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The Best Qualified Candidate Rarely Gets Hired (Update 2008)

Thursday, May 15, 2008

That may get your attention. Generally when I present to groups on the topic of interviewing, people ask about the interviewing process.

How many times have you sat in an interview and wondered, “How will this person (the hiring manager) be able to determine if I am the best qualified candidate? Instead of probing my experience, capabilities, and motivations, he/she just asked me what kind of tree I would choose to be.”

Let’s examine the process in most companies. A person excels in their current position and gets management’s attention. They are promoted. What happens next? They need to learn their new position and fill the position in their organization that they just vacated. A replacement employee requisition is requested and now the Human Resource Department and Recruiters are sourcing candidates. Candidates are produced and given to the new Hiring Manager to interview.

Where in this process is this new Hiring Manager taught how to interview? If they have not been trained how to interview, they certainly have not been trained how to select the best qualified candidate. How does that lack of training impact most companies?

1) The Hiring Manager may not hire the person who will make the key contribution that will propel a company forward;
2) The candidate they do hire may be a good tactical hire but not a good strategic hire – and will leave when they no longer are able to make impacts;
3) Worse yet, they may stay and no longer make significant contributions;
4) Employee retention will become an increasing problem. The wrong person is hired and that impacts the performance of the entire team.

If you hear a Hiring Manager say that an offer should be made to Mr./Ms. Candidate because it feels good in their gut, remember that guts are really good for storing and processing food, not selecting candidates.

And what about reference checks? Has your company resigned itself to the “fact” that meaningful reference checks cannot be done any longer? The reference checks that I do for my clients generally last close to an hour. One reference recently said, “Wow that was like an interview!” I responded that in order to determine if the candidate is the right candidate for a position; shouldn’t we spend the time asking the right questions? It is best for both the candidate and the company.

This will take it one more step, if you trust managers to make critical legal decisions for the company; shouldn’t they be the ones conducting the reference checks? After all, a recruiter or Human Resource manager may know a little about a lot of positions. If this position does not report to them, they may not pick up on the nuances that the references can give.

One time when I encouraged a hiring manager to conduct references on an auditor, she consented with some reservations. She had just completed her third and last reference. When she was thanking the reference for their time, another question literally popped into her head. The response was such that she changed her mind and did not extend an offer to the candidate.


Recently when I asked “What areas does John (not the candidate’s real name) need to improve?” all three references pointed out the same area. It was enough of a concern that I sat down with the Vice President (hiring manager) and CEO and we discussed it. In this case, we extended the offer. The Vice President knows to be aware of the situation and how to coach the new employee.


If companies expect to hire better performers without training the decision makers on the selection process, it sounds suspiciously like doing the same things and expecting different results, doesn’t it?

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Successful Home Office Worker Tips

Tuesday, May 06, 2008

Have you decided that you want to work in your home office? Has your company suggested that you work out of your home? Do you want to be successful working in your home?

This is easier than you may think. With the exception of a year and a half when I was the Recruiting Manager of a start up telecom firm, I have worked out of my home since 1990.

First of all, When you have a home office make sure the business phone only rings in your office space - not your dining room or kitchen or bedroom. At the end of the day, shut the lights in your office and announce that you are closed for the day. I like to say that “the world headquarters of RecruiterGuy.com is now closed.” Otherwise you never leave work.

Secondly, Never bring work out of your office into your living area. That area then becomes your office.

Thirdly, You may have a wireless network and be tempted to do email in your living space. Do it only in your office.

Fourth, Don't worry if your company decides that the arrangement isn't working out. That's one of those things you can't control outside of being productive (which you can control).

Fifth, Stay in touch through conference calls or use Skype for video conference calls. If you were in the office and now are working from your home, over communicate rather than under communicate. Schedule office visits as required. There is a need to reconnect personally.

Sixth, If other people or family are living with you, ask them not to interrupt you when you are in your office. Don’t be tempted to wash the dishes or do house work. You are at work.

Seventh, Don’t work at home for the “tax advantages”. There are few tax advantages, unless you count meeting your tax auditor as one of them.

