Open Letter to Entreprenuers: Ever heard of Job Marketing? November 11, 2008
Posted by hardly Strategic Concerns
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Today, I read an OUTSTANDING post by Seth on recruiting, The marketer's attitude.
Why was it OUTSTANDING? Why is it germane to our conversation here about recruiting?
Because Seth wrote a job ad that was unlike anything you've probably ever seen. And it is also probably way more effective, too. Effective = more responses from the target audiences.
Take another read through that ad and check off all the stuff you don't see that you usually see in a job ad. Then ask yourself, what really needs to be in a job ad, and what doesn't?
It's a great question. It highlights some key attributes a good recruiter should be able to bring to the table:
- Creativity.
- An understanding of the ideal candidate profiles you're trying to attract.
- A clear understanding of the difference between a job description and a job ad.
In other words, Job Marketing skills. Marketing 101, the 4 Ps: Product, Price, Place, Promotion. Your recruiter should have this.
Now, one thing needs to be very clearly stated: Seth did not include any of the legal stuff you may need in a job ad. You'll need that, and your recruiter should be able to address this as well.
Open Letter to Entrepreneurs: Because you’re great at Architecting a System doesn’t mean you can play Major League Baseball November 10, 2008
Posted by hardly Strategic Concerns
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One of my favorite stories regarding talent is that of Michael Jordan.
Michael Jordan is arguably one of the best basketball players of all time, maybe THE best. But, as a pro-level baseball player, he was a minor-league player. As Dirty Harry says, "A man's got to know his limitations."
In other words, if you as a leader of a startup don't have skills & talent in the recruiting field, it might be best to hire a pro.
Here are some tell-tales that should make you think twice about doing your own recruiting:
- Worked as a hiring manager at a large firm that is noted for their GREAT recruiting function. Especially if, in hindsight, you see that your assigned recruiters spent more time w/you than your peers. You weren't cute, you just needed more help.
- You don't know 3 specific reasons why someone would join your team or org to advance their career.
- You don't consciously maintain a professional network of people in your field.
- You've never written a job description from scratch.
- You don't know the difference between a job description and a job ad.
- You're not highly process focused.
- You have an extra 20 - 40 hours a week to run the recruiting function.
On the other hand, maybe you do have what it takes, if...
- Worked as a hiring manager at a large firm that is noted for their GREAT recruiting function. Especially if, in hindsight, you see that you engaged w/these recruiters and learned a lot from them, read the books they recommended, applied their lessons, etc.
- You know the 3 primary profiles of the ideal candidate for any given open role coming up for the next 12 months.
- You've been tracking the careers of 5 - 10 GREAT developers to see if they evolve into great Software Architects.
- You've ever thought of posting a sign on the billboard outside your competitor's HQ advertising for their Sr. SDEs to come join your team.
- At every trade show you go to, you hand out a special 'come work for me' business card to at least one person you meet.
- You created your firm's referral recruiting program. And, it's working.
- You can gather candidate feedback from all your team's interviewers without tipping your hand as to your thoughts about the candidate (and biasing the interviewer's response).
- You've already been successful as a recruiter.
Another major point in all this is that if you have a recruiter feeding you candidates, working the process, you can focus your firm's attention on the decision process for each candidate. This is the most critical point in the recruiting process for you to be paying attention to. If you are spending all your time on other parts of the recruiting process, you're more likely to make a mistake on the decision.
Look at it this way, what's the worse thing that can happen if you fail at trying your hand at recruiting? You could slowly hire the wrong people, missing major release dates, making the team demoralized and ultimately leading to the failure of your company.
It's your choice.
Triangulating on staffing challenges in this dynamic economy November 7, 2008
Posted by hardly Strategic Concerns
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Want to introduce y'all to Kevin Wheeler, a highly respected member of the world-wide recruiting community, and President and Founder of Global Learning Resources, Inc.
He's got a thought-provoking post up on ERE, What Recruiting Will Look Like After the Recession. I'd quibble with this slightly and say what it looks like now, but you get the point. He has some general points on things that I've commented about in the past on this blog, namely that roles requiring technical background are continuing to go unfilled.
Hello all you SDETs, SDEs, and Software Architects!
For all you hiring managers out there, be thinking about two things: 1) How to retain your Development teams; 2) How to sharpen up your recruiting strategies & tactics.
A great read on a Friday afternoon as you prepare to head home for the weekend, and take time to ponder the next 12 months.
Reading Closely about Seattle’s Economic Health November 7, 2008
Posted by hardly Strategic Concerns
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Our buddies Eric Engleman and John Cook at TechFlash posted an article up last night regarding layoffs in the "Tech Sector" in Seattle. I think they were pointing at some recently reported local layoffs and trying to show a trend. But...
