would like to. The Passive Candidate is Craig Fisher of <a href="http://www.alistsolutions.com/">http://www.alistsolutions.com/</a> and <a href="http://www.twitter.com/CraigFisher">@Fishdogs</a>.David Grazianohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12008076819283956959noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6535577198811715942.post-35728862738240628392009-04-08T00:33:00.005-04:002009-04-08T01:56:11.996-04:00Social Recruiting...all that Twitters may not be a GlitterAfter I participated in the <a href="http://www.twitter.com/animal">@animal</a> <a href="http://cli.gs/DBSPy9">http://cli.gs/DBSPy9</a> Radio Show I became more introspective about how I use Social Media as a Social Recruiting tool. What do I use SM for? How do I integrate SM with Full Life Cycle Recruiting? How do I use SM to source new Client Partners and new Human Capital Partners? I am defining SM as <a href="http://www.linkedin.com/">LinkedIn</a>, <a href="http://www.twitter.com/">Twitter</a>, <a href="http://www.facebook.com/">Facebook</a>, <a href="http://www.myspace.com/">MySpace</a>, <a href="http://www.youtube.com/">YouTube</a> and Blogs. I am sure there are more, but for the sake of this article these will suffice. I have my own bias of LinkedIn, Twitter, Blogs and telephone with a healthy component of Boolean Searches to glean information.<br /><br />What happens after I Source Human Capital Partners and Client Partners using all of these SM tools? Is my work completed? Do I simply introduce the two to each other and receive compensation, a multitude of referrals for new business and move to the next project?<br /><br />I think not. As a Human Capital Specialist I must build a relationship personally with the Human Capital Partner and Client Partner, This relationship is built on trust. I establish this thru frequent, meaningful and professional contact with both parties. I ask the questions embedded with the Power Words "Who, What, Why, Where When and How of both Partners. I discuss with them how I have conducted myself in similar scenarios. I assist them in identifying and defining their challenges and how my brand can meet those challenges by eliciting their buy in. We create a partnership. My skills facilitate this, not SM. SM maybe the delivery mechanism for this, but SM does not make it happen. I use SM as a way of verifying what was agreed upon, better said I use email to verify and validate the level of commitment of all involved. I use the telephone to actually build the relationships with my Partners, wow what a surprise-:)! A series of in person meetings when possible is the best way, but present day logistics make this challenging. Together with my Partners we measure our progress, make adjustments and achieve our mutual goal; the hire.<br /><br />My skills at asking questions as a Human Capital Specialist, which include the use of Social Media, may qualify me as a Social Recruiter. But I was successfully recruiting by using my social skills long before the Social Media tools existed as many of you were. Now we have evolved and adapted. Social Darwinism applied to Human Capital Acquisition and Client Partner development?<br /><br />That is my take.David Grazianohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12008076819283956959noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6535577198811715942.post-49445003126454058562009-03-24T12:30:00.007-04:002009-03-24T12:53:19.976-04:00Some Thoughts on Social RecruitingIn case you have not heard, there is a Group on <a href="http://www.twitte.com/">Twitter</a> <a href="http://search.twitter.com/search?q=socialrecruiting">#socialrecruiting</a>. This appears to be have been spawned by <a href="http://www.twitter.com/dmanaster">@dmanaster</a> of <a href="http://www.ere.net/">ERE</a> fame and <a href="http://www.twitter.com/scottbaxt">@scottbaxt </a>as far as I can determine. Another great site for this <a href="http://twitter.com/socrecruiting/">@socrecruiting</a>. Follow these people and Sites.<br /><br />This is a terrific and timely idea for the direction that the two disciplines of Social Media are heading or should I say colliding. This could very well be the “Big Bang” theory we have been seeking in Social Media and Recruiting.<br /><br />How do we leverage the best of both disciplines? I have some thoughts. These thoughts are mine and in no way reflect the thoughts of anyone mentioned in this brief paper aimed at stimulating discussion.<br /><br />We need to partner with the Social Media influencers and all of the experts in Social Media to leverage their clients for us to have an impact on Social Recruiting. We need a workable alliance of SM and Recruiting voices to develop an infrastructure that will allow us all to be successful in providing high quality cost effective solutions to our clients for Human Capital Sourcing and Acquisition and Social Media services. The time appears to be right for a radical shift in the thinking of corporate America on how to attract and retain Talent. Much is written about this daily. We need a blueprint and we need builders to execute this blueprint. Social Recruiting can be this blueprint. The manner in which these highly experienced and intelligent professional interact with their clients will enable us to leverage our Recruiting agenda. Without this partnering endorsement and our own efforts and experience