A Melodic Review of a Recruitment Bygone Year

A Melodic Review of a Recruitment Bygone Year It’s the most wonderful time of the year… I find it is a great opportunity to reflect on all aspects of your recruitment year just passed: • The successes and achievements • The failures and learning curves made from them • Your sales/revenue achieved, versus targets • Clients gained and lost reasons why Oh Come all ye faithful Taking each of those points- successes and achievements clearly include strong billing, biggest fees and incredible candidates placed. Think about what you have overcome in a process. Some of my biggest successes this year has been placing really key people into entrepreneurial owner managed businesses, who have very quickly become such an important part of the fabric of that business that it feels like poetry. I can think of at least a dozen senior placements this year who have since become senior decision makers I have gone on to place with. That is the true recruitment life cycle in my opinion where candidate and client become one as your customer. Practise what you preach and faithfully work the winning formula each time, if you can! Stop the Cavalry The failures in recruitment are usually epitomised by candidates not getting the offers they had hoped for, for clients being disappointed by their ideal candidates being counter offered. All these are situations that every recruiter, nay employer, faces at some time. And the key point to note is that lessons are learned. What could have been done to avoid these failures? Better understanding at the start of the process of salary expectations and informing the client of this? Probing the motivations of the candidate’s desire to move to anticipate the counter offer? Teaching you to suck eggs is not the purpose of my blogs, I promise, however, sometimes you need to STOP and go back to basics and ensure you learn from each process that did not result in success. My own personal “failures” this year have included the above scenarios and being in R2R, it may surprise you to read that this does happen- it shocks me when it does as my candidate/client management is something I pride myself on however I still take stock when these rare occurrences happen and ensure I learn with the other “wounded” party in what we could have done differently. Fairytale of New York So you/your boss/employer set a financial target at the start of the year. Hopefully you use key ratios as kpis to work backwards from there. With monthly appraisals and reviews weekly of your progress and with MOST markets in full recovery, most recruiters should be achieving consistent performances now if these targets set were realistic and fair. I have overachieved on my financial target by 50% this year. Which I am obviously delighted about. However, you will be shocked to hear that when I hit my yearly goal by July, I did not sit back on my laurels, I kept on pushing and doing the good bits and focused on over achieving. This is the fairytale part where you know every solid placement you make is profit and a true delight! KPIs are not there to bash people over the head with. I measure myself on ratios. I achieved placement ratios of 1:1.7 which I know is exceptional, I am a “sniper” in how I operate though, working mainly with exclusive highly experienced people and clearly working SMARTLY with them rather than a “scatter gun” approach. My trade secrets revealed…. My Christmas present to you…. Last Christmas Mr Retrospective negotiator, unethical/immoral client/candidate, I gave you my heart but the very next day, you gave it away…. If you have clients who have shown they are not true partners, if they lack any integrity- renegotiating, going behind your back, as two prime examples: now is the time to draw the line and as you devise your strategic business plan for next year, do not partner these people going forward. Equally, which clients HAVE become true partners to you- even if you have not yet placed with them, focus on how you can build on this relationship next year; set key milestones, arrange to meet up f2f quarterly. This is a perfect time of year to reflect on what has worked and… what hasn’t. Recruitment is not a perfect science though as we all know, we are dealing with fellow human beings, so things change, circumstances alter- for either party involved; people change their minds! My Christmas wish for recruitment is for us all to remember that our moral obligation is to maintain integrity at all times, to be honest to all individuals- to show empathy and compassion. To offer the best customer experience that we can and ultimately, do unto others…. I will leave you with one my favourite Christmas songs of all time and rather apt for what is going on in the world at the moment…. Happy Xmas (War Is Over) I hope you have enjoyed the click throughs to the songs chosen above to put you all in a Christmas spirit, go and grab a Gluwhein, a mince pie and sit back and enjoy. Thank you this year for your likes, RT, shares, comments and support. I look forward to seeing you all in the New Year! Be safe. [Image Credit: Shutterstock]

