Fishdogs-Career Branding for Social Animals

Social Media Privacy? Get Over It.

2010-02-28T12:04:00.001-06:00

Part One - Everyone you know is a potential business lead.

That's right. Whether or not you are currently a job seeker, chances are that you will be at some point. I apologize up front, this is going to be a little long. But it's worth it.

As a recruiter, I consider everyone a potential job seeker, even (maybe especially) other recruiters. I also consider everyone a potential client, future partner, or employer.

You should too. My point is that you never know where your next lead may come from.

Suppose Suzy is a stay at home mom. She might not be any of those things listed above. But her husband, neighbor, or cousin could be. And if she knows about you, or what you do, or what kind of job you are looking for, etc., because you have been verbal about it on social media, she may very well be able to refer you into your next great opportunity.

And the more people you have in your network, friends, family, business people or colleagues, who get to know you better because of your profile and positive things you post, the better your odds are of generating those leads on a regular basis.

Part 2 - My Facebook Profile is Personal, Not Business. Phooey!

I just returned from a conference in London where one of the interesting topics that came up was that of using Facebook for business or career gain. Recruiters and other business people in the UK are very conservative about opening up their Facebook profiles for business use. Most can't imagine connecting with clients or job candidates in such a private place.

I told my Brit counterparts that we were a bit like that in the U.S. about a year ago. And we got over it. Facebook is the largest social network in the world. And everyone on it is a potential lead. Why would you not take advantage of such a great platform on which to brand yourself and grow a community of people who trust you and are willing to refer business or job leads to you when find them.

"But there is all this stuff there I wouldn't want anyone to see!" is the typical response. Phooey! You need to get that stuff off of your profile anyway. Do you really think, just because you don't accept friend requests from people who you don't want seeing your private stuff, or because you have your privacy settings a certain way, that the private stuff you have on there can never be discovered?

Part 3 - You've Been Hacked

There are people who sit around all day with the sole goal of breaking these barriers. Go to Google right now and search on "hack a Facebook profile" and you will get hundreds of thousands results and how-to's. I'm not giving away any secrets here. And chances are that most of these hacks won't work right this second as Facebook is constantly trying to stay ahead of the hackers.

But when is the last time you saw a Facebook virus send you or your friends profile on a spamming spree? It happens every week. Guess what. That profile has been hacked.

Part 4 - Just Keep it Clean and Keep Your Secrets Offline

The only way to completely keep people from knowing all your dirty secrets is to keep them to yourself. But there are a few things you can do to keep your Facebook profile cleaner.

For one thing, set your privacy settings so that tagged photos of you posted by others are not automatically posted to your profile. And any photos that you do find that are tagged with your name that you deem inappropriate (or just ugly), simply untag them. They cannot be tagged again unless by you.

And just watch what you say and what you allow people to say back on your wall and other people's walls. If you don't like a comment, just delete it.

Super blogger, Rayanne Thorn, in her session on Social Media ROI at the TRULondon II event, said that her rule of thumb is to always assume your mother is reading everything that goes on your Facebook profile. Good advice.

You can find a few more good suggestions like this in this article, Keep your Facebook profile clean! | Facebook.

So I say clean up your profile. It's not really that private anyway. And grow your network. Start posting positive material there that sometimes tells people about what you do in business as well as in life.

No spamming please. You can't build a good online personal brand if you beat down everyone you know with your home-based business or MLM opportunities every day. But you can build a good reputation and gain trust if you interact positively with your network and post helpful information (not just inspirational quotes) on a fairly regular basis.

This post originally appeared on the Matrix Resources Blog. You can find great posts about social media, job search, and hiring each week.

#TRULondon Insider (Was it Just a Big Party?)

2010-02-24T16:05:00.001-06:00

There is a problem with the hotels in London.

All the hotels?

It seems that way.

Geoff Webb is fielding phone calls from disgruntled conference speakers who are flying in to London from the states and elsewhere. They are not happy with hotel issues and more. Geoff does not panic. He stays on task and keeps the ball rolling on day one (sourcing) of TRU London II.

Geoff, Bill Boorman, and Maha Akiki, the TRU Crew, are doing something that would normally require a large planning committee and sponsored staff to accomplish. They are hosting a major international conference with speakers and attendees from all over North America and Europe. It's a good trick. I've hosted local events with more help, bigger budgets, and far fewer travelers, and it's still tough.

Rooming with Geoff, I got a backstage view of what the they went through: logistical problems, sponsors who deserved more acknowledgement, and more. I enjoyed unofficial TRU Crew status, along with Bill's very cool wife, Fran (love you!). I have fond memories of carrying boxes and boxes of fish and chips for blocks in the rain to feed the grumbling conference masses at lunch - delays being not the fault of the Crew, but of the restaurant, trust me.

TRU London II brought around 200 great people from Recruiting and HR together for a truly special three-day learning party (err... unconference). So many smart people from both sides of the pond made for valuable learning, cultural enlightenment, and intelligent conversation during the day.

Then it was off to the pub, which was just as important as the conference room. And the stimulating, albeit slightly less intelligible, conversation that took place at night was also immensely valuable.

That's what Bill does quite well, bring people together and let them roll. Maybe even give them something to complain about? Perhaps a good, if unintended, strategy. We bonded nonetheless.

From a business perspective, there was real value and real learning. Real partnerships and friendships made. Real leads generated. Real knowledge gained. And a really good party - one of the best I've ever attended - all over London for several days.

The logistics must be smoother and sponsors must be appeased to ensure future success. That will happen. If they can pull off the party each time, I'm in. In fact I'll be leading a track at TRU USA in April. Hope to see you there.

Thanks again to Bill, Geoff and Maha. And big shouts to all the lovely folks I met, led tracks with, drank beer with, and learned from. Thanks for sharing with me. I miss you already.

Cheers, CF

Want to chat with me about some of the crazier things that went on there? Or some of very interesting things we learned? Let's catch up tonight on #TNL on Twitter at 8pm Central.

Fishdogs Goes to TRU London! The Game is Afoot.

2010-02-10T10:43:00.001-06:00

London?

London.

London?

TRU London 2, to be exact. It has been 10 years since I last visited my favorite city in the world, London. Much has changed (maybe more with me than with The Big Smoke). I can't wait.

This dream of mine, I wrote about it in December: my prediction of, and quest for, more hand-to-hand networking with colleagues from around the world in the article Social Networking and Global Flesh Pressing in 2010.

And now, after some serious blessings from the schedule fairy, I am going to London to repay a gesture by my friend, Bill Boorman, who came to speak at our TalentNet Live conference in Dallas last September. I will participate in a truly global networking event thanks to some help from Bill, Geoff Webb, and my favorite ATS, Bullhorn.

TRU London 2 will take place on February 17th, 18th, and 19th, 2010, in, you guessed it, London. TRU stands for The Recruiting Unconference. An unconference is an event that has no fixed structure and only two rules, no power point and no presentations. TRU London had its inaugural run on November 19, 2009 in Canary Warf, London. TRU London 2 will be held in the HQ of Twitter Job Search in Soho.

I will be helping to lead tracks on technology, branding, and more. I will also be hosting a special edition of the TalentNet Live #TNL Recruiter chat on Twitter on Wed., Feb. 17th, and Tweeting from that hashtag throughout the event.

Thanks to the TRU Crew for inviting me to be a part of such a great event. I am also scheduled to lead tracks at TRU USA April 19-20th, 2010, in Madison, WI, with my partner in crime (business) Jeff Lipschultz.

Wow. I just confirmed that I am going to London next week! I need to tell someone. "Come, Watson, come! The game is afoot. Not a word! Into your clothes and come!"

See you on the other side. Cheers, CF

The Best Format for Your Resume (Hint: It's not .PDF)

2010-02-02T11:38:00.001-06:00

So you want your resume to look pretty. Naturally. But is your pretty format preventing your resume from functioning as well as it should?

Did you know that many corporate and staffing agency ATS's (Applicant Tracking Systems) strip your resume of formatting when the information is imported into your profile? Or that when you forward your resume to a recruiter, they often have to copy and paste it into a new format that follows their protocol before they forward it on to the hiring manager?

