With hiring on the increase, people often ask about best practices. Occasionally an executive will ask, “What's one of the worst practices you have encountered.”
Here is our response. We thought you would enjoy.
Our client had a critical need, undertaking a critical project, with limited manpower in the needed area. They could not afford to make a hiring mistake. And time was of the essence (or so they said)!
So, how did they approach their hiring decision? Each candidate required an extensive pre-phone screen involving written responses to a series of technical questions (think 30 – 45 minutes long). Second there was a short phone screen with the company after review of their resume. Then there was a 2 hour in person interview at the office. If the candidate did well, they were asked back for an intensive half day technical grilling and interviews. And finally, the company always liked to have at least two “qualified” candidates before making an offer.
This process virtually ensures the majority of candidates interviewed are either,
1 - unemployed, or
2 - desperate to leave their current job, or
3 - happen to live next door to the hiring company.
Most "A" candidates are unwilling to subject themselves to this process. Why? Do the math. 1 hour for the phone screens, plus 2 hours for the first interview, 4 hours for the second interview, 2 hours drive time, plus around 2 hours working with the staffing firm, start to stop 11 hours. At $45 / hour, that equates to a candidate cost of about $500 just for the “privilege” of interviewing.
The person they ultimately hired quit after two weeks…. So much for the “fail safe” interview process.
What can be done to improve their process and (by extension) yours? It’s not that hard. Shorten and compress, eliminate the written responses, focus on the most important or key items of success, and less on knowledge of minutia in the phone screen. If two face-to-face interviews are needed, be sure you are spending everyone’s time in the right areas. The second interview should also assess how the person will fit into the work environment, as well as further probing into any necessary technical skills. And finally, be prepared to tell the candidate why your opportunity is a good fit for their career and goals. Anyone can technically grill a candidate; just don’t forget that at the end of the process, you turn over final control to them.
Candidates have been developing their image of your company during the entire interview process. And they have the final answer to your offer!
Posted by Wayne Rampey, Vice President, The InSource Group
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
Six Economic Themes for the Decade Ahead
Dr. Michael Cox of SMU (and past Chief Economist of the Federal Reserve) recently presented “Six Economic Themes for the Decade Ahead.”
The 25 year period from 1982 – 2007 represented the longest string of almost uninterrupted growth in U.S. history, in stark contrast to every other measurement period. The 2010 – 2020 period will most probably be different.
Innovation was the first theme, and was key to economic growth from 1982 – 2007. Fueled by the technology explosion, spillover from hardware, software, the Internet, and microchip hugely impacted our economic growth. In fact from 1995 – 2007 the microchip and its usage was the most important contributor to economic growth.
So what’s in store for 2010 and beyond? We are still waiting for that one great idea or innovation. One possible prediction is Pharmacogenomics, which is the ability to use individual genetic information to predict whether a drug will make a patient well or ill.
Globalization. Foreign country growth has added approximately 3 billion new capitalist consumers. 21 of 22 potential customers are now outside of the United States, and accessible in ways never before available.
Credit. From 1982 – 2007 there was an abundance of financial trust and available credit.
Recent large scale financial institution failures (at least in the near term) resulted in even greater government regulation. The years from 2010 – 2020 credit markets will most likely operate under a cloud of suspicion and fear. Unabated, new government rules have the potential to crush small businesses in the opinion of Dr. Cox.
Consumerism. Our attitude has shifted from “too much ain’t enough” over to “saving is chic." Personal savings rate shifted from approximately 9% in 1947 to 1% in 2008. Personal debt had grown to 120% of personal income.
Times have changed. Current savings rate has grown to 4% at the end of 2009 and appears to be rising. Companies need to better understand elasticity of demand relative to income and its impact on changing purchasing habits by businesses and consumers.
Inflation. Most mainstream economists believe a low steady rate of inflation is good. Low (as opposed to zero or negative inflation) is typically believed to reduce the severity of economic downturns
Between 1982 – 2007 inflation averaged between 2% - 3%. In 2009, inflation in the U.S. averaged -.34%. With the National Debt projected to be almost $12 trillion in 2010, controlled positive inflation is critical to help improve the economy. Controlled inflation will help in reducing the federal debt and improve equity values in private real estate ownership.
Government. Between 1982 – 2007 government intervention was considered minimal. The general feeling was “less is better."
However, Dr. Cox feels there will be significantly more government regulation and intervention between 2010 – 2020. This is driven both by the recent problems in the financial markets as well as the current administration’s underlying political philosophy.
This does not bode well according to Dr. Cox, and he foresees serious negative implications to business growth as a result. He also believes the income tax burden to higher earning individuals and businesses will increase.
