Source: eGrabber Newsletter
MySpace, one of the most popular social networking sites, is no longer the exclusive domain of teenagers. The average age for people on this site is now about 35 years. There are millions of MySpace users and many of them are professionals (potential passive candidates).
The search syntax for finding profiles on MySpace is
site:www.myspace.com keyword
If you are looking for passive prospects from a geographic area, you can include the state code at the end of the search string. For, example, if you are looking for profiles of Certified Public Accountants from California, the search string will be
site:www.myspace.com Certified Public Accountant (California | CA)
Use the above search technique and explore the vast possibilities that MySpace can offer, especially to locate those hard-to-find candidates for your assignments.
Manual resume data entry from different sources is strenuous and time consuming. With fierce competition all around, a recruiter cannot afford to spend most of his/her productive time in manual resume data entry. This is where an automated resume extraction tool like ResumeGrabber can provide the recruiter the winning edge.
ResumeGrabber is a simple, easy-to-use but powerful tool that enables you to extract resumes from search engine results, job boards, blogs, email attachments and from folders in the PC. ResumeGrabber helps you to extract resumes from multiple sources and enables you to quickly screen and sort resumes based on experience, skill set, location, education, etc. and enables you to quickly transfer the selected resumes to your database.
With ResumeGrabber, you can completely automate resume extraction, automate resume screening and automate resume data entry, and spend more time reaching your candidates and clients.
Source: Resume Data Entry
Manual resume data entry results in loss of time and it hampers the other core recruiting processes. Particularly when you are processing thousands of resumes, it becomes a tiresome task. In addition, there is every chance that you might copy and paste inappropriate data in the wrong fields and enter duplicate resumes / records in your database.
The perfect solution for these manual resume data entry hassles is to automate resume data entry. Automating resume data entry enables you to quickly capture and process the resumes. It helps you save a lot of time and enables you to spend more time with your candidates and clients.
ResumeGrabber is one such tool that helps you to automate resume data entry and makes a recruiter’s job look easy. It helps you to capture, screen and shortlist thousands of resumes in just a few minutes. It eliminates manual resume data entry, typos, and duplicate resumes.
Recruiters must ensure their job ads are capable of attracting passive candidates, says Aspire Solutions International rec-to-rec specialist, Luke Carolan.
As a recruitment consultant it can become easy to see each advertisement as "just another job", he says, but it's important to keep in mind that from a job seeker's perspective it represents the next step in their career and might involve a life-changing decision.
To distinguish themselves from HR managers - who constantly need convincing about the extra value that justifies a recruiter's fees - recruiters must write job ads that are capable of attracting candidates who aren't "actively" looking for jobs, he says.
HR professionals, Carolan says, still tend to write job ads that say, "Our company requires this; this is what we're looking for".
"That's not enough," he says. "All that's going to attract is people that are already actively looking. What you really want is people who... are not really looking and are happy where they are, but they're just perusing [job sites], having a look at what's available and checking to see if they're being paid what they're worth."
Both SEEK and CareerOne surveys confirm that "passive" candidates do visit job sites when they're not actively looking for a new role, he says. "They're the goldmine that recruiters have to attract... I know I've had a lot of people say 'I wasn't actively looking, but I was having a bad day at work... and your ad stood out and that's why I applied for it'."
More Information
Candidates want more detail, not less, when it comes to information about their prospective employer, Carolan says.
Recruiters who fail to include a high level of detail out of fear that another consultant will "steal" their job are operating on a false premise, he says.
"If someone is saying that, they haven't taken the job order properly, and they don't have a good relationship with the client.
"A good client is someone who's not dealing with a lot of other [recruiters] so you haven't got a lot of competition. You've got that business brickwalled, so you know that even if another agent calls them, they're not going to take that business. They're going to stick with you and the others that they're working with."
Aside from details about the job, he says, the vital questions recruiters must ask their clients in order to promote the employer's point of difference are, "What's different about you?" and, "Why would the best people in the market want to work for you?"
Recruiters should listen carefully for any factor that is mentioned more than once, Carolan says, "because you know that is a strong factor or motivator of the business and its representative".
A lot of recruiters don't want to ask those questions, he notes. "They feel 'this person's giving me something, I don't want to be that forthright', but if you do have the courage to say it and the person comes back with, 'We're the best at this; we do this for our staff; we give people a day off each week to do charitable activities; we remunerate people exceptionally; or we're the number one in the world at what we do', it helps you to put that in your job ad.
"When people look at your job ad, instead of seeing, 'This person is required with these skills', candidates who aren't actively looking are going to look at that ad and go 'wow, I'm going to apply for that job'."
