Recruiter Today | Recruiting Trends and Tips for Recruiters - Page 255

House Subcommittee Hears Testimony to Mandate E-Verify

What is the role of the American worker in 2011? The expectation for workers and their employers has changed a lot since Emma Lazarus's words were inscribed at the base of the Statue of Liberty: Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, The wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Nowadays, the role of immigrant and migrant workers is constantly in...

BranchOut Announces New Connections Feature

Sometimes, it's the little features that mean a lot for the future direction of a company. BranchOut, a site for creating a professional presence on Facebook, recently soft launched what could be a highly disruptive new service. BranchOut users can now connect with other users that they are not Facebook friends with. Native BranchOut connections are a minor change with major implications for...

A Paperhanger's Employment Prospects

"Cashiers 171,990"—the top job in the U.S., by average number of annual openings, OSDS data "Paperhangers 10"—the bottom job in the U.S., by average number of annual openings, OSDS data "The Occupational Supply Demand System (OSDS) was developed by National Supply Demand Consortium with funding support from the U.S. Department of Labor. The consortium, led by the Georgia...

AOL Buys Huffington Post

When demonstrations began in Egypt, maybe you were among the many who checked out The Huffington Post to see what was happening. When you are looking for a good book to read, maybe you check out the reviews available on The Huffington Post. Or maybe you visit it to see the blog entry of George Clooney. The online source has become a well-trod place for people trying to get the news from...

But are you able to scale it?

What would your dream classroom look like? What needs to be considered when designing a classroom? A classroom needs to be as unique as its students. The United States Army is no exception. Soldiers in the United States Army have plenty of unique skills that they need to learn while they're training for their work. In a press release, Vangent, Inc. has announced that it was awarded a $95...

27 Weeks Is a Long Time

The Bureau of Labor Statistics announced that in January the unemployment rate declined for the second month in a row-- resulting in 6000,000 people stopped identifying as unemployed during the month of January. The chart below from the Bureau of Labor Statistics depicts both the unemployment rate and the number of unemployed. Out of the large number of unemployed people in the United States,...

Is Distracted Driving a Workplace Requirement?

Every year in the US, thousands of people die from car accidents involving distracted driving. Additionally, over half a million people are injured. The primary culprits of distracted driving are smartphones that can text, conference call, surf the web, tweet, and update Facebook. The push to end distracted driving is causing a lot of new legislation, much like drunk driving did. Unfortunately,...

The 7-Resume Road to (Keeping) Jobs

"The perfect company for me—a start-up—is like a freshly-fallen perfect snowflake: unique, small and new"—something to say in an interview at one of them For most of my working life and the diverse jobs and positions I've had and held I've not had to submit, on average, more than about seven resumes before getting not only the job I applied for and jobs that I looked forward...

Even Actuaries Must Fight for What is Rightfully Theirs

Should the largest single health insurance carrier in the United States be exempt from compensating its workers in the city of Hartford, known as the insurance capital of the world? In a press release today, the U.S. Department of Labor revealed that the multi-billion dollar company, UnitedHealthcare, had designated itself exempt from properly compensating its workers. Apparently,...

Wintry Mix of Job Gains and Losses

Although Americans await good economic news with baited breath, sometimes it feels like no news is good news. Accustomed to staggering figures of unemployment, the subtle changes in total nonfarm payroll employment seem benign. From December to January, 36,000 more jobs came into existence. Although many people lost work over the month in the fields of construction, transportation, and...

Juvenile Offenders Get a Break

"You just need a little more experience..." These words may seem benevolent enough, but for plenty of people they are plain cruel. In order to get more experience, you need... experience. Recruiters are familiar with this dilemma that people face when trying to break into a new profession. The U.S. Department of Labor is trying to take action to change this familiar situation. The U.S. ...

Three Mistakes Project Managers Make on Interviews

Project Management is a very hot profession to be in right now. The influx of financial and regulatory projects coupled with the need for management of outsourced development projects has skyrocketed demand for project management. Concurrent with the demand development, the profession of project management itself has blossomed into a very distinct craft and career path. Project management is...