Further government overreacting with policy fixes and increasing the tax burden will slow the economy even more in Dr. Cox’s opinion.
Conclusion
So was the overall opinion by Dr. Cox one of complete doom and gloom? No. While clearly he is concerned that overreaction by the federal government in terms of policy making could seriously impact the well being of private enterprise, an even greater opportunity lies with the expanding global economy. The challenge for American based companies is to recognize and correctly respond to this global business opportunity.
Posted by Wayne Rampey, Vice President, The InSource Group
The 25 year period from 1982 – 2007 represented the longest string of almost uninterrupted growth in U.S. history, in stark contrast to every other measurement period. The 2010 – 2020 period will most probably be different.
Innovation was the first theme, and was key to economic growth from 1982 – 2007. Fueled by the technology explosion, spillover from hardware, software, the Internet, and microchip hugely impacted our economic growth. In fact from 1995 – 2007 the microchip and its usage was the most important contributor to economic growth.
So what’s in store for 2010 and beyond? We are still waiting for that one great idea or innovation. One possible prediction is Pharmacogenomics, which is the ability to use individual genetic information to predict whether a drug will make a patient well or ill.
Globalization. Foreign country growth has added approximately 3 billion new capitalist consumers. 21 of 22 potential customers are now outside of the United States, and accessible in ways never before available.
Credit. From 1982 – 2007 there was an abundance of financial trust and available credit.
Recent large scale financial institution failures (at least in the near term) resulted in even greater government regulation. The years from 2010 – 2020 credit markets will most likely operate under a cloud of suspicion and fear. Unabated, new government rules have the potential to crush small businesses in the opinion of Dr. Cox.
Consumerism. Our attitude has shifted from “too much ain’t enough” over to “saving is chic." Personal savings rate shifted from approximately 9% in 1947 to 1% in 2008. Personal debt had grown to 120% of personal income.
Times have changed. Current savings rate has grown to 4% at the end of 2009 and appears to be rising. Companies need to better understand elasticity of demand relative to income and its impact on changing purchasing habits by businesses and consumers.
Inflation. Most mainstream economists believe a low steady rate of inflation is good. Low (as opposed to zero or negative inflation) is typically believed to reduce the severity of economic downturns
Between 1982 – 2007 inflation averaged between 2% - 3%. In 2009, inflation in the U.S. averaged -.34%. With the National Debt projected to be almost $12 trillion in 2010, controlled positive inflation is critical to help improve the economy. Controlled inflation will help in reducing the federal debt and improve equity values in private real estate ownership.
Government. Between 1982 – 2007 government intervention was considered minimal. The general feeling was “less is better."
However, Dr. Cox feels there will be significantly more government regulation and intervention between 2010 – 2020. This is driven both by the recent problems in the financial markets as well as the current administration’s underlying political philosophy.
This does not bode well according to Dr. Cox, and he foresees serious negative implications to business growth as a result. He also believes the income tax burden to higher earning individuals and businesses will increase.
Further government overreacting with policy fixes and increasing the tax burden will slow the economy even more in Dr. Cox’s opinion.
Conclusion
So was the overall opinion by Dr. Cox one of complete doom and gloom? No. While clearly he is concerned that overreaction by the federal government in terms of policy making could seriously impact the well being of private enterprise, an even greater opportunity lies with the expanding global economy. The challenge for American based companies is to recognize and correctly respond to this global business opportunity.
Posted by Wayne Rampey, Vice President, The InSource Group
Friday, April 9, 2010
What a difference a year makes!
Last night, The InSource Group hosted a client networking event. Over 65 people were in attendance, representing a cross section of clients from the DFW Metroplex, from small businesses to Fortune 1000 companies. It was very interesting to compare the tone and tenor of the conversations last night with a similar event that was held a year ago.
Twelve months ago the words that best characterized those conversations were "uncertainty," "anxiety" and "commiseration." This year the mood was decidedly more upbeat. From cautiously optimistic to sanguine, if last night was any indication, we are definitely in the midst of a recovery. While everyone queried acknowledged that we had a long way to go, for most attendees, hiring was up and expense constraints are gradually being lifted.
Clearly, everyone who attended had a great time, fueled in part, of course, by food and drink, but also and perhaps most importantly by a sense of optimism about 2010.
Twelve months ago the words that best characterized those conversations were "uncertainty," "anxiety" and "commiseration." This year the mood was decidedly more upbeat. From cautiously optimistic to sanguine, if last night was any indication, we are definitely in the midst of a recovery. While everyone queried acknowledged that we had a long way to go, for most attendees, hiring was up and expense constraints are gradually being lifted.