Write a Strong Summary
Research shows that job seekers check the ad summary for remuneration details, location and the job title before anything else, Carolan says, so "your summary should be clean, to the point and effective".
But the most effective ads also contain a "hook", he says, which appeals to the ideal candidate you're aiming to attract.
A hook should never be vague, "so don't say things like 'funky, dynamic environment' - that's a massive 'no no'".
Carolan says recruiters should keep in mind the following points when writing ads:
Clients do check advertisements. Does your ad represent the client correctly and attract the candidates it is seeking?
What kind of ad response do you want? Are you looking for a targeted response with specific candidates or a broad response for maximum resumes?
How easily can your ad be found? "Keep in mind many candidates will be using a key word search. This means it’s a good idea to have the title of the position mentioned three times within the body of the ad. When listing the ad be specific, especially on things like location. A 'Sydney CBD' opportunity will be found in a 'Sydney' search however a 'Sydney' opportunity will not be found in a 'Sydney CBD' search."
Your job ad should specify, as a minimum:
- location;
- money;
- required experience/qualifications;
- description of the position and your client;
- why the opportunity is available;
- what's special about the opportunity and client;
- duties of the position;
- how long the opportunity will stay available;
- your contact details; and
- how to apply.
Surveys show that more recruiters are turning to free social networking technology as an increasingly attractive alternative to paid job boards. Today, 1 in 5 recruiters use social networking sites in some way or other to make a hiring decision. So, whether the economy is up or down, the ability to use social networks to source candidates will be essential for recruiters in the coming years.
These social networks offer people with common interests a place to interact and share contacts, opinions, and increasingly, job opportunities. Sites such as MySpace, Facebook, LinkedIn, etc. are powerful sources of qualified candidates. What is even more attractive is that these sites allow you to easily target candidates in specific locations with specific skills and experience.
However, to be effective, you must understand how the different networks work and the audiences these sites attract.
Source: eGrabber Newsletters
Pipl is a search engine to find addresses and other information that can help locate someone - a business contact or a prospective candidate.
The Google search syntax to find profiles on pipl.com is
site:pipl.com (inurl:people OR intitle:profile) -jobs
For example, to search for profiles of Business Analysts, the search string will be
Business Analyst site:pipl.com (inurl:people OR intitle:profile) -jobs
You can even make the search location specific as follows
(Business Analyst) (California OR CA) site:pipl.com (inurl:people OR intitle:profile) -jobs
Try different variations of the above search string or replace the keyword with related terms to get desired search results.
10. Blog - Writing a blog is free (we recommend using WordPress.com), and allows you to put your message on the web without involving your IT department.
9. Twitter - With TwitterFeed, you can easily set up your jobs to auto-post on your Twitter site.
8. SimplyHired.com - Simply Hired is a free job posting site that also powers the career sites of popular sites such as MySpace and US News.
7. Indeed.com - Indeed accepts free job postings, and also optimizes your postings for search engines. Quite a few of our clients get the majority of their online candidates from Indeed.com, because the jobs rank highly on Google.
6. Linked In - Linked In is a powerful way to source new candidates.
5. Business Cards - For a very small investment, you can print business cards that advertise your career site. Hand these out to your employees to encourage employee referrals, and keep a stack at the front desk to pass on to walk-ins.
4. SEO - SEO or search engine optimization, is the art of creating a career site and job descriptions that are ranked highly on popular search engines like Google and Yahoo. If your jobs show up on search engines directly from your career site, you may never have to pay for a job board again!
3. Your Organization's Career Site - You'll want the careers section of your organization's career site to be easy to find. The candidates most interested in working for your company will get there first. So lean on the web site designers to put Careers somewhere on the home page - better yet, include careers in your main menu.
2. Your employees - Employee referrals are still the most popular source for new hires. Encourage more referrals by creating an employee referral portal, communicating new job openings with your employees, and designing incentives for employees when a referral is hired.
1. The reputation of your organization - The number one free way to attract applicants is the reputation of your organization. If your employees enjoy their job, they will recommend more applicants. As the word gets around, you'll have too many candidates to handle for some of your jobs!
Source: http://community.ere.net
With recruitment consultants currently "jostling" for business, deciding which one to use can be a daunting task for HR, says trainer Ross Clennett.
Most hiring managers, he says in a recent newsletter, are "faced with a blanket of white noise that has only minor variations on 'We're a boutique, specialist recruiter with a focus on high quality client and candidate service'", he says.
Clennett says managers who want the services of a high-quality external recruiter should look for one that:
# Is a specialist - "Evidence of delivering great candidates for roles that are similar to your vacancy is an indication that they can access appropriate candidates quickly."