What Talent Acquisition Can Learn From Executive Recruiters

Let's face it, corporate recruiters and agency recruiters aren't exactly in love. Agency recruiters call them paper pushers, job posters, interview clerks, and agency recruiters who couldn't hack the real world. Conversely, the names for agency recruiters: fly-by-nights, coldcallers, arrogant ignorant jerks, you know, nice stuff like that. The relationship between the two sides is at the stage...

Playboy's Hef: Recruiter Role Model?

"Most of today's magazines for men spend all their time out-of-doors - thrashing through thorny thickets or splashing about in fast flowing streams. We'll be out there too, occasionally, but we don't mind telling you in advance—we plan on spending more of our time inside."—Hugh Hefner, inaugural issue of Playboy, December 1953 "I really like the outdoors; when I'm not indoors,...

New Guidelines Promise Transparency in Executive Pay

The last couple of years has brought about a lot of anger about Wall St. bonuses and executive pay. The tension between "Wall St. vs. Main St." reached a fever pitch during the height of the economic collapse. Investors also feel the frustration of executive compensation, and very few investors feel like they understand the business reasons for and exact structure of executive compensation....

Facebook Firing Case Reaches Settlement

It looks like there will be no clear cut precedent set on the ways employers can regulate social media. The case of the Connecticut woman who was allegedly fired because of comments she made on Facebook has been settled out of court. The court case alleged that American Medical Response fired the employee because she criticized her supervisor on the popular social network. If the case had...

When You Don't Look Your Age

"Will you still need me, will you still feed me, when I'm sixty-four?"—the Beatles, "When I'm 64" You are 65, but look 40. The other applicant waiting in the reception area is 40, but looks 65. Which of you is likely to get the job, given that you suspect the interviewer is a closet "ageist", that he/she knows your and the other applicant's age, and given that the playing...

Temporary Work Blossoms in Wake of Economic Doldrums

As statistics about the economy mount, how are temporary workers accounted for? The company Manpower Inc. recruits workers to complete special tasks or to temporarily relieve other employees. In a press release, Manpower reflects on what its success at continuing to hire temporary workers in this economy means. Temporary employment was little changed in January, with a fall of 11,000 in the...

Dip in Unit Labor Costs Signals Compromised Workers

Look around you. What do you see on your desk? Chances are, you have some item that was made here in the United States. The work that went into getting that product to you is, of course, intense, and the site of great compromise for workers and employers alike. As a recruiter, you know how much negotiation goes into calculating the benefits and salary for each worker. When it comes to...

Telephone Wires Trump Broadband Networks

How do you communicate with your clients? In your work with the public, what do you see as growing needs for communication? What systems are already in place and functioning, and what needs development? As a tax payer, you support the Universal Service Fund, but what this fund accomplishes must constantly be revisited as citizens' needs change. Discussions on the USF center on the following...

Career Advice from Job Experts

I've always thought that recruiting is just about the most dynamic profession there is. A great recruiter can offer candidates, internal hiring managers, and clients a wealth of business expertise, industry knowledge, and real world experience in sourcing talent. Recruiters are in the trenches- they understand the human side of the business and what it takes to get hiring done. They watch...

Every Employer and Business Owner's Fantasy ...

Imagine ... one day as you're writing out paychecks to your employees, including those that in your workforce that don't seem engaged in what they are doing for your company, and are perhaps even disinterested in the company's mission ... out of the blue you receive a call or email from someone that you don't know and has not been networked into meeting you. Their message is clear –...

I Just Lost My Job: How Do I Tell My Kids?

One of the responsibilities of a human resources professional is to let employees know that their jobs have been eliminated. It is hard to give the news and even harder to receive it. Just recently, I was involved in communicating a large layoff to employees at a Fortune 500 company. I met with one woman tell her about the career transition services she could take advantage of. The woman was...

Move Your Career Ahead by Focusing on One Thing at a Time

If you are like most people we know, you lead a busy life. When do you have time to think about moving your career forward? What we have learned, both as career coaches, and in our professional lives, is that the key to making any change is to slow down and focus on just one thing at a time. It is the same when you want to move your career forward. There are techniques you can learn about...