Eighth, Dress for work. If you dress for work, it is easier to act like you are at work and to be productive.

Ninth, Set up your office so everything – computer, phone, printer/scanner/fax (everything you need) is within reach of your chair.

Tenth, Focus on task. It can be easy to listen on others' conversations within your home. Close the door. Be at work. Turn on some white noise like light classical music or John Tesh’s music (sorry John).

If you follow these ten rules, you will be on the right track. Good Luck!

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Focus Friday – Sales Management – Private Label Snack Foods

Friday, May 02, 2008

The Vice President of Sales position is with a growing $150 million snack food business based in the Midwest. This CPG Company has a large private label component, a branded component, and is developing a direct to consumer component. This is a new position to lead our sales force and specifically to grow our sales volume profitably.

This position is a new and highly visible position leading a group of seven to ten sales professionals and reports directly to the Sr. Vice President of Sales and Commodities.

We are seeking a Private Label National Sales Vice President to lead our national corporate business development with grocery, big box and alternative channels through direct and broker-managed accounts.

Responsibilities include but are not limited to:
• National sales management and development of private label and corporate brands across all competitive segments.
• Private label big box relationship building, resulting in exceeding sales goals.
• Demonstrated success reading and interpreting clients’ inventory software as it relates to our product distribution.
• Build profitable volume/mix with both existing and new accounts maximizing return on investment. Monitor sales professional’s quotes to ensure profitable margins.
• Effective and results oriented professional sales management of direct selling accounts as well as account management through a broker network. Meet personal and corporate sales goals.
• Mentor account managers by accompanying them on sales calls and developing their sales and business skills.
• Use client experience and feedback to co-develop private label product/pricing initiatives to deliver on strategic branded/private label category leadership role.
• Analysis and business application of internal shipment data as well as external data in daily business management to identify market/sales opportunities and trends
• Provide accurate sales forecasting monthly/annually. Communicate forecasts with business operations.
• Effective communication with internal team members and customers.

Qualifications:
• 8-10 years sales experience with consumer packaged food company, preferably focused on private label sales.
• Demonstrated successful headquarter sales experience in supermarket, big box, dollar, c-stores, and drug stores.
• Private label food sales and sales management experience
• Direct sales and broker CPG sales management
• Competent in Excel, Word, PowerPoint, and Outlook Microsoft Office applications. Solid presentation skills required.
• BS/BA required EOE

Reply to recruiterguy@msn.com Subject - Focus Fridays VP Sales

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Mange Your Resume?

Wednesday, April 30, 2008

Mange and Manage; Manager and Manger; Form and From; Or and Of? What do these words have in common? They all sail safely through Spell Check. They also have very different meanings.

For instance, if you are a “manager” of people and mistakenly write “manger”, I picture a small wooden crib with straw bedding.
More importantly, instead of reading your resume for content, I am now in the editing mode and looking for more typos. This will not benefit you if you want to be a candidate in a search by a professional recruiter.
Your resume is your marketing tool in your search for your next position. It should also be your best foot forward. If you have typos sprinkled through your resume, you are portraying yourself as careless – not a good trait, especially at a leadership level.

Here are some hints. When you complete your resume and before you send it out, ask someone who has not helped you write your resume to read it. Their purpose is to question you on potential typos or grammatical errors. If they helped you write your resume, they will make the same errors you make, pretty interesting. Secondly, do a find/replace on words like “manger”. Chances are manger is not going to show up on most professional resumes today. Thirdly, try reading your resume backward. You may be able to pick up typos when the words are out of context.

I wrote this blog because as RecruiterGuy I have been receiving many resumes with the word “manager” spelled as “manger” recently during a vice president search that I am conducting.

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Retaining Young Adult Employees

Tuesday, November 27, 2007

This is RecruiterGuy again to give you another quick preview of coming attractions at the CUNA YES Summit in Austin, TX on Dec. 5, 2007.

You work too hard to find great talent. Failing to retain them is a shame – and not very cost effective.

In order for you to retain high impact talent, it is very important that you have your retention fundamentals down.

