Recruiters Network

July 21, 2004  

VOLUME 6 ISSUE 24

   
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RECRUITING NEWS

To read the newsletter online - visit www.recruitingnews.com.

Recruiting News is a free electronic newsletter published by Recruiters Network. Recruiters Network is the Association for Internet Recruiting. It is a free organization for HR Professionals and Recruiters.

In addition to our newsletter, we offer a free resource center to enhance recruiting success. Visit us at www.recruitersnetwork.com. 

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IN THIS ISSUE
Newsletter Sponsors
A Note from the Editor
Breaking News
Today's Recruiting News Headlines
Featured Recruiting Jobs
Weekly Article: How to Identify a Problem Solver
Special Trials and Discounts
Recruiting Polls and Trends
Layoffs and Downsizing Report
Recruiting Essential Bookmarks
Upcoming Conferences
Site Of The Week: ResumeGrabber.com
Final Note - On The Lighter Side

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Newsletter Sponsors

1. DICE.com - LIMITED TIME OFFER!

Click the link below today and post one job free for 30 days.*

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2. Recruiters Alliance - Split Network for 3rd Party Recruiters

Work for a recruiting agency and need more job orders? Join Recruiters Alliance's split network to network and do splits with other agency recruiters. Join for only $50, normally $100 a year. Recruiters Alliance does not take a percentage of the split. Visit www.recruitersalliance.com.

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A Note From The Editor

Leading Indicators, Jobless Claims Drop

A gauge of future economic activity signaled that the nation's financial recovery lost some steam in June, yet the labor market continues to show signs of improvement.

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Breaking News

Staffing companies Manpower Inc. and Kelly Services Inc. on Tuesday reported strong second-quarter earnings growth, further evidence of a sustained job market recovery.

Complete Story >>

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Today's Recruiting News Headlines
View HR/employment news headlines or our Recruiting Newswire.

Please send us with your press releases, news items, personnel changes, etc. Click here for submission instructions.

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Featured Recruiting Jobs

This section highlights several recruiting related positions recently posted on Recruiting Jobs. To view all jobs or to register for a career agent click here.

Looking to hire recruiting professionals?  Post a 60 day job posting ad on RecruitingJobs.com for $225 and be featured in Recruiting News. Register to post >>

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Weekly Article
 How to Identify a Problem Solver
 By Harry Joiner

How to Identify a Problem Solver

As an executive recruiter, I interview a lot of people. And while most candidates find a way to look good on paper, their resumes don't always reveal how good of a problem solver they are. Yet all of my clients want to hire problem solvers - people who can walk into their operation and make their problems go away.

This is understandable. Business, of course, is all about problems. In fact, whether your business is in growth mode or decline, you will always have problems. And it's management's job to either come up with the answers, or hire people who will. This article is about the latter.

How We Learned about Solving Problems

Through conventional classroom education, most of us have come to believe that there is usually a right or a wrong answer to a problem. As such, we tend to study our most pressing business problems to find a single "right" answer - as if we are solving for X in a math problem. Yet in the business world, many problems don't become clearer the more we study them. Instead, they may become larger and more confusing. Problems involving a mix of personalities and dynamic markets can be especially vexing.

Naturally, hiring managers who fail to understand the nature of their business problems will find it difficult to hire someone who can solve them.

Seven Steps to Successful Problem Solving

When solving problems - whether in real life or in a job interview - it's important to follow a logical process. Most business problems are not solved because people don't define the "real problem" clearly. Therefore, the strength of a job applicant's problem solving ability can be seen by walking them through the following seven step framework while getting them to describe how they solved a real life problem in their last job. When discussing a problem that they solved in a previous job, the applicant should demonstrate an ability to:

1. Define the problem: Have the candidate identify what went wrong by including both a cause and an effect in the definition in the problem they solved.

2. Define the objectives: Have the candidate explain the outcome he wanted to achieve as a result of solving the problem.

3. Generate alternatives: How many alternatives did the candidate generate? Did the quality of the alternatives vary greatly? Was there a significant difference in the hard (and soft) costs associated with each idea? And so on. This is the area in which the candidate can demonstrate their creativity and resourcefulness as a problem solver.

4. Develop an action plan: Have the candidate recap their detailed action plan. Most action plans for tough problems involve taking several steps over a period of time. In his recap, does the candidate specify who did what? And by what dates? The devil is in the details, and detailed problem solvers are usually more effective than generalists.

5. Troubleshoot: This is where the candidate can recap the worst cases scenarios. What could have gone wrong in his plan? What might have been the side effects? How did the candidate ensure this plan would work? Were there any unintended consequences?

6. Communicate: Getting information to the right people is key for getting the buy-in to make it a success. Have the candidate address which individuals or groups affected the success of his action plan. Does he explain who was impacted by it and who needed to be informed about it? How did he communicate with relevant parties? The most effective executives are those who can leverage their time and talents by getting things done through other people. This is your opportunity to build your company's management bench.