in alliance we will have a much more difficult task ahead of us<br /><br />We need people with strong influential Recruiting voices, who are willing to share their experience. We need the best of both SM and Recruiting for a thesis, antithesis synthesis to occur (my apology to Hegel) for a powerful solution to our challenge. The SM relationships and expertise and our Recruiting relationships and expertise are the mechanism for entry into the conscious of an enlightened Corporate America. We need to identify companies conducting business in the SM space being responsive to their customers by going where their customers are and listening to them. This will be paramount for our collective success.David Grazianohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12008076819283956959noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6535577198811715942.post-81752768719102519202009-03-19T15:08:00.004-04:002009-03-19T15:36:00.781-04:00The Dreaded Word...MetricsIn my <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">experience</span> most Recruiters or Human Capital Sourcing and Talent Acquisition Specialists (I like writing that:)) dread the word Metrics. I will agree that in our profession the most basic Metric is number of hires in a defined time frame <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">ie</span> 30, 60, 90 etc days. Oversimplified? Yes I do believe it is.<br /><br />Metrics is much more than that. Metrics, when used correctly, is a road map for the successful hires. Allow me to outline some <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">KPIs</span>.<br /><ul><li>Date position was opened and made available to the Talent Pool.</li><li>Number of Candidate Partners applied <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">thru</span> the ATS and whatever other tool (s) used <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">ie</span> Job Boards.</li><li>Number of Candidate Partners Sourced, this includes passive candidates.</li><li>Number of employee referred Candidate Partners. I have seen numbers that indicate 30% or more of a company's hires take place <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">thru</span> this mechanism.</li><li>Number of Internal Candidate Partners.</li><li>Number of Candidate Partners interviewed by the Recruiter.</li><li>Number of Recruiter Candidate Partners that were interviewed submitted to the Hiring Manager Partner.</li><li>Number of days from when the Candidate Partner applied to the interview with the Recruiter.</li><li>Number of days from when the <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">Candidate</span> Partner was interviewed by the Hiring Manger Partner.</li><li>Number of days for the Hiring Manager Partner to make an offer to the <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">Candidate</span> Partner.</li><li>Number days from when the Candidate Partner, who was made the offer, applied to the position.</li><li>Number of days from when the offer was extended to the Candidate Partner to accept or decline the offer.</li></ul><p> There are many ways for us to dissect and analyze this data. These are by no means all of the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">KPIs</span>, but this does give us an <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">impetuous</span> for discussion. An Excel spread sheet <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">can </span>be <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">built </span>to record and average this data quite readily. This data can be a powerful tool for Recruiters, HR Partners and Hiring Manager Partners to analyze "productive activity".</p>David Grazianohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12008076819283956959noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6535577198811715942.post-91681184250751707122009-02-27T14:37:00.002-05:002009-02-28T01:46:04.414-05:00Thoughts on where we are........I am very confused. Not that is not a normal state of mind for me lately, but more so than ever. My confusion is about the current state of our profession. There are many excellent Recruiters, Talent Acquisition Specialists and Sourcers employed and looking for employment. From the many on line resources we have access to we all see much of the same information regarding all of the open positions in virtually every occupation. We are all overwhelmed with 24x7 information from all media with unemployment figures. Most recently 667,000 claims last week.<br /><br />Have you all noticed that there are so many openings and so many potential candidates: I ask who is going to work? Who is putting these candidates to work? I had a very interesting conversation the other day with <a href="http://www.recruitingblogs.com/profile/Recruitomatic">Ami Givertz</a> from <a href="http://www.recruitingblogs.com/">RecruitingBlogs.com</a>. Ami is a very intelligent person. He mentioned that there is a geographical push at work here. As they say in Real Estate; “location, location, location.” The jobs just are not where the people are for the most part or vice versa. I agree very strongly with this. There are many qualified candidates that simply cannot relocate for a variety of reasons. Oh yeah, has anyone relocated recently and had to move an entire household? The cost is staggering. From what I know, a company is not going to pay relocation for an Oracle DBA or an SAP person. You all understand this.