Too many applicants?

Recruiters have a standard hiring etiquette, but with unemployment rates so high, their inboxes are overflowing with candidates pressing for a response. On the other side of the fence, job forums are filled with complaints that applicants never heard back from Company X.

Neither side is happy. There is intense competition for jobs right now, and recruiters (often working with a reduced staff themselves) just cannot fully connect with each and every applicant.

So we ask: faced with a glut of applicants, what’s your “glut-iquette”?

Barb at HireWellBlog recently tackled this topic. She says:

I had been asked to join them to specifically discuss Hiring Etiquette and in research prior to the show was surprised to find that most of the articles in a Google search were about the rudeness exhibited by companies during the hiring process. Candidates complain that companies are not getting back to them in a timely manner or even at all. We ask candidates to write cover letters specific to the position, email their applications in a certain manner, and to leave work early to participate in interviews. It is only fair – and mannerly – to let them know where they stand in the process.

This is the ethical and responsible reaction, certainly, and what everyone should aim for. At the same time, the reality is that many recruiters are overwhelmed by the sheer number of applicants. In this age of copy and paste, it only takes a few minutes for someone to apply for a job that may be (let’s be honest) totally unrealistic.

Multiply that by hundreds of hopefuls, and where does it leave you?

The HR Maven gives us some straight talk about exactly how many resumes she sees and how much time she can devote to each candidate. In a candid post, she admits that two thirds of the resumes sent to her company have no chance because (1) they aren’t targeted to the job, or (2) they don’t have a cover letter. Here’s how she’s handling the glut:

I have a personal philosophy of returning every call and email. It is a reflection of my employer and my commitment to exceptional customer service. Most employers do not have this philosophy. However, please do not mistake this with personal interest in you, your application and your status. I am not your ally nor am I your advocate… Remember that any position for which you apply will likely have a number of applicants. If you call our office and speak to one of us, please be respectful of our time. I don’t need to hear your pitch and I am not interested in small, chit-chat conversation. I am busy. You will be notified when we start our screening.

Can you relate? As a recruiter or hiring manager, how do you reconcile your overflowing inbox with your own standards of etiquette?

Take this poll and then check the results –

[Image source]

Everything feels like it’s for all the marbles. 

Fortunately for all involved, while it may not feel like it when you’re walking through the thick glass door into the inner sanctum for the interview, you’re actually both on the same team, pulling for each other.

“Let’s make this work” is your shared team slogan.

So first, de-stress. Then focus on how to impress in the big game — er, interview.

Show Your Moves

Eamon Duede, in a recent post at HR-Worldview, noted that the tight job market is bringing out the competitive spirit in jobseekers.

According to Eamon, one job candidate sent a resume wrapped as a present and said his skills were a “gift to the company.” Another staged a sit-in in the lobby to get a meeting with a director. Still another candidate washed cars in the parking lot.

Bold moves? Yes — and ones that can pay off, like an unexpected long bomb to a wide-open receiver.

More conservative maneuvers speak well, too, and can help you break free from other candidates.

Cut-and-paste interview preparedness won’t cut it anymore, if it ever did. Interviewers lose interest quickly in jobseekers who don’t know the who, what, when and where. 

A wide receiver can’t expect to succeed just by running fast enough to catch bombs. He also needs to know the pass patterns.

Study the company; visit the Web site; know the products; check the history; put it in perspective with the future. Have something beyond a smile and a resume.

Share the Ball — and Don’t Give Up

Interviews are about give and take. Speak up; listen well; respond appropriately.  It sounds simple, but it takes focus.   

Sure, you’re prepared and you have some points to make. But you’ll need to think on the spot as well. Provide targeted information in response to questions, honoring the preparation of the interviewer. If some of the questions you anticipated aren’t asked, toss out your tidbits of information to keep the process going your way.

Much as you’d like to carry the trophy right out of the interview, it’s likely that in this tough economy employers will make slower hiring decisions.  Don’t wither and disappear. 

Send a follow-up e-mail with enough information that the interviewer will be reminded of how well your interview went. Be nice; say thanks. 

