Who is representing you with your job search? The landscape of many large, well known search firms have gone through some major changes due to the economy. Search firms have been hit hard and more recruiters have lost their jobs more than any other time. Recruiters who have been successful for years are no longer around. In this down market recruiting firms have decided to cut back instead of trying to spend their way out of the problem. That does seem to be an action that is not only prudent, intelligent, responsible, and something that requires common sense, but what do I know? They then hire low draw or commission only people and allow them to work the existing database. The only problem with this tactic is the new people they hire are learning how to be a recruiter in one of the most difficult times to date! All I can say is good luck with that.
Tim Peters started with me 10 years ago and he is someone who really did fall off the boat! Tim, a Merchant Marine working for a division of Hess Gas as Chief Officer, wanted a change. I knew Tim for about 2 years prior and knew that he would succeed as a recruiter because succeeding was something that he only knew. Days of being out to sea were wearing on Tim and he had the confidence to do what ever it took to succeed. Tim works in Connecticut and handles many different verticals and has built some strong relationships.
Bryant Madore has also been with me for 10 years and he worked as a training supervisor for Payless Shoe Source before jumping into the recruiting world. Bryant has a strong work ethic and he works out of North Carolina. He enjoys working on the really hard to fill positions and seems to always fill them regardless to where the job and he knows how to get the job done.
That being said there are still jobs out there to be had. We have seen an increase in activity and expect it to continue. So before thinking the way to land your next opportunity is to call one of the large staffing firms think again. Do your homework by checking out who you will be working with and how long they have personally been in the search business.
Today there has got to be more resumes being sent out like no other time in history. Email servers across the country are working over time, but how many of those resumes actually get to where they needed to go? I literally receive about 100 plus resumes a day and what is interesting to me is out of 100 only 2 people will follow up with me for a response. Are people just blanketing their resume without a plan to any email address that they come across?
It is important to follow through with your transmissions but the problem is you don’t even know if it was received. MyJobCAST.com is a tool that will not only tell you if your resume was received but if it was looked at.
I would have to say that persistence is something that more and more people lack. I don’t want to get into the reasons why that is, but one should know if his or her resume was received and if so what the next step is.
Is it me or does it seem that every generation takes things a little less serious than the last? You keep hearing about the World War II generation as being the best generation there ever was. I’m one not to argue with that but what I can say is that over the past few years I have seen some crazy stuff. People not showing up for job interviews without giving notice and then not returning calls. I have seen this age group call 2 hours before an interview and cancel because their car was “over worked” the day before. Do they even know what work is? Then the excuse turns into something else all together after you suggest they take a cab. I can tell you one thing, if my son or daughter ever does something like that man watch out.
Who is teaching these kids to do things like that? I would hope colleges today haven’t gone to the left on manners and etiquette like they have with everything else, but its really not their job is it? I mean you expect colleges to get their students ready for the interviewing process, but I believe things like this should have been taught in the home.
Allow me to give a bit of advice and that is when you make an appointment you honor that appointment. I mean like its cast in concrete. You do not cancel an interview on the fly especially when a recruiter got you that interview. Listen if you want to hurt you reputation go ahead but don’t burn a bridge with a recruiter. The last thing you want to do is to hurt the relationship between the recruiter and their client. After all it was the recruiter that got you the interview at no cost to you. Remember one thing, after being in this business and meeting hundreds of recruiters you don’t want to piss them off. If you think they’ll forget you then I have some land to sell you.
Keep in mind that good news travels fast but bad news travels at warp speed!
More and more I am coming across job candidates that have recently moved for a new opportunity and have purchased a home only to then lose their jobs or the job wasn’t the right fit.
In today’s market I am finding that companies seem to be in this panic mode. Profits for many of them are up but they are reacting in a way that doesn’t make much sense and getting extremely lean with their personnel. Of course this creates a real negative environment to be a part of since each person is now doing the work of three and to accomplish this the hours are long.
When relocating with a family there are many things you need to consider. Without writing a book on the subject (I can since I relocated last year), it is my opinion that you should rent for about a year. This way you can personally learn of the areas that would best fit your lifestyle and that will give you the time to evaluate your new opportunity. You can find the best schools for your children through your own experiences rather that what “THEY SAY”. Now I know there are people out there who really buy into the whole “WRITE OFF” thing but I must say when you lose your job, write offs are not what’s going to be on your mind. You just wish you had that cash in hand while you look for a new position.
So when relocating take it slow and make sure that when you do buy a home the time and location is what is best for you and your family.
With unemployment reaching over 10% in some parts of the country, hiring managers are becoming very picky on choosing a candidate. What is happening is that jobs are going unfilled because of their perceptions. Management thinks the job market is terrible and that all open positions should be easily filled instantly with top notch candidates. More and more HR personnel are shaking their heads in disbelief that some of the candidates that they have met with are not getting job offers. Candidates who just over a year ago would have been hired after one interview are now being passed up for the hopes of finding an even better candidate.
HR personal are getting a truck load of resumes from ads but very few people fit the bill. They are frustrated when they see a home run of a candidate but hiring managers think that there are so many great candidates out there because of the news reports.
The reality of the job market is that the best of the best are still employed and not every industry or vertical has been affected. Companies that are still operating have not let their best talent go. That is why you never leave a job on your own until you have another offer. Perception can and sometimes is everything.
In any economy when you meet a job candidate that can do the job that is required and has the personality fit that you are looking for then you should move forward with that person. The same thing goes for job candidates when searching and that is the first interview you go on may be the only interview you go on. I have seen more candidates pass up an opportunity for the hopes of another. There is no magic number of companies that you need to meet with before accepting a job. Sometimes candidates feel they need to interview at 5 different companies in order to decide which company is best for them. In today’s market however it is unlikely you will get 5 separate interviews and like the hiring managers of today, you probably won’t see 5 great candidates for the same job.