2009 is the Year of the Niche Gatekeepers - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career

2009 is the Year of the Niche Gatekeepers - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career This year, I wrote an article called 5 Steps to Becoming the Gatekeeper of Your Personal Brand, and today Im telling you that you need to follow those steps immediately. In 2009, there will be new gatekeepers or those that own a niche on the web. Trying to own your own mainstream media news website is quite a lofty and ambitious goal, especially when youre competing with titans such as the Wall Street Journal and USA Today. Web 2.0 has allowed anyone to produce a media website, collect advertising revenues and build a strong readership based, which tends to be more loyal (RSS) than traditional readership. Its niche player time In 2009, online viewers will be very spread out among a lot of niche sites that cater to special interest groups. Some call this the long tail theory, and I think its only natural that people cling to their interests and sort out what blogs provide the most value (entertainment or informational). Weve already seen the rise of some gatekeepers, but they arent so much niche players anymore, as their industries have grown. Here are some common examples: I would consider each of these individuals career commanders and experts in personal branding. The best test for personal branding greatness is being top-of-mind. When I think of a certain topic, they came to mind. Lets see which of them monitor their personal brand online by setting a Google alert to their name and responding to this post. ?? Social media: Chris Brogan, Jeremiah Owyang, Rohit Bhargava Marketing: Seth Godin Personal Finance: J.D. Roth, Ramit Sethi Entrepreneurship: Guy Kawasaki, Pamela Slim Technology: Robert Scoble Celebrities: Perez Hilton Careers: Penelope Trunk, Lindsey Pollak, Alexandra Levit Recruiting: Joel Cheesman, Chris Russell Why gatekeepers succeed and you dont The more content these individuals create over a period of time, the more they will rank higher in Google and attract a larger audience. The value of their blog properties has increased over the years because theyve taken a leadership position and have written about ideas that have spread through the internet (aka more links). Google values websites that have been around for a while more than fresh sites. This means they have control over their subject areas and in order to be half as successful as they are with their blogs, you need to earn their respect (get a link from them from time to time). Otherwise, it will be extremely hard for you to succeed at their level because they own their domain. Since social media is much like high school, if you arent in the cool crowd, you wont get as many links and it will be much harder for you to escalate to the top. You can be a gatekeeper in 2009 In 2009, if you are new to the web, you have the ability to stand out and shine. If you are already a blogger, you may have to shift your strategy slightly. There are literally infinite niche’s out there that haven’t been claimed. One great way to do this is to conduct searches on Google for groups of keywords. Also, by following the hot trends, you might identify a great niche for yourself. Either way, you need to find a non-saturated area of the internet if you want to be found. First movers are always rewarded!

