Sunday, September 30, 2007

Be a Successful Recruiter!

Lots of people toy with the idea of becoming a Recruiter, and then talk themselves out of taking the leap. Recruiting is about 'process' not personality when done properly. If you're considering becoming an Executive Recruiter, my advice is get some basic training related to the WHOLE process and decide where (and if) you'd fit into that process.

The opportunities in Recruiting are endless! You may find recruiting to be the most rewarding position you've ever had emotionally, intellectually, and financially. Give it a chance!

The more facets of recruiting you feel you can handle, the better you'll perform and the more money you'll make. Whether you want to be a contract recruiter, in-house corporate recruiter, independent Executive Recruiter, or staffing consultant, the key principles remain the same. What changes is the working environment, amount of personal independence, amount of stress and pressure, and money one makes.

Sadly, newbies often have the most frustration and make the least money. Why? Because their indifferent employers don't care about training, skills, or integrity. The, "Keep pushing the bodies through" mentality doesn't work today (never did) and the turnover rates in these operations tell that sad story. Don't believe the line, "It's just a numbers game. You'll earn what you're worth." That's pure Bull. Walk away from these operations.

In the past ten years great efforts by large and small companies have broken down the search process into multiple functions. Personally, while many companies must prefer all the added layers of bureaucracy, the comments I hear from clients make me believe too many of these "new" systems are lacking.

One specific complaint is the amount of time to fill a position is growing. Here's a joke: An employer posts some ads on a few Job Boards, gets a bunch of resumes, some from very qualified candidates, and yet it takes MONTHS to make a contact with those qualified candidates. ha-ha. And then the employer complains that candidates 'shop' for jobs and aren't serious enough! Who could take an employer seriously who manages their employment process like employees are THE LEAST important part of that companies' success?

Situations like this are everywhere! This is bad news for those kinds of companies (and their corporate recruiters) and great for Executive Recruiters, whose major strength is speed and candidate quality. I've made a fortune off of hiring managers who've had open positions for months. The official company policy may be, "We handle all recruiting in-house", but the reality is if I've got a qualified candidate they need, they'll pay my fee and be happy.

Too many recruiters rely too heavily on reading resumes and resume data sorting software. The resume tracking software is an important tool that often provides one or more extra placements a month for small agencies. Big companies rely heavily on the software too. There's a place for these tools.

I'm not knocking any tool that assists in making placements; however tools are not a substitute for sound, practical, tried and true recruiting methods and strategies that really make placements.

Recruiters are always looking for new and better sourcing methods. Many are looking for ways to NOT recruit! The big bucks go to those Headhunters who have taken the time to learn how to pick up the phone, track down great candidates, interview and qualify them, present the opportunity, verify relevant facts, and schedule the send out. Successful Recruiters don't "wing it", they follow a process.

There's a way to present an offer so that it gets accepted. There's a way to keep negotiations going and a way for Employer and Candidate to both be happy when negotiations are completed. Take the time to understand the process up front and your success will be immediate and ongoing.

The funny thing is: Those Recruiters who take the time to learn their craft, make tons more money with far less effort than 80% of all other types of recruiters. Be a successful Recruiter. Start with investing a few dollars in your own training. Perfect your recruiting skills. The return on investment will be immeasurable.

We train successful recruiters. visit us at: http://www.toprecruitersecrets.com

Saturday, September 29, 2007

Mid life Career Change - Consider Recruiting!

If you’re looking to use your business knowledge and experience in a new way, consider Executive Recruiting as your next profession. Recruiting offers great pay, a flexible schedule, multiple employment options, and possibly most important of all, a balanced life.

There is a myth that recruiters must be great salespeople. That is not true. Good sales skills can always enhance ones’ performance but it is not essential to be a successful recruiter. What is needed is a consistent work ethic, the ability to follow a method, a professional demeanor, honesty, integrity, and enthusiasm.

A recruiter should do a lot of listening to be effective vs. a lot of talking. Developing good listening skills can be learned and is one key ingredient to making more placements.

The recruiting industry continues to flourish.

There are different ways to do business as a recruiter. First, there are Retained Search Firms. They are known for getting their fee up front. They are paid whether or not they deliver the candidate who gets hired. They tend to have the highest fees in the industry. There has been a steady decline in the companies who use these firms because of the internet and the ability to access candidates on all levels.

Contingency fee Executive Recruiters are paid a fee when their client-employer hires a candidate the recruiter found and that candidate starts work. Contingency fee recruiters are known for their ability to access 100% of the candidate marketplace (vs. the 20% reached by ads alone). They have the skill sets to use third party referrals and that elevates their ability to make great matches. 85% of employers responding to surveys rate them as providing the best caliber of candidates. Executive recruiting fees traditionally are 15% - 30% of a candidates’ first year salary.