A snail-mail thank-you note will make a good impression, too. It sends the message that you really do want the job.

De-stress. Then, impress.

You probably won’t have to wash cars in the parking lot to get your next job, but indicating your willingness to do so sure won’t hurt.

Image by John Kwasnik

Furloughs -– the practice of ordering employees to stay home without pay for a short time –- have grown in popularity as countless corporations, schools, non-profits and governments attempt to weather the economic recession without conducting more layoffs.

The most publicized furlough program in the nation –- that of California’s state workers –- was expanded on July 1, when Governor Schwarzenegger added a requirement that workers take an additional unpaid day per month, bringing the total from two to three.

And as we hit mid-summer, we’re in prime furlough time: employees are notably more willing to take time off during the traditional “vacation” months. That means it is the perfect time to think about whether furloughs could help your organization… and if so, how you can sweeten the deal for your employees. Here we cover the good, the bad, and the things that HR should ponder.

The good:

• Staff can unite through a sense of sharing the burden at every level (make sure management is furloughed, too)
• Furloughs are more popular when presented as a way to avoid layoffs
• Workers who have felt too busy to take their full leave are often relieved to be ordered to do so -– even if it is unpaid

The bad:

• Companies don’t actually save that much on the process, as salary typically makes up about 60 percent of an employee’s cost (the rest is overhead in the form of benefits, office space, and equipment)
• Customers can feel short-changed if they are exposed to gaps in service
• Furloughs can send a troubled message to potential clients and investors

The things to ponder:

• Some places (the California DMV, pictured above, for example) shut down on certain days each month, but other places institute rolling furloughs. Would your organization be better served by staggered time off, or company-wide shutdowns?
• The laws regarding furloughs can be complicated when it comes to exempt employees. Fully research the issue to avoid legal troubles, and make certain that exempt workers on furlough do not muddy the waters by taking phone calls or sending email when on a furlough.
• Some companies utilize furlough banks, where employees can trade and bank furlough time. If one employee can convince another to take their furlough days, this arrangement is accepted and “banked.” This way, employees who actually want an extended unpaid sabbatical (and you know they’re out there) can lift the burden off of others who would prefer to stay and work.

If your company is thinking about furloughs, there is a lot you can do to sweeten the perception among employees. Emphasizing the shared burden, showing flexibility on timing, and allowing employees to trade situations using a furlough bank are some of the top ways to make this tough scenario work well.

Do you have any tips on furloughs? Share in the comments!

And if you’re an HR executive looking for the right person for the jobs you do have, you didn’t exactly hear what you wanted to hear, either: some job-seekers are opting out of the market. The last thing you need are fewer qualified candidates from which to choose.

OK, we all heard these things. Now file them away and get back to work. This is the time to be fearless. Aware, yes, but fearless nonetheless.

It’s time to get some perspective. This is not the first economic downturn our country has experienced. We’ll get through it. In fact, relief appears to be in sight. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke predicts the recession will end this year, with many economists forecasting that the economy will start to grow again later this quarter.

With this in mind, here are five tips for recharging your job search –

1. Stay Active. No goal is reached if you don’t move toward it. You have to keep identifying and applying for jobs — every week. For the jobseeker, unemployment is a temporary state of being, a state of transition. Don’t become immobilized by it. Don’t curl up in an emotional cocoon somewhere; people are way too busy these days to unravel the layers and force you out.

2. Seek Out Others. Your friends and colleagues know things you don’t . . . and they know other people besides you. Networking is more vital than ever in a down economy. Ask. Seek. Small words can open big doors. Don’t retreat into the limited world of classifieds and job boards.

3. Focus Externally. What you really want is the best job for you. To get that, you need to focus on why you are the best fit for them. This is where definition comes in. Who you will be becomes even more important than who you were. Impress perspective employers by being very clear about what you can do for them. It’s logical to base this on what you’ve done in the past, but the future is the focus.

