Featured Blog Posts – December 2009 Archive (78)

Social Networking and Global Flesh Pressing in 2010

Talent professionals in social media love labels. Thus, those of us who use social channels for recruiting and networking together have brilliantly entitled our scene "Social Recruiting". We've been doing this "social recruiting" thing for years with LinkedIn and recruiting networks like RecruitingBlogs.com. But with the explosion of Twitter,…

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Added by Craig Fisher on December 31, 2009 at 3:30pm — No Comments

Getting Hip to Social Media

Social media is becoming ubiquitous. Websites like Facebook and YouTube are among the most popular websites racking up millions visits - ok, and they're also among my most visited websites too. But beyond the entertainment factor, I'm realizing more and more that social media is an indispensable part of any serious job search. As a recruiter seeking a position right now, this is especially the case for me.

Why should social media be an integral part of your job… Continue

Added by Victoria Schanen on December 30, 2009 at 10:41am — 4 Comments

Job Seekers: Stop Complaining and Do Something!

My Look Ahead For 2010: Quit Bitching About The Economy And Do Something

29th December 2009

written by Margo Rose

I just got off the phone with Steve Levy, and he said something that really stood out, “The Best Way to Predict The Future Is To Invent It.” When he said this to me, it swept the cobwebs out of my head like a vacuum and made me realize: If you don’t like the current economic temperature-quit kvetching an do something about it.

Yes 2009 sucked… Continue

Added by Margo Rose on December 29, 2009 at 4:45pm — 8 Comments

Credit Scores Can Be Harmful to Employers and Job Candidates

Credit is a big issue these days. Whether it is about our financial institutions providing businesses with the capital to expand, or fear that your credit score has been compromised by identity theft, the topic of credit is a media constant. Type in to any internet search engine and the term “credit score” and it yields over 45 million hits.

Most all of the media hype about credit scores is helping people maintain and improve their credit ratings. Those annoying commercials by… Continue

Added by Carl Greenberg on December 29, 2009 at 1:00pm — 6 Comments

1,2,3, Ready or not here it comes 2010

11 years of recruiting for top companies has been an interesting place to grow a a solid base of knowledge. One thing that constantly amazes me is how few are true innovators and how many share a pack mentality. When setting up your recruitment program it is imperative it be multifaceted and tailored for the needs of YOUR organization. I am going to make some suggestions but hope to draw out some best practices that are working. One thing I can say is to be organizationally aware and honest… Continue

Added by Patti Yaritz on December 28, 2009 at 5:29pm — 2 Comments

Blogger’s Remorse & Doing the Impossible

I posted and then took down a very personal blog last week. It took 24 hours for me to decide the information was just too personal to share on such a public forum. I re-read it a few times before I made the decision. Besides making me uncomfortable, I realized it had no point.

Then I received a succession of Tweets from someone who read it and told me it inspired her. She is trying to do the “impossible” right now and my post helped her believe that it was possible. In the spirit of… Continue

Added by Fran Hogan on December 28, 2009 at 11:09am — 7 Comments

Fruit Loop Inspiration

There's something said for tradition. I'm sitting here late Christmas day 2009 pondering the day that was, and honestly, it was pretty special. My kids, my wife, my parents and my sister really rocked for me. Seeing the day through my kids eye's is just amazing, the wonder, the joy and the excitement, just give me goose bumps, even now thinking back on it. Photo's… Continue

Added by Dan Nuroo on December 25, 2009 at 7:40am — No Comments

Talent Acquisition Triple Play

Congratulations to Sodexo on winning the 2009 Workforce Optimas Award for Vision

The company was able to improve hiring speed and quality even as it cut its annual recruiting advertising budget in North America by $300,000. The effort also has corresponded with better business outcomes. Customer… Continue

Added by Shannon Russo on December 24, 2009 at 8:45am — 2 Comments

Welcome Back Eager Beavers

If you had a job this year you weren’t so lucky after all. If you did NOT have a job you probably played tennis, golf and did a lot of blogging, tweeting and other fun social stuff.

So here is the deal. For those of us that had to work like 80 hours a week, were little pissed. Sure we read your corny blogs and follow your tweets about looking for a job.

But now you’re back in the office, just like an eager Beaver, and wanting to take it all on.… Continue

Added by Michael Glenn on December 24, 2009 at 5:00am — 4 Comments

Job Interviewing Is Like Dating

"So, tell me a little bit about yourself."

"Describe a time when you_____."

"OK, I'll call you."

Think quick - was that a job interview or a date? Not sure? No kidding! That's because interviewing for jobs is as lot like dating, and can be just as awkward. Both scenarios are characterized by two people looking for the "right fit." Both will require a commitment. And all parties want to make sure they're getting the best possible deal.