The first and certainly one of the most important rules is the Golden Rule – “Treat others as you would like them to treat you.” The stories that I hear from candidates make me shake my head. If managers simply followed the Golden Rule, retention would be much higher. The concept is not magic. The execution is everything.

Have you taken the time to develop a retention process? If so, have you documented it? Are all employees aware of it? Are you focused on retention? Have you developed a leadership development plan? Succession planning is very important today as our Baby Boomer generation is beginning to move into retirement. Therefore retaining Impact Performers is more important than ever.

You certainly have developed a member retention plan. It probably focuses on great member service and great member communication. Shouldn’t that be the basis of your employee retention plan?

As we spoke in a previous blog, the young adult is used to immediate gratification. Is that expectation always possible in the business world? Of course not. However you may be creative and give them the perception of immediate gratification. Here’s a suggestion – use the CUNA courses/certification completion as incentives. Most importantly, listen to their ideas and talk in terms of their interests.

We have much to discuss. See you next week!

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Recruiting Young Adults

Sunday, November 25, 2007

Happy Thanksgiving YES CU bloggers and YES Summit Enthusiasts!

This is RecruiterGuy again just to give you a quick preview of coming attractions. Great news! My presentation is now down to 40 slides and dropping. However, coffee or Mountain Dew consumption is recommended so you can listen fast.

We spoke of the instant gratification that young adults expect today. In order for you to give them that experience on the recruiting side, it is very important that you have your recruitment fundamentals down.

Have you taken the time to document your recruitment process? If so, are there any extra steps that may be removed?

Generally businesses do a good to great job branding their service or products and really do not brand themselves as an employer. Would you prefer to brand yourself as an employer – or do you want public perception to do so? How do young adults in your area perceive you as an employer?

How quickly do you respond to candidate inquiries for employment? When you interview candidates, do you sell the services of your credit union and discuss the reason(s) you are passionate about working there? Remember that Every candidate is a potential member! How many candidates, who do not become employees, become members? That may be an interesting metric to watch.

Is your recruitment process smooth and efficient? Have you trained your hiring managers how to interview? If they haven’t been trained how to interview, how do you expect them to select the best candidate - and not the least threatening? Do you make hiring decisions quickly? Do you do reference checks? You better!

Recruitment is one of the most important areas of the credit union. With one hire you may be able to greatly expand your business - or a poor hire can wreck your reputation.

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Focus Fridays - VP Actuary

Friday, November 23, 2007

Are you a consultative Actuary with the experience of a VP Actuary? Do you have demonstrated strong analytical skills? Do you have a desire to perform and be recognized for your performance? Do you have a good understanding of the life insurance business? Would you like to live in the Midwest and work with a well known life insurance company?

The client recognizes the importance of an internal consultant and risk manager for actuarial activities. One of the goals for this person is to build professional relationships with the Chief Actuaries of the different divisions within the company, and help the Chief Actuaries identify and audit areas of concern.

This position will be responsible for auditing and consulting within all of the actuarial responsibilities throughout the US member companies based on an annual audit plan.


Requirements:
This is the senior person within Internal Audit responsible for interfacing with the Chief Actuary in the business’ divisions and reports to the Vice President and Director of Internal Audit.

Thorough knowledge of the life insurance business and actuarial principles relevant to the position are required. Asset liability experience and product pricing experience while working with Marketing is valuable. Investment and product development experience required. Experience as an external or internal consultant is required.

Will work as part of an integrated audit team on some assigned audits while either leading or acting as a sole contributor on others.

Interact with Senior Management to advise on key actuarial related issues. This is often done through meetings so management may make informed decisions.

Bachelors Degree required. Member of the American Academy of Actuaries; FSA required.

The successful candidate will have a minimum of 20 years of actuarial experience in a life and/or health insurance environment and another 3-5 years in a consultative role to Chief Actuaries whether internally or as an external consultant. Must have detailed knowledge of relevant insurance laws and regulations as well as actuarial standards of practice relevant to their responsibilities. Must have effective written and verbal communications skills.

Write to me at recruiterguy@msn.com to learn more!

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