Our New and Improved Blog

I’m happy to announce the launch, or I guess I should say “re-launch” of the TriStarr Staffing blog.

Today we are launching our new and improved blog. TriStarr’s previous blog, which we launched on January 23, 2009, was hosted on the free blogger.com service. The new blog is integrated into our main site with the sub domain: blog.tristarrjobs.com.

We will no longer be posting here, so please use the new address.

Diamonds in the Rough, cont,

Watch out for those red flags!!

We've all heard this, "watch for the red flags", but do we all really react when we see them? And now, when there are so many more unemployed candidates than there were two or three years ago, resources have popped up all over to help those, "less than stellar" candidates get through an interview and land a job.

Here are some subtle red flags that I've picked up over the years, that I hope, if you haven't already, you can add to your screening arsenal.

• Too Much Information: I see this one often. A long resume, with lots of big words, making the candidate who for their whole career has been in middle management (based on job titles you see on the resume), but the resume reads like they worked right alongside Bill Gates when he was starting Microsoft. Make sure that the candidate's descriptions of their positions make logical sense with the job title. A division, or regional level manager rarely sits in on negotiations for the acquisition of venture capital. And while there has been a lot of downsizing over the past couple of years - if their resume reads like they were integral in starting Microsoft - well they'd still be there - someone else would have been let go.
• Big Profit and Revenue Growth Claims: Salespeople and Sales Mangers love to do this. On the resume they report that the grew revenues or consistently grew profits, and then stop there. If there are no numbers following these statements beware. I cannot tell you how many times I have had really good people leave this off of their resume. A good candidate will know how much they grew sales and/or profits, and happily put that on paper (and a good reference can verify that). Now, don't just assume that if there are numbers, they are accurate. I know of a business owner who loves to rave about how much his business grows every year. Once, a few years ago his revenue was listed in a business weekly. Well, now here a few years later, if his claims were true he'd be a lot bigger than he is. Check the numbers, and use common sense. If there are no numbers backing up growth claims, or the numbers just don't make sense with what you know about the previous employer, or can reference - RED FLAG!
• Lots of Job Changes: I do believe that the days of staying with one employer for life are over - but excessive job changes - by these I mean from one company to another - or subtle gaps between positions are a red flag. I look for growth or progression from one position to another. If someone is jumping from company to company with the same job title, that's a LOT different than moving for a higher level position each time. The difference - one is marginal and being moved out - the other is a high performer being recruited out. I'd want the latter working for me.
• Body Language or Dress: A candidate's body language, or what they wear should match what they've done in the past. If you have a candidate sitting in front of you for a high level sales, or sales management position, and they are not well groomed and wearing well tailored clothes - RED FLAG! If that same candidate is well dressed and groomed, but is slouching in her chair, fidgeting, glancing away when answering questions - RED FLAG! While the business world has gotten more casual - that doesn't mean that everything is appropriate.

I hope I provided you with a tip or two to help you weed through the field of candidates. I'd welcome your feedback.

Scott

Diamonds in the Rough - The Overqualified

Tuesday's Update: "What Would You Like Them to Forget?"

"The candidate is overqualified".

We hear this often from clients. Their concern? Once the economy improves the candidate will leave for a better position more in line with their experience. May they do that? Sure - a valid concern. But, wouldn't there be the possibility that a "perfectly", or under qualified candidate would do the same?

Think of it this way - what would you like that overqualified candidate to forget?

There are some good people unemployed right now. Many are finding it difficult to find employment at the level they were at pre-recession. If those candidates are willing to take lower paying positions - what's the downside? The risk that they may leave? Isn't there also a risk that your business may improve or change and you may need some of the skills that they have?

The best employees, when laid off, typically will not sit at home and collect unemployment checks until they run out. The best employees will want to stay busy, doing anything, even at a level lower than where they were before. These are the candidates that we want.

The next time you're thinking this candidate is overqualified ask yourself - what would I like them to forget?

Scott

Diamonds in the Rough?

Conventional wisdom has it that the best candidates are found among those that are currently employed, that as recruiters we should avoid the unemployed. Well, with high unemployment, and a very slow jobs recovery (expected to last for a rather long time) there are some "diamonds in the rough" to be found. Sifting through the masses to identify them can be tricky.

