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In this month's newsletter...
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Welcome to our May newsletterGreetings to all from the Recruitment Matters team! This is our monthly newsletter featuring a mix of industry news, helpful information from recruitment industry experts, tips to help you improve and grow the profitability of your business and, of course, news from ourselves at Recruitment Matters about our training courses, products and services – please note our May - Sept 2007 training schedule at the end of this newsletter. Later in this newsletter, we announce the April winner of our great new monthly competition, ‘Quote of the Month.’ Also, our thanks to all who entered our National Learning At Work Day competition to win a free day’s training on May 24th. We had some excellent entries and it was extremely difficult to choose a winner, but Jose Cofone’s entry on behalf of travel & leisure recruiters New Frontiers just edged it. See below for his witty submission. All entrants will receive a PDF of Warren’s book ‘Recruiting In A Tough Market.’ In fact, if anyone else wants a free copy of this PDF for May 24th, please email ken@recruitmentmatters.com. As some of you already know, unfortunately, Warren broke his ankle quite badly while ice skating at the weekend - thank you to those who have already sent their commiserations. As a result, we’ve had to postpone some ‘Successful Head-Hunting’ courses this month but hope to have the show back on the road from June onwards. In the meantime, we’re taking some inspiration from this month’s article by Neil Kirby, ‘When the going gets tough.’ Now here is some food for thought… Unsuccessful job applicants who are left disgruntled by a firm's recruitment processes could have a negative effect on brand value, according to new research. Over half of people actively avoid buying products or services from firms that they believe have treated them poorly in the past when applying for a job, according to a survey by Capital Consulting. Around a quarter of respondents said that they had been ill-treated during an interview process, and a third of these went on to inform up to five people of their negative experience. Around a quarter said they would tell up to six people, with one in 100 claiming to have written an internet blog about their experience. The main gripes included a lack of feedback following an interview, not being given a reason for being rejected and even failure to acknowledge their application in the first place. ”While companies will invest a great deal of time and money building up their image, many seem to forget this when it comes to their prospective staff,” said Marisa Kacary, Marketing Director at Capital. "With the war for talent raging more fiercely than ever, a good employer brand is increasingly critical to an organisation’s commercial success," she added. A reminder that this is very much an interactive newsletter and we welcome your comments and feedback and will be happy to feature your contributions on important industry issues and your advice on how to improve the success and professionalism of our marketplace. As you will see below, in return, we will show our gratitude by featuring a link to your company, as a contributor to this publication. This month, we feature an article by new contributor, Exacta Research. We at Recruitment Matters have a simple underlying philosophy to everything that we do, and that is, by helping each other to improve, we all stand to benefit in this large, dynamic and fast-growing industry. Please send your potential editorial contributions to ken@recruitmentmatters.com.
National Learning At Work Day WinnerHere we have it, the winning entry for our National Learning At Work Day competition which was submitted by Jose Cofone of New Frontiers. On May 24th, Recruitment Matters’ trainer, Matt Wilson, will visit New Frontiers’ premises to deliver a Telephone Skills training course to their lucky team. ‘To be the very best is our aim, Our sincere thanks to all who entered – as promised, we will email you all a PDF of Warren’s best-selling book ‘Recruiting In A Tough Market.’ If anyone else wants a free copy of this PDF, please email ken@recruitmentmatters.com by May 24th.
Winner of 'Quote of the Month'As recruitment trainers, we are always keen to promote and learn motivational techniques, including maximising the power of words. Visitors to our website will know that we are big fans of quotations which succinctly capture our beliefs and objectives, hence our ‘Quote of the Month’ competition, inviting you to send us your favourite quotes which inspire, or amuse, or simply make you stop and think. Each month, we choose a submission to feature in this newsletter and the winner is offered a free day on a Recruitment Matters training course of their choice. As ever, the quality of submissions has been excellent. However, we are delighted to announce that our April winner is Madeline Krazit of the Bernard Hodes Group who supplied this quote by author Bernard Francis. “If you have a talent, use it in every which way possible. Don't hoard it. Don't dole it out like a miser. Spend it lavishly like a millionaire intent on going broke.” Here’s another one by Bernard Francis which we also feel is rather appropriate. ‘A quotation in a speech, article or book is like a rifle in the hands of an infantryman. It speaks with authority.’ So come on then the rest of you, get your creative juices flowing – we look forward to hearing from you! Please send your entries marked ‘Quote of the Month’ to ken@recruitmentmatters.com.