14 Essential Online Dating Tips For Women - Classy Career Girl

14 Essential Online Dating Tips For Women Online dating used to be something you whispered self-consciously to your closest friends, as if it meant you had “failed” at meeting someone the traditional way. Nowadays, more and more couples are meeting each other online and the rules are being rewritten. I’ve actually enjoyed my experiences online dating, and I’m on my fourth year anniversary with someone I met online.     The secret, I’ve found, is mainly in your attitude and approach to online dating. Here are some of my top tips, from one honest classy career girl to another! 14 Essential Online Dating Tips For Women 1. Be Confident Dont approach online dating submissively.  It’s scary to admit that you are “looking” for that special someone but don’t forget, your blind date is auditioning as much as you are.  If you walk into your date with a genuine desire to learn about the other person, have a pleasant conversation, and have an inner confidence of what you bring to the potential partnership, you will feel a lot more comfortable meeting strangers. Remember, they are probably just as nervous as you are. Don’t forget you want to assess if you like them. Don’t worry so much about them liking you and I promise you won’t feel as nervous. 2. Don’t Drag It Out I used to let guys send me several electronic messages back and forth before meeting up in person. Then I started realizing that many men are very eloquent online, but too shy or too socially awkward to really spark any chemistry in real life.  Once I got wise to this, I’d start to notice that the men who wrote super-long messages were often the ones most reluctant to meet me in person, as they knew that they weren’t bringing a lot of assets aside from their writing ability. Then I switched to making sure the messages were shorter and after just a few messages, I would initiate asking to meet for coffee. Not surprisingly, some never wrote back. Others agreed and we found out during the meeting that we didn’t have any chemistry.     Better to meet sooner rather than later so that the encounter doesn’t drag out and you waste time writing back and forth. Why would you invest time becoming emotionally attached to someone through their writing and words if you would never click once you meet in person? Establish an interest in each other and then don’t drag it out. Get that initial meeting over with as soon as you can. And, just as importantly, never continue dating someone after the first date because you “feel bad” for them.     If they persist, be honest and say, “I had a great time, but I don’t see us together romantically.”  You need to cut those strings loose immediately.  Nothing good can come of this situation, not to mention you’re now bringing in a drain on your time and energy. 3. Have a Sense of Humor   Attitude is everything. I kept a brief blog during two periods of online dating in two different states. It was the only way to keep everything in perspective and to keep my friends entertained. I would post the messages I would receive online (some of which led me to blocking the writers) or comment on weird dates I’d been on. Most notable: the guy who was obsessed with turtles, and the guy who wanted to talk about his nightmares. Here’s a tip: If a guy has to write “no crazies please” in his profile, you do not want to hang out with him since clearly he is a magnet for drama. You WILL go out on a weird date at least once, but probably more than once. That’s why I recommend coffee or something non-committal â€" you don’t want to be stuck at a dinner table! You need to prepare yourself for it now and instead of turning this into a pity-party (“Why do I always get the weirdos”) you need to change your attitude to, “I can’t wait to tell my friends about this!” 4. Know Yourself Before Demanding Attributes From Others Make sure you’re not asking for more than you’re willing to give. Are you writing that you want someone in a certain socioeconomic status, but in the same paragraph you demonstrate a lack of ambition and a lack of discipline?  It’s difficult to demand standards from others if you don’t have them for yourself. Don’t gleefully write “I’m a princess and you must open the door for me and you will take me out to a five-star restaurant on our first date,” and then wonder why confident men steer away from you.     The classiest thing a lady can do is simply expect high standards, not demand them.     It’s amazing how much this makes a difference in people’s opinion of you. Consider asking a trusted friend (perhaps even a male friend) to check your online profile and see if they can guess the type of person you’re trying to attract. If they can’t, you might want to consider rewriting your profile or changing your photos so that there isn’t a disconnect between what you think you’re saying and what you’re presenting to the world.   5. Never Lie On Your Profile Do not put up photos from 50 lbs ago. Do not say you don’t have any kids if you really do.  Do not gush that you love heavy metal when you really don’t. Do not say you like long walks in the park if you’re actually allergic to pollen.     Just don’t. 6. Recognize Online Dating is Hard for Both Men and Women On many sites, some women just have to put up one photo and they will receive 100 messages in one hour. This is mind-boggling.     Men have to work a little harder to be on the receiving end of pursuit.     