# Asks great questions - "Anyone can take a job brief. A skilled recruiter will ask you probing, relevant and thoughtful questions about the vacancy, your selection criteria and your organisation's operations and culture."
# Respectfully challenges you - "A recruiter who is prepared to professionally question some of your opinions or requirements, with respect to your selection criteria and desired remuneration or skills mix, is most likely to be a recruiter who is prepared, when necessary, to be unpopular in order to deliver the best outcome for all concerned."
# Uses a wide variety of sourcing strategies - "Does this recruiter just 'post-and-pray' on job boards and give their database a perfunctory search, or will they use other sourcing techniques to access candidates that other recruiters cannot?"
# Conducts thorough evidence-based interviews - "A recruiter who uses evidence-based interview techniques can provide facts rather than opinions about how a short-listed candidate's skills, competencies and motivation closely match the key selection criteria for your vacancy."
# Undertakes basic background checks - "Depending upon which research you believe, between 20 and 40 per cent of candidates have resumes that contain one or more significant inaccuracies and/or omissions. Recruiters should be explicit in communicating what background checks have been undertaken on the candidate prior to referring them to you."
# Will be straight with you - "When I was a recruiter, a client once said to me that she always came back to me because I was prepared to tell her when I didn't have the candidate she wanted, rather than try and talk her into interviewing a candidate who was never going to be good enough."
# Is prepared to invest time in building a relationship - "How has the recruiter built their key client relationships in the past? What else of value has the recruiter provided to other clients, beyond candidates? It's not worth investing your time with a recruiter unless they can demonstrate they have done 'the hard yards' in building relationships with other clients."
Clennett recommends that HR and hiring managers discover all of this information by constructing a simple "recruiter interview template".
After gathering all the necessary facts they are better placed to make an informed choice when comparing different recruiters, he says.
He adds: "I would recommend each recruiter be given a chance to be heard on their own merits. Just because they work for a little-known company doesn't mean they aren't any good, and conversely working for a household-name recruiter is no guarantee of quality."
Source: www.hrdaily.com
Despite an uncertain economy, many manufacturers across the country are reporting a lack of welders, fabricators, laser operators, electricians, press brake operators, machinists and a host of other skilled labor positions. As the economy begins to rebound and baby boomers begin to retire, this shortage is expected to worsen. The National Association of Manufacturers projects that by 2020 some 10 million skilled workers will be needed.
For manufacturers, recruiting employees to fill skilled jobs is more than a vexing problem. It may literally become a matter of business survival for many of these companies in the next decade. Thus, developing a company strategy to recruit future employees is crucial to attract the next generation of workers and succeed in the global marketplace.
The Apprenticeship and Internship
One method to recruit employees is a concept employers have used for centuries—the apprenticeship—and its 20th century cousin, the internship. Their value has never been so significant and appreciated; young people are exposed to the exciting opportunities in manufacturing while companies have a chance to recruit, evaluate and hire needed employees.
Students who intern learn valuable skills throughout the year and oftentimes become full-time employees at these companies after graduation. To further meet the demand for skilled labor, some employers use apprenticeships as a means of encouraging prospective young employees to enter the field. Others issue signing bonuses and incentives to skilled workers who have been trained in apprenticeship programs.
Begneaud Manufacturing (Lafayette, LA), a precision sheet metal job shop, offers an in-house apprenticeship program that introduces employees to every metalworking process at the company on a rotating basis. Currently, four employees are involved in an apprenticeship and partner with an experienced operator or skilled craftsmen mentor for three months at each specific practice.
The initiative gives individuals the opportunity to experience all of the processes at a company and instills a well-rounded knowledge of the operation. It helps identify the area in which they excel so they can be guided in that direction and then, ultimately, be offered a position.
Forming Educational Alliances
Filling the increasing workforce gap in the manufacturing sector also can be accomplished by fostering educational alliances with local schools, universities and technical colleges. Companies that build relationships with schools offering programs in their industry can better recruit students from trade-specific degree programs.
Firms should consider donating manufacturing equipment to the local trade school so that students are trained to use its systems. These students can then be more easily recruited to fill a needed position. This often can happen as a result of a collaborative partnership between a local manufacturer and the machine tool company whose equipment they use.
If the machine tool company donates a piece of equipment for a school’s use, it becomes a demonstration machine they can use with potential new customers. In some cases the donation can be a tax-deductible charitable contribution. At the same time, that machine tool company is helping its customer—the local manufacturer—build a more secure future through access to a better trained workforce.
Executives can benefit by joining the advisory committees at local universities and technical trade schools to help craft course content and assist in forming the knowledge base of future graduates. This further ensures that students are learning the specific skills sought from them upon graduation. Schools understand that the programs they provide must meet the needs of local employers and will welcome such volunteer interest.