Resumes that are heavily formatted with tables and graphics don't translate very well when they are pasted into a new document. Your best bet is to use the 97-2003 version MS Word (not my favorite either), minimizing tables and graphics. A Rich Text Format version works well too. Here is a test. Take your resume, select all, copy, and paste it into a blank Word doc. How does it do?

Some ATS systems will translate fancy formatting seamlessly. But many companies, unfortunately, have systems that don't. And your resume is most likely going to be viewed in a browser or system window of some kind, versus on a printed page, or as an attachment (which many companies see as being vulnerable to viruses). Also consider the preview or cached version of your resume, which many recruiters and hiring managers will view to save time or to keep from having to open an application to view your document. Fancy formatting doesn't translate in this instance either.

The information in the resume is far more important than a flashy style. If the info is presented in a professional, straight forward way, you are ultimately better off and will have a portable resume that can be effective in multiple instances.

One of main considerations for your resume should be SEO. That's right, search engine optimization. Each company you apply to, be it corporate or staffing agency, will store your resume in a database of some kind. And the way your resume is retrieved, when someone is searching this database for viable candidates, is by keyword search. So make sure your document contains the proper keywords, that are specific to your skill set, throughout your resume. Also make sure that your name and contact info are not embedded in a header (this also doesn't translate well in some systems).

Think of the world wide web as one big collection of databases. Job seekers should have their resume stored somewhere on the Internet so that it can be found outside of a company's internal database. Again, keywords are the method by which it will be retrieved. And be specific. Not "Manager", but "Six Sigma Program Manager". Use the words that will set you apart in a keyword specific search. And repeat these keywords where they apply in each job description so that the reader will have some context as to where and when you used these skills.

Many resume writing services encourage fancy formatting to "set you apart". Using color in a resume is a popular trend. This is all fine. There is nothing wrong with having a pretty version of your resume. But if you are going to pay a resume service to help you, you might consider asking them for an html version that looks just as nice. This can be the one you keep on your web site or blog.

Also ask for a version that is in Rich Text Format, or MS Word without so much table formatting. These can be the docs that are easily translated in corporate ATS systems and online job boards. Put a link on there to the "pretty" version online if you like. But also put the functional version online somewhere if you want it to be easily found and read.

A note on .PDF formats. Many systems still don't translate .PDF resumes well or at all. Some systems will but require a costly add-on. And if a recruiter is tasked with converting your resume to a different format to comply with company guidelines or branding, yours may very well go to the back of the line if the busy recruiter is in a time crunch (which is often the case).

Some candidates will complain that they don't want their resume altered in any way. All I can say to that is that these candidates also don't want a job very badly.

Here are some additional articles you may find helpful.

Resume SEO: Get Your Resume to the Top

Top 10 Things to Leave OFF of Your Resume

Best Modern Resumes

About the Author

Craig Fisher is Co-Founder and Principal of A-List Solutions, an Information Technology Staffing, Executive Search, and Social Recruiting Strategy firm in Southlake TX. His fifteen years in recruiting also include positions as an award-winning Account Manager and Sales Director with Stark Technical Group, and as a top-performing Senior Recruiter with MATRIX Resources. Craig started his nineteen year sales career as a pharma and medsurge rep with Glaxo and Smiths Medical.

Craig is also a speaker and trainer for Social Job Search, Social Recruiting, and Social Branding strategies. He hosts the TalentNet Live social recruiting forum on Twitter, featuring big names in recruiting and social media on the last Wed. of each month from 9-11PM Eastern at #TNL. See www.talentnetlive.com for details. Craig blogs at http://www.fishdogs.com and tweets at http://twitter.com/fishdogs.

The Brand of Company You

2010-01-30T23:12:00.001-06:00

Guest Post by Megan K Green

Branding. An important part of every company, product and celebrity. At first it seems a daunting task, but, once started, it's actually a fun and creative challenge. Anyone who has ever had to brand anything from the ground up knows that it takes a lot of time, effort, creativity and attention to details.

Wikipedia says that branding is a name used to identify and distinguish a specific product, service or business. But, it's not simply a name; it's a logo, picture, font type, color, ethnicity, style, or anything else that makes a business a business (yes, even the chair the business sits in contributes to its brand).

Recently, I've embarked on a branding project of my own. Not for a company or service or anything like that, but for myself - my Brand. The Megan K Green Brand (no period on the 'K' please).

Think about it - we all are perceived as a certain type of person with a certain amount of knowledge, and guess what? That's your brand. Whether you are perpetually whiney, happy, talkative, colorful or smart, that is how you will be perceived - and I want to make sure my brand (ME) is how I want to be seen to potential employers, event coordinators looking for a speaker, and overall, the people I collaborate with. I'm knowledgeable on public relations, social media and branding and I want to make sure they know that.

According to a white paper written by the consulting firm McKinsey and Company, their "…research shows, [that] companies with strong brands have shareholder returns of 1.9 points more than their industries' average…A process that once took decades now gets done in a few years, as shown by 13-year old Starbucks creation of greater brand strength than 108-year old Maxwell House! …These young brands have generated their strength by creating and consistently delivering distinctive performance benefits with compelling emotional benefits found in the brands personality."

Now, replace the word "company" with "me" and you get the picture. In layman's terms, branding can do so much for a company, and it's about time you did it for yourself.

If you're looking for a job, or looking to place yourself as an expert in your field, you must brand yourself. Use social mediums like Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and a web site, all with the same picture, voice, mission, and goals. Maintain who you want to be on all facets, whether you want to simply be a funny blogger, or a knowledgeable knitter. These all transfer to your blog, Twitter account, LinkedIn profile, web site, etc.

I have a few friends who have branding themselves down to an art: people such as Lauren Fernandez (otherwise known as "LAF"), Matt Chevy (Life Without Pants) and Colin Alsheimer to name a few.

The amount of traffic they receive and the amount of acknowledgement as being experts in their fields boils down to marketing themselves through their brand.

“A brand name is more than a word. It is the beginning of a conversation.” - Lexicon

Megan Green is an advertising and PR professional specializing in social media and writing. Megan is a regular contributor to TalentZoo.com's Beyond Madison Avenue Blog.

Join her @megankgreen on Twitter, and on her personal blog at www.megankgreen.com

3 Personal Branding Thesis’s For The New World of Work

2010-01-18T13:50:00.001-06:00

3 Personal Branding Thesis’s For The New World of Work | Personal Branding Blog - Dan Schawbel

Good stuff posted today from Dan Schawbel on the www.PersonalBrandingBlog.com site. I posted the video here, but I encourage you to click the link above and read the full article.

Dan Schawbel is the leading personal branding expert for Gen-Y. He is the bestselling author of Me 2.0, as well as the publisher of both the award winning Personal Branding Blog and Personal Branding Magazine.

Your Business Bucket List: No Excuses in 2010

2010-01-08T10:29:00.001-06:00

How many times have you heard people say, recently, that they are doing this?

“…waiting for the economy to pick up.”
“…hoping things get better.”
“…just praying for this thing to turn around.”

Maybe you have said it yourself. Well, I’m not waiting. I don’t think the economy is going to pick up any time soon. In fact, although December 2009 was very productive, I believe 2010 will be extremely flat. There, I said it.

So I’m not the 2010 economic cheerleader, sorry. There are indicators that point to a possible upswing. There are just as many that point the other direction. I’ve done the research. I’m sick of it.

I can’t wait any longer.

I’m not leaving anything up to “the economy”.

And I’m not going to “just hang in there” for another year.

I’m going to set records and kick some serious ass this year despite the freaking economy.

“That’s easy to say…”, you say. Well I say it’s more about your frame of mind than the economy. Let’s play the “what would you do if you only had a year to live” game. I know, I know! My sincerest condolences if you really only have a year to live. I’m not being flippant. But, really, what would you do?

I’m not talking about your free-time, personal bucket list (skydiving, milk a cow, learn Mandarin, host SNL). I’m talking about your business bucket list. This is the game where you want to leave a lasting legacy and plenty of security for your family (or maybe your future self). If you only had a year to make a pile of cash, or drastically improve your career or business, would you wait for the economy to pick up? I don’t think so.

