Give yourself a performance review

I consider myself an experienced – actually very experienced - recruiter.  I have over 15 years of experience and I have worked independently for most of that time.  Only newbies benefit from rigorous programs like counting calls placed, messages left, emails sent and contacts made, right?  Wrong!

I decided to count my calls for a few days to see if it would have an impact on my productivity and my results.  I was actually shocked at the results.  I got a lot more done when I forced myself to place 20 calls before taking a break.  I didn’t allow myself to stop making calls to check email, do a quick Google search, or to find more intel, etc.  And at the end of the day I had better results.   I got on a roll with my calls, and left all the other work to do later.  I felt like I exuded a lot more energy on the phone because I was focused and on a mission to finish this task before moving on to something else.

When I looked at the number of completed calls that I made per hour, I was surprised how low that number was in comparison to the number I had expected.  In 1995 when I started contracting for a retained search firm, I used to average 4 completed calls per hour.  I remember that number because it was a goal I set for myself and I worked toward it everyday.  I was able to accomplish it because as a contractor, I worked off a call list of several hundred names supplied to me by the client.  Later on when I joined that firm as the full time Director of Recruiting,  I trained the recruiters to do their research up front and then work off a call list, striving for 4 completed calls per hour. 

I know I am working just as hard now, so I checked with some of my recruiter friends and found out that they are completing fewer calls now themselves.  We are all chalking this up to people relying on voice mail to screen their calls or maybe they are using the same time management technique that I am using and not answering the phone when they are focusing on another task.  I also like to believe that I am better at engaging people in meaningful conversations once I do get them on the phone, so my average call probably lasts longer. 

In any case, it was a great experiment because I took a critical look at my work and made some adjustments.  It is very empowering to give yourself a performance review and set your own goals for improvement!

Treat Your Candidates with Respect!

I am a full life cycle recruiter so I like to stay on top of all the new sourcing techniques out there. Today I attended Geoff Peterson’s wonderfully informative, free webinar 30 Recruiting Strategies in a Downturn Economy. (Not sure “attended” is the correct word. What DO you call it when you sit at your desk and listen in?) For more information about Geoff, check out his blog at www.staffbytes.com.

Geoff covered all kinds of techniques for using new media – Twitter, Facebook, podcasting, etc. to attract and source passive candidates. Afterwards I got to thinking that no matter how well you source, you have to take excellent care of your candidates to be a really successful recruiter.

Here are a few suggestions for showing your respect for your candidates:

• Make a firm commitment to your candidate about when you will give them feedback (whether that is from an internal hiring manager or a client), and honor that commitment.
• Don’t over commit. Sure, you would like to have an offer for the candidate tomorrow, but is that reasonable? Does the hiring manager typically get back to you that quickly? Build a cushion into the timeframe so you can exceed your candidate’s expectations. For example, if the hiring manager tells you will they have a decision by the end of the week, tell the candidate you will have news for them by the middle of next week.
• If you don’t have feedback by the agreed upon date, contact your candidate anyway! Tell them you haven’t forgotten about them, but you just don’t have any news yet. Ask your candidate how they are doing and if anything has changed on their end. It is much better to admit that you don’t have feedback than to leave your candidate with the impression that you have forgotten about them, or they are not important enough to warrant a call from you.

Treat your candidates with respect and they will respect you and want to do business with you, now and in the future!

TALKING – the BEST sourcing tool!

Today I want to post about “talking” as a sourcing tool. Recruiters often tell me that they have searched every paid resume board, all the freebies, LinkedIn, the ATS, etc. and they just can’t find anyone that fits the spec. That is when I typically recommend that they try a low tech tool – the telephone! If you have checked every site in your arsenal and can’t find anyone – maybe there is a true shortage or maybe there is something wrong with the way you are searching or the pitch you are using. But you won’t know for sure until you start talking to the people that would really know – the people that work alongside the people you are trying to recruit. Or, the people that work for the people you are trying to recruit – or maybe even people who used to do what you need your candidate to do. In other words, stop looking for the perfect resume and start talking to those “Compromise Candidates” that I mentioned in the last post.

Now – don’t expect gainfully employed, busy people that you have never spoken with to drop everything and call you back, that is not what I am recommending. Rather, call the people that you have spoken to in the past, people you used to work with, candidates you have placed or people that already work for your company.

Be upfront and honest, tell them that you are not calling to recruit them, and tell them that you need their help. Explain the challenges that you are facing – whether it is finding the right combination of skills or getting people to call you back. Ask them what they think of the position as you describe it and tell them what you are saying in your pitch. You will get immediate feedback on what is important to your target candidates, where they network, how they like to be contacted, why they are in high demand and you will probably even get some referrals!

So, next time you are frustrated with the results you are getting and find yourself searching for the latest and greatest Internet sourcing tool, try picking up the phone and see what you get. And, if you have success with this approach, please comment here so we can all learn from each other!