4. Follow the Money. You need a good job and you need income. Money is a bit of a concern, right? Prospective employers need good managers, but money is a bit of a concern to them, too. Does this mean you offer to work for less? No. But it might be a smart move to approach them with your own ideas about why hiring you would be a benefit to their bottom line. Obviously, that means putting in a little extra research, knowing the ins and outs of the prospective employer.

Guerilla HR’s Patrick Williams is appalled at how little effort the new generation of jobseekers puts into researching an employer before the all-important interview.  Even worse, he notes that some jobseekers seem unfamiliar with their own resumes, making the interview a bit awkward at the least.

Share ideas of how you will save them money.  Share with them how you’ve done that in the past. How will you play a part in perking up their performance? In a recession economy, money talks more loudly than ever.

5. Be Confident. Some 26 years ago, the marketplace for jobseekers was just as tight as it is today. We muddled through and some of those wide-eyed enthusiasts who stayed focused and active are now running the companies you’re interviewing with today. So, don’t panic. And remember, more than 90 percent of us are employed — and there are millions of open jobs still out there.

But there is one current reality the movie does portray, in its tale of a transplanted Canadian and a dream-seeking Alaskan relocated to New York: the willingness of people to pick up and move almost anywhere for a job.

Talent Follows Jobs

Talent still goes where the best jobs are; recruiters still lure the best talent for those jobs. During a recession, the jobseekers and the job-fillers both think a little longer and harder about relocation decisions. But when all the questions are answered, the finger comes off the pause button and the moving van pulls up in the driveway.

Mayflower Transit’s 2008 relocation study showed that more than 50 percent of respondents moved for a job in 2008. About 37 percent relocated for a new job, and about 13 percent for a company transfer.

If you look at the big picture, relocation (and in some cases retraining) of displaced workers could go a long way to pulling us out of the current recession. As Kris Dunn at The HR Capitalist puts it:

This just in — there are over 3 million open jobs in America, but the right talent isn’t in the right place. In order to plug people into those roles, retraining is probably needed, and then (and this is the big kicker), the talent has to be mobile to go where the jobs are.

Recruiting dollars may be tighter, but the pressure for corporate success in a competitive environment makes it even more essential to recruit the best talent. And that means finding the best candidate — wherever he or she might be.

You’ll Love it Here

For the out-of-work jobseeker, you might think relocation would be a no-brainer in a recession. Your talents are intact; you’re itching to put them to use for a new employer. Relocating can be more than a rebound; it can be an opportunity to continue your career climb.

But there is always risk in moving. In an economic downtown, just how secure is the company recruiting you, or the position they want you to fill? These risks are multiplied if you are being recruited while solidly employed.

Recruiters may have to be a little more convincing these days to find just the right candidate. In uncertain times, familiarity is comforting.

Brazen Careerist Penelope Trunk advises anyone considering relocating to look closer than ever at more than just the job offer. She writes:

There is a widespread feeling among Generation Y that transience is exhausting, and relocating away from family and friends for a job is a nonstarter.

Getting the Details

Trunk notes that relocation can be expensive (not every company pays for it) and high risk, so the job candidate needs to look at every detail.

That means recruiters must be detail-oriented, too. Reduced stress makes better decision-making possible. Unanswered questions may leave candidates clinging to home. 

Fortunately for jobseekers, almost three-fourths of companies surveyed by Atlas Van Lines have a formal relocation policy. The policies vary, but most companies do cover moving and a range of other expenses. 

And who knows? If you’re really fortunate –- and engage a good screenwriter –- your career moves may end up fulfilling all your dreams, just as they do for Margaret and Andrew in “The Proposal.”

Image by CarbonNYC

Succession planning is tough; we all know that. Creating a concrete plan for an inherently unpredictable situation is a slippery business.

What’s more, it’s easy to neglect the process while the economy is in a recession. Your retention rates of existing employees are most likely up, and new candidates are beating down the door just to be considered.

Despite this embarrassment of riches on the resource side, succession planning is a critical process that must not be overlooked. Here’s why:

• It’s crucial to the fate of the company in moments of change.
• In a recession, it’s more important than ever to make your investments in human capital pay off.
• The workforce is aging, and disproportionate numbers will be retiring in the coming years of your career.
• Employees are more loyal and motivated when they know there is a culture of succession.
• The very exercise of planning can reveal important truths about your organization.

