March 2010 Blog Posts (271)

How active is the job market in the Middle East today?

Question from Job Seeker:

I am currently pursuing a Masters degree in Engineering in Qatar and expecting to graduate in June 2010. However I’m starting to get worried about finding my first job.

A lot of people I know have waited until after graduation to start their job hunting and ended up not seizing a good opportunity before six months to 1 year! I don’t want this to happen to me, what shall I do, taken into account the fact (or rumor?) that the Middle Eastern… Continue

Added by Mona Karaoui on March 16, 2010 at 6:15am — No Comments

2009 Job Posting Report ...Building & Construction lose, while Not For Profit Org & Social Care rises.

Courtesy of Adcourier / Broadbean

Analysis of almost 8 million job postings has highlighted the extent of Britain’s recession in 2009, clearly naming the winners and losers of the recruiting industries.

The latest report discusses data on the number of jobs distributed by Adcourier to its (circa) 1,100 job

boards during the 2009 calendar year. The report is broken down by sector, providing details on how… Continue

Added by tom on March 16, 2010 at 5:34am — No Comments

TRAIL BLAZERS

Blazing trails is a solitary task. Wikipedia defines a trailblazer as "a person who marks a trail through wilderness area.” They look beyond their own often less than ideal circumstances to break through. There is no one ahead to light the way and those behind might be afraid or doubtful in the wisdom of moving in the same direction. Forging a new path takes tools, creative thinking, vision, grit, timing, a little luck, and a lot of chutzpah.

Anyone who has the intestinal fortitude to… Continue

Added by Alisa Tazioli on March 15, 2010 at 10:02pm — No Comments

Social Recruiting, its more than you think

So you think you are utilising Social Media for your recruitment efforts. Well to a degree you probably are. You have a Twitter account, you search LinkedIn…

Continue

Added by Justin Hillier on March 15, 2010 at 9:18pm — 1 Comment

Follow Up On Credit Background Checks

There is an ongoing controversy in several states about whether or not employers should run credit reports s part of the background checks they use in their preemployment screening programs. I have posted some thoughts on this subject in a recent blog, Controversy Over Credit Reports as Background Checks.

Some critics of the credit report as a background check contest that this is a draconian practice, as it inhibits many skilled and otherwise… Continue

Added by Gordon Basichis on March 15, 2010 at 6:00pm — No Comments

Validation--SXSW Halfway Recap

As Sunday comes to a close for South by Southwest, I'm taking the opportunity to look back and reflect over the last three days of the conference festival. For those of you not familiar with SXSW, it's an interactive festival held in Austin, TX that celebrates media, music, and film each year. More than 20,000 people will grace Austin…

Continue

Added by Jessica Miller-Merrell on March 15, 2010 at 3:26pm — No Comments

A job description isn't a sales tool and never will be.

For reasons best known to themselves, many recruiters bemoan the absence of a decent job description and person spec from a client. I agree it’s frustrating when what you get is a series of seemingly unrelated one liners in terms of a job description and just the basic facts about the skills and experience you need in order to do the role, but, the emphasis should be on you, the recruiter to eke out the information from your client that will sell the job, not… Continue

Added by Alasdair Murray on March 15, 2010 at 3:00pm — 21 Comments

Are you a fear-based recruiter?

I am a recovering fear based recruiter! My diagnosis came during a 2-hour presentation (six months ago) which was intended to shed light on the fact that the bulk of people’s decisions are made in or out of fear and I am now working to help others realize the pain that one lives with when they are in a constant state of fear too. Maybe I should back up and…

Continue

Added by Travis Furlow on March 15, 2010 at 2:20pm — No Comments

Client Education, Candidate Confidence and the cost of Nepotism

we’ve been busy so far this year. elements of frustration still, but overall, a move in the right direction. I think I’m still getting used to how different the US recruitment market is to the UK market.

We’ve just lost a client, who decided to go with the in-house approach (although i think they spun us that line to soften the blow). Real shame, but in light of the fact we had 4 offers rejected in 3 months, I must admit, I’m keen to focus our…

Continue

Added by Douglas Fowler on March 15, 2010 at 11:30am — No Comments

Umbrella Companies Looking Shaky !

umbrella problems damage umbrella reputation

Following the recent news that some umbrella companies have entered into a voluntary arrangement and that two other “umbrella service providers” have left

contractors unpaid, agencies should take care to ensure they are

protected against umbrella failures, says the recruitment law specialist

Lawspeed.