ZenploymentAs recruiters, and on behalf of our clients, we should all be more aware of the changing aspirations and motivations of our more senior workers as their life and job priorities begin to change. It says that people start planning for their second careers typically around the age of 36 and found that financial commitments (66%), lack of training/qualifications (34%) and also fear of failure (25%) restricts workers from moving into compassionate careers now. Animal welfare worker, counsellor, yoga teacher, gardener, artist and politician feature on the list of compassionate careers being planned. William Nelson, of trend analysts, The Future Foundation, says: "Rising affluence and high employment levels mean most of us now feel pretty secure in providing for our basic needs, especially once we are established in careers and the housing market. The ethical and spiritual dimensions of work therefore are more of a priority, and people want to believe their careers contribute towards a better future - not just for themselves but for society as a whole." The survey found the trend, being labelled "Zenployment", has led to 28% of people to call on their current employers to provide them with the opportunity to do unrelated charity, or pro bono work in their field.
Why use external researchers?You have trawled through all of the databases you can find and placed adverts in every newspaper and journal in the UK and still have no candidates relevant for your current vacancy! What do you do? Hold your hands up, give up, lose the placement fee and potentially the client as well? Why not look to using a different angle to source candidates and try research? If you don’t know where to start there are plenty of research companies out there that can help – pick up the phone to any of them and they’re usually more than happy to talk a potential client through the process. Research companies generally charge their consultants out on a daily basis. They require you to give them as much info as possible on the role you are looking to fill – information on your client, what kind of person your client is looking to recruit, where are we likely to find this kind of candidate, what will their present job title be, ideas around salary/package and so on. They will then go out into the market place, armed with the all important target list of companies, to identify the relevant individuals. Depending on your budget and workload, most research firms will happily approach relevant target individuals on your behalf to determine any interest and pass on interested candidates to you via a profile or CV. Research firms tend to be flexible in respect to which parts of their service you would like to use. Often they will just undertake the identification of the individuals or just approach those who you may have contact information for already. Again, it depends on your spend and how much time you have to handle some of the research yourself. Most recruiters find that with an ever-increasing amount of looming deadlines, it’s better to give the whole project to a research firm and let them get on with it. Research will not only give you relevant candidates in a short space of time, but it won’t burn a huge hole in your budget either, thus giving you the best possible chance of landing that placement fee with the least amount of effort in terms of generating candidates. So, the next time you are ready to give up on that impossible recruit, maybe give some thought to contacting a research company and seeing if it can work for you? Hannah Jones is Client Relationship Manager at Exacta Research, a recruitment research company who provide a candidate research service to help clients find the best possible candidates across all sectors and levels. For further information email hannah@exactaresearch.co.uk, visit www.exactaresearch.co.uk or call 08000 856 618.
Head-Hunter’s Hot TipI run head-hunting workshops to train recruiters in the art of head-hunting. If you are reading this, having attended and participated in one of these events, you will already know that the vast majority of head-hunting techniques can transfer or can be adapted to other forms of recruitment very easily. I am going to take you through a simple, yet often overlooked, step involved in the head-hunting process which can both increase your fees and increase the number of assignments you undertake. From this moment on, I would like you to ask the following question of every single contact you speak to whether that be a candidate, client or a potential client. The question is this:: "Historically, what is the most difficult position to fill within your company?" Then start noting down the answers. Don’t skimp on this. Just make it a routine part of what you do and then start analysing the answers weekly and monthly until you start to see a pattern developing. It may not be your specific category that emerges as the most frequent answer, but if for every hundred people you speak to in for, say, the widget industry, six or seven tell you it’s widget platers then there’s your answer - go out and actively recruit widget platers. If it’s receptionists go and recruit receptionists. Etc. And, importantly, then sell them to your current and future clients. You can gradually build up a reputation for being the industry expert on widget platers, receptionists, whatever. Not only will companies snatch your hand off for them, but you can in addition sell those candidates at a premium. It’s simple, but very effective and potentially lucrative. I am now going to give you a second tip and it’s one that's related to the "Historically, what is…?".question just covered and it will make every single marketing call to a potential client worthwhile, even if you crash & burn and are told to go away. Remember that, if you can find out a post within their company that they have difficulty filling and that means those types of vacancies that cause them some pain, later when you recruit candidates you can go back to them and sell them some pleasure! So, my second tip is this - if you hit a brick wall and the prospective client says that they are happy with their current form of recruitment, then try this one. " Before I go, can I have one final question?" and then you ask them the one we covered earlier.