Over the next several days I will provide some tips I've gathered for mining candidates from the unemployment rolls.

Monday's Tip: Why is the Candidate Unemployed?

Over that past couple of years I have had many people in my office asking for my advice on their job search. One of the things I have tried to tell all of them is to be honest - put the reason for leaving every job on your resume. My rationale? Let the screener, HR Professional, hiring manager, whomever, know why you left a job or were laid off. Take the guess work out of the process for them. They are reviewing piles of resumes. Anything the candidate can do to move to the "consideration" pile, rather than the "no" pile will help.

Now - that only really works for good candidates. The one's we're after!

Lot's of people have been laid off over the last couple of years. Some are out of work because their company closed, or their division was moved. If we can verify this, we may have uncovered a diamond in the rough. Good candidates, laid off for reasons beyond their control should be able to explain that, and remain positive and confident. Those candidates unemployed for reasons within their control will tend to explain their employment status in vague terms, or actually become defensive or speak negatively about their previous employer.

Look for candidates unafraid to say they are unemployed, and discuss the circumstances of their separation. Certainly then verify the information.

There are good candidates out there in the pool of unemployed workers, and I will continue to provide tips on attracting and identifying those candidates over the next couple of week.

Scott

Interesting Economic Data

Each month I participate in a webinar focused on economic and other trends in the staffing industry. There was an interesting piece of data that was shared that I thought I would pass along.

Temporary staffing has been the leader in job creation over the past several months. That said - for the first time since the recession began, staffing services are reporting that attracting quality candidates is now a larger "problem" than generating sales. This trend has now reversed itself, indicating a tightening of the qualified pool of candidates. This data seemed convincing to me that, albeit slowly, there are signs of recovery in the economy.

We still believe that an economic and jobs recovery will be slow, and could be positively or negatively impacted by many factors in the coming months.

Scott

Job Numbers - Wading Through the Spin

I came across this article this afternoon, and thought that it provided some good, and somewhat objective data. While I still believe that the economic recovery will proceed slowly, there are positive signs, so long as we keep the political spin doctors and their individual agendas out of the mix!

http://www.theworkbuzz.com/current-affairs/september-job-numbers-redux/

Reaching Gen X and Gen Y Candidates

I came across two pieces of information today that I found interesting, and thought I would pass along.

According to research performed by Forrester:

"who polled nearly 43,000 people during the second quarter of 2010, between Generation X (31 to 44 year olds) and Generation Y (18 to 30 year olds) smartphone ownership stands at 23%. That's roughly 1 out of every 4 people owning a device that gives them access to their social networks, maps, music and even the occasional YouTube video."

And secondly;

"As noted by Bernstein Research analyst Colin McGranahan, consumers are adopting the iPad faster than any other consumer electronics device, including the iPhone and the near-ubiquitous DVD player. The iPad's current sales rate is approximately 4.5 million units per quarter, according to Bernstein. That tops the 1 million per quarter that the original iPhone sold at launch, and the 350,000 per quarter when DVD players first launched. " (http://www.cnn.com/2010/TECH/gaming.gadgets/10/05/ipad.adoption.ars/index.html)

Why do I pass these along? Recruiting. This demographic represents a tremendous number of people. If we're trying to reach them using traditional recruiting means (and even some that seemed "new" and "cutting edge" as recently as a couple of years ago) we simply may be missing them. Traditionally we would advertise in printed newspapers for candidates. Those referenced in the quotes above are getting their local news from smartphone apps. They are most likely not reading the printed version of the newspaper, or watching the TV news broadcast. Their smartphone or iPad is attached to them 24/7. Those devices have replaced the need for a printed newspaper, or watching the local news.

If we are using traditional recruiting resources, or even job boards as our sole recruiting resource we are likely missing opportunities to communicate with this attractive, talented demographic. Consider such resources as pay per click social media advertising; paid ads on local news media "apps"; or keeping in touch with candidates through text messaging or blogging.

At TriStarr we have invested a great amount of time and energy in investigating, and using these and other tools effectively to reach potential candidates so that they are available when you need them. If you are interested in learning more, feel free to contact me, I would be happy to share what we've learned.

Scott