<br /><br />This is the background for what my issue is: What can Recruiters do about this? I have no answer but I do have some thoughts about this. Deeply engage your candidate partner in the entire process of what they are experiencing and expecting. Be responsive to the candidate partner. Work diligently with your client partner to help the Hiring Manager or HR person understand that feedback from them is crucial to the candidate and in filling the position. Set a schedule with both the candidate partner and the client partner for when you will be expecting feedback to share with both partners. Be transparent with the candidate partner and client partner. At all costs avoid the Black Hole; Information flowing only in one direction.David Grazianohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12008076819283956959noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6535577198811715942.post-71784391388604521872009-02-14T08:38:00.000-05:002009-02-14T08:45:07.080-05:00Creating a Positive Candidate Recruiter User ExperienceI have been thinking about many things and experiencing “Web 2.0 overload” in my attempts to secure a new position and get my own enterprise off the ground. While some of what I am going to discuss here is obvious, I feel compelled to write about it.<br /><br />There was an excellent discussion on <a href="http://www.recruitingblogs.com/">RecruitingBlogs.com</a> started by <a href="http://www.recruitingblogs.com/profile/JenniferLaVigne">Jennifer LaVigne</a> entitled “<a href="http://www.recruitingblogs.com/forum/topics/cold-calling-and-your-best">Cold calling and your best pick up line</a>.” There were insightful comments from every smart person that participated in the discussion. What made me think the most was the comment from <a href="http://www.recruitingblogs.com/profile/JerryAlbright">Jerry Albright</a>. Actually, it was Jerry's use of one word “WORDS” that was the trigger. I don’t know Jennifer or Jerry or any of the others that commented. But I want to thank all of them for inducing me to share some thoughts about what I think we actually do with the candidates we partner with.<br /><br />I ask every Candidate that I partner with “What do you not like about working with Recruiters?” The answer (s) to this question will give you the key in how to partner with that candidate and become their trusted advisor.<br /><br />Upon your initial contact with the candidate, do you ask How the candidate is today, How is their day going? Do you ask about their interests and take some time to get to know them before explaining your agenda or elevator speech? Do you share some information about yourself and who you are and what you are doing? The candidate wants to know that you are a person that will be professionally empathetic to them.<br /><br />I have a rule: “I recruit the way in which I want to be recruited.” There is never an exception.<br /><br />Be honest with the Candidate. I cannot stress this enough.<br /><br />I spend time walking the candidate thru the current state of their job search or if they are a passive candidate what it would take for them to become an active candidate. I pose “what if" questions during this conversation. I ask the following: “What are you hoping to find in your next position that you do have in your current one? Why did you accept your current position? Have you developed decision criteria for your next position? How do I Recruit you?” I discuss their answers in detail. This helps me develop a picture of the candidate. It is also fun! I summarize this and confirm in an email.<br /><br />I discuss in detail what their compensation expectation for the position is. I confirm an agreement on compensation with the candidate in email.<br /><br />How frequently should we follow up with each other and how will we do that? I use Web 2.0 technologies, but the telephone is the best tool available for the Recruiter and the candidate<br /><br />I make certain that I have of their updated contact information and that they have mine (home and cell phone, email that is not your current employers Twitter and IM ID). If it is only the candidate’s email, I would be concerned.<br /><br />I inform the candidate that I will not send resume to any companies without their permission.I give the candidate the Web site address for the client company. Do your home work! Research the company. When I have secured an interview I give the candidate the name(s) and titles of the person(s) they will be interviewing with and what the interviewing process is. I instruct them to Google the names of the interviewer(s). Search LinkedIn for the interviewer’s name and read their profile. How the candidate responds to this will give you an indication of how strong your partnership with them is.<br /><br />I offer suggestions as to what questions to expect on the interview. I typically ask; “How do you handle the telephone/ in person interview?” I discuss their reply in detail.<br /><br />I set a follow up time after the interview to debrief the candidate.<br /><br />I know that some of this is obvious and I have left much out, but I think we all need to think about what we are doing with our candidates and how we partner with them.