The average job tenure is 18… Continue

Added by Victoria Schanen on December 22, 2009 at 9:13pm — 3 Comments

Human Endurance and the Job Search

I had a long talk with a group of job seekers recently about how long they have been searching, how they are coping with the challenges they are facing and how they feel about their prospects. It was actually a much more broad discussion than that, but I think those areas sum up a lot of it.

The length of time ranged from 2 months to almost 18 months; and more than one person was at the higher end of that spectrum. To some in the group hearing how long others had been out of work was… Continue

Added by Randy Levinson on December 22, 2009 at 5:30pm — 2 Comments

2009 is dead! Recruitment outlook for 2010...

As 2009 gasps and wheezes its way to the finish line, all eyes and hopes are on 2010 and the fortunes the coming year may bring. Or not, as the case may be. If you listen to many commentators out there, both within the recruitment industry and outside it, you will hear much talk of recovery; lots of tweeting of potential upsides.

Me? I'm not so sure. And here's why.

For those not around during the last proper recession in the 90's you need to take a close look at what… Continue

Added by Gareth Jones on December 22, 2009 at 2:34pm — 8 Comments

New Year, New Decade, New Candidates!

In my experience, November, December and January have always been the worst of the worst as far as number of candidates in my funnel. But I take heart in the fact that very soon all of the year-end bonuses will be paid out and relocation weather will be here (in the Midwest).

What do you do in January that helps you get through the last of the annual dry spell? How do you attract qualified candidates this time of year? I make a checklist of things that really help build credibility… Continue

Added by Nikole Tutton on December 21, 2009 at 4:44pm — No Comments

Once More With Feeling Or Should I Just Stick To The Script?

Isn’t it great when an interview goes according to the script? The interviewer asks the list of question he has and the candidate feeds back the perfect answers. Everyone comes away from the encounter happy and the right candidate gets the right job. That’s of course, when the everything goes right.

Whether you know it or not, if you’re preparing for an interview – whether you’re the interviewer or the candidate, you’re scripting. You’re going over the questions in your mind and… Continue

Added by James Seetoo on December 21, 2009 at 4:22pm — 6 Comments

Top 10 HR Developments of 2009

For the most of us, the end of the year signifies an opportunity to think, reflect, and remember the life lessons, events, and topics that demanded our attention over the last 12 months. And professionals within the Human Resource and Recruiting industry are no exception. I think that I can speak for everyone that 2009 was a year many businesses, job seekers, and people in general would like to…

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Added by Jessica Miller-Merrell on December 21, 2009 at 3:11pm — 4 Comments

Want to write better job posts in 2010? Here's how.

I've been meaning to put together my thoughts about writing recruitment advertisements, or job posts as many call them, for some time. After all, I have written thousands of them down the years and, as many know, I have a real bugbear about bad job ads littering the web. So here goes. My gift to you all for Christmas. Why not resolve to put it into practice in the new year?

Think first

Get your understanding of the brief right (I am assuming you take a… Continue

Added by Alasdair Murray on December 19, 2009 at 9:30am — 4 Comments

Quality-of-Hire Quandary Follow-Up (Charlie Weis, Brian Kelly, and Notre Dame)

Good afternoon, Everyone! Recently, I wrote a post over at FistfulofTalent.com (FOT) about Charlie Weis and his QOH debacle with Notre Dame. You can see the original article… Continue

Added by Joshua Letourneau on December 18, 2009 at 12:12pm — 2 Comments

The Christmas recruitment debacle

"It's the most wonderful time of the year"....or so Andy Williams/Johnny Mathis (depending on your preference) would have you believe, but is it the "most wonderful time of the year" for the recruitment world? - this is a question I have been pondering with some interest this year.

In my experience, the topic of Christmas is ordinarily raised at some point during November at most recruitment companies, usually in the form of a manager or management team addressing the troops and… Continue

Added by Gary Melton on December 18, 2009 at 7:35am — 4 Comments

Have You Ever Heard A Manager Say: Shut Up and Get With The Program!

Shut up and get with the program 15th December 2009 written by Margo Rose

How many times have you heard that one? Well, that’s short hand for “welcome to your next training program,” the beatings will begin. For years, learning in the workplace was seen as punishment that had to be endured. But, then came the magic bullet that would cure all our ills: Learning Management Systems. Oh that was going to fix us alright, I used to hear supervisors whine, until they realized that this… Continue

Added by Margo Rose on December 17, 2009 at 7:10pm — 3 Comments

India. Check. Final Thoughts

I went to India to check off one more country on my “bucket list” (not that I plan to kick the bucket anytime soon mind you but I’ve always had a long list of adventures to experience and this is one of the last countries on it).

My colleagues on this trip and I all recognized that the ten days we spent in 3 cities barely scratched the surface of India’s current business practices, culture and history. Ten years wouldn’t be sufficient, but we made the most of our moment and hope that… Continue

Added by Gerry Crispin on December 17, 2009 at 10:30am — 14 Comments