You would fearlessly do whatever it takes.

You would take risks. Sleep little. Innovate more.

You would have to work smart too. Go where the money is. For those of us in the talent business, and for job seekers, this means finding the sectors that are actually hiring. [Author's note: Credit sourcing dynamo, Marie Journey, for encouraging me to take this post a bit further than I had originally planned. Thank you Marie.]

According to a Manpower quarterly survey released in December, 75% of U.S. companies surveyed expect no change in their first-quarter hiring plans.

BUT, per this article on CNNMoney.com…”The survey said companies in the mining, durable goods manufacturing, information and government sectors expect to boost hiring moderately.

Companies in nondurable goods manufacturing, transportation and utilities, professional and business services, education and health services, leisure and hospitality and “other” services expect hiring to increase slightly.”

Temporary hiring is expected to be up. And, according to CIOs surveyed in a Robert Half Technology study released Dec. 1 referenced in this article on eWeek.com, “Health care IT application development is expected to see the largest gains in project funding and hiring in 2010. However, network and Windows administration continue to be cited as the skills most in demand, which is consistent with hiring reports in 2009.”

Yes, I see 2010 as economically flat. But I also see opportunity. So, I say to those of you who are sitting on the sidelines, waiting for things to play out, get out there and play like you have nothing to lose.

Work harder. Work smarter. No excuses.

Think about it, and please share your comments. What would you do differently if you only had a year to make the most of your business? What’s on your business bucket list?

This article originally appeared on the CruiterTalk.com Carnival on 1/07/10. Thanks for Ryan Leary for including me!

Social Networking and Global Flesh Pressing in 2010

2009-12-31T14:20:00.001-06:00

Talent professionals in social media love labels. Thus, those of us who use social channels for recruiting and networking together have brilliantly entitled our scene "Social Recruiting". We've been doing this "social recruiting" thing for years with LinkedIn and recruiting networks like RecruitingBlogs.com. But with the explosion of Twitter, Facebook, and personal blogs, et al, we are now really connecting with others in our industry from all over the world in an unprecedented way, so we really needed good label.

Unconferences (interactive, less structured, more fun version of an industry conference inspired by social networking) are helping to take this to a new level as well. Last year I was fortunate to have Bill Boorman come from London to speak at TalentNet Live in Dallas. He has said that he took his experience there and decided to make the unconference a bigger part of of his consulting business (Bill is quite adept at forecasting successful trends). He then attended the Recruitfest unconference in Toronto and hosted his own, TRU London, in London in November. I hope to attend TRU London 2 in February to help lead a couple of tracks along with several of my peers from the U.S. and around the world.

This month I attended what may be seen as a new step in global networking. Several of the top people in social recruiting, and social media marketing/PR from all over the U.S. and Canada attended a holiday Tweetup (#PunkATL) in Atlanta. No conference, no unconference, no speaker. Just a Tweetup. A networking happy hour on steroids. And boy was it cool.

I met so many people who I have networked and collaborated with for a long time, but had never laid eyes on in person. The event was an effort to get people together for an Atlanta visit by PunkRockHR blogger Laurie Ruettimann. With the co-hosting efforts of Stephanie Lloyd and Todd Schnick, this little get-together somehow swelled to over 200 people attending.

I was fortunate to appear on Stephanie's Dream Job Radio show with Laurie, Stephanie, and fellow social recruiting professionals Miriam Salpeder, and Geoff Webb and Maha Akiki who flew in from Toronto. We did a pretty great show to assist job seekers in their search for employment. You can get the podcast from iTunes if you search podcasts for DreamJobRadio, or listen to it here.

There was also a broadcast of Geoff and Maha's The Recruiters House Party from the #PunkATL Tweetup on which I attempted to participate over the very loud crowd at FuegoMundo. #PunkATL was huge success that is already on the books for a repeat in 2010.

I expect this to become a regular trend in our industry. We will surely see more informal international get-togethers as 2010 gets in gear. With social media, and the large networks we are building, it is so easy to organize and get the word out. And more TRU conferences are already scheduled for the U.S., India, Australia, and Ireland.

I learn something important and make valuable connections every time I meet my peers in-person. I encourage you to broaden your horizons, regardless of your industry, and get face-time with your peers from other cities and countries. To put it mildly, it will enhance your perspective on business and life.

Here's to a successful 2010. Cheers!

Recruiters don’t ease up during the holidays – neither should you

2009-12-02T09:39:00.001-06:00

Story from Craig Fisher Posted by Miriam Salpeter on Keppie Careers

Recruiters don’t ease up during the holidays – neither should you - Original post on KeppieCareers.com

Published on December 2nd, 2009

If you are a regular reader, I hope you are already convinced that it’s important to job hunt during the holidays. Do you know where you are going with your job hunt? Today, I’m happy to share insight from the “other side of the hiring desk.” Today’s contributor, Craig Fisher, is a management and information technology recruiter, staffing entrepreneur and co-founder of A-List Solutions.

I know Craig via Twitter and saw him tweet on the Tuesday before Thanksgiving about placing a candidate:

Of course, I immediately DMed and asked if he’d contribute to this series. This is Craig’s take on looking for a job during the holidays…

So perhaps you are thinking that hiring managers won’t be in the office over the holidays. Maybe you should ease up on your job search. But you should know that your friendly neighborhood recruiter is likely still in touch with those managers and trying to make placements happen.

As a case in point, I just placed a candidate in a great new position. It is Tuesday evening before Thanksgiving. I was able to facilitate a background check and offer letter while both candidate and client were already out for vacation. All parties were thrilled and the candidate gets to start work on this coming Monday morning.

Today it is easier than ever for recruiters to do business even when nobody is at work. Smart phones make it so easy to text and view documents. And smart recruiters know that many hiring managers are trying to spend budget money right now before year end.

Just remember that we recruiters are ALWAYS trying to get people placed in jobs. And we are likely in touch with many of our clients even when they are out of the office. Recruiters work hard all through the holidays. And if you are a job seeker, you should too.

Craig Fisher is a founding partner of A-List solutions, blogger at http://blog.fishdogs.com/ and host of the TalentNet Live #TNL recruiter forum. As a 15-year recruiting industry veteran, Craig is a social recruiting and new media branding strategist for job seekers and employers. Follow Craig on Twitter @Fishdogs

Recruiters don’t ease up during the holidays – neither should you : Keppie Careers by Miriam Salpeter

Embedding Video Into Your LinkedIn Profiles | InventorSpot

2009-12-01T09:45:00.001-06:00

by Ron Callari

LinkedIn announced recently that it was opening up its platform to Open Source development, allowing public developers to be able to access the site's API and incorporate LinkedIn into their business and Web sites (similar to the process permitted by Facebook and Twitter).

In so doing, one could only hope that a developer will decide to create an API that will allow users to download videos into their profiles. However, if you don't want to wait on development, there is a short-cut for embedding videos into your LinkedIn profiles using Google's presentation application.

Niall HarbisonNiall Harbison, one of Simply Zesty's founders is a prominent PR/social media guru based in Ireland who assists small businesses in branding and disseminating their messages vis a vis social media. Here you can see, Niall successfully found a way to embed a video into his LinkedIn profile

In the absence of a formal API, this "how-to" video (below) will walk you through a somewhat round-about way, but nonetheless an ingenious solution devised by Niall to accomplish the task of inserting videos into one's LinkedIn profile page.

Hats off to Niall and SimplyZesty for sharing his Irish 'trick of the trade' to incorporate videos into our profiles on LinkedIn. As he notes on his Web site, "while adding video to LinkedIn might not be relevant to everybody...with video content...it can really be the difference in having your profile noticed or not."

Embedding Video Into Your LinkedIn Profiles | InventorSpot

10 Ways You Can Use Twitter Lists

2009-11-27T13:25:00.001-06:00

By Sarah Evans on Mashable.com

Sarah Evans is a public relations and new media consultant and speaker at Sevans Strategy. She also authors a PR and social media blog and is the founder of #journchat.