New Directory of Staffing Professionals

Net-Temps, a leading job board for locating both full time and temporary jobs through staffing companies, has released a new directory for staffing companies. Recruitment and staffing companies can add themselves for free to the directory. The staffing directory appears to be primarily a resource for finding recruiters in a particular locale. Job seekers looking to find staffing companies in...

Canadian Labour Congress Strategizes to End Unemployment

The United States isn't the only 0ne with unemployment problems. One might look in many directions to see the effects of the economy on workers, but one might do well to focus northward for a moment. In January, 1,449,600 Canadians were unemployed. These numbers are much higher than as recently as October. The 6.1% unemployment in October grew to 7.8% this January - an unacceptable jump...

My Next Move an Educational Site for Recruiters

Recruiters may notice that sometimes a job candidate's self-assessment does not jibe with the industry's expectations for qualified applicants. It may be helpful to refer a job seeker like this to a new online tool, created by the U.S. Department of Labor. My Next Move is a tool to educate jobseekers about the ins and outs of 900 occupations. On this website, job seekers can explore...

Wonders and Woes in the West

Wyoming's state motto is "Equal Rights." This state was the first state in which the suffragists secured women's right to vote and hold public office. When good news happens in Wyoming, one can't help but wonder if perhaps the pressure to maintain equal opportunities for men and women has something to do with it. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that urban areas in Western states have...

Protecting Your "Bottom Plane": Full vs. Partial Opportunity Costs

Note: This is an updated version of the second of a series of Michael Moffa articles reporting, analyzing and creating "opportunity-cost"-related concepts. The first, available here at Recruiter.com is "You Think You Understand Your Opportunity Costs?" Bottom Lines vs. Bottom Plane "Bottom line"..."double bottom line"...."triple bottom line"—net income; net income with...

Satisfying the Peckish and Ravenous Reader

Back in the 1700s, Francis Bacon wrote, "Some books are meant to be tasted, others to be swallowed, and some few to be chewed and digested." Bacon's language suggests a bias toward the reading material which can be thoroughly incorporated into one's corporeal experience. However, all you need to do is attend one lecture on education or one training session on working with diverse audiences to...

Beef Suppliers Beef it Up

Back in 1919, Curly Lambeau worked for the Indian Packing Company and asked his bosses for money for football jerseys and use of the company's athletic field. Out of this partnership, the Green Bay Packers were born. Many people are more familiar with the green and gold uniforms of the Green Bay Packers than the daily realities for workers in modern meatpacking facilities. Until now, football...

728,000 Positive Changes

Any number of job losses feels like too many when you imagine the human experience behind it. In the last quarter of 2010, the number of gross job losses from closing and contracting private sector establishments was 6.2 million. These losses, however, were ameliorated by the creation of 6.9 million new job gains from the opening and expanding private sector establishments. This means that...

The Simple Math Underlying Why We Hate To Lose

"The only thing I hate more than not winning is losing"—something Yogi Berra could have said, even if he didn't Although our reactions to losing a job, a client or a wallet seem transparently "natural" and negative, there is something strange about our attitudes towards losses and gains that is revealed when we are asked which matters more: not losing any of these, or gaining...

Innovation Worthy of Recognition

When recruiters talk to job candidates, they may notice a reoccurring line of thought. When asked about favorite places to work, people will often wax on their good experiences working with wise and creative bosses. These qualities of leadership can transform a job that seems decent to something extraordinary. With a sensitivity to the importance of these experiences for workers,...

Keep Nurturing that network – Especially after you land that job!

A lot of you have spent weeks, even months, looking for a job in the midst of this latest economic catastrophe. This has been a tough road, indeed, but you've finally landed a new job – congratulations! If you are like many of the folks I've been working with you've been building or rebuilding your network – as a necessary part of job hunting. Before that, you essentially ignored...

Forget my past... I can do this job!

"Past performance is the best predictor of future success." That's a phrase many hiring managers live by when evaluating candidates for a job opening. HR Managers often preach that mantra, and it certainly is the safest route to take when they want to be sure of making a good hire. Job seekers, on the other hand, often want the company to overlook their track record and see the unproven...

