Sometimes I wish I would wake up and be one of those recruiters with $5,000 suits from Dubai who tool around in their choice of Ferrari to get to the office. 

I've had this client since 2005.  Back then, I cleaned up, threw a suit on, and made my way to their office.  I met their VP of HR at his office and he was half my size.  I remember.  They were in a mode of expansion.  Within a few months, I had a few placements and soon enough he had hired an HR Generalist to take over the recruiting side.  She and I worked swimmingly and I hunted more and placed people for some of their key positions.

Then I hired a recruiter to help me and handed the account over to her.  I coached my helper along the way and the placements continued. Their office at our client capped out around 100 people.  Then 2007 hit.  Automotive hell on earth.  As we all know, economic indicators started tanking everywhere and that translates to people not buying new cars.  In Detroit, the headlines were dedicated to crazy layoff figures which demolished morale everywhere.

By 2009, the auto industry, stained from government takeovers and mass unemployment, began it's steady comeback from a hiring standpoint.  In the auto business, cars and trucks don't stay healthy.  They break.  So companies and families started buying cars again.  (Here's a trick:  You wanna save some money.  Challenge yourself to clean out out your kitchen of all the odds and ends and you can probably make it about two weeks. Then you'll have to restock.)

My client still had it's HR Generalist who was now promoted to HR Manager.  Their numbers had dwindled to just over 70 people.  And hiring started up again.  The HR Manager hired a part-time contract recruiter.  We started making placements again. 

But there was something about our presented candidates by 2013.  Feedback was becoming non-existent and we even had (HEY - don't throw stones at me) our client miss FOUR scheduled phone interviews with the same candidate.  Let's just say that when one of the recruiters called him for something else, he not-so-pleasantly told our recruiter to "go (rhymes with schmuck) yourself". 

So my dream recruiter with gold cufflinks would probably pick up the phone with one of the executives and schedule a meeting to handle this disintegrating situation.  I didn't.  I haven't spoken with any of the managers in....years.  Shame on me.  Doofus.

Well, it turns out the HR Manager recently hired a direct employee to take over recruiting.  I contacted her and I've been asked to work on several job openings.   By the way, these job openings have been open for over six months.  Something smells fishy.

This morning, I booted up and woke up Outlook.  As my Inbox was populating, my new HR contact had sent me an e-mail.  This e-mail contained several attachments.  Each attachment, customized for each job opening, is a questionnaire listing a half-dozen questions that require paragraphs to answer. 

(sigh)

The Detroit automotive industry is in a hiring frenzy right now.  FRENZY!  Some of you working in other industries may still be witnessing the opposite. 

Engineers, the good ones, not great, not fantastic, not excellent, not fantabulous, the GOOD ONES are getting multiple offers and counteroffers.  How in the world can this be with a stabilized unemployment rate of 7.5% or more?  This is causing real problems in hiring.  Let's face it.  The candidate doesn't know what to do or who to believe.  If you're sitting on three offers from three companies, this is a monumentally mind-melting circumstance for someone that doesn't know how to job hunt but rather design stuff that goes on cars.  Red carpets are coming out.  Recruiters sound more like used car salesmen.  The family is telling you what to do.  The parents are making THEIR comments.  The candidate's making spreadsheets and "ben franklins" (google it). 

Now, frankenclient wants me to have a candidate fill out a two page questionnaire in order to apply.  (Quit throwing stones at me, Super Recruiter, I'm venting.)  These candidates are incredibly hard to find.  And let's just say that said client isn't necessarily of the likes and attractiveness of a Microsoft, Siemens, Google, or Apple. 

I'm going to go run six miles now.  It's the "me" time.  I'm trying to exercise and get ready because I'm so close, so close at cracking the code on becoming that Incredi-Recruiter.  

Today I scheduled 14 interviews.  We had our first end of the day roundup at the office here and created a battle plan for Thursday and Friday.  We've got good stuff brewing.

What about frankenclient's job orders? 

I'm gonna think about it.

- Steve