7. Implement: Have the candidate address who carried out the plan and monitor its implementation. Who was accountable for each part of the solution? What were the consequences for failure to meet the plan? Try to determine: As a manager, will the candidate be "hard on the issues and soft on the people?"

Drilling down on how a candidate has solved problems in the past will give you a good idea of how they will solve problems in the future. Think in terms of the quality, consistency, and costs of their solutions. During the interview, you must get the candidate to be specific about their problem solving experience. Minimize the chances of being duped by getting the candid to recap in vivid detail exactly what happened in a given situation.

Think like a little kid: Ask "Why?" or "How?" to everything they say. If you don't challenge them during the interview process, you may pay a steep price later for your lack of persistence.

About the Author

Harry Joiner comes to The SearchLogix Group from Reliable Growth, an Atlanta-based Sales and Marketing consultancy which he founded in August 2001. Working with Fortune 500 clients such as Aflac Insurance and NCR Corporation, Harry is a recognized thought-leader in the area of new business development. He has a long history of developing domestic and international markets in multiple industries including software, food, insurance, telecoms and shipping.

Harry's regular columns have appeared in ERP Tips; Institutional Distributor magazine; and Marketing & Technology magazine. His creative business development ideas have been featured in Competitive Edge magazine, TEC World News, the Journal of Business & Industrial Marketing, Best of Law Marketing, and the CPA Marketing Report.

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Special Trials And Discounts

Below is a partial list of trials and discounts that companies have extended to our readers. Click here for full list. If your company is interested in offering a promotion/discount, please contact us.

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If you use corporate phone directories to find suitable candidates, this unique service may be of interest. Corporate Contacts has directories of many companies which list name, direct phone number, title and often email addresses. They have directories for many industries, like pharmaceutical, Big 5 CPA/Consulting, etc. Mention Recruiters Network to receive a 10% discount. Contact Stan @ (301) 587-1819. These directories are a great way to recruit from companies in your industry.

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Recruiting Polls and Trends

Traffic on Web Job Sites Up 30 Pct in June-Report

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Despite concerns that the country's economic recovery may have hit some speed bumps, visits to employment Web sites rose sharply in June, Internet audience measurement service Nielsen NetRatings said on Friday.

Traffic to career sites rose 30 percent in the month over a year earlier, NetRatings said, with a total of 27.2 million people visiting such pages.

Monster.com, a unit of Monster Worldwide Inc. (Nasdaq:MNST - news), topped the charts with a unique audience of 9.6 million users. It was followed by CareerBuilder with 9.3 million users and Yahoo Inc.'s (Nasdaq:YHOO - news) HotJobs with 7.1 million users.

Of those seeking jobs, NetRatings said, 89 percent registered with Monster, far more than CareerBuilder and HotJobs, at 47 percent and 43 percent respectively. Users also spent more time at Monster (nearly 18.5 minutes) than CareerBuilder (just over 14 minutes) or HotJobs (6.5 minutes).

In total, NetRatings said just over 18 percent of the
entire Internet population visited job sites in the month. "However, there's still much room for expansion and opportunity for career sites to take away market share from newspaper classifieds and other traditional forms of job-hunting," said Kenneth Cassar, director of strategic analysis for NetRatings, in a statement.

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Layoffs and Downsizing Report

Recruiters Network has added a layoff and downsizing report section to its newsletter. This section can be a great leads source for candidates. More information on how to use this section here.

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Recruiting Essential Bookmarks

Best HR Job Boards

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Upcoming Seminars & Conferences

Zero Based Hiring - Lou Adler
Performance-based, Interviewing, Assessment and Recruiting Techniques

Click here for schedules for upcoming conferences and seminars.

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Site Of The Week

ResumeGrabber.com

With a single click, you can directly enter resumes &leads into your resume database from recruiting sites, email, Word files. Free Trial ->>.

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Final Note - On The Lighter Side

The Difference Between You and Your Boss

When you take a long time, you're slow.
When your boss takes a long time, he's thorough.

When you don't do it, you're lazy.
When your boss doesn't do it, he's too busy.

When you make a mistake, you're an idiot.
When your boss makes a mistake, he's only human.

When doing something without being told, you're overstepping your authority.
When your boss does the same thing, that's initiative.

When you take a stand, you're being bullheaded.
When your boss does it, he's being firm.

When you overlooked a rule of etiquette, you're being rude.
When your boss skips a few rules, he's being original.

When you please your boss, you're apple polishing.
When your boss pleases his boss, he's being cooperative.

When you're out of the office, you're wandering around.
When your boss is out of the office, he's on business.

When you're on a day off sick, you're always sick.
When your boss is a day off sick, he must be very ill.

When you apply for leave, you must be going for an interview.
When your boss applies for leave, it's because he's overworked.

Author Unknown

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All rights reserved. "Recruiting on the Web" is a free electronic newsletter for the HR and Staffing Industry with a circulation of over 36,000. To be featured or sponsor the newsletter please visit our media kit. If you have a Quick Tip you would like to share email us. If you have a press release or news item, click here for submission instructions. 

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