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Interview with a Dinosaur - Sound bytes from AzProfessional Recruiters Assn 1/23 lunch follow this discussion
Interview with a Dinosaur: Sound bytes from the Arizona Professional Recruiters Association on combining ?old school? techniques with today?s technology
Fans of the ERE Daily will recall an article by John Sullivan titled ?Top 10 Indications That You Are a Dinosaur (Old-School) Recruiter? that sparked a firestorm of commentary and a rebuttal of sorts by Howard Adamsky on ?Recruiting, Innovation, and Thinking Differently? that noted, ?Technology is often seen as the great enabler, but, at times it can be the great disabler.?
The juxtaposition of these two perspectives inspired a lively panel discussion sponsored by the Arizona Technical Recruiters Association (APRA) at its January 23 meeting. Over 90 recruitment industry professionals, representing a cross section of the Phoenix employment community gathered for an open forum discussion led by ?dinosaur? recruiting experts and moderated by APRA President, Jason Dupree, on ?Recruiting 101: Bring Back Personal Attention & Fundamentals by combining old school techniques with today?s technology.?
Panelists covered ?high tech? versus ?high touch? and the human elements of recruiting: Relationship building, sourcing, negotiating offers and counter-offers, preparing candidates for the interview, skills matching candidates for best fit, understanding the job requirements, and other proven basics.
The consensus was that ?new school? recruitment tools such as Web 2.0 social media, blogging, text-messaging, business intelligence, podcasts and jobcasts are no substitute for the basics ? because you can not rely on a tool to actually make a hire. Attendees learned how the most effective recruiters are the ones with the right mix of tools in their toolkit, and the strongest affinity for finding and matching the best possible candidate for the best possible fit for everyone involved.
We caught up with one of Arizona?s favorite dinosaurs, a senior technical recruiter and APRA charter member David Williams, and asked him to elaborate on the topic.
Q: What makes you an ?old school? recruiter? A: I guess I am old school because I attempt to communicate with candidates by telephone initially, then face to face as quickly as possible versus communicating via MySpace, blog, or IM. I think good recruiters should always meet candidates face to face, whenever it?s reasonably possible, especially when the candidates are local or visiting from out of state. Historically, this significantly increases your chance for success in placing that candidate. This more personal contact helps establish rapport and gives you the best chance of making yourself and your job opportunity the first choice rather than the second or third choice in the candidate?s selection process.
I believe that the above dialogue is significant in establishing your right to assess the candidate, hence your ability to influence, impact and consult the candidate. Thus, you will have earned their trust by simply telling the truth, and in doing so, you have also made them a more valuable and viable candidate.
Q: What ?old school? methods do you recommend for new recruiters? A: I also believe in the KISS theory of ?Keep It Simple, Stupid? so I reduce candidates into four categories, A, B, C and D.
Category A: These are the ?can?t miss? candidates; almost any company will hire them, i.e., they have excellent education, great employment track records, and are realistic and flexible about their salary requirements.
Category B: These are the ones that have good experience and education, but don?t have all the required skills or certification. They may also be priced right and realistic, and willing to accept your recommendations.
Category C: These candidates also have good experience, may not be degreed, have a reasonable track record and are local candidates. They may be priced higher than A or B based on years of experience and area of expertise.
Category D: Candidates that are not in immediate demand. They may have specialized technical skills, i.e., Mainframe, AS400 Tandem, etc. that are no longer in significant demand, but may be needed for specific job requirements.
Q: In his article, Howard Adamsky suggests that we should ?de-innovate? and ?remove the distractions and focus on developing enhanced levels of understanding and communication?. What does this statement mean to you and is it possible to ?enhance understanding and communication? while also using some of the new technologies that John Sullivan wrote about? A: Learn how to fish the old fashion way and you?ll never starve for applicants. Don?t forget there is always more than one way to get candidates. You should use all the available resources, job boards, resume spiders, network groups, professional associations, alumni books, internet search engines and social networks, newspaper and magazine articles, company websites and company directories and organizational charts, etc. Use whatever tools are appropriate to develop a pipeline of candidates, and make the call to establish a rapport for the future.
Honesty remains the best policy. Never lie to a candidate; be honest in your assessment; ask enough questions to determine accurate qualifications; determine the candidate?s motivation for seeking a job change; determine the candidate?s minimum acceptable salary or hourly rate requirement; determine their earliest available to start work on the new assignment or job; establish their right to work in the USA. Always get three or four references of peers, subordinates and supervisors. These references should include names, job titles, email addresses and telephone numbers. References also represent potential candidates (or clients) in the future.
Q: What makes a good recruiter? A: Good recruiters love doing what they do. They want to help people, they?re passionate about helping others, and are empathetic. Good recruiters make each and every applicant feel they are getting a fair crack at opportunities that they qualify for. Good recruiters begin with the end in mind: to establish the qualifications of the candidate and determine, what do the candidates really do? They have a talent for ascertaining a solid understanding of the job opportunity and the qualifications of a potential candidate.
Good recruiters are also salespeople. They can convince candidates that they know what they are talking about. And they can convince a Hiring Manager that their candidate is qualified for the position they want to fill.
Good recruiters ask themselves: Can I place this candidate right now? If not, they want to leave the candidate with a positive feeling about how they have been assessed. Good recruiters also ask if the candidate agrees with their assessment. They find out how the candidates? assess or identify themselves. Good recruiters ask good questions.
-- About David Williams, Sr. Technical Recruiter, Spherion Professional Services Group: Dave Williams, DavidWilliams@spherion.com is an IT professional with over 12 years working in the flexible staffing IT contract service industry in Phoenix, Arizona. He has worked as a recruitment specialist, sales account rep, and resource manager servicing a variety of industries and technologies. His resume also includes 9 years in development, marketing and operation of a search business, which provided information systems professionals to corporate clients, and management/training/mentoring of a staff of recruiters and sales reps.
About the author: Sylvia Dahlby (sylvia@smartsearchonline.com) has worked in the recruiting industry since 1979 and is a co-founder of the Arizona Professional Recruiters Association. She is currently a Rainmaker at Advanced Personnel Systems, Inc., developers of SmartSearch, a ?best in class? talent acquisition, applicant tracking, recruiting automation and staffing management solution, and one of the top rated systems on the ERE survey of the most popular products.
-- Sylvia Dahlby www.smartsearchonline.com >> SmartSearch >> Recruit the Right Way. Right away. Staffing Management & Talent Acquisition Software from APS, Inc. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Any views or opinions expressed in this message via newsgroup posts are those of the author only and not necessarily those of Advanced Personnel Systems, Inc. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
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Great piece, Sylvia!
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