Twitter’s new Lists feature is all the rage right now. There are probably already millions of lists, and that number is growing by the minute (or second). So what are people using all these lists for? Are people creating lists just for the sake of creating lists? Savvy individuals are looking for ways to use lists to further their personal/professional agendas, and while we are all still learning how to harness the power of this new feature, here are a few ideas to get the creative juices flowing.

Let us know in the comments what other ways you’re using Twitter Lists.

1. Industry Peers and Professionals Lists

One way to use Twitter Lists is to keep your finger on the pulse of your industry. Tim O’Reilly (@timoreilly), founder and CEO of O’Reilly Media, for example, created the Gov 2.0 list to accomplish this goal for government tweeters. Once you create your “experts” list, share the link with your peers. (If you’re in a generous mood.) If you have a Twitter () network largely made up of industry peers, you’ll save them from reinventing the wheel by creating a public list that everyone can use.

Lists are still new enough that you can be the first to develop an “it” list. In other words, for many industries and topics you could create the de facto list of peers that others follow and reference. A list that garners a large followership means more attention for you and may increase your Twitter followers. Once you create the list, you’ll need to promote it. Add it to a list directory like Listorious for additional opportunities for people to view and follow.

2. Experts Lists

If you’re an expert, recognize other experts. Technology blogger Robert Scoble (@scobleizer) did this with his recent lists like, “most influential in tech,” and “web innovators,” for example. It’s a win both for Robert and for those he recommends. He continues to establish his credibility as a technology thought leader and others benefit from the recognition and online visibility. Many of his lists already have hundreds of followers.

You can also use Twitter Lists to highlight individuals that routinely offer insight, tips, tools, etc. about a particular topic. Do you have certain people you keep on mobile alerts or have a special column for in Tweetdeck ()? It’s most likely a list in the making. If nothing else, lists like these let people you admire and/or listen to know that you appreciate the content they’re putting out.

3. Recognize and Reward Customers Lists

Lists can be used to promote your clients and/or customers. Depending on your industry, it’s an opportunity for your customers to connect with other like-minded people. You may decide sharing all of your customers on Twitter isn’t right for your business, but you can still take advantage of Twitter Lists to recognize your customers. You could, perhaps, implement a “valued clients of the week” list or run a contest that rewards a certain number of customers with a spot on a special list.

Another way to reward customers is to create a list of your company’s Twitter accounts that offer special deals, discounts, or exclusive announcements.

4. Niche Lists

The New York Times’ City Room crew created the “NYC Street Food Trucks” list for all things street food in New York City. Creating niche category lists can be very helpful for others, so think outside the box. Maybe there’s an audience who would love a list of all celebrities who have graced the cover of Vogue and tweet. Or, perhaps, a list of viral video stars (e.g., @daviddentist) would be useful for some. What niche can you identify that needs a list?

Lists can also be humorous. @daphnebegonia, who happens to be a dog, curates a list of “people I have licked.” It’s a funny idea that offers potential, and a concept that can work for other animal-related entities. I’m hoping for a Sea World, “I met Shamu,” list.

5. Employee Directory Lists

You might have a link to your Twitter account on your website, but don’t forget to make an official employee Twitter List. You should include all official company accounts, along with employees who tweet on behalf of the organization (or if you have a more open culture, you could include any employee that tweets). Mashable() has an employee list, as does Twitter.

Share the list internally, too. Not only is this a way to aggregate accounts, it also makes monitoring easier. Think about creative ways you can promote your company’s Twitter list (for example, from the signature line of emails, or on your business cards).

6. Political Campaign Lists

Running for office? Aggregate your supporters or “friends of” the campaign for increased visibility. It’s important to stay connected to constituents, especially during election time (every vote counts!). In fact, go beyond campaign supporters and create an “official” party list, or a list of all the newspapers that have endorsed a candidate.

If you’re a political reporter or blogger, create a private list of all candidates you’re tracking to keep tabs on their tweets more easily. (This same principal could be applied by journalists or bloggers to any beat, not just politics.)

7. Location-Based Lists

Create a list of everyone in your city/town who tweets. Or create a list of city and/or state employees who tweet. If your mayor, village manager, school district board members and others are on Twitter, group them together to create a resource for others in your area.

This idea can work in an official capacity as well. If you’re in charge of a municipality’s website, aggregate the feeds from these lists for your official website to offer real-time updates to your citizens.

8. Event Attendees and Live-Tweeters Lists

Hosting an upcoming event? Encourage people to submit their Twitter IDs when they register. Share the list pre-conference and encourage people to connect. Don’t forget to update the list during the conference. You could also create a list of all speakers or sponsors for a conference to share with attendees, who can then familiarize themselves with the conference lineup and supporters before they get there.

Creating a special list of those live-tweeting events can make it easier for people not able to attend to follow the action without worrying about the noise created by extraneous hashtag conversations or spammers.

9. Self-Serving Lists

Lists can help you out, too. If you’re out of work, for example, you could create a list of company or recruiter accounts to monitor for job postings. Or if you need to stay current on a topic for work, you could create a list of companies or bloggers active on that subject.

Just the act of taking the time to research a comprehensive (and accurate) list will help you as much as the information that will come through from tweets. And if you decide to share your list, it could have the potential to garner a large following, which can boost your online credibility.

10. Promote Your Affiliation Lists

Twitter Lists may also be good for promoting or listing your affiliations. Collegiate alumni associations, for example, are constantly looking for ways to keep people engaged, enter the “University XYZ Alumni List.” This concept works for any group, organization, association, etc.

Journalists, bloggers, promoters, and others could also create a list of affiliations as a way to disclose potential conflicts of interest. A public relations professional, for example, could create a list of their clients as a way to let followers know which of their tweets may exhibit a conflict of interest.

How do you creatively harness the power of public Twitter Lists? Please share in the comments.

10 Ways You Can Use Twitter Lists

The Geeks Are the Cool Kids

2009-11-23T09:49:00.001-06:00

Over the summer I did some Twitter and Social Media recruiting/branding training for the Dallas office of Matrix Resources. I worked at Matrix from 1996 to 2000 and was a top performer on the contract IT staffing side. That training led to a webinar I did recently for Matrix job candidates to help them promote themselves better through social channels (we are still working on re-recording that session since the audio had some problems). Matrix recently unveiled their great new blog, the Matrix Wall. Adam Waid, who does CRM and Social Media for Matrix asked me to write a guest post. Hope you enjoy it.

The Geeks Are the Cool Kids

By Craig Fisher

You heard me. I said the geeks are the cool kids. Last night I attended a meeting of the Social Media Club of Dallas. You may be saying to yourself, "Hmmm, that sounds about as much fun as Physics Club..." But I'll let you in on a secret. All the cool kids were there. And many of them were self-proclaimed geeks.

Social media is all the rage in recruiting, job search, marketing, etc. And the people who are at the forefront of it are mostly techies. This point was raised by the keynote speaker, Tim Walker, Social Media manager for Hoovers.com. He gave a great presentation about the value of Social Media for companies. You see, the techies are always the early adopters of new technology. They were with the internet, and they are with social media. And they are also the people I most want to recruit for the IT jobs my company helps to fill for our clients.

Early adopters are the ones on the cutting edge of new technology. They are smart, and ahead of the curve. They are cool. I met so many great people at this event that I would have gladly paid a large sum of money to attend. Fortunately we had some great sponsors including nomee (these folks introduced me to a cool new social media aggregator that runs on Adobe Air and sits on your desktop. It does what Plaxo would do if everyone used all Plaxo's features. It's like FriendFeed meets Tweetdeck. Yes, I'm a geek too.), and Moroch PR (our location host), who made it possible for all 110+ attendees to attend for free.

Tim also made a point about cool kids when someone asked a question about the new Twitter lists feature. The question was about whether these lists will create some kind of exclusivity in the Twittersphere. Walker quipped that the people who would attempt to exclude others by using lists are the same ones who sat at the cool kids table in high school. He didn't have time for them then, and he doesn't now. I suspect Tim Walker was plenty cool in high school. But don't tell him I said so.