The loss of a key leader puts your business at risk in a number of ways, and the days after a major change can make or break a company. When it happens –- and it will -– will your organization be confused, gossiping, and rudderless? Or will you have a smart, adaptable plan in place to keep confidence high as you guide the organization through change?

Here are what top HR execs advise to make your succession planning more relevant and realistic:

• Last week, Dan at Great Leadership by Dan blogged about an article by Marshall Goldsmith in the most recent Harvard Business Online, “Four Tips for Efficient Succession Planning.” All four areas covered are strong, but our favorite pointers involve the realism (or lack of it) in succession planning. One example:
  

  The head of engineering is a high performing leader who has the potential to be COO. She has always been in an engineering role. If she had sales experience, she would be even more ready to be the COO so her development plan is written to include a job move to be head of sales. However, this company would never take the risk of putting someone without sales experience in the top sales job — so her development plan perpetually says, ‘move to a sales job’ even though that will never happen.

  Goldsmith really zeroes in on the gap between “the best-laid plans” and cold, hard reality — and you should, too.

• In February, Dennis Carey, a recruiter specializing in CEO- and Director-level candidates, launched CEOSuccession.com. His key practices are not to be missed. Some of the best tips are getting the board of directors active and involved, and regularly exposing up-and-coming managers to the board. He also recommends getting top candidates exposed to the outside media and the financial community to see how they will handle the challenge. Finally, Carey recommends tying some of a CEO’s compensation to successful succession planning, so they are quite literally invested in the plan.
• In her post Leadership Pipeline vs. Succession Planning, HR blogger Meg Bear observes that the best companies are not just thinking about mere succession planning –- they’re creating an entire “leadership pipeline” focused on identifying and investing in future leaders. Succession planning seems more relevant and less theoretical when under this paradigm. Meg’s been reading The Leadership Pipeline: How to Build the Leadership Powered Company and recommends it. She closes by asking,
  

  Do you really believe you can hire your way to all the talent you will need to compete in the marketplace today? What about in ten years’ time? Can you afford to under-utilize your talent?”

  For most of us, the answer is no, no, and no, and then a slightly unsettled notion that we should be looking into our own leadership pipeline.

What about you? Are you actively involved in a succession plan? What are your best tips to get top management invested? Do you have a success story of how your plan worked when you were faced with the loss of a key employee?

Today’s job market may feel a bit like Dr. Dolittle’s fantastical trip to Africa, with odd creatures popping up along the journey, but the reality is the “workplace that works” hasn’t changed as much as some might think. Fantasy aside, it’s still pulled by leaders and pushed by managers. It takes both.

The “pushmi-pullyu” in Dr. Dolittle’s great adventure was a two-headed antelope who got nowhere because one head pulled and the other pushed. Both wanted to lead; neither would follow. Fun in a children’s book; disaster in the workplace.

In these tighter times, corporations can’t afford to discover on the job whether an executive will be a leader or a manager. The pressure is on for HR generalists and hiring managers to put the peg into the proper hole immediately, so the process perks from the get-go. Fortunately for jobseekers, there’s a need for both: determined to get-it-done managers and leap-to-a-new-level leaders.

Hearts and Minds

Management and leadership are not the same thing. Related, yes. Overlapping, of course. Co-dependent, certainly.

“Leadership is about capturing hearts and minds. You are a leader when people choose to follow you,” says Joel Cheesman of Cheezhead. Cheesman says people buying into an effort, a vision or an idea because of its merit is very different from buying into it because someone is “the boss” He also says, “if you have ever used the word ’subordinate’ to describe a person you work with, you are not a leader.”

Managers are those hearts and minds the leader captures; not subordinates, but team members providing fuel and stability for the rocket. A good manager yearns to be “captured,” to take the challenging vision, rein it in to just within reason and rack up an achievement shared with the leader who then feels quite comfortable to keep on leading. No “pushmi-pullyu” organization here.