Thus, men are dealing with online dating rejection every single day as the odds of their receiving a response are lower than yours. With 100 messages a day, how are you going to possibly sort through these? Your mind will eventually figure out shortcuts who put effort into their profile, who has a photo you like, who used humor in their profile or who seems confident. While at first it may feel flattering to get so many messages and “likes,” don’t let it go to your head. Stay authentic and true to your values and your character, and use the same clues in assessing their profile that you would if you met them in real life. 7. Recognize Setups If a guy reaches out to “tease” you or to challenge you (“I bet you’re the type of girl who would never…”), walk away right now. This is a huge red flag.  You do not have to prove anything to him.  Only a stranger with bad intentions would want to make you feel defensive or that you have to prove anything. If someone said this to your face, how would that make you feel?  Delete his message and move on.  Same with inappropriate or vulgar unwanted messages â€" don’t even bother responding with a reaction because that is what they are looking for. Block or report the person and focus on positive interactions. 8. View Online Dating as a Marathon, Not a Sprint Unless you get incredibly lucky, you’re not going to hit off with the first person you meet and live happily ever after. You need to be prepared for a series of interesting first dates before you find yourself moving on to that one special person. 9. Experiment With Different Dating Websites I’m not going to name the different dating websites as every generation seems to have a new app or favorite website, but just know that each site seems to have its individual culture in terms of demographics, emphasis on serious relationship, ways of interacting, and so forth. Don’t expect to have the same results with each website, you may have to experiment a bit. For instance, some are definitely a bit more marriage-oriented while others feature more casual encounters. Also, I online-dated in two different states (I changed jobs), and although I was using the same website I found the quality of men and the experience to be quite different on that same website. Give certain sites a second chance if you move to a new city, or ask your friends what they’ve used that they like.   10. Don’t Take Mismatches Personally Some women may come home after every coffee date and sulk on the couch.  â€œI’ll never meet anyone!” When you bring this attitude to the table, you bring negativity and bad energy to the process and you are also putting on a desperate vibe, which means you will not attract the best candidates.  Once you start complaining about your dates, you have begun to look at dating as a combative and negative experience which will affect your judgment. I’m telling it to you straight: Desperation is not attractive.     Be classy, acknowledge that not everyone has chemistry with each other, “bless and release,” and move on to the next date.   11. Take a Break During my first online dating foray, I thought I had it down.  Then I scheduled three coffee meetups…in the same day. This was as exhausting as it sounds. Looking back on it, this wasn’t the smartest move for an introvert anyway,  but having three different blind dates on the same day made me realize I wanted to take a step back and not be out there so much. Step back and take a break every so often â€" often you can temporarily disable your profile so that you don’t continue to get messages in your absence. 12. Be Safe I never let anyone pick me up at my house for a first date and I always told a friend when I was on a first date, even if it was just coffee.  The first time my now-boyfriend came over to my house, I texted my friend and asked her to check up on me in a few hours.  It’s just always good to let people know your whereabouts when you’re hanging out with strangers. 13. Be Honest About Your End Goal Be honest with yourself about what you’re looking for and make sure you’re using the appropriate website. Also, you need to make sure you know what type of man you are looking for.     Then, if his internet profile gives even the hint of something else to the contrary, do not contact him. I repeat, do not contact him. If you are looking for a significant relationship with someone who doesn’t drink, for example, do not reach out to someone who has a photo of them with a beer bottle in their hand, no matter how good looking they are.  You cannot change anyone and you are only setting yourself up for disappointment later. Many times when people complain about mismatches during their online dating adventures, you can generally discern that there were hints of a potential mismatch from the very beginning. 14. Keep an Open Mind Sometimes you have to recognize what is a “big rule” (the dealbreakers) and what is a “little rule” (you just trying to maintain control over a scary process). When I met my now-boyfriend, I actually broke most of my own smaller rules. I gave him my telephone number after one message online, met up late at night for our first date, and I kissed him on the first date. All things I’d refused to do for many other men who’d contacted me. Four years later, he is the most inspiring, supportive, motivated, and ambitious person I know.     Sometimes I even forget we met on the internet.     It’s fine to have ground rules as an emotional support, but as long as you’re safe and legal, don’t forget to follow your heart as well.   I wish you the best of adventures with your new online dating skills!