Keys To A Great Email In Your Job Search!

Most opportunities you have to present yourself to a hiring decision maker will involve sending an email. The form and substance of that email will have a great deal to do with whether you get a response or not. As a recruiter, I receive a lot of emails from job seekers looking for leads, looking for help in their search, or pursuing specific job opportunities I'm working on. On average, I...

Follow up, Follow up, Follow up!

"I had a great informational interview but that was the last I heard..." "I had a phone conversation with a good contact in the company..." "I have almost 100 people I've networked with in my job search so far..." "I met someone, at (an event) that said they knew someone, but haven't heard back..." "...should I follow up?" I teach an 8 week class on job hunting...

Nail the Interview!

Prepare for each interview with the Audience in mind This month's article is born during a fishing trip I recently enjoyed with my family. After a day in gold medal waters there are many stories to tell: the big one, the monster that got away, the fierce fighter, you get the picture. So as I sit down to write about interviewing, I'm inspired by hearing differing versions of the same story....

Where do job leads come from?

That's what most job seekers want to know! "What is the most likely source for finding the right job?" ...and "Where should I focus my time?" Questions that make sense to ask... however, are very difficult to answer! MANY times, the best job leads come from the most unlikely sources! The best job lead may come out of the blue! Over the last four years, I've helped lead...

Stupid Girl Loses Job Because of Facebook Status

Some people are stupid. You know this, right? I mean, all of us can think of a handful of dumb people in our lives. So, this post isn't a lecture. It's not a "don't do this", warning post. What we have here today is simply you, me, and countless others laughing at someone's stupid use of social media. I've been finding myself on Lamebook often these days, and sometime last week I came across...

Resumes vs. Online Profiles... What's the Difference?

I was recently asked about the difference between a resume and an online career profile. Is there a difference? Should there be a difference? Are they considered in different ways? What should be included or avoided? Good question... short answer... YES! They are different. There are a number of things to consider when creating a professional profile online vs. creating a resume to email or...

Dealing With Inappropriate Questions in an Interview

In your job search, if you are interviewing regularly, it's highly likely that sooner or later you will be asked a question that may seem inappropriate or legally dubious. How you view that question, and how you respond will very likely have a great impact on your success. I recently had someone in my job search class tell me about an interview he had at a small company. The hiring manager...

Glowing like the metal on the edge of a knife – The Keys to Personal Happiness

As we kick start into the spring and start hearing Jimmy Buffett and laying on the hammock under the sun, I thought I would provide a little Recruiterpoet insight on the keys to personal happiness. Surround yourself with good vibes! Today I was on Sullivan's Island Beach with an amazing view of Fort Sumter, sailboats and children playing in the water. That made me happy. Sunsets on the beach,...

Are You a Resistor?

Over the past 5 years, having taught over 20 – 8 week classes on job transition skills, I've consistently seen many people resist applying the ideas and techniques I talk about. Although they nod in agreement in class, they rarely, if ever, change any of their activities throughout the week. They continue doing the same things they've always done and expect different results (isn't that...

You won't hire me because I'm unemployed? REALLY???

CNN.com posted an article titled "In the job hunt, the stigma of being laid off is hard to erase". In it, Stephanie Chen, writes: "As if securing work in a jobless recovery isn`t tricky enough, being labeled unemployed brings additional obstacles." I was privileged to be interviewed by Stephanie for this article and quoted briefly: "Many companies will consider hiring jobless...

Degrees and Expectations

As recent college graduates hit the job market, and time goes by for some of them without any prospects, I often hear the expressions of "shock and awe" that they spent four or more years earning a degree and now they can't seem to find a job! For many, they are surprised that they are not being considered for jobs when they thought that coveted sheepskin was the ticket to success and...

Finding Your Targets With LinkedIn!

However, people often miss another way LinkedIn can be used to help them greatly in pursuing their job search with a more laser-like focus... finding and defining your target companies and positions! In a job search, many people have difficulty articulating the type of position they are looking for, a title, or specific companies they are interested in pursuing. LinkedIn can be a terrific...