My point here is that the cool kids, for me, are the techies, the early adopters, the bleeding edge thinkers. Many of them proudly call themselves geeks (a Tweepsearch of Twitter profiles for the word "geek" returns over 46,000 users). And geeks are cool. So whether you are an employer, a marketer, or a job seeker, go seek out your local social media club. If your town doesn't have one, start one up. This is physical world networking, and you should be doing it. You may find your next superstar employee, or your next job, or client. Let your geek flag fly. It beats the heck out of Physics Club.

Top 66 Serious & Funny Interview Attire Don'ts

2009-11-12T14:26:00.001-06:00

In September, as a follow up to a previous post of mine, Top 10 Things to Leave OFF of Your Resume, I posted this question on LinkedIn: What should a job candidate NOT wear to an interview?. The responses from 61 users were both instructive and hilarious. The first five were the top suggestions overall. The rest were, well...see for yourself. Some of these are pure genius. My thanks to all those who responded on this one.

Flip flops
sneakers
jeans
stained clothing
revealing clothing
bow ties
cowboy hats
wrinkled clothing
tight clothing
white socks
shorts
headphones
my clothes
a sock
ear plugs
too much bling
big ear rings
flashy colors
too much cologne/perfume/aftershave
a cod piece
breeches
jodhpurs
big belts
big buckles
A clown suit (unless of course, applying for clown related position)
Full gothic ensemble
those fake glasses that have a nose and moustache attached
Zorro costume
Superman costume (in fact anything with underwear worn on the outside)
Prison Uniform
Pirate Gear (unless applying within the financial services industry)
weird hair colors
dog collar (unless you're a dog)
go-go boots
visible underwear
white lab coat (any lab coat, really)
loin cloth
bonnets
top hats
pith helmets
band uniform
swimsuit
anything edible
lederhosen
a wet suit
the skin of your latest victim
polkadot knickers or pants
a toga
suit of armor
nothing
bunny costume
beard of bees
broccoli (seriously, check your teeth)
monogrammed shirt from your last company
thong
mini skirts
fishnet stockings
multi-colored clown wig
novelty tie
blue eye shadow
wife beater t-shirt
fur
stilettos
football jersey
Garfield T Shirt
Schoolgirl dress

Does Your Recruitment Process Include Some Good PR?

2009-11-05T13:35:00.001-06:00

Last week I was asked to contribute an article for the RecruiterNewsletter.com by Amy Renz, COO of HireAbility.com (for whom I recently recorded a very insightful webinar). For this article I wrote about a topic that was brought up in a couple of good blog posts last month by Jessica Miller-Merrell (@blogging4jobs) and Amybeth Hale (@researchgoddess). The topic, "Is HR the new PR?" was hotly debated by some of the top recruiters in the socialsphere from all over the world on the recent TalentNet Live chat. The original article on RecruiterNewsletter.com can be found here. My thanks to Amy Renz (@AmyRenz) for including in this great project.

Does Your Recruitment Process Include Some Good PR? from RecruiterNewsletter.com

By Craig Fisher

An employer’s brand is, in part, a product of the people who represent the employer and it’s career opportunities to job candidates and new hires. Whether you are a 3rd party recruiter or an in-house recruiter, you represent, at some level, an employer when you speak with job candidates about that employer’s openings. So are you an anonymous agent? Or are you a pro-active PR machine for the employer you represent?

A pro-active recruiter will often take the approach that their job is equal parts Advertising, PR, Marketing, Recruiting and Sales. This idea, while not new, has a whole new life with the ease and affordability of social media, and the push for employer branding. Even in an employer driven hiring market, 3rd party firms and employers should both be aware that this is more important than ever before. Because if you are not integrating all of these aspects into your HR model for recruiting, onboarding, and retention, you are getting left behind.

Amybeth Hale, a Talent Attraction Manager with AT&T, recently wrote on her blog, www.researchgoddess.com, the following about the function of recruiters:

“Our jobs are all about building relationships. Such is the case with marketers, advertisers, and PR professionals. Our desired end result of building the relationship is really what separates us. Here are some very simple definitions:

Marketing is the activity, set of institutions, and processes for creating, communicating, delivering, and exchanging offerings that have value for customers, clients, partners, and society at large.
Advertising is a paid communication in which the message is controlled by the sponsor, and is designed to gain attention and motivate action.
Public Relations is planned and sustained effort to establish and maintain goodwill and mutual understanding between an organization and its public by telling an organization’s story to its public.

Subtle differences between the three, but the basic premise with all of these functions is to establish a line of communication between two or more entities.

Recruiting professionals would do themselves a favor to understand some of the job responsibilities that come with being in marketing, advertising, and public relations. For example: there is much more to candidate advertising (aka job posting) than simply plopping a boring job description into a post template and slapping it up on some job board. There is more to recruitment marketing than bulk emailing a spammy message with an e-newsletter attachment to your entire prospective client database in the hopes of gaining one or two additional job orders. And there is certainly more to creating good PR for your company than simply having a Twitter account or a Facebook fan page.”

Our personal brands are also a reflection on our client or employer. Positioning yourself as a quality resource for job candidates is now an integral part of the recruitment process. If you do not have a professional profile on sites such as LinkedIn that show more than just your job title, many candidates these days may have a better bond with a recruiter who does. The recruitment process is more than an email or a phone call. Its a full on campaign to build quality relationships with the candidate community. Just as recruiters are checking out candidates’ social profiles, so too are candidates examining those of recruiters and employers.

Whether or not the recruiter or employer actively engages with its community on social sites (something previously seen as more of a Marketing or PR function) can now have a big impact on hiring the best candidates. Even beyond hiring, creating the bond that comes with being “friends” with or “linked” with a prospective employee can help ease the transition into employment and enhance retention.

The lines between Recruiting, PR, Marketing, etc. are becoming more blurred. Resistance is futile. Be sure you are positioned as a well rounded, strategic resource to both candidates and employers.

About the Author:

Craig Fisher is co-Founder and Principal of A-List Solutions (www.alistsolutions.com) of Southlake TX, an Information Technology Staffing and Executive Search firm proudly offering flexible pricing and strategic sourcing models utilizing social media for maximum ROI. His fifteen years in recruiting also include positions as an award-winning Account Manager and Sales Director with Stark Technical Group, and as a top-performing Senior Recruiter with MATRIX Resources. Craig started his 18 year sales career as a pharma and medsurge rep with Glaxo and Smiths Medical.

Craig also trains HR and recruiting organizations on Social Media and Recruitment/Employer Branding strategies. As a large social media presence, Craig helped create the #TalentNet social recruiting forum on Twitter, hosting big names in recruiting and social media marketing on the last Wed. of each month from 9-11PM Eastern at #TNL. See www.talentnetlive.com for details. Craig blogs at http://www.fishdogs.com and Twitters at http://twitter.com/fishdogs .

Demented and Sad, But Social

2009-09-04T12:08:00.001-05:00

I've got way too many social commitments. Unfortunately they are mostly online. I have developed this terrific group of friends on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Ning networks, and various blogs. And like a good social networker I participate, comment, volunteer, post, etc. So much so that I have little free time.

I realized recently that my offline social life is decidedly less zingy than it used to be. Maybe I am subconsciously dialing it back to save money in this economy. Maybe I'm just trying to be a good dad to my three rowdy little boys. Either way I'm still glued to my laptop quite a bit even after office hours.

Granted, I use social media for business, so I justify much of my time there by meeting new clients and candidates. But the truly social aspect of online community is still pretty social. I have read that much of the world is feeling the same effect, more online social life, less offline social life.

We are entering football season, so my couch / beer / buddy time will be far more active soon. Still I wonder if we are forever changed by our ability to have such an active online social scene, hanging out in places like Twitter and Facebook for fun in the evenings. Even when the economy comes roaring back, is this our new nightlife?

"No," you say? "Not even close bud!" Okay, but how pathetic is it that we now take our online community with us to our offline social scene by way of mobile apps, sms groups, and smart phones. Are we desperate for attention or what?

Nowadays the party just isn't a party without it's own FB event page and a hashtag Twitter stream. Even if its just getting together for a football game (#Sooners_at_Fishdogs!), or perhaps a meeting of the physics club (#properties_of_physics). Is this really just for the sake of convenience and ease of communication? Bah!