2015 Graduates Where Will They Work

2015 Graduates Where Will They Work Graduation is upon many, as this years final year students sit their final exams and prepare to enter the real world. So, where will this years graduates work and what kind of areas of study are in demand from big companies? When will they start their new jobs and how are companies finding fresh talent from the graduate pool? LaSalle network have provided some statistics and facts to help us understand the future  of a 2015 graduate: Companies: 71% of organisations plans to hire graduates this year. 20% of companies have already hired graduates to start work as soon as they graduate. Majors: Business majors are most in demand  with 38%. Maths and Statistics are also highest in demand with 38%. Computer and Information Sciences are 27% in demand. Salary: Higher starting salaries than last year 33%. About the same salary 57%. Lower than last year 10%. Finding talent: Employee referrals 33%. Collaborating with colleagues and universities 68%! Social networking sites 23%. LinkedIn 91%! Find out more below. RELATED: What Are the Main Benefits of Hiring Students and Graduates?

9 Recruitment Trends To Look Out For In 2018 - CareerMetis.com

9 Recruitment Trends To Look Out For In 2018 Recruitment has changed drastically over a last few decades. It has become one of the integral operations within the department of human resources. The moment we hear recruitment, the first image that forms within our brains is horde of application forms and candidates lining up for the interviews.However, gone are the days when one had to go through the piles of resumes and zillions of interview rounds to get the right fit for the job. evalWith today’s changing scenario, recruitment is seeing growth in some of the new trends which can help them to get the best talent efficiently without wasting a lot of time and resources. Let’s have a go through these upcoming trends in the sector of recruitment:1. Hiring Through Social MediaThe social media has already seeped within the nook and cranny of every person’s world. Everybody is using this craze to benefit their businesses or services, especially in terms of recruitment. Many recruiters consider it as one of the major sources of f or getting candidates.However, the work increases in terms of filtering as a wide number of people with varied backgrounds apply for the job. However it too serves to the best of the interests as these candidates can be sorted out on the basis of their capabilities.With around 2 billion users out of which three fourths of active social media users serves the whole purpose of reaching out to every person with the right skills2. Use Of Technological OptionsHiring the candidates from all over the world without meeting in person is quite possible, thanks to the evolution of technology.Use of modern amenities such as video interviewing, non parallel interviewing and online assessments has helped in increasing the efficiency of the hiring process by almost a very huge margin, allowing us to reach out to the long distance based talent without any hassles or hiccups.3. Outsourcing Is InOne can often see these days that the hiring strategy is beginning to be made just as any other normal str ategy. The top brass of the company is showing keen interest and also giving specific requirements as to what skills they require for getting the work done.evalIn the present scenario, the companies are outsourcing these candidates to make sure that they have the best talent to work with.The RPO frameworks taking a shot at a sound innovation stage have the capacity to perform work competitor matchmaking and present world class understanding to all gatherings included while at the same time overseeing expense and time efficiencies4.Analysis Is The BasisThe HR leaders are playing a pivotal role in the running of the business; hence the title of Business HR. The companies expect their HR leaders to analyse the numbers and the give the top leaders a sound picture in order to make business decisions or strategies.Gone are the days of making decisions based on good faith, every one of them needs to be data driven. However, until now this data hasn’t been properly utilised by the talent acquisition leaders, says a study done by LinkedIn.evalAlthough one can now see a slow rise as the lead acquisition leaders have started using these for their core functions such as workforce planning, workforce utilization, and also dabbling with the scope of sourcing.5. Branding MattersToday’s candidates are like consumers who look out for the best company based on their branding and packaging. With such a picture in action, recruiters have become more conscious of the fact that it is slowly becoming more of a marketing process too.Branding is to gain much more importance in the future to come. The more attractive the company looks the more interested the employee would be in working. The companies have already started focusing on attracting candidates through their postings on social media accounts or though the videos in order to give them a feel as to what they have to offer.6. Reaching The Talent Through MobilesIn this mobile ridden world, most of the candidates are availabl e on their mobile and is one of the most important sources of finding the jobs. Hence it is important for the recruiters to ensure their presence on all the mobile optimised sites and apps on their fingers.One can always miss out a valuable source by not using this important method. Hence, recruiters need to focus their searches to be more mobile friendly which will ensure them more coverage and reach to the talent pool.7. Work Experience MattersWith everyone fighting the conflict to attract the best talent, it is clear that organizations are now focusing on delivering an unparalleled experience to prospects. Though in the past, this intent was limited to industries like IT, but now is slowly being adapted by all the other ones as well.A good working experience can be quite the brilliant strategy for the company to attract best talent but a bad experience can make even the best of candidate turn down the job.Good talent deserves to be respected and expects the same from the company they work for. One might not work for an organisation that has no interest in their employees.8. Assigning Work OnlineWorking in a company that resides in a country like India, which is on the verge of reaping the demographic results, frontline hiring becomes quite an important part of the recruitment mix.. Conducting selection interviews is a mammoth process and get the desired as well as accurate results.evalOnline assessments are a man made genius solution to such scenarios. Not only they allow you to assess the talent of the person but also they give you an exact idea of what the person is capable of. Many companies are now relying on this method of assessing the capability of the person on a specific skill set.9. Passive Is The New ActiveIt is a form of hiring which has been catching the attention of the recruiters since a while. Many candidates try to keep looking for a opportunity with better and improved perks and facilities. And as the focus of organisations is mainly on ob taining a better skill set whenever available, this trend is to catch fire quite soon.There is already a spike being seen in usage of tools like social media to encourage collaboration and help in communicating to this certain breed of job seekers. One can very soon expect the companies to have quite a different set of strategies for such job seekers in the future to come.You too can use these tips and ensure that you hire the best of the talent out there for your required skill set. While some might work and might not but then, you would only know the best fit for you only when you try.

