Selling candidates on a job with challenges
A great position in an unpopular industry can be tough to recruit for, but creativity pays off.
Scott, AAA Labor, Minneapolis
I am looking to hire a strategic business manager/growth manager for my 52-year-old, successful industrial staffing agency. I'd love to see them become my COO or VP, and the position will easily become a several-hundred-thousand-dollar-a-year job. Problem is, industrial staffing is looked down upon, much like the garbage or recycling business is. No one seems to want the job. How do I get someone to take the chance?
By Lenora Chu, Fortune Small Business contributor
“Recruiting is also sales,” says Bobbi Eckes, director of staffing and recruiting for the Minneapolis, Minn.-based human resources firm HR Personnel Services. Focus on the positive aspects of the job you're offering, and sell this executive-level position for the great opportunity that it is, the experts say.
“Industrial staffing is not an easy business, but it serves a very real need,” Eckes says. Show candidates that you are excited about your company's future, and let them know you only want to work with the best.
Also, state upfront both the challenges of the position and the benefits of working for your company, says Vancouver, Wash.-based small-business and Internet marketing consultant Doug Williams.
“The idea is to get a hook out there, to get someone intrigued enough to want the job,” Williams says. “Particularly if they're a little bit hungry already – and in this job market, they probably are.”
If the positives are not coming across, you should take a second look at how you're describing the job. Williams suggests that the position would be an ideal fit for a freelance business consultant, particularly since the job deals with growth strategies and development.
Tap into this community by posting a sharp job listing on Craiglist. Also, contact business consultants you know and seek their input on how they'd locate the right candidate for the job, Williams says.
Who knows? They might become interested in the position themselves.
“When you don't market to someone directly, it can be more effective than saying 'I'd like to hire you,'” Williams says.
But ultimately, if a candidate has reservations about your company or lacks enthusiasm for the job, don't think twice about letting them walk out the door.
“You don't want them working for you anyway,” Eckes says.
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From Mrs. Landry Mr. Scott, is your business similar to a labor company? I am iterested in opening a labor company but I do not know where to begin.
From Dana Borowka, Santa Monica, CA It’s all about positioning! If your organization has a great team environment and is striving to serve the client by offering exceptional customer service, then that will help to differentiate your organization from others in your industry.
Zip Car came up with an entirely new concept for the car rental business and positioned themselves as a fun, innovative and unique organization. Yet they are still a car rental business.
The “A” players are always looking for wonderful opportunities that will create new and cutting-edge products or services. If you can offer the potential of being open to cool and interesting ideas as well as being bottom-line oriented, you’ll start to attract great talent.
What I’ve noticed is that if an organization taps into the creative talent and ideas of their employees they currently have in-house, then a synergy starts to take place to meet the market's needs from a whole new perspective.
People love to be a part of a vision and cause… yet most organizations fail to ask for others to participate. A hotel chain had a reservations group that was not meeting in-bound call volumes. The manager thought they were all “C” players and that they were the cause of the problem. A new manager was brought in who spent time with everyone and used data on the group that was gathered from in-depth work style and personality assessments. The manager started to ask questions about the call volume and how individuals approached their job. Then the discussion was opened with the group for brainstorming. As a group, they came up with ideas that included designing a web page that would be sent to the guests 48 hours prior to arriving. It turned out that the majority of calls that were tying up the system were from individuals requesting Information about weather, directions, etc. Once they implemented this new process, the call volume changed and that decreased the hold time and new reservation volume increased.
The team was very excited to participate in an innovative program. As a by product, they spread a positive message to friends about their workplace that in turn became a recruitment tool for attracting top individuals. It was a win-win for everyone! I think you can do the same with your organization in order to position yourself to attract high powered individuals.
Posted by Vistage member Dana Borowka CEO of Lighthouse Consulting and author of the new book Cracking the Personality Code.
From John K Coleman, Miami, Fl, www.ecompetitors.com Try to find the best people @ Monster.com or call your old business friends.
From Julia eCompetitors, New York, NY, www.ecompetitors.com The best way to find good people is to ask your business partners or friends. Also, you may try ask your recruiting agent, but only if you know him very well.
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Social Networks, like LinkedIn, provide an excellent resource for identifying the right candidate for the job. Consider evaluations and recommendations provided by others, but also try to connect with people in that persons network that you are attempting to hire. Anyone can get someone to give them a recommendation; however, non-biased opinions can often be found in people who are a part of the candidates network that have simply not provided a viewable recommendation.
John Whelan
EVP – Founder
http://www.jpmwconsulting.com