The Daily Recruiter

So often when we look for jobs, we are perplexed about how to behave during an interview. There really are some things to be aware of, we may fidget, we may be nervous, but we have control over some things during an interview, so let’s tackle those easy, no brainer items we can control. We are completely in control of how we dress, how we look, what we know about the company before we go into the interview. So let’s tackle those objectives first.

1. Groom thyself - let’s make sure we are freshly showered, shaved, and our hair is neat. You would be surprised at how often people come into an interview smelling less than fresh. For interview days skip the perfume and cologne, you don’t know if the person that is going to interview you has an allergy, the objective is not to rule yourself out. Don’t stop and have a meal on your way, you may walk in smelling like fried chicken, or some other odor. Smokers be aware that smoke lingers on you and your clothing.

2. Clothes should be pressed and professional - make sure your clothes have been pressed, if you haven’t touched an iron, do so, if you don’t have an iron, bring a couple of outfits to a dry cleaners and have them press your clothes for you. Interviews aren’t the time to have wrinkled clothes, and be too casual. Dress professionally; don’t wear jeans, tank tops, stained clothing, or anything that has neon in it. You want to look like you fit in; you don’t want to look like you don’t belong.

Click to read more ...

1: Do not digress from the question asked. Keep it brief and relevant When asked a ‘Tell me about yourself’ question, the tendency is to oversell ourselves however be aware of not talking too long or digressing from the question. What the employer wants to know is how useful and suitable are you for the role not the ins and outs of your daily life or personal history from way back, so keep your answer ‘short and sweet’ or else the interviewee will lose interest and become bored.

2: Good eye contact If faced with one interviewer or a panel remember to give eye contact to all members it demonstrates confidence and creates a good impression.

3: Over gesticulation During an interview gesticulation is sometimes needed but be aware of not using it to cover up nerves or over emphasizing a point. It can be annoying to the interviewer when an interviewee is constantly over gesticulating.

Click to read more ...

Labor Day in the U.S. is almost here. Many other countries also celebrate a labor day, which has always seemed an unusual event to me. We didn’t celebrate such a day at all until Tuesday, September 5, 1882, in New York City. Interestingly, this is a date that coincides well with the world’s entry into the impersonal and mechanistic 20th century.

I have been noodling for quite some time over the work/life balance movement. I call it a movement because it really came about unexpectedly around 15 years or so ago and has swept corporate America from coast to coast.

I can’t think of any organization that has not had to change policies or at least address its employees about the issue. The work/life balance movement is an interesting phenomenon. I don’t think there has been a previous era when there was such an emphasis on specifically setting aside time for non-work activities.

Click to read more ...

You’re interviewing for a job. After 20 or 30 minutes, you’re asked: “Do you have any questions?”

The worst thing you can do is ask, “What is it your company does?” (Hey, it has happened.) The next worst thing you can do is say, “Um, nope, I don’t have any questions.”

[See 21 secrets to getting a job offer.]

You need to ask some questions! Asking questions shows your interest in a company and makes you look smarter (smart people tend to be inquisitive). Asking questions gives interviewers a chance to talk about themselves, a thing most people love. And—this is important—asking questions is a way to find out if you really want to work for these people.

Bottom line: Don’t make the interviewer do all the heavy lifting. Take an active role in the interview process and improve your chances of landing a job.

[See 50 tips for surviving your worst work day.]

So what should you ask? Here are 10 suggestions:

1. “Can you describe a typical day for someone in this position?” If your interviewer appears to be nervous or ill at ease, a non-abstract question like this is a good way to get the ball rolling.

Click to read more ...

Business consultant Dan Kennedy tells this impressive story:

Early in his sales career when he didn’t have a pot to you-know-what in, he wanted to get an appointment with a prospective customer, but despite several attempts, couldn’t.  He was stalled.

So he sent the prospect a letter via FedEx on a Tuesday morning telling him he was flying to his city that Wednesday morning for an important meeting.  (Not true, this was fabricated.)

The letter said his meeting was at the airport and his schedule was so tight, he didn’t have time to come into the city, but he really wanted to talk with him in person, so…

“I’ve arranged for a limo to pick you up in front of your office at 1 pm, bring you to the airport hotel where I have a conference room.  We can meet for just 45 minutes, and the limo will have you back at your office by 3:30 pm.  And there will be a nice sandwich and beverages in the limo, in case this forces you to skip lunch.  If this isn’t okay, please call by noon to cancel.”

The prospect came.  And they met.

Click to read more ...

In past generations it was very common for an employee to remain with one employer for his or her entire work life. These people were loyal to the companies that they worked for. They believed in what their company did and stood for. For this to happen today would be a rarity. Studies show that the typical person entering the workforce today can expect to change jobs at least seven times over their work lifetime and for many it will be more than that. Why do people leave their jobs instead of staying?

Of course there are many reasons people leave their jobs, but the Gallup Organization has come up with the top three;

1. Lack of faith in the leadership or vision of the company.
2. Concerns with the way employers/management are treating people.
3. Lack of employer/management support in areas of performance reviews and employee development.

We all know that if we do not have a good relationship with someone we do not want to stay around them. Work is no different. Poor relationships at work, especially if it is with an immediate supervisor, result in poor performance and commitment on the employees part and eventually they will leave, even if they love the job they are doing. It just will not be worth the stress of the bad relationship.

Click to read more ...

A layoff can be an unpleasant experience and probably not one you want to relive over and over during interviews. The way you handle this topic can make or break an opportunity to move forward with your career and leave the past behind.

Do’s

• DO be the first one to bring up your layoff. Many times a recruiter starts off with, “Tell me about yourself”. Tell them about your career achievements and goals first, and then take the opportunity to explain your recent layoff. You can explain it on your own terms, instead of letting the interviewer formulate questions about it. Avoiding or hiding the issue only makes your interviewer think you did not take the layoff well or that you have more to hide.

• DO mention if it is related to the recession. Today, even though layoffs can be embarrassing, many recruiters are not surprised when candidates mention a layoff resulting from the poor economy.

Click to read more ...

In each of the past three months, more employees quit their jobs than were terminated, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. This is good news for the economy but bad for individual businesses: when jobs become more plentiful, the first to exit are often the business’s most ambitious employees — the innovators, the risk-takers, the future leaders. The cost of replacing an employee is estimated at up to 250 percent of annual salary.

An AchieveGlobal survey of 738 managers revealed that about one in four employees planned to leave their jobs within a year. A study reported in the May issue of Harvard Business Review revealed that 12% of high-potential employees were actively searching for a new job.

Why are employees walking away from their jobs, even with unemployment still hovering near 10 percent? Our studies show that the three biggest reasons are a lack of growth opportunities, dissatisfaction with compensation, and employees feeling their contributions aren’t being recognized. Growth and recognition are particularly important to younger workers, who have higher expectations of their employers than others do and are defecting in large numbers.

Click to read more ...

This must be one of the most feared phrases that a good recruiter can hear, unfortunately, it and phrases like it are not uncommon. A better name for it is “reckless hiring,” as such demands are essentially a directive to source candidates who are the real-world equivalent to Homer Simpson. While I certainly understand the pain a vacancy, particularly one in a highly visible role can cause, such shortsightedness often ends up backfiring.

The cost of hiring a weak employee like Homer Simpson in many cases exceeds the cost of leaving the position vacant until you can get a top-quality hire. Superior recruiters rarely cave to pressure and find ways to talk managers out of this silly request. Following are some arguments that I have developed to respond to “butts in chairs” recruiting requests.

(Incidentally, the same arguments can also be applied to existing weak employees in cases where layoffs or terminations are being considered.)

Click to read more ...