Nov
19
2006
Maureen Sharib recently requested that I give a sample of my search request form that I personally use. Here are a couple of the things I request from my recruiters when they need a search from me:
- What exactly do you need me to look for?
Do you need me to find a presentable candidate for a new/potential client? Do you need several candidates for an existing job order? Do you need me to research a company and create an org chart? Do you need me to create a list of companies for you to market a candidate into?
- Who is your client?
This I always keep confidential, but knowing who I am searching for will help me figure out a little about what I need to look for – I usually do some background search on the client company
- Title of position
I usually request a list of titles that an ideal candidate might list…for example Product Manager, Product Marketing Manager, Marketing Manager, etc…
- Competitor Companies
Pretty self explanatory
- Location of position
This way I can have a general idea of where to start looking
- Locations in which I should search
I ask this in addition to the actual position location b/c oftentimes the company might be willing to relocate from surrounding states/metro areas
- Salary range/Education requirements/Years experience
Again, self explanatory…I don’t want to return a candidate who is making $40,000 for a position that will begin at $100,000, or a candidate who has not completed a 4-year degree when the client will not even look at someone who does not have at least a Bachelors degree…
- Industry buzz/key words
This is especially valuable information for me with regards to industries in which I have not conducted alot of searches. The more keywords the recruiters can provide me with, the quicker I can return more quality results to them
Some additional information I request is their contact management database location and what list they would like me to add to. I assume that they have already put some work into finding some candidates on their own and are not relying solely on a researcher to make their list for them (hint hint….)
Hope this helps!
Nov
18
2006
Quite possible one of the best articles I’ve ever read on developing a quality sourcing TEAM…..please take the time to read this!
Shally on developing an internal sourcing team
Nov
16
2006
Anybody remember the Wendy’s “Where’s The Beef?” commercials from the ’80s? Well, I was just on Monster today trying to search for some recruiters and I had a moment where this flashed back through my head, but instead of saying ‘where’s the beef?’ I said ‘where’s the job?’ Check this picture out and tell me if you almost miss seeing the opening sandwiched amongst all the ads….. maybe I’m not as sharp as some but this is pretty annoying and I can’t imagine a job seeker thinking any different!
Nov
16
2006
I just received a visit this morning from the FedEx delivery guy, but I was not expecting anything. I opened my box to find a “Money Tree” inside, and a Thank You card from one of my franchise owners and his researcher as a token of their appreciation for me helping the researcher learn some sourcing techniques. How appropriate of a gift is that!
So Amanda and Cutter – thank you for the thoughtful gift! I will wait patiently for the dollar bills to sprout 
Nov
14
2006
Keith Ferrazzi says “Never Eat Alone”….so since most nights I do, I decided to follow that advice and meet a new friend for dinner tonight. For those of you who don’t know who Joel Cheesman is, I recommend doing so! I have been reading his blog, Cheezhead, for several months now without even realizing that he was virtually in my backyard. Upon discovering this, I asked if he would be willing to meet with me and graciously he accepted.
Backing up a bit, Joel’s blog is what inspired me to start my own in the first place, so I called him up one day to see if he would be willing to share some knowledge and make some recommendations to me on how to make mine half as good as his. Being a giving person as he is, he took about 30 minutes of his day to give me some pointers and make some suggestions to best target my audience.
So….this evening, spending only about 2 hours at dinner with Joel gave me an insight to his thought process and the way he runs his businesses. First off I will say that I always enjoy picking the brains of entrepreneurs, as they tend to have a great deal of wisdom and know that the way to get ahead in life is by helping others achieve their goals. Joel is no exception! I found out through getting to know him that he and his wife just had a baby boy about 8 weeks ago. For him to spend some time telling me about his business and how he thinks and take time away from the people he loves was incredibly generous.
Joel surprised me! His ideas on marketing and SEO (search engine optimization) intrigued me as he believes in ‘pull’ as opposed to ‘push’. As a professional in the recruiting area, I am most familiar with ‘push’ marketing – sending out mass emails, cold calling, the whole ‘hunter’ mentality. Joel’s philosophy revolves around being there when people need you, or ‘pull’ing people to you by name recognition. Strategic advertising based on researching where your target audience will end up when they conduct a search. Giving first, and receiving later. The whole ‘delayed gratification’ way of doing things.
Given the example of sending out 100 emails and getting one interested response, Joel’s take on that is “Yeah, but you probably ticked off the other 99 people in the process by spamming them.”
Joel also shared something with me that was a little shocking: he told me that he doesn’t make sales calls! His business comes strictly from word-of-mouth referrals and name recognition. His blog is, as he said, an unexpected success, and people recognize his talent and contact him when their interest in SEO is great enough. I found this fact fascinating – is this the recruiting wave of the future? Quite possibly – after all, word-of-mouth is the oldest, and most effective, method of marketing out there. Plus look at the growing popularity of professional networking sites….
I would encourage anyone out there to seek out people in your industry or similar ones who are at the top of their game and find out what makes them tick! I’ve always been told when you get around someone who is successful to find out two things:
- What their principles on success are
- What book(s) they are currently reading (Joel I forgot to ask you this!!)
So here is a short list of people that I have yet to do this with (if any of you read my blog, thank you first of all, and please accept this as an open invitation!) This list grows daily so your name will probably end up here soon!
So Joel – since I know you’ll be reading this – thank you for your time this evening! Thanks for sharing with me whatcha want along with some freaky tales and keepin’ it real, yo. I’m going back to Cali now.
