(Today’s post is sponsored by iCIMS, a leading provider of Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) business solutions.  This case study highlights iCIMS unique “back to the basics” corporate philosophy that creates client value by turning less-necessary system functionality into configurable options and flexible platforms.  Enjoy!)

We often talk in human resources about the candidate experience.  That is, making sure that individuals who apply for a job with our company are treated well, given all the information they need about the job and the organization, and receive timely, accurate follow-up during the interview process.  When the candidate experience is lacking, it can impact our ability to quickly fill positions with qualified people.

So imagine what happens when you add to this scenario that everyone who applies with your company can also be a customer or consumer of your product/service.  Now the pressure is really on.  Human resources has to deliver an experience that, regardless of whether a person gets the job, they still retain the individual as a customer.

I could really relate to this situation.  From my experience in the hospitality industry, it’s not as easy as it looks.  We couldn’t hire everyone who applied, but we certainly wanted them to vacation at our resort.

That was one of the challenges facing Rite Aid, the third largest drugstore chain in the U.S. with over 5,000 stores in thirty-one states.

Forrester Research: Rite Aid’s Career Portal has been scored among the highest rated career portals in their “Best And Worst Of Career Web Sites” report.

According to Tom Sheehan, Rite Aid’s director of talent acquisition, the recruiting function struggled to keep up with the 100,000+ applications they would receive each year.  Not to mention the increased workload at the time with the acquisition of Eckerd Pharmacy.  “We saw the organizational changes coming, and knew our processes simply wouldn’t scale to survive the acquisition,” explained Sheehan. “It was clear we needed support for this huge transition.”

Knowing the importance of customer service, Rite Aid recognized they wanted a partner who had a reputation of delivering top-notch service.  “A lot of systems deliver the same core features,” Sheehan said. “So we sought to find the best service – a provider who could clearly show Rite Aid they understood our sense of urgency. Who could strategically yet easily implement the system?”

After reviewing several options, Rite Aid selected iCIMS and their Talent Platform because it could speak to their customer experience.  Sheehan said about the decision, “iCIMS proved they could accommodate our needs and could easily support our growth. We felt extremely confident in their service team’s ability to not only deploy our system, but help us define a strong process using best practices.”

Being able to differentiate your product or service is essential.  Believe me, I learned this lesson years ago working in the hotel industry.  Every hotel has beds, etc.  It’s the people who make the experience special.  This is exactly what Rite Aid is talking about in their decision to select iCIMS.

The iCIMS Talent Platform offers several components to manage the job application process including job posting, applicant tracking, and agency management. That’s something I could have really used during my corporate recruiting days. Best of all, the iCIMS system is designed to help candidates:

• Easily navigate and apply via your company career site,
• Provide regular updates about the status of a candidate’s application,
• Allow candidates to schedule their own interviews, and;
• If hired, permit new hires to complete all the necessary paperwork prior to the first day of work.

Rite Aid reported that they realized several key benefits after implementing the iCIMS Talent Platform.  Not only was the Platform scalable but it was able to accommodate multiple hire types within a single system.  So, if you’re a business that accepts applications both via the internet and on-location, you don’t have to purchase, implement and train hiring managers on multiple systems. Just think of the cost savings!

Another plus was the transformation of the recruiting function from administrative to strategic.  Sheehan noted, “Our recruiters have moved from administrators to talent managers, our processes are OFCCP compliant, and our ability to support our candidates has significantly improved.”

Now, you don’t have to believe me about the success of iCIMS’ Talent Platform.  According to Forrester Research, Rite Aid’s Career Portal has been scored among the highest rated career portals in their “Best And Worst Of Career Web Sites” report.

If you would like to learn more this success story and how iCIMS and their Talent Platform can help your business, you can visit their website, follow them on Twitter, like their Facebook page or read their blog.  And to get a demo of the Talent Platform, click here.

One of the best things about LinkedIn are the groups. You can become a part of groups based upon your profession, industry affiliations or interests. I belong to several and it’s fascinating to see the conversations people are engaged in.  For example, there was a huge conversation on one of my groups about the best color to wear on a job interview.  It’s based upon this article by Angela Harris.

It reminded me of a workshop I went to years ago about professional attire. A bunch of us went to hear tips and tricks to look more business-like. The one big takeaway from the workshop was this:

Your wardrobe should not contain all the colors of the rainbow. It should contain the colors you look good in. 

Simple advice, yet how many of us select clothes because “we don’t have something in that color”?  I did it for years! Now my wardrobe contains only the colors that flatter me. Yes, that means I own a lot of olive green and navy blue.

I believe the point of a “best color to wear for a job interview” article should be to say, wear what looks good on you. This applies to both ladies and gentlemen. I have never heard of a recruiter not considering a job candidate because of the specific color they wore to the interview.

On the other hand, I have heard recruiters make comments about clothing that didn’t flatter a person. Not that it stopped a candidate from further consideration…but the clothing was distracting. All the more reason to wear clothing that flatters you; it will not distract from the conversation.

And that’s what the interview is really about…having a good conversation with the company.

What are your thoughts on this? Are there prescribed “interview colors” regardless of the individual?

On Sunday all eyes will be glued to their TVs watching the Super Bowl showdown between the New England Patriots and New York Giants. It’s sure to be a great game.  Did you know that Super Bowl Sunday is also considered the second largest day of food consumption in the United States?  Yep, and not surprisingly, Thanksgiving is the first.

How much food you ask?  Well, it’s estimated that Americans will eat 90 million pounds of chicken wings, 14,500 tons of chips and 4,000 tons of popcorn.  That doesn’t even include the number of pizzas that are delivered.

