Professional Development

I was at the Seattle Job Social event last month and ran into Mark Michael. Mark and I were having a great discussion until a job candidate walked over and started asking some questions.

I was about to excuse myself when I heard the candidate ask Mark what the purpose of these events were, to which he replied “…it’s an environment where candidates, recruiters, and hiring managers can meet each other and build relationships which will help everyone in this market…”.

The candidate followed with “…I’m not here to make friends; I’m just here to get a job! Once I get a job, then I’ll worry about networking…”

Mark and I looked at each other with a puzzled look.

In my business I see this kind of mistake every day. Job candidates are so focused on getting a job; they become trapped in a poor routine and fail to see all the opportunities around them.

In today’s market 85% of all positions are currently being filled through networking and personal referrals. Many of the recruiters that I know are filling positions with people they already know through their extended network.

The other day I was having coffee with a recruiter and a Microsoft hiring manager. During our conversation the hiring manager mentioned that he was looking for two financial analysts but hadn’t yet posted the positions online. The recruiter said he knew a couple of candidates that would be a perfect fit.

Without looking at their resumes the hiring manager said “bring them in for an interview.”

People do business with people they LIKE and TRUST. Managers hire candidates they LIKE and TRUST. Without a relationship, it’s extremely difficult for people to like and trust you.

In my business I attend many job fairs and another mistake I see candidates make is Elevator Pitches. Old school of thought is that you’re supposed to have a 30 – 60 second pitch about yourself ready to go so that when you meet someone, you can quickly tell them who you are, what you do, and what you’re looking for.

While I’m an advocate of personal branding, clear messaging, and great communication skills, I’m not an advocate of acting like a telemarketer.

Imagine you’re sitting at home enjoying dinner, and the phone rings. You pick up and someone on the other end goes straight into their pitch.

Do you remember the last telemarketer that called you? What was their name or product? Or did you tune them out as soon as they said “hello”.

You can recognize them every time they call. They have that “tone”; the over-practiced, robotic, “here’s what I have to sell you” tone. That’s exactly what candidates at job fairs sound like.

Instead candidates should focus on building relationships first.

Building relationships is cumbersome; pitching someone isn’t. Therefore most candidates take the path of least resistant and pitch everyone they meet.

I was at a networking event two weeks ago and met an MBA student. I asked her what she was doing at the event and she opened her valise, pulled out her resume, and handed it to me. She said she was looking for a job! That’s NOT a good approach for getting a job.

She didn’t take the time to get to know me, ask me questions, find out what I’m interested in, and what I need. Instead her conversation was all about her.

Next time when I’m having coffee with a hiring manager, am I going to remember or reference her? Not very likely.

If you want to STAND OUT, here is what you need to do at the next job fair or social event:

1. Build Rapport (people like people who are like themselves). Recruiters meet many people on an ongoing basis. In order to STAND OUT, you must build rapport with everyone you meet. To build rapport quickly, adopt their physiology and language patterns. This requires you to be flexible as a candidate and get out of your shell; it’s about the people you’re meeting.
2. Ask questions / Find a need. People love to talk. Asking questions allows them to express themselves. Asking questions also allows you to learn more about them and their company; their goals, interests, and needs. You’re making it ALL ABOUT THEM. You’re automatically sending a subconscious message to their brain that a) you’re different; b) you’re someone that’s interested in them instead of yourself. Last but not least, asking questions allows you to find a need that you can solve in step 3. Here are some questions you might ask:
   1. What company are you with?
   2. What companies do you recruit for?
   3. Who are you looking to meet tonight?
   4. Who is your ideal candidate?
   5. What type of positions do you normally recruit for?
3. Create a value proposition. Recruiters are very busy. They have a very difficult job of sorting through the masses in order to find the right candidates. You need to state a reason for them to continue to converse with you and ultimately build a relationship other than “here’s my resume; get me a job.” Recruiters get paid when they place a candidate. By helping them, you’re ultimately becoming a valuable resource to them and they’ll want to remain in contact with you and through reciprocity, return the favor. Here are a couple examples of what you might say:
   1. I’m pretty connected in the Seattle market and meet technology folks on an ongoing basis. Perhaps I know a few people that might be a good fit for your openings.
   2. I know a few hiring managers at Microsoft you should meet.
4. Request a follow up meeting. Too many times we go to these networking events, take the time to meet new people, yet we fail to take it to the next level and build a relationship. The first step in building relationships is face time. It’s in that 1-1 setting that you’ll get to know the other person, learn about them and have the chance to deeply connect with them.
   1. I would love to have coffee, learn in detail what you’re looking for so that I can be a good referral source for you.
   2. I think I might know a few people for you. Let’s talk over phone or coffee next week to discuss this.
5. End on a good note. This is obvious but I can name numerous examples where people have left a meeting with negative impressions (i.e. talking too much, wasting their time)
   1. Thank them, and tell them that you’ll be in touch.
   2. Mention something great about the venue and that you enjoyed meeting them.
6. Follow Up! Follow Up! and Follow Up Again! Now that you’ve asked to meet afterwards for coffee, make sure to actually follow through and take the time to set this up. If you don’t get through initially, be patient and follow up again.
   1. In the next 24-hours, send them a quick email reminding them of the conversation you had and request a time to meet in the next couple of weeks.
   2. Send them a thank you note for the time they spent with you and how great it was to meet them. Then ask for a follow-up meeting.