When you ask " Before I go, can I have one final question?" you should always get a “Yes” and then you get the chance to find out what historically causes their company pain and when you recruit one or two of those candidates you can go back and sell that potential client the pleasure. Not only will they be happy to see one or two of your candidates, but they will really appreciate that you listened to what they had to say and did something about it. Put those two related tips into action now - they really work! Warren Kemp is principal and lead trainer with Recruitment Matters. For more tips, advice and information on Recruitment Matters visit www.recruitmentmatters.com/free.php, telephone 0800 0749 289 or email warren@recruitmentmatters.com.
When the going gets toughI was talking with a client recently who’d been through a particularly difficult time. She’d been on the receiving end of an aggressive, bullying colleague. She felt hurt and had every right to be resentful. As we talked, we reflected on how easy life is when things are going well, but how you really find out about someone when things go wrong. It would be easy to say, “It’s their fault.” Blaming others can be comforting. We might look for excuses, or get down on ourselves and give up. Either way, it doesn’t get you anywhere. You can get stuck, becoming a victim. Alternatively, we can say, “OK, it’s happened.” We can’t change that and we can’t change other people’s behaviour. But we can change how we feel about it and decide to do something about it. We can take control. Ask yourself, “What is it I do that I want to be different?” and “What do I need to do to make that happen?” I remember watching the 2005 Champion’s League football with my daughter. Liverpool were playing A.C. Milan and were 3 – 0 down at half–time, totally outplayed, and written off by the pundits. And yet, astonishingly, they came back to win. It’s what you do when you are down that makes the difference. So take a moment to consider your recovery strategy. How do you respond? If you have any questions or comments on this article or issues you face, please contact me (in confidence) on 01707 395850 or email me at neil@neilkirby.co.uk. There’s no obligation. Neil Kirby is a life coach and a leading practitioner of Neuro Linguistic Programming (NLP).
Become a recruitment guruIf you are looking for ways to establish your company as an authoritative mouthpiece in its chosen sector, you could do a lot worse than publish a series of informative white papers. A white paper is an article that provides information and opinions on a particular subject that relates to a service offered by an organisation. As a subtle marketing communications document, a white paper will cover a topic or issue that is closely related to the services offered by your company in order to establish you as a thought leader in your field. As a recruiter, white papers can be focused at both clients and candidates, and may cover trends in your sector, tips for getting the ideal job, tips for recruiting the ideal candidate or any other number of informative topics. You can encourage continued readership by publishing a series of papers; if you were covering tips for successful job hunting, for example, you may choose to write on interview technique, creating the perfect CV and coping with the first day in a new job. If you are successful enough to achieve continued readership, you will firmly cement yourself as an authoritative figure amongst your reader group. Because of their persuasive nature, white papers need to be carefully crafted to avoid the perception of explicit salesmanship. This should be easy to accomplish as long as you stick to covering key educational content that is relevant to your readers. You may, for example, choose to include particular figures of interest such as a recent salary survey. You should always begin the white paper by leading with problems or needs in order to gain the interest of readers. You will then be able to offer a solution and relate this to the services you can offer. As the competition between recruitment organisations becomes increasingly fierce, it is important to use any tools you have to put your company one step ahead of its rivals. A series of well written, informative white papers will put you firmly on the map as a thought leader in your field. Adrian Barrett is a director of BlueSky PR, the specialist marketing and PR consultancy for the recruitment sector. Contact him at adrian@bluesky-pr.net or telephone 0845 3700 126.
Researchers’ Casebook (continued)None of us ever takes on an assignment without understanding exactly our client’s requirements. In the same way we should never instruct a researcher without a very exacting set of parameters. Last time we asked “Are there alternative ways to find that candidate?” This time we ask: Should I double-check my research? Some years ago we were engaged to research and find investment banking analysts with expertise in shipping, so we immediately started to call Scandinavia. The home of world shipping and English language skills – perfect! Before long we had filled our quota and happily turned in our work to the client. A full half of our candidates were immediately turned back by our client as unacceptable. Our error? We had asked each person directly if they were a shipping analyst and each had answered in the affirmative. What we had not realised is that they had omitted to mention that their departments were very small and rather than being a specialist, each covered a number of areas as a generalist. Plus we think there may have been an eagerness to be interviewed for a City of London based position. Our solution? Back into the market we went, this time asking if they analysed automotives as well. The overly keen that said yes were dropped from our list! To this day we insist that every potential name is asked twice to describe their job and this is after we have been told by an independent source that they are the correct one. Next time we look at record keeping. Chris Malcolm heads up deAnsaPlus, a pure research company for head-hunters, executive search consultants and research professionals who require target specific research to find the right candidates on a worldwide basis. For further information email chris@deansaplus.com.