There are 3 paragraphs at the very end that which caught my eye, and which you ought to be paying attention to. This is where Dan Shapiro, CEO of Ontela states that his company is cautiously hiring (that would be the opposite of laying off, right?).
Which roles are they focused on?
You guessed it, Developers. Great Developers.
Open Letter to Entreprenuers: It’s always easier to sucker the smart guys in the room November 6, 2008
Posted by hardly Strategic Concerns
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Con artists and Magicians are interesting people. They are successful because of their understanding of human capabilities, and what happens around the edges of our perception.
One statement I've heard emanating from these sources is, "It's easiest to sucker the Lawyer or the Doctor because they think they know everything."
Sounds like more than a few technologists that I know...
This is important because most hiring managers in the technical spaces do not have a deep understanding of how recruiting works, but because of their broad and deep understanding of Technology, and how hard won that knowledge is, they think otherwise.
Look at it this way, the working world of recruiting is pretty much analogous to the working world of Software Development. Broadly, Software Developers write software, and Recruiters find people for your team, but the Devil is in the details. You wouldn't hire a Contract C++ Systems Programmer to come in and be the lead of your Web Development team that's running on the LAMP stack, would you?
When it comes to start-ups, and finding a Third-part Recruiter or Agency to assist in your recruiting efforts, here are a few things to pay attention to that should help you improve the value you receive from your recruiter.
Beware the low-ball offer: There are plenty of ways for a Third-Party Recruiter to justify a reduction in their fee, and in so doing, reduce the value they provide you.
If you lack an in-house HR Person, or Recruiter, you are going to want someone who provides Full life-cycle recruiting. Basically, this means that the recruiter is going to do everything from interviewing you and your staff to creating the job description, to sourcing, to interviewing, presentation of the candidate to you, scheduling interviews, reference checks and, negotiating the offer and making sure you're ready for the candidate's first day. The easiest way to reduce the fee is to reduce the work, so make sure this in the contract. Of course, if you want to do part of that work, then by all means, work out a reduced rate, but make sure that the whole process is followed.
One way to tell if you've got a problem is in the number of resume 'hits' you're getting. As humans, we're usually impressed with activity. Maybe your recruiter is sending you lots of resumes. But how many are close to the target, how many would you call for an interview? Activity alone is not a good indicator of value (It's that 'hits' v. 'on-base %" argument from "Moneyball").
Another method is for the recruiter to consolidate a number of similarly skilled searches into one and utilize the candidates that don't fit at one client for a different client. Sounds innocuous, but there can be all kinds of reasons why a candidate doesn't fit, including ones that don't benefit you. For example, the recruiting firm in question steering their best candidates to those clients of highest revenue value to them over time. I'm guessing that if you negotiated a low-low one-time fee, that's not going to be you. Plus, start-ups have a sizzling allure that attract good talent, so worse, you could be the bait. But let's be fair here, there are other, good reasons for a third-party recruiter to shuttle candidates to you v. other companies. And, a good recruiter will be able to make these decisions based on the candidate in question v. the desired candidate profile, not the fee.
Beware of where the candidate funnel is pointed: This one is something that you'd see from a recruiter that's working in-house, like a contract recruiter or a FT in-house recruiter. The question is, what happens to all those candidates who aren't an immediate fit for your company? Sometimes, they are handed off by your in-house recruiter to another firm, and that recruiter gets a finder's fee. Pay attention to your agreement w/your contract recruiters on this point. You might be O.K. with this if it gives you a lower rate, but it's still a practice that is open for abuse.
Beware of strong 'like': One of the approaches that always makes my warning lights go off in a negotiation (and we're always negotiating) is a salesperson selling their charm or sex appeal a little too much. I know this sounds like a silly warning for something that is fairly obvious, but it happens all the time in all areas of Sales, including recruiting. Why is it that so many recruiting agencies have pretty little things (male & female) working for them? Because it helps close business is why.
Beware of firms that your top talent dislikes (for cause):Some of the questionable practices that Recruiting firms use come to light on the candidate side, not the client side. If you're in the short strokes on deciding on a firm or two to assist you in your recruiting, it's probably worthwhile to do a quick 5-minute huddle and ask the gang which firms they've been touched by that they'd not work with again. Good to ask for reasons behind this, as you'll likely find some things which would not put your firm in good light. Like presenting candidates w/o their prior approval. Or, asking for references up-front, prior to their interview, which the recruiter then uses as sourcing fodder (and never checks the references).