The defining line between leadership and management is the contrast between stability and vision. The manager keeps everything stable while the leader projects a new vision. Does this mean the leader is not interested in stability? Of course not. Without it, he can’t lead. Does this mean the manager just wants a quiet, stable workplace? Of course not. Without a new vision, he has nothing challenging to manage. Working together, they keep the organization grounded and moving forward, which avoids stagnation.

“Good leaders keep teams of employees motivated and engaged. Those teams make up the organization. It’s been well documented that employees leave because of bad leadership, and bad leadership affects the company’s bottom line,” points out Kevin Grossman of HR Marketer.

Know Yourself

Are you more into finding answers to existing problems? Managers do that.

Are you more into posing “what ifs?” and “what nexts?” Sounds like a leader.

Do you get into the details of “what, how, when and where?” Good management.

Do you ponder “where next?” and “why not us?” Lead on.

In the best sense, the manager tempers the leader’s flights of fancy, while the leader prevents the manager from getting just a little too comfortable.

Whether you’re walking the career path yourself right now, or, as an HR generalist, perusing the pathwalkers to find the perfect fit for a company, this is a “know thyself” moment in time.

As a jobseeker, know whether your temperament is more to manage or more to lead. Identify your own strengths. Once you do that, you can build on them. Most importantly, clearly identified strengths can be better projected . . . and that’s attractive, which can make all the difference in today’s competitive environment.

With the pace of technological change showing no sign of slowing down, it was only a matter of time before outplacement technologies and those of the job boards began to merge. RiseSmart, a Dallas-based job site for $100,000-plus executives, marries technology with human expertise using its Job Concierge team. In December 2008, the company received $3 million in venture capital funding, following on from $1.5 million in seed funding in 2007.

RiseSmart’s trained HR professionals match opportunities with jobseekers based on each member’s unique profile, freeing them to focus on networking or the demands of their current jobs. Specifically in the outplacement field, RiseSmart offers Transition Concierge, which bundles its Job Concierge service with CV preparation and other transition management services, to assist a corporation’s laid-off workers. “We believe others will attempt to copy our approach,” says RiseSmart CEO and founder Sanjay Sathe. “The fact that we have secured Fortune 500 clients and Silicon Valley funding in such a short period of time has definitely turned some heads.”

Sathe argues his company has some competitive advantages that are difficult for others to replicate. For example, it uses proprietary technology to search web job listings and then to filter these into categories, such as $100,000-plus marketing management jobs. Only then does its trained team of HR professionals step in to match jobs for clients.

“We believe RiseSmart Transition Concierge is a classic example of disruptive innovation, and we expect nothing less than to turn the current, bloated corporate outplacement market on its head,” adds Sathe. “Traditional services will ultimately go the way of the dinosaur. We know that our corporate customers are blown away by the technology, and they include some of the largest, most technologically-sophisticated companies in the world.”

Employers are, says Sathe, frustrated with traditional services, because they cost a lot but do not demonstrate measurable value for laid-off employees. He says providing group-counselling sessions, temporary use of office space and other ’soft’ services are not sufficient when what employees really want is help in finding a new job.

RiseSmart has no immediate expansion plans but longer term is eyeing up all English-speaking countries, including Canada, the UK and India. Expect more hybrid recruitment and outplacement models to follow.

Business school graduates typically aim for high-paying dream jobs, but those are scarce today. Job competition is fierce. The nation has shed 5.7 million jobs since the recession began in December 2007, including senior management jobs.

Help is on the way for students in the Executive Master of Business Administration program at the University of Texas at Dallas. The school recently hired RiseSmart to provide Web-based job search and outplacement services to all of its Executive MBA students. The program has 92 students.

“Increasingly, career management services are becoming an important part of the Executive MBA program,” said David Springate, interim director of the program… The UTD-RiseSmart partnership is the first of its kind among EMBA programs. RiseSmart, based in Sunnyvale, Calif., said it’s in talks with other EMBA programs, including two Texas schools.

Full story here.