We go around pretending to star in our own documentary reality show and even vainly tell our loyal viewers "Good night, signing off" when we're done updating for the day as if the world is hanging on our every move. And maybe it is. Welcome to your social life. Demented and sad, but social.

Do you spend more time socializing online than in the real world? Are you plugged in even when you should be unplugged? Let me hear from you.

View my blog at www.fishdogs.com and Tweet me @fishdogs

Are You an Old School Recruiter?

2009-09-01T15:51:00.001-05:00

By Craig Fisher www.fishdogs.com

I see quite a few posts lately about "old school" recruiting, about how all this social media and web2.0 stuff is just a waste of time. And it makes me wonder if we are really talking about old school, or just recent school.

My first recruiting job in 1995 was for a physician search firm. That company folded about 9 months after I started. And looking back I'm not surprised (I have since confirmed that it wasn't my fault). There was good coffee. There was a split desk setup, accounts and recruiting. There was the old school schedule: everyone works until 5:30pm, goes to work out, and comes back by 6:30 or so for pizza, or whatever the company bought for dinner, and continues working until about 9pm every night of the week but Friday. On Friday we went home closer to 7pm.

So far so good. We each had our own office with a big desk. This big desk was absolutely necessary to support the giant freaking list that we used to call our prospects. It also held a phone, a Rolodex, a calendar, some pens and highlighters. That's it. No PC, no ipod clock radio, no cell phone charger.

Ah, the good old days. I wonder if we could effectively recruit "old school" today. Really old school. No job boards, no ATS, no Outlook or email, no Google or LinkedIn. Just a list, a phone, and some note cards. Yes, I think maybe we could. But we would also be stuck at the office every night until 9pm.

How "old school" are you? Could you be effective that way today? Would you rather work at Red Lobster?

Facebook Is the Fourth Largest Country in the World

2009-08-28T09:55:00.001-05:00

A colleague in the recruiting industry told me this week that he made a social media faux pas. He asked an admin to post a job opening to Twitter. But she accidentally posted it to Facebook. I was quick to tell him that I didn't think it was a faux pas at all to post a job opening to Facebook, "le facebook n'est pas un faux pas!". Okay, I didn't really say that. But I don't think that it is bad form to post a job opening, job search, or anything job related to Facebook.

An article posted yesterday on TechCrunch noted some stats, visualized by Buzzpoint, that shows Facebook's 250 million members would make it the 4th most populous country in the world...if it were indeed a country. With numbers like that, why would you not want to utilize your network there to promote your job search or job opening? If you post your message with a link, your network can easily share (repost) to their network and your message will grow more visible exponentially.

As long as you are not constantly posting spam-like links or inane business/marketing messages, your network won't mind when you post something very relevant to you, such as you are hiring or you need a job. In fact, if you ask your network to please comment or share, they likely will. Even if they just click that they "like" your post, their network will see your message as well.

Alternately, if you rarely update your Facebook status or rarely comment on others posts or updates, your network is not likely to be very responsive to your message. Facebook is typical of social networks in that you must participate on a regular basis to get much out of it. Many people feel that Facebook is only social, or only fun. But it is a powerful tool full of helpful people who will gladly refer you or offer help if you just ask for it. Everything in moderation. But, when it comes to posting job openings or job search information, "le facebook n'est pas un faux pas!".

What's your opinion? Do you hate seeing job openings posted on Facebook? Do you cringe when someone announces a job search? Or do you like to help?

Social Media and Recruiting: Some Companies Just Don't Get It

2009-08-21T16:10:00.001-05:00

I heard recently about a company that didn't want their corporate recruiters to have their Twitter profile connected to their Linkedin profile because they were concerned that the recruiters might say something on Twitter that would reflect badly on the company. Amazing. I wonder if they are going to ask them to stop sending email and using the phone too. An untrusting environment and a misguided approach to control will not breed productivity or loyalty.

In this great article by Stephanie Lloyd, Do you keep your employees in cages or are they allowed to interact with the public? . she states that "Social media is a dynamic communication and branding tool and companies should be proactive in coaching their employees as to how to use it. Managed well it can be a fantastic vehicle for promoting your company in positive and genuine way. Zappos has embraced social media in a bold way and incorporates Twitter into its corporate culture. Comcast is an excellent example of a company that is utilizing social media to deliver customer service in a whole new way and they are turning disgruntled customers in to raving fans."

There is a new article written almost daily telling job seekers how to use Twitter to connect with jobs and recruiters. Who better to be your employer brand advocate on the fastest growing social network, Twitter, than your recruiting team? The fact that people respond better to real people than to corporate brands is not debatable. So why ask your recruiters to disassociate their brand on Twitter from the company?

And now, with applications such as Jobvite, you can even utilize your own employees networks to auto-source candidates for your job openings. It's a great concept. But is unlikely to work in a company that doesn't trust their employees to be professional.

Top 7 Goals of a Successful Cultmunity Leader

2009-08-14T14:16:00.001-05:00

Work to do. Open email client. See message: "Top Five Ways Social Media Can Cause Death". Must know more. Open message, click link. Enter email address to login to intriguing online community. Get sucked in. Consent to be an honorary "group leader". Email all your friends to join. Time wasted = 3 hours. And your hooked.

One of the important things we are supposed to do with social media is to build online communities and engage our networks. And I wonder why it hasn't been suggested that we can take some tips from successful cult leaders.

Granted, cult leaders are often psychopaths. But they seem to share some important characteristics with successful community managers. So with that in mind, here are my top seven goals of a great ~~cult~~ community leader:

Be very helpful and engaging.
Identify and recruit a first generation of ~~lost souls~~ followers that will, with your "help", breed additional followers...
Build trust and fanatical loyalty.
Build internal teams to give members a sense of purpose.
Give your followers a mission, motivation, and direction.
Convince them to donate money. (optional)
Convince them to commit acts of violence, murder, or self destruction. (optional)

If you like this post, please consider subscribing to my RSS Feed.

References

What Does it Take to Manage a Community? at Fast Wonder: Online ...

Essential Skills of a Community Manager

Talk It Up!: Top Five Skills a Community Manager Must Have

Win a Close Encounter to RecruitFest '09

2009-08-07T11:11:00.001-05:00

I can't go to Recruitfest this year on September 23rd and 24th, and I'm pissed. It has the unfortunate fate of falling in a month that contains two of my kids' birthdays, my anniversary, my Shriner initiation, and a guest spot on The View. Plus the fact that I'm helping to put on the first ever TalentNet Live Expo here in Dallas to coincide with ERE for those not able to make it to Hollywood, FL.

Suffice to say that It would be difficult for me to get to Toronto next month for Recruitfest. Why not bring the whole family along, or make it a great anniversary trip for me and the wife? I tried that. No go. "What the hell is an unconference?" was a typical response.

The value in attending such a conference is different for everyone. For me it's not so much about learning the latest tricks and trends. I'm egotistical in that I feel I've got that covered. It's more about reminding myself of the basics that bring me the most success. And getting that invaluable renewed passion for the game that comes from communing with my recruiting friends face-to-face. As a recruiter, it's always comforting to see that we are not alone.

I have made so many good friends over the last year on RecruitingBlogs.com, and Twitter, and through my own blog who are going to be at RecruitFest. And knowing I can't attend makes me feel a bit like Richard Dreyfuss in Close Encounters, drawn to Devil's Tower by some unknown force.

So as I sat at dinner last night, absentmindedly carving the shape of Toronto out of my mashed potatoes, I decided that I would help someone else get to Recruitfest. You see, I have a ticket already. And I will give it away to the person who leaves the most compelling comment to this post telling me why they need or want to go to Recruitfest.

That's it. Leave an Oscar-worthy comment, and subscribe to my email updates here to qualify. I will announce the winner around the middle of next week. Plenty of time to buy a plane ticket or hitch a ride with Jerry Albright. If the stories, pics, and videos from the last one tell you anything, RecruitFest 09 will be informative, inspirational, and a great chance for a close encounter with your online friends in recruiting.