Staffing agencies advertise themselves as finding jobs for people. Their standard practice is to focus on numbers. If 20 people respond to an ad they try and bring all 20 in for an interview. Their clients use and often depend on their temp services. Staffing temp jobs leads in many cases to hires. They focus on high volumes of candidates, job orders, interviews and placements. Their recruiters are used to a fast pace, high volume, high energy atmosphere.

The good news is 98% of companies have used staffing agencies. The bad news is they have a turnover rate of 50% to 90% of recruiters with less than six months experience. As candidates become more sophisticated, they are becoming less cooperative with the old fashioned “control” tactics many of these agencies use.

Contract Recruiters work directly for an employer with multiple positions to fill. Assignments can last one to six to twelve months. Contract positions may turn into permanent assignment job offers. This segment of the recruiting industry is growing rapidly and is a happy alternative for good recruiters who don’t really want their own business. The average compensation rate is $25.00 to $75.00 per hour. Some positions pay more depending on the industry demand. A few pay less. It’s a great value for employers. They can hire many candidates for a lower cost per hire.

Recruiting is a wonderful profession. I strongly recommend investing in a recruiter training program that teaches sound principles and methods. The key to being in the top 15% of Recruiters is the ability to use third party referrals vs. job boards alone.

Knowing how to approach candidates who are happily employed and knowing exactly what to say will set you apart from the 85% of recruiters who rely solely on job board resumes. Your compensation will reflect the difference as well. When you know how to use third party referrals, you’re no longer making cold calls; you’re calling contacts complete with phone numbers and some background.

If you have a desire to do what is right for the candidate and your client you will find recruiting to be rewarding emotionally, intellectually, and financially. We train Recruiters. visit us at: http://www.toprecruitersecrets.com

Friday, September 28, 2007

Becoming a Recruiter - What does it take?

If you're becoming a Recruiter what qualities do you need to succeed? What's needed is a consistent work ethic, (4 - 6 hours a day is great) the ability to follow a method, a professional demeanor, honesty, integrity, and enthusiasm. A recruiter should do a lot of listening to be effective vs. a lot of talking. They'll need to become an expert in asking questions as well. A Recruiter is a leader who comes across to others in the process as a partner.

Developing good listening skills can be learned and is one key ingredient to making more placements. If you're an extrovert, even slightly, your ability to approach people and establish rapport will give you an edge over introverts. If you're a talkative extrovert, your challenge will be to develop your listening skills.

There's a myth that recruiters must be great salespeople. That's not true. While solid sales skills can always enhance ones’ performance it's not essential to be a successful recruiter. Recruiting is about process not personality, when done properly. What's surprising is once you master the process you'll be credited with a 'great' personality! (What you'll actually have though is the credibility that comes with being effective.)

There are 25 steps in making a placement. That may sound like a lot, but when you become familiar with the whole process you'll be able to jump into an ongoing search, ask a few questions, understand exactly what the status of that placement is and what to do next.

Remember when you first learned to drive? Every task from adjusting the rear view mirror to putting the car into reverse to back out of the driveway required focus and conscious thought. With practice, those steps become efficient and so automatic we don't even seem to notice; our driving becomes flawless and smooth. (In most cases!)

A Recruiter is an expert at making placements. She (he) is a Consultant with great power once she understands her role and responsibility in the process. Recruiters are responsible for managing every step of the placement process. Once they appreciate their role they can easily spot if there's trouble brewing which could jeopardize an offer/acceptance and take the needed action to put the process back on track.

How do they 'fix' a search in crisis? Recruiters start with asking questions. When a client or candidate asks a question, seasoned Recruiters answer the question directly and then ask another question to maintain control. I kind of cringe at the word 'control' but as a Recruiter, all parties involved have a stake in the outcome and although it's never voiced, the Recruiter is the Captain of the ship; Guiding it safely into port or standing by as it dashes against the rocks!

As a Recruiter learns the art of asking questions, and LISTENING to the answers, he becomes a better Recruiter. A Recruiter is a collaborative partner throughout the placement process. Hiring the right person helps companies to succeed. Hiring managers soon develop a keen eye for that 'great fit'.

Candidates can be squeemish about the whole process. Changing jobs means changing their LIFE. It's not something they do everyday. They need the guidance, attention, understanding, hand holding at times, maybe even a push from an expert who knows the process inside and out. This Expert understands their needs and is assisting them with a boost in their career.
If the steps in the process are followed by using methods that work, a good Recruiter will be rewarded with candidate referrals, more job orders, a substantial income, and abundant self respect. They'll also have to admit they're having a really good time.

In becoming a Recruiter, the first most important step is to invest a few dollars in yourself in the form of training. Get to know the process, keep improving your skills and you'll be giving yourself a blank check. We train great Recruiters. visit us at: http://www.toprecruitersecrets.com