Clearly, everyone who attended had a great time, fueled in part, of course, by food and drink, but also and perhaps most importantly by a sense of optimism about 2010.
Thursday, April 8, 2010
Recognition vs. Compensation – Which is most influential?
As the economic recovery continues, anecdotal evidence as well as formal surveys continue to point to a significant problem in today’s workforce. As an IT recruiting firm, we see this problem often as we look for candidates. That problem is employee discontent.
So why is this such an important topic to discuss? Especially coming from a company which makes its living helping individuals find new careers.
With the vast majority of candidates, compensation is one of the first topics indicated as their prime motivator. After all, most of us would like to be making more money, and think we deserve more money. But upon detailed discussion, we almost always find a plethora of other issues behind that person’s desire to change employment. And compensation is rarely the only or even the primary reason a person will accept a new job. Think about it……… why accept a new position making 5 – 8% more, when the same problem set exists at the next employer?
The economy is recovering, profits are rising, but in most cases that deep reservoir of cash for large salary increases is still not an available option. So if you have limited financial resource to increase compensation or you have already handed out raises, what options do you still have?
First, lets look at some of the most common issues we hear from individuals. Employee discontent typically boils down to individuals feeling like:
• They are under appreciated or under recognized for their contributions, or
• There is not enough autonomy in performing their jobs, or
• They are not truly making an important contribution in their job, or
• They are not learning or being challenged enough for future career growth.
Importantly, these types of feelings play across all generational ranges of employees.
If you look at Fortune Magazine’s 2010 list of the 100 Best Companies to Work For, one important common denominator that drives their success is enlightened and innovative management. But lets not confuse greatness with absolute size, nor being the biggest as the most successful company. The companies on Fortune’s list did not become successful or grow faster than their competition until management recognized how to motivate all of their employees to perform at a higher level.
So what is a firm to do to fend off this potential disaster of looming employee turnover? Sometimes just revisiting the fundamentals of good management principles will help solve much of the problem.
1. Companies need to refocus on the renewal of the bond between company and employee.
2. Treat employees with greater respect and trust regardless of their position or income level. You will experience greater productivity from your employees when they know you respect and trust them.
3. Be clear with company communication. Knowledge breeds confidence and clarity of purpose. Ambiguity leads to misinterpretations, rumor, or even worse – misaligned goals and efforts by employees.
4. Recognize that different employees define success differently. Enlightened management recognizes those differences, and within reason manages to those different expectations. Authoritarian approaches breed resentment and handicap a firm’s ability to compete effectively.
Posted by Wayne Rampey, Vice President, The InSource Group
So why is this such an important topic to discuss? Especially coming from a company which makes its living helping individuals find new careers.
With the vast majority of candidates, compensation is one of the first topics indicated as their prime motivator. After all, most of us would like to be making more money, and think we deserve more money. But upon detailed discussion, we almost always find a plethora of other issues behind that person’s desire to change employment. And compensation is rarely the only or even the primary reason a person will accept a new job. Think about it……… why accept a new position making 5 – 8% more, when the same problem set exists at the next employer?
The economy is recovering, profits are rising, but in most cases that deep reservoir of cash for large salary increases is still not an available option. So if you have limited financial resource to increase compensation or you have already handed out raises, what options do you still have?
First, lets look at some of the most common issues we hear from individuals. Employee discontent typically boils down to individuals feeling like:
• They are under appreciated or under recognized for their contributions, or
• There is not enough autonomy in performing their jobs, or
• They are not truly making an important contribution in their job, or
• They are not learning or being challenged enough for future career growth.
Importantly, these types of feelings play across all generational ranges of employees.
If you look at Fortune Magazine’s 2010 list of the 100 Best Companies to Work For, one important common denominator that drives their success is enlightened and innovative management. But lets not confuse greatness with absolute size, nor being the biggest as the most successful company. The companies on Fortune’s list did not become successful or grow faster than their competition until management recognized how to motivate all of their employees to perform at a higher level.
So what is a firm to do to fend off this potential disaster of looming employee turnover? Sometimes just revisiting the fundamentals of good management principles will help solve much of the problem.
1. Companies need to refocus on the renewal of the bond between company and employee.
2. Treat employees with greater respect and trust regardless of their position or income level. You will experience greater productivity from your employees when they know you respect and trust them.
3. Be clear with company communication. Knowledge breeds confidence and clarity of purpose. Ambiguity leads to misinterpretations, rumor, or even worse – misaligned goals and efforts by employees.
4. Recognize that different employees define success differently. Enlightened management recognizes those differences, and within reason manages to those different expectations. Authoritarian approaches breed resentment and handicap a firm’s ability to compete effectively.
Posted by Wayne Rampey, Vice President, The InSource Group
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)