Groovy Answers to Tricky Interview Questions

2009-08-04T20:07:00.001-05:00

"Wow, I shouldn't have said all that!..." you're thinking to yourself, "Especially that part about the unicorns!" Somewhere in the 20 minutes it took you to respond to the question "Can you tell me a little about yourself?", you realized that your inner monologue had been awkwardly introduced to the hiring manager sitting across from you.

It's easy to be drawn off sides by seemingly innocent interview questions. Some actually are quite innocent. But others are designed to see how you respond to tricky questions. Others still are open ended and attempt to get you to "speak freely" about a subject.

To stay on message, ask the interviewer early on what he or she feels are the most important qualities to have in the job for which your are interviewing. Listen carefully to the answer. Then target your answers to any questions accordingly. Highlight the facts about your background and skill set that compliment those things.

It will help to be well prepared. Be sure you know your resume very well as it applies to the job description. In a great post written by my Co-Founder at A-List Solutions, Jeff Lipschultz, Interviewing is Easy…if Done Right!, Jeff suggests making a check list to bring with you to the interview:

On the left side of your desk, put the job description (and any other company information beyond the job description—a good recruiter will have this, along with the company’s web site). Put your resume to the right. Then put a blank sheet of paper next to the resume.

Literally connect requirements and company info on the left with the resume experiences and skill set on the right. Literally, it’s like connecting the dots with a crayon—child’s play! Hopefully, you create a complex web of connections as you may connect a requirement to several spots on your resume. And several requirements on the left may link to the same experience on the right. These connections are checklist items.

Build your checklist by listing the requirements (and related company info) along with the best examples of your ability and experience. You should include boxes to check off as you interview. You need not write out details, as all you will need is some code words to remind you of the example(s) you want to share.

It may also help your nerves a bit to know, in advance, what some of these seemingly innocent questions are really about. Colleen Clark has a nice list of What an Interviewer Wants to Hear on Monster.com.

What motivates you the most?
They want to know what gets you out of bed - helping people, building a safe facility, developing teams, completing projects on time, implementing fair and honest practices, making people laugh.

How would you describe your personality?
Mention two or three personal characteristics that you are confident about -- a sense of humor, patience, supportive of others or highly versatile. Try to make them relevant to the company or position being applied to. If you have done any assessment testing, take words you most identify with out of them. Of course, prepare for this question beforehand.

How do your subordinates perceive you?
Stick as much as you can to work-related skills that you know they know you have. Interviews are not personality disclosing interrogations; they are to ensure you have the skills and fit to do the job. Say you are conscientious, ambitious, tenacious or helpful.

What can you offer us that other candidates cannot?
You have no idea what the other candidates bring to the table so your best answer is to mention at least two benefits you will provide: I will save the company money on.... OR I will decrease OR improve OR increase OR implement...

What is the most demotivating work environment for you?
This question comes in the back door of what kind of people or office personality do you like best? Negativity, inflexible, non-team supported or closed-door policy are safe answers and not too revealing. You can always turn that question around and say, work environments that are supportive, friendly, helpful and congenial are my favorite places to work.

Where would you like to be in five years from now?
Keep in mind that you are not interviewing for any other position than the one you are there for right now. Best you say something like, I hope to still be working for the company and hopefully promoted based on my accomplishments. Telling them you want their job is not a job idea or saying that you want to start your own business, but you need some practical experience first, do not go there.

What important trends do you see coming in our industry?
This is your opportunity to tell them your opinions and to show that you have read up to the minute articles or books on what's coming down the pike.

In your last position, what where the things you liked the least? The most?
Have a reserved list ready of activities or tasks that you don't like, but really try to accentuate the positive as best as you can. Know your must-haves and flexibilities.

In summary: Know yourself, your background, and your skills. Know how they apply to this job. Ask what's important to the manager at the beginning of the interview. Target your answers accordingly and stick to the point. This will give you the best chance to properly allow yourself to introduce...yourself.

Social Media for Recruiting and Job Search Podcast

2009-07-31T06:40:00.001-05:00

Colin Alsheimer (@levelten_colin on Twitter) of LevelTen Interactive recently invited me and Chris Hoyt, the Associate Director of Talent Attraction for AT&T (aka TheRecruiterGuy) into their offices to record a session for their weekly podcast, The Ten Spot. During the podcast, we share our top tips for job seekers in today's economy, and share some recent trends in the recruiting and staffing industry, including a brief discussion on mobile recruiting.

To see a snippet of video from the session where we discuss tips for job seekers on social media click on the second little circle on the timeline below. In the video from left are Renee Dobbs, Kayla Wren (@kaylawren), Tom McCracken, me, and Chris. For the full video (only if you are really bored or if you want to see me eat a bunch of cookies and guzzle bottled water) go here. The edited podcast is the way to go and you can listen to that here or download it here digitalrecruiting.mp3.

LevelTen is a professional Internet strategy and Web design company based in Dallas, Texas. We specialize in Web 2.0 Drupal development, best-in-class website design, Internet marketing, search engine optimization and training programs. LevelTen features an integrated team of web consultants, creative designers, writers, programmers and marketing professionals that know how to get online results. Check them out at www.getlevelten.com .

My thanks to Colin Alsheimer and the LevelTen team.

LinkedIn Help for the Clueless Job Search

2009-07-23T22:56:00.001-05:00

A friend of mine recently moved to the Houston area and is trying to find a job as a Revenue Accountant in the Oil and Gas industry. Easy, right? Not necessarily. There are quite a few job seekers with the same skills applying to any openings that come available in that area right now. My friend needs an edge but has never done any real social networking. So I advised him to start with LinkedIn.

He had created a profile once upon a time there but never did anything with it (as is the case with many). He has about 7 connections. "Not to worry" I say. "You can quickly make something useful out of this." I gave him some instructions and sent him a short note with an abbreviated version for reference. It seems like I send a similar note like this quite often to job seekers who are new to networking. So I asked my friend if he would mind if I blogged about his efforts as I thought it might be instructive to others.

He said sure. And since I don't want to totally throw my friend under the bus here, we'll just call him MacGruber.

MacGruber,

Great speaking with you again today. Here is a short version of the LinkedIn plan we discussed. First of all get a good profile picture of yourself posted ASAP. No deer rifles or hunting caps. Just a nice close-up of your face. Try to look friendly.

Next post a solid job description for each of your previous positions going back at least 7 years. Use keywords in those descriptions that an employer might use to find a person such as yourself. Be specific as to what you do and give examples of your accomplishments.

Here is a good query you can use in Google to find other LinkedIn users to network with in your field in the Houston area.

site:www.linkedin.com (accounting OR accountant) houston (oil OR gas) (inurl:pub OR inurl:in) -intitle:directory

You can add terms to the search to narrow the results if you like. Use quotes around multi word terms. Look at the profiles of the people that result from your query.

Make a note of the companies these people work for. Those are your target employers. Look at the industry specific groups that these users have joined. Join the same groups.

Post this discussion in those groups:

"Greetings all. I am trying to expand my network here would love to connect with you. Please send me an invitation to join your network if you feel it is appropriate. My email address is MacGruber@clueless.com .

I am a 3+ year Oil and Gas accountant who has recently moved to the Houston area and am looking for work here. My salary requirements are flexible and I am just seeking to get started with a good organization. Any assistance is appreciated. I look forward to networking with you. Sincerely, MacGruber"

Post this weekly. Also post interesting news items and articles in these groups. Ask and answer questions. Start to position yourself as knowledgeable person. Always be interesting and friendly. Never be needy, pushy, or creepy.

Invite group members with whom you interact to join your network. You should specifically target managers. Ones who might have a hiring need.

Wash, rinse, repeat. Check in with me in a week and let's see how you are doing. I expect you to make something useful out of the scraps you currently have, so no slacking. You can do it!

Cheers,

CF

Top Tweets from Fishdogs

2009-07-21T23:06:00.001-05:00

Some of the best articles I found today to post. These are a mixture of topics, but all worthy of a quick look. Enjoy.