Another option is to align with the local high schools. Education priorities today rarely position manufacturing as a preferred career choice; it is important to make high school counselors and principals realize that manufacturing is a viable option for a number of students.
Consider having someone on your staff serve as a recruiter to promote specifically to high school students the possible benefits of manufacturing career alternatives to college. Offer them up as a speaker for school career days to talk about the fun, the challenges and the sophistication of manufacturing work, such as cutting steel with laser lights, plasma cutting, laser welding, use of robotics, touch screen controllers and running the most technologically advanced equipment in the world.
Invite teachers, counselors, principals and others in the area to visit your manufacturing facility as a teacher institute day activity. You will find that most of the educators have had little or no personal experience with manufacturing. The most they know may be what they read in a high school textbook about the industrial revolution. Demonstrate to them the realities of today’s sophisticated manufacturing plant and emphasize the types of skills a new worker needs to bring to that environment, thereby helping them to create classroom learning experiences in math, science and even English classes that matter to employers.
Partnerships between education and industry are very beneficial in helping to meet manufacturers’ ever-increasing demands for new skills and knowledge and improve labor prospects.
Building Partnerships
In addition to educational alliances, manufacturers should consider collaborating with other businesses, non-profits and foundations, as well as state and local economic development programs to expand opportunities and create more awareness about manufacturing jobs.
For Bob Burgin, plant manager with Midwest Metal Products, a precision metal fabrication company based in Cedar Rapids, IA, finding qualified labor to work at his facility was a relentless, year-round struggle.
Searching for a solution, Midwest Metal Products approached Phil Thomas, dean of industrial technology at the local technical school, Kirkwood Community College (Cedar Rapids, IA). They decided it would be advantageous to pull together a number of local companies and convene a group to advise and discuss the workforce shortage in the region and brainstorm ways to recruit young adults.
At the meeting, it was decided to use a two-pronged approach to establish a precision sheet metal fabrication program at Kirkwood with the goal of attracting, recruiting and training workers.
The first component consisted of developing a short-term press brake training program through the school’s Continuing Education program. The second was the establishment of a two-year associate of applied science degree.
Funding for the program was another essential component, as this would be vital in launching the program and securing the necessary machinery to complete the fabrication lab. Kirkwood administrators first applied for a U.S. Department of Labor grant. However, despite an initial positive response, it did not get approved.
School officials then decided to use the Grow Value Iowa Funds, a grant created by the Iowa Department of Economic Development. The initiative is a 10-year economic advancement program designed to transform Iowa’s economy by creating high quality jobs through business development and expansion across the state. Through this grant, the school was able to fund both the Continuing Education and credit side initiatives.
Armed with funding, officials began identifying the fabricating machinery necessary to build a state-of-the-art lab. Though Kirkwood’s industrial department had machines to teach welding and machining, the school lacked precision sheet metal fabrication machines such as a water jet, brake press or turret press. To fill the gap, several fabricating industry manufacturers donated equipment to get the program up and running.
The training program at Kirkwood is an example of the power of partnerships. The program is making its mark by meeting the important short-term needs of local manufacturers through apprenticeship and real-time training.
Employee Mentoring Programs
Developing and implementing a company mentoring program is another method to gain access to skilled, experienced workers. This type of program consists of a more seasoned worker mentoring a younger employee and helps companies fill in the spaces from retiring employees.
Consider pairing long-term skilled employees with younger workers to share technical knowledge and wisdom through years of experience. Through this initiative, the younger employee gains a wealth of knowledge and can more quickly advance at the company.
It is a win-win for all parties involved. The seasoned worker will feel their talents are recognized and essential, while the mentored employee will feel like the company cares about his future.
Collaboration is Key
For manufacturers across the country, finding, training and retaining people to fill skilled manufacturing jobs will be a matter of business survival. Partnerships on a local and regional level can help solve the critical labor shortage by training tomorrow’s workforce and introducing young people to manufacturing jobs.
Source: www.qualitymag.com
Author: James Warren
About the author - James Warren is education director for the Fabricators & Manufacturers Association International (Rockford, IL)
Source: eGrabber Newsletter
If you are using or planning to use Twitter to recruit passive candidates, you will find this search string pretty useful.
The Google search syntax to find company specific candidate profiles on Twitter is
site:twitter.com "bio" "Company Name" -careers -jobs
For example, to search for Twitter profiles of people working in IBM, the search string will be
site:twitter.com "bio" "IBM" -careers -jobs
You can even make the search location specific as follows
site:twitter.com "bio" "IBM" "location chicago" -careers -jobs
Try different variations of the above search string or replace the keyword with related terms to get desired search results.