This year, Mr. Bartender and I splurged on some Pat LaFrieda hamburgers and will (hopefully) cheer the Patriots to victory.  Oh, and let’s not forget the commercials.  Here’s a fave from years ago.

Are you watching the game this weekend?  Tell us who you’re rooting for and (more importantly) what are you eating?!

This year marks the 10 year anniversary of my start in consulting.  I’ve been reminiscing lately about when I started.  I remember getting one of two reactions when I first told people I was becoming a consultant:

First was the “look” that silently said “oh, you mean you’re going to consult until a great job comes along”. For those people, I found it took about a year for them to realize that consulting was my profession.  Not a part-time hobby.

The other was “oh, it must be great to never work for a company again.”

My answer for the second one was (and still is)…never say never.  I’ve always said if someone offers my dream job, I just might take it.  Now, that hasn’t happened and it’s not the point.  It’s keeping our minds open to new  ideas and opportunities.

For example, I know several people looking for new jobs right now who have a long list of demands – no relocation, no excess travel, no staying late, no working on holidays, no cuts in pay or benefits…and the list goes on.  When I listen to them, it reminds me that some of the best professional experiences I’ve ever had came as a result of me not saying I’d “never” do something.

Same thing with social media.  I’ve seen people say, “I’ll never put ads on my blog.” Or “I’ll never friend my coworkers on Facebook.” Or “I’ll never talk about what my company does.”  Never is a really long time.  As times change, so do our views.  And what might not seem to make sense today, could make a lot of sense months or even weeks from now.

There are a few exceptions to the “never” rule.  Things that are considered illegal, immoral or unethical.  But I also have to keep in mind…sometimes even illegal, immoral and unethical can be interpreted subjectively.  So the possibility exists that today’s “I’ll never do that…” becomes tomorrow’s “Well, if others are doing it then why can’t I? Maybe I’m being too rigid.”

The word “never” can create some roadblocks to creativity, innovation and our professional growth.  Maybe we should never say “never” again.

Over the past few months, Mr. Bartender and I have visited three steakhouses.  One for my birthday, one for his and another because neither of us wanted to cook.  I wanted to share my experiences with you because, in looking back, I was reminded of a few lessons along the way.

The first was a chain steakhouse (and I won’t divulge which one, mates.) It was the least expensive of the three. We had no reservation and didn’t wait at all.  The food was tasty, service was very friendly.  One complaint – the kitchen forgot Mr. B’s fries. Our server immediately took care of the issue by sending a manager over, who not only got us the fries but sent us home happy with a couple pieces of carrot cake (Mr. B’s fave so all was forgiven.)

The second was a very fancy steakhouse in a 5-star hotel on the beach –  the most expensive of the three.  My steak was undercooked; Mr. B’s overcooked. It was my birthday so the last thing either of us wanted to do was complain. The real clincher to the evening happened when we left – two valet parkers got into an argument over how much to charge us.  The difference they were arguing about was $5. Full disclosure: The steakhouse did invite us back for a second visit. It’s just not the same when you have to go twice to get a meal right.

The last one was a mid-priced family restaurant. We went there because they have great carrot cake. Service was awesome, food was terrific.  A perfect evening from start to finish.  In fact, the restaurant called the next day to ask if Mr. B had a nice birthday celebration.

Now, I didn’t share these stories just so you know about Mr. B’s love of carrot cake and how much red meat I consume.  There are some clear takeaways here about the customer experience.

• Expensive doesn’t always mean better.  But if your product or service is expensive, customers expect better. People will spend money at places they feel deliver value. And if you don’t provide value? Don’t expect repeat business!
• Mistakes can happen and you’re able to recover. It’s always best to have the customer walk out the door happy instead of bringing them back for a second try (with elevated expectations and a critical eye).
• Service recovery doesn’t mean giving away an entire meal. Sometimes all it takes is a little piece of carrot cake to make someone happy (both figuratively and literally).
• Don’t drag customers into internal problems.  Fix problems behind the scenes. Losing a high paying customer over $5 is a big huge ginormous (and pretty foolish) mistake.

Needless to say, a couple of these places we will probably visit again and another probably not.  It all comes down to the value of the customer experience.  Every business on some level strives for perfection but when something unexpected happens, it’s really about caring enough to fix it. And when I say “caring”, I mean having a specific recovery plan and making sure everyone knows and follows it.

Oh and one other thing…all of these restaurants were busy.  Which tells me people are starting to have a little bit more discretionary income to spend.  Businesses should put themselves in the shoes of their customers.  If you’re looking for a place to spend your hard-earned money, which “steakhouse” would you go to?

We all like working with our friends. Who wouldn’t?  And research shows when we do, our engagement is better and we stay with the company longer.  That being said, trying to get hired along with your BFF isn’t always the best idea.  Which is why I wanted to answer this reader question.

My friend and I are seeking to work with XYZ Company. We are two creative directors; her from the music/entertainment, and I from the fine art/education world. We are both highly specialized in our respective concentrations. We are definitely those outside-of-box thinking and looking creatives, and that is why I am thinking XYZ Company is perfect for us. I was wondering if you might be able to give us some advice about getting hired.

Here’s my suggestion to the couple looking to get hired at the same company:

Any other recommendations?  How would you suggest they go about getting hired at the same organization?

When I saw this cartoon I loved it – both as a training pro and a foodie. Hope you enjoy it too. Now, where did I put my cappuccino?

Cheers!

Click to enlarge