"How do you know which job to recruit on?" Gr8 post by @Jerry_Albright http://tinyurl.com/kkxajk
How a Stay-at-Home Mom Should Explain Resume Gaps. Maybe. http://twurl.nl/iy1zpm
Advice from @Fishdogs on using twttr in job/candidate search by @StephanieALloyd http://twurl.nl/7y5q2e RT @CurriculumVitae @jlipschultz
How to Make Your Tweets More Useful by @ducttape http://ow.ly/hKrh RT @JeffHurt
Do you keep your employees in cages? Gr8 new post on #TalentNet blog by @stephaniealloyd http://twurl.nl/td5ims #TNL RT @TalentNet
More Adults Taking High School Equivalency Tests http://snurl.com/nnyda RT @karla_porter RT @gwbchamber
Do you know who your top ReTweeters are? You might be surprised. http://www.twitteranalyzer.com
Save Time Job Searching w/ Resume Distribution : http://bit.ly/mOdbc RT @BillVick
Despite Recession, Companies are Beating Profit Expectations (USA Today) http://bit.ly/EEq0S RT @MikeRamer RT @cristalcash
dont miss @stephaniealloyd's interview w/@fishdogs abt how he uses twttr 4 recruiting: http://bit.ly/2DNlN RT @Keppie_Careers
Facebook can use your photos in their ads. How to turn it off http://bit.ly/8clgK RT @JennyDeVaughn @sgordon70 @thetcp @ellerylong
Screen for talent AND culture - free webinar - http://bit.ly/7dT4c - RT @Animal RT @KevinWGrossman
Can I Wear My Nose Ring to the Interview? http://bit.ly/DIpVL Video review by @BillVick
3 Steps To Building A Profitable Freelance Business Using Twitter http://bit.ly/YrAAg
Have You Considered a Cool Job? http://twurl.nl/kbt50m

"How do you know which job to recruit on?" Gr8 post by @Jerry_Albright http://tinyurl.com/kkxajk

Posted: 21 Jul 2009 07:09 PM PDT

"How do you know which job to recruit on?" Gr8 post by @Jerry_Albright http://tinyurl.com/kkxajk

How a Stay-at-Home Mom Should Explain Resume Gaps. Maybe. http://twurl.nl/iy1zpm

Posted: 21 Jul 2009 02:52 PM PDT

How a Stay-at-Home Mom Should Explain Resume Gaps. Maybe. http://twurl.nl/iy1zpm

Advice from @Fishdogs on using twttr in job/candidate search by @StephanieALloyd http://twurl.nl/7y5q2e RT @CurriculumVitae @jlipschultz

Posted: 21 Jul 2009 02:29 PM PDT

Advice from @Fishdogs on using twttr in job/candidate search by @StephanieALloyd http://twurl.nl/7y5q2e RT @CurriculumVitae @jlipschultz

How to Make Your Tweets More Useful by @ducttape http://ow.ly/hKrh RT @JeffHurt

Posted: 21 Jul 2009 02:26 PM PDT

How to Make Your Tweets More Useful by @ducttape http://ow.ly/hKrh RT @JeffHurt

Do you keep your employees in cages? Gr8 new post on #TalentNet blog by @stephaniealloyd http://twurl.nl/td5ims #TNL RT @TalentNet

Posted: 21 Jul 2009 01:14 PM PDT

Do you keep your employees in cages? Gr8 new post on #TalentNet blog by @stephaniealloyd http://twurl.nl/td5ims #TNL RT @TalentNet

More Adults Taking High School Equivalency Tests http://snurl.com/nnyda RT @karla_porter RT @gwbchamber

Posted: 21 Jul 2009 11:34 AM PDT

More Adults Taking High School Equivalency Tests http://snurl.com/nnyda RT @karla_porter RT @gwbchamber

Do you know who your top ReTweeters are? You might be surprised. http://www.twitteranalyzer.com

Posted: 21 Jul 2009 09:08 AM PDT

Do you know who your top ReTweeters are? You might be surprised. http://www.twitteranalyzer.com

Save Time Job Searching w/ Resume Distribution : http://bit.ly/mOdbc RT @BillVick

Posted: 21 Jul 2009 08:17 AM PDT

Save Time Job Searching w/ Resume Distribution : http://bit.ly/mOdbc RT @BillVick

Despite Recession, Companies are Beating Profit Expectations (USA Today) http://bit.ly/EEq0S RT @MikeRamer RT @cristalcash

Posted: 21 Jul 2009 07:51 AM PDT

Despite Recession, Companies are Beating Profit Expectations (USA Today) http://bit.ly/EEq0S RT @MikeRamer RT @cristalcash

dont miss @stephaniealloyd's interview w/@fishdogs abt how he uses twttr 4 recruiting: http://bit.ly/2DNlN RT @Keppie_Careers

Posted: 21 Jul 2009 07:22 AM PDT

dont miss @stephaniealloyd's interview w/@fishdogs abt how he uses twttr 4 recruiting: http://bit.ly/2DNlN RT @Keppie_Careers

Facebook can use your photos in their ads. How to turn it off http://bit.ly/8clgK RT @JennyDeVaughn @sgordon70 @thetcp @ellerylong

Posted: 21 Jul 2009 07:16 AM PDT

Facebook can use your photos in their ads. How to turn it off http://bit.ly/8clgK RT @JennyDeVaughn @sgordon70 @thetcp @ellerylong

Screen for talent AND culture - free webinar - http://bit.ly/7dT4c - RT @Animal RT @KevinWGrossman

Posted: 21 Jul 2009 07:16 AM PDT

Screen for talent AND culture - free webinar - http://bit.ly/7dT4c - RT @Animal RT @KevinWGrossman

Can I Wear My Nose Ring to the Interview? http://bit.ly/DIpVL Video review by @BillVick

Posted: 21 Jul 2009 07:14 AM PDT

Can I Wear My Nose Ring to the Interview? http://bit.ly/DIpVL Video review by @BillVick

3 Steps To Building A Profitable Freelance Business Using Twitter http://bit.ly/YrAAg

Posted: 21 Jul 2009 06:34 AM PDT

3 Steps To Building A Profitable Freelance Business Using Twitter http://bit.ly/YrAAg

Have You Considered a Cool Job? http://twurl.nl/kbt50m

Posted: 21 Jul 2009 03:03 AM PDT

Have You Considered a Cool Job? http://twurl.nl/kbt50m

How I Use Twitter for Recruiting

2009-07-21T09:05:00.001-05:00

She didn't actually grill me. But Stephanie Lloyd did ask the appropriate questions to uncover some of my methods for social recruiting on Twitter. In an interview posted yesterday on her blog, Radiant Veracity, we discuss some techniques that are helpful to both recruiters and job seekers.

I have been networking with Stephanie for a while on Twitter and other networks. She is a sharp recruiting pro, and a great (prolific!) writer. She has recently rebranded her business, something that I plan to cover in a post here in the near future.

Thanks to Stephanie for inviting me to participate in her series on how recruiters use Twitter for recruiting.

Interview with Craig Fisher: How do you use Twitter for recruiting?

by Stephanie A. Lloyd on July 21, 2009 · 0 comments

in I work in HR, I'm looking for a job, Networking, Recruiters, Social Media

Today as part of an ongoing series I had the opportunity to ask my friend Craig Fisher how he uses Twitter in his recruiting efforts.

Craig Fisher

Craig, Co-Founder of A-List Solutions and a veteran sales leader in the staffing and recruiting industry, was gracious enough to allow me to spend some time grilling interviewing him about how he uses Twitter as an integral part of his recruiting practice.

How do you use Twitter in your recruiting efforts?

I use Twitter in multiple ways for recruiting. I use my personal Twitter account, @Fishdogs, to follow and network with prospective candidates and clients.

I post things that would be interesting to job seekers and employers/recruiters, and I have discussions, take polls, listen, and assist those in need; all on Twitter. I also do these things to a lesser extent from my corporate Twitter presence.

But, Twitter doesn’t happen in a vacuum.

I refer my Twitter network to my LinkedIn and Facebook groups, my blog, company blog, job orders, etc. – and I have lots of phone conversations with my network, as well. All of these activities combine the brand Craig Fisher as a helpful expert in my field and my company as a go-to resource for staffing services and social recruitment training.

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