Adrian Marlowe, MD of Lawspeed and Chair of the recruiter trade body, the Association…

Continue

Added by tom on March 15, 2010 at 6:58am — No Comments

Lisology!!!

Lisology

Lisology

What is lisology? Lisology is the art of not just hearing what is said but listening to what it said, how it is said, the words used, the way they are put together to form answers or phrases, the inflection in…

Continue

Added by Dean Da Costa on March 15, 2010 at 3:49am — No Comments

Salaries in the Middle East 2009-2010

The 2010 GCC and Middle East Salary Survey is now out from Bayt.com and YouGov Siraj and professionals across the Middle East can now benchmark and compare their latest salary raises to their peers. Indeed despite the economic situation, based on the latest Middle East salary survey 54% of professionals across the Middle East region have indicated they received a raise in the last 12 months, with the average raise for the year registering at 7.3%. A reasonable degree of optimism is in the air… Continue

Added by Mona Karaoui on March 15, 2010 at 3:25am — No Comments

Social Learning - The Future Of Training?

I’ve spent quite a lot of time this year looking at social learning. I actually think it has more potential for take-up than social recruiting and could significantly change the way training is delivered and training is received. The potential here is huge, and is the area I want to develop with the…

Continue

Added by Bill Boorman on March 15, 2010 at 12:23am — No Comments

Faith & Effort

I wrote this after midnight in one take and hope it makes sense:).

It’s been a while since I’ve written or posted anything to Recruitingblogs or even my own blog or community. To be honest, the reason is I wasn’t sure if I was going into or out of business with my new company, ExecuSource. I had to table part of my business plan and

put all of my efforts into developing my new business. That is, when I wasn’t…

Continue

Added by David Jacks on March 15, 2010 at 12:10am — 1 Comment

Should Contractor’s be involved in VMS?

While we look towards the Stakeholders involved in utilizing the VMS tool including the Client and the Agency, should the Contractor have any involvement? For example, if I were a candidate represented by an Agency to a Client that includes setting a “candidate profile” via a VMS tool, should I the Contractor have any involvement? Although the Agency is doing their job in…

Continue

Added by Neha on March 14, 2010 at 6:45pm — 1 Comment

Conducting the Interview!!

During the interview your goal is to gather information so you can make a solid hiring recommendation. It is important to remember that candidates come from a variety of sources. Not all candidates want to interview with Your Company. In some cases, we have persuaded them to consider Your Company and come meet with you. Always read the mail from the staffing consultant on the morning of the interview to learn more about the circumstances…

Continue

Added by Dean Da Costa on March 14, 2010 at 4:00pm — 1 Comment

It's Time to Spring Forward

The clocks spring forward today. We'll lose an hour of sleep. But who needs sleep with spring in the air?

Do New Years Resolutions Work?

Is New Years Day really the best time to make resolutions for self improvement? The dead of winter is a good time to cocoon and do the internal work, to analyze where you are and where you want to go. But mid January doesn't feel like the best time to go on a diet or start a new venture.… Continue

Added by Tim Collins on March 14, 2010 at 5:00am — No Comments

Are You Committing Career Suicide?

Have you had enough of rejection letters, cancelled appointments, rescheduled interviews and your inability to gain traction in your search whatsoever? Are you continuing to blame the lousy economy, high unemployment and staggering competition for your lack of job progress or employment? Are you ready to admit that it might be more than just these issues causing you concern. Have you…

Continue

Added by Lisa Kaye on March 13, 2010 at 2:18pm — No Comments

Simplifying Messages: Why SWOT Is Not Enough

You've heard the old saying and so have I. You can't compare apples and oranges. Yeah, sure. All that is fine and good, unless you happen to be in business or applying for a job.

In business, being an apple among apples leaves sales to nothing more than random chance. So, to help distinguish people and products, many agencies invest a good deal of time and client money in developing unique selling points. Sometimes they use SWOT.

As a strategic planning method, SWOT can be…

Continue

Added by Rich on March 13, 2010 at 12:28pm — No Comments

Set Your Career Curve

In the chaotic hustle and bustle of searching, interviewing and networking to find your next job, you may forget to take time to appreciate yourself and the efforts you’ve made towards recognizing your goals. As you struggle to keep up and keep moving, you should remember to take the time to acknowledge and reward yourself on all of your hard work. You may not have gotten a job offer,…

Continue

Added by Lisa Kaye on March 13, 2010 at 11:47am — No Comments