The ROI of Social Recruiting Exists

The ROI of Social Recruiting Exists The newly released Social Recruiting Survey results by Jobvite provides proof that social recruiting works! Employers are rapidly experimenting and often embracing the use of social networks to source and hire new employees.  94% of Companies Use (or plan to use) Social Recruiting When Jobvite first polled recruiters and hiring managers in 2008, only 78% stated they were using social networks to recruit. What a difference a few years makes! According to the Jobvite results, 73% of employers state they plan to increase their investment in social network recruiting. Why Social Recruiting Works In order to understand why social recruiting is working for employers, you have to understand how they are using the various networks. This should give you an idea. You can click on the image to view the details, here are the highlights from this: LinkedIn 96%  Search for candidates 94% Contact candidates 93% Keep tabs on potential candidates 92% Vet candidates pre-interview 91% Post jobs Facebook 65% Showcase employer brand 51% Generate employee referrals 49% Post jobs 35% Vet candidates  post-interview 31% Vet candidates pre-interview Twitter 47% Showcase employer brand 43% Post jobs 31% Generate employee referrals 19% Contact candidates 18% Vet candidates post-interview But to boil it down to the basics, this is what recruiters look for when they view candidate profiles on LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter. The ROI for Recruiters Faster hires and less money spent! Plain and simple! Need More Help On Social Networks?  If you are in job search or plan to be in job search, learn how to master these social networks!  You can check out my suggestions for job seekers in todays US News World Report post.

Free eBooks for Job Seekers -

Free eBooks for Job Seekers - If a new job is one of your resolutions for 2009, you wont want to miss two free resources to help you achieve your goals: Chris Brogan, community and social media guru, is giving away a free eBook about using the social web to find work. If anyone can advise about the subject of social media, it is Chris. CLICK HERE to learn how to download this free resource. I am offering a free eBook on the topic of holiday networking. CLICK HERE to learn more about how to receive  a copy of Drive Your Own Career Bus Holiday Networking for Success. My eBook will only be free until the new year, so dont delay! Between my book on in-person networking and Chris tips on using Web 2.0, you will be well positioned to network your way to a new job in the new year! Happy Holidays! A new career is one of your resolutions? Contact me to see how I can help you! If you need help with your job hunt, visit my site, www.keppiecareers.com.   NOTE: Im offering a  FREE 8-week teleseminar with coach Carolann Jacobs Land Your Dream Job. Tuesdays starting 1/8, 5:30 pm CST. Register HERE. photo from Chris Brogans ebook