Giving feedbackA candidate deserves honest feedback from you, whether it be following the meeting he/she has just had with you, or after an interview with the prospective employer. If they have gone to the time and the trouble to apply for or attend the interview and have given it 100%, then skipping on any feedback stage is doing the candidate a total disservice. The candidate can only improve their interview technique and their possibility of earning you a fee if you constructively help them via carefully considered feedback. A few minutes to plan will always be worth it for them and you. There is a very simple way to implement this so that no matter what negatives you must state, the candidate will always take the information constructively: 1. Start with a positive point An example of this UP UP *DOWN UP *DOWN UP way of giving feedback might be ... " You know, John, I’ve been really impressed with your enthusiasm, it’s so refreshing and I must say your CV looks impressive. *However, I have to tell you that I was looking for a bit more hands-on experience. Your technical ability is there for all to see, *but my client is looking for more man management experience than you have to date. Still, although you’re not quite right for this role yet, I am very confident that we can find you an alternative." You get no Brownie points for demoralising someone (remember, everyone has an off day and today's candidate might be tomorrow's client) and, by the same token, no matter how embarrassing the issue may be, if it potentially affects their chances of landing that dream job, you have to tell them. Untidiness, bad breath, body odour can all be tackled before client interview stage if you tell them at your meeting. Far better a couple of minutes embarrassment on both sides now, than a lost fee later! When briefing your client on the candidate prior to interview, the same UP UP *DOWN UP *DOWN UP rule applies. If they are not 100% right for the job (and very few are) but still a highly credible candidate, then countering any negatives with more than compensatory positives will still secure the candidate an interview. Also, by making the client aware of any shortcomings now, this will ensure a more mutually productive interview. Matt Wilson is a consultant with Recruitment Matters with a current focus on our Two Day Induction, Telephone Skills and Interview Skills courses. For more information on Recruitment Matters, our training courses, services and products visit www.recruitmentmatters.com, telephone 0800 0749289 or email info@recruitmentmatters.com.
Recruitment Matters newsWe’re nearly there in terms of our planning for Barcelona on Oct 5th and should be able to announce venue, investment cost and agenda within the next week or so. Don’t forget that we’re heading to Brussels, too, on July 27th. Please note in our training schedule below that there are a number of changes due to a combination of Warren being temporarily crocked and changes in holiday dates. Simultaneously, with our new 250 Tips seminar, we’re launching a new recruitment book ‘250 Tips For Busy Recruiters’ and all attendees of this course will receive a free copy. Warren is currently working on this from his hospital bed – there is no truth in the rumour that the sequel will be ‘250 Tips For Ice Skaters…’ Thousands of you have purchased Warren’s book ‘Recruiting In A Tough Market’ or have attended his highly popular training course of the same name. If you enjoyed these, then this new course should have particular appeal. In fact, if you bring along a copy of ‘Recruiting In a Tough Market’ when you attend, we’ll give you a voucher entitling you (or a colleague) to 10% discount off a Recruitment Matters open course of your choice. At £149 for this adrenalin rush seminar, demand should be huge. Again, see below for Q3 dates and venues. We continue to encourage you to enter our ‘Quote of the Month’ competition. Although not a winner, we thought that you would like to share a chuckle with us over this entry from Pete Samm of Prime Recruitment – ‘Time flies like an arrow, but fruit flies like a banana….’ Perhaps we should run a separate competition for ‘Surreal Quote of the Month!’ If you require more information or have any ideas for new courses, locations, or topics that you feel that we should be covering, or if you would like to explore what we could do for you on an in-house basis, we would be delighted to hear from you. For more information on Recruitment Matters, our training courses, services and products visit www.recruitmentmatters.com, telephone 0800 0749289 or email ken@recruitmentmatters.com.
RECRUITMENT MATTERS: May - Sept 2007 Training ScheduleSUCCESSFUL HEAD-HUNTING Investment £295+VAT
TWO DAY INDUCTION
Investment £495+VAT
TELEPHONE SKILLS Investment £245+VAT
INTERVIEW SKILLS
Investment £245+VAT
WINNING RETAINED ASSIGNMENTS
Investment £149+VAT
RECRUITMENT MATTERS - 250 TIPS FOR BUSY RECRUITERS
Investment £149+VAT And FINALLY, look out for more information on our special recruitment training event in BARCELONA on OCT 5TH. Investment and course content to be confirmed. For more information on all these courses, visit www.recruitmentmatters.com.
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