What's the common denominator in all this: Time. Recruiting is hard for a couple of reasons, but one constant theme is managing time. We're always looking for ways to reduce the time it takes to get you the best candidates possible. We need more hours in a day. We look for the best times to contact clients and candidates. In this way, we're no different than your best developers, always looking for the tightest code, the fastest processing time for a given set of instructions. In your working w/a recruiter, look closely at those processes that take the most time, because this will be the most likely place to see creative things going on. You just want those creative things to be of benefit to you, not taking advantage of you or your brand.
What was it the slave said to the conquering hero? November 5, 2008
Posted by hardly Strategic Concerns
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Let me tell you a little story about an election of long ago...
It was 2000, or was it 2004?, and I was chatting w/some friends of mine who happen to be Republicans, and among those few who actually work at getting candidates elected. It was after the election had been called, but before the President was sworn in.
I said, "You know, it's really good that G.W. has a history of reaching across the aisle in his work as the Governor of Texas. That should bode well for his Presidency."
My friend laughed and said, "Oh, you don't get it. We won, and we won big. We don't HAVE to work across the aisle, and we're going to do whatever we want. The Democrats have had control of things for far too long and now it's our turn to set things straight."
So, to all of you who have won your bid for office this time around, or for you who identify yourself very closely with your political party, I ask you to take a moment and remember the final quote from the movie, "Patton", "For over a thousand years Roman conquerors returning from the wars enjoyed the honor of triumph, a tumultuous parade. The conqueror rode in a triumphal chariot, the dazed prisoners walking in chains before him. And a slave stood behind the conqueror holding a golden crown and whispering in his ear a warning: that all glory is fleeting."
Which wins: Self Actualization or Pot Roast? October 16, 2008
Posted by hardly Strategic Concerns
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Alltop, have you been there? I like surfing it on occasion for ideas, and help on specific topics.
Today, I ran across a post on Alltop that clearly, concisely and absolutely nailed the motivational shift we've seen in people in the U.S. over the last 6 months.
The post is titled, "How not to close a presentation...", and surprise, it's a story about how not to close a presentation based on Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs. But, like all good stories, it's also a great analogy that can be used as a comparison to multiple other situations.
For example, keeping your staff's attention at work so they are able to self-actualize. Or, how to run a political campaign that's effective (for those that need the hint: Go for the voter's fears first). Or, how to sell a car.
Were it me, I'd go right after those fears and show how working for my team means no worries. You're going to eat and pay your rent/mortgage. You're safe working for me. We love having you with us, and we're going to do great things together. We'll improve our market, our community, our country, and world.
But that's just me. I like to self-actualize after eating my pot roast.
Did you see the dead meme on the side of the economic highway? October 16, 2008
Posted by hardly Strategic Concerns
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RIP, "War on Talent"
Several years back ,this was all the rage in recruiting. Big shortage of workers, companies fighting for employees, etc., etc.
Hates it!
First, analogies linking war to business are so 80's, and at the base, blatantly incorrect (Business is about building, creating and making a profit, where wars are about destruction and killing your opponent).
Today, David Zinger has a great post ranting against the War for Talent. And, given the economic shift we are experiencing, I'd also say that we can run this meme over w/our truck and head on down the road to more important issues.
Like building that next great business, and putting together an amazing team made up of a few of your best friends. Talk about big fun!
The one question to ask October 15, 2008
Posted by hardly Strategic Concerns
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A bit ago in my career, I was a stakeholder on a x-func team that was focused on customer retention for an on-line subscription product. As a result, I was introduced to, and searched out all kinds of analytic tools to measure customer happiness, retention and loyalty.
The best thing I came across in that time was work done by Frederick Reichheld. He is a customer researcher, and has written a number of articles & books on the topic of loyalty and customer retention, including, "The Loyalty Effect", and "The Ultimate Question"
After years of research, he figured that all of this could be largely reduced to one question, "Are you likely to recommend us to friends and colleagues?" There are measures around this, of course, and if you're interested in this, go read his books. They will change the way you think about your customers.
Thing is, this isn't just about your customers or clients.
When was the last time you measured whether your staff would recommend your company as a place to work?
Profound Economic News! October 14, 2008
Posted by hardly Strategic Concerns
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It's very easy to get caught up in the so-called bad economic news at the macro level. I don't mean to make light of those in trouble, and I'd for-sure hate to be a car dealer right now, but really, did life completely stop because some banks messed up?
In times like these, it's good to poke your head up once in a while from your cubicle, office, coffee-shop and look around. See what's happening.
This is my gentle prod to your lilly-white behind that is seemingly glued to your chair: Software & Internet firms are still looking for developers.
Really.
Life has not stopped - go out there and live it!