<br /><br />Thoughts?David Grazianohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12008076819283956959noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6535577198811715942.post-68385831141053261922009-01-13T14:50:00.002-05:002009-02-09T01:58:12.878-05:00The Tao of The HireSomewhere a True Believer is training to recruit your candidate. He is training with minimal food or water, in austere conditions, training day and night. The only thing clean on him is his phone and his Web 2.0 gear. He doesn't worry about what workout to do - his ruck weighs what it weighs, his runs end when his Candidate is hired and the Hiring Manager's need is filled.<br /><br />This True Believer is not concerned about 'how hard it is;' he knows either he wins or he does not. He doesn't go home at 17:00, he is home. He knows only The Cause.<br /><br />Still want to quit?<br /><br />Be extremely subtle, even to the point of formlessness. Be extremely judicious in how you communicate, even to the point of <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">soundlessness</span>. Thereby you can be the director of your relationships with you partners; Hiring Managers and Candidates.<br /><br />Better stop short than fill to the brim. Over sharpen the blade, and the edge will soon blunt. Amass a store of gold and jade, and no one can protect it. Claim wealth and titles, and disaster will follow. Retire when the work is done. This is the way of your Hire.<br /><br /><br />With apologies to Lao <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Tzu</span> and Sun <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Tzu</span>.David Grazianohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12008076819283956959noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6535577198811715942.post-16220747039752892592009-01-06T20:47:00.006-05:002009-02-09T01:58:12.879-05:00Our Customer, The Hiring ManagerThe most important skill in your repertoire is your ability to build credibility with the Hiring Managers and become a "trusted advisor." This is paramount to our success as Recruiters. The Hiring Manager is our customer. Without a Partnership with the Hiring Manager we cannot be successful. It is that simple.<br /><br />The Hiring Manager needs to know that you have developed a strong working relationship with the candidate on everything the candidate needs to be closed on and the candidate has a basic understanding of the position.<br /><br />If the Hiring Manager does not believe in you and your candidate your chances for success are diminished greatly. Simply put, you will not schedule any interviews and you will not facilitate any hires.<br /><br />One of the best ways of building credibility with the Hiring Manager is to take an active interest in the Hiring Manager’s line of business. Find out from the Hiring Manger what he or she views as their major challenges and why would someone want to work for them. Ask the Hiring Manager to meet his most successful people. If you are asked to call the candidate, do so as quickly as possible and give the feedback as quickly as possible. This is a great way to verify what you have done and build credibility with your customer.<br /><br />The most effective way to “build a placement” is to dialogue with the Hiring Manager about what you are doing and what feedback you are receiving from the candidates.<br /><br />Some of the techniques I have found to be helpful are the following; determine with the Hiring Manager why I candidate is a fit or not, weekly feedback thru email or a meeting (depending on the logistics), only forwarding candidates that fit the parameters developed with the Hiring Manager and HONESTY which is the most important.David Grazianohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12008076819283956959noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6535577198811715942.post-54247739253829888772008-12-16T19:25:00.005-05:002009-02-09T01:58:12.881-05:00Returning the Candidate's telephone call or email.The issue of returning the Candidate's contact, telephone call or email after initial resume submission has always been one I have had strong feelings about. A Recruiter's ability to return to contact the Candidate after the initial resume submission has been significantly enhanced by Applicant Tracking Systems. The ATS does that for us.<br /><br />What the Recruiter does after that is most critical in developing a viable network for the skill sets and experience the Recruiter is seeking. I am well aware that it is virtually impossible to contact everyone that has applied for the positions we are staffing. But it does not take much effort to have an email system facilitate contact with the Candidates that may not be "the ones", but yet valuable to the pipeline.<br /><br />I strongly support setting aside part of the day to return those phone calls that come in and spend a brief amount of time with the Candidates that call. This will give you an opportunity to ask for referrals and gather other Candidate and market intelligence. It also does not hurt your efforts to be straightforward with the candidate and educate them as to why they are not a fit.<br /><br />It has been my experience that a Candidate respects this and I will have begun to develop a valuable future resource of information from this person.<br /><br />Thoughts anyone?David Grazianohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12008076819283956959noreply@blogger.com1