TeneoTalent

Avoiding The Black Hole!

September 20, 2011

Let’s face it. Current job seeking practices and recruiting models just aren’t working all that well. A lot of great talent remains in limbo while candidates who paper out really well just aren’t living up to their apparent potential.

It’s really not working for jobseekers either. Many will tell you that the dreaded words apply through our website is a perceived death knell to their hopes of getting the job of their dreams. Of course there are exceptions, but for the majority of job seekers, applying through a company’s website feels like dropping your resume and craftily worded cover letter into a black hole.

Sure it's pretty, but dangerous! Stay away!

After their resume is submitted comes the great wait. Most jobseekers are grateful if they get an automated response that their resume was received and, “if there is further interest, the company will contact you.”

Companies have their own challenges. As an extreme example, Google gets over 1,000,000 applications per year and rejects 95 % of them. They deal with this avalanche by filtering out the majority with little to no human oversight.

For the average employer, their difficulties differ only in scope. In areas where unemployment is high, 8.0 percent in Colorado for example, new job postings draw a veritable feeding frenzy of eager applicants, but somehow even with this seemingly deep talent pool, many matches don’t seem all that well matched.

Fortunately, there are some great new ways of addressing this problem. Rethink the process and the hiring criteria to not only match skill sets, but also values, personalities, culture, etc. Recruiters need to take the lead here and readjust their mindset beyond simply matching requirements with skill sets.

Frustration reigns on both sides of the fence. Companies are missing out on potentially great hires because of parsing software, narrowly defined job requirements, stratified qualification techniques plus sheer application volume, and applicants are just trying to rise above the noise level and make a personal connection, and establish a relationship. And nowhere are relationships more important than in sales. Our advice to sales people, network like crazy, keep current with former colleagues, and customers, and establish new relationships via the web, mixers, meet-up, industry and professional association events.

For employers, it is time to re-evaluate your current hiring techniques. Search for recruiters who are equally well respected for serving employers and job candidates alike. Recruiters should be matchmakers. Look for those who have a track record of forging successful, long-term relationships with both the jobseekers and employers.

 

photo by NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center

 

http://TeneoTalent.com offers a new process of sales recruiting that uses sales assessments for both employers and job seekers to create long term fits.  We also offer career development tools through our sales career coaching program, including resume writing. We offer career advice, career matching and although our organization has a national focus, and have many Denver and Boulder sales jobs available at the moment.

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