Once you have a meeting set, be candid of their time and make sure you provide the most value to them. The focus should be 90% serving them, and 10% about you.

When you do this, you’ve changed your mindset from self-serving to a contributor. Zig Ziglar said it best “You can have everything in life you want if you’ll just help enough other people get what they want.”

Recruiters refer candidates they like and trust. If you want to get hired quickly, this is THE way to find positions before they’re posted and make sure you get the edge in this crowded job market.

Due to the nature of their business, recruiters know many people. Are you the one they’re going to think of when a position opens up?

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To read more articles on the 2009 job searching strategies, career development, psychology of interviewing, and resume techniques, subscribe to our RSS feed or get updates by email.

Learn more about the author Paul Anderson.

I’ve recently interviewed our featured recruiter Michelle Owens (a recruiting expert in the local Puget Sound area) with Xtreme Consulting. The focus of our interview is “What’s changed in the job market recently and why is it so hard to get a job today?” This information and more is shared in our Career Search 2.0 Seminar twice a month.

Q. Tell me a little about yourself. How long have you been recruiting?

5 years. I started in this industry as a vendor at Microsoft where I was a Recruiting Coordinator. My next role was at Starbucks Corporation, where I met great candidates and worked with an amazing team. I actually left Starbucks because I received a call from a colleague who had left Microsoft to move over to Xtreme and wanted me to join the team. I had never worked for a smaller company before but I loved what I heard about Xtreme, what they were doing, and the way they treated their employees, so I decided to make the move as well. It is by far the best decision I have ever made – the owners of the company place so much value on every employee, have an open door policy at all times, and really allow people to grow in their careers – they are extremely supportive. The thing I probably love most about recruiting is that I have the chance to meet fascinating people every day and learn so much by doing so. I love finding candidates the perfect position and seeing the excitement on their faces as they are getting ready to start on a new project – it’s a very rewarding position that I am in.

Q. What changes have you seen in the market recently?

Fierce competition:

Over-qualified candidates are willing to take anything; even less pay (i.e. Finance directors are taking financial analyst positions.) Candidates that used to meet the job description requirements are no longer being considered because there are so many over qualified candidates the hiring managers can choose from instead. These changes have been happening since last October. Prior to October, if you were unemployed for several months, we may have questioned why someone with your background had such a difficult time finding a new role, but these days it’s not uncommon to see a strong candidate unemployed for 6 – 8 months.

Q. What changes have you seen in the candidates recently?

• Poor attitude
• They keep saying “I can’t get a job. What’s wrong with me?”
• Financial Trouble: Losing their house, having a baby, depressed, parents flying in to come help them
• Poor body language (even during informational meetings)
• Upset about the economy

Q. What would discourage you from submitting a candidate to a hiring manager?

• Arrogance
• Someone with poor listening skills. Quickly glances over job description and says “Yep, I’ve done all that” without carefully making sure they’re a good fit.
• Shows lack of interest. During informational meetings if I feel like I have to pull teeth to get them to the meeting or get them interested in a position. I feel like they’re saying “why am I here meeting with you; you’re not the hiring manager”. Tell me when you have a position; I’m not interested in informational interviews.
• Not engaged enough in our conversation. When I ask walk me through your experience, they say “I did xyz at this company” and end right there. Even though it’s a casual environment, they fail to converse about their experience. What goes through my mind is if they don’t share their experience here, what’s going to happen during their “actual” interview?
• Lying on their resumes. I talk to candidates with steady employment “on paper” but when I ask detailed questions about their background I realize that this is not the case. Their fear of looking bad on paper causes them to lie which is not acceptable.

Q. What should candidates be aware of in this market?

• Treat recruiters with utmost respect; befriend them. Recruiting especially in Seattle is a small world. Word about a candidate will get around quickly. There is a so-called recruiters blacklist; “don’t interview this candidate, rude, etc”
• Check into non-competes, contract language, contract length etc. Many larger firms won’t tell you what you’re getting into and many candidates wanting a job will take something that locks them into non-appropriate situations regarding their career. An example is taking a “a-“ position at Microsoft (even for 1 day) will force you to take 100-day mandatory break when your assignment is complete and/or if you want to switch to a “v-“ positions. Some companies will make you sign a 1 year or 18-months non-compete form. If they’re unable to find you a job when your contract is over; other recruiting companies might be unable to help you.
• Find recruiters, go through their LinkedIn, find hiring managers you want to connect to and do informational interviews. Many times hiring managers have positions that are not listed and if you connect with them soon enough, you might be that lucky candidate. You can then go through Xtreme Consulting for the vendor process (which will charge a smaller rate compared to if they found you the position, etc).
• Connect with previous hiring managers, old colleagues on LinkedIn and leverage them to meet new people.
• Use the Status Update on LinkedIn to let recruiters know exactly what you’re looking for. Many times when we contact candidates we get a non-pleasant response that they’re not looking. It will make our lives much easier if you publicly tell us you are the one we should contact! Also let them know if you’re looking to network openly or meet certain people.
• Make sure you get recommendations and endorsements on LinkedIn. They’re very powerful in building trust and reputation.
• Go to the Seattle Job Social and similar events. People these days are helping other people; make sure you utilize the power of other people to find your next position.
• Don’t LinkedIn with a recruiter (or any other person for that matter) with a template email. Don’t spam people. Make sure your message is personalized. The standard “since you’re a person I trust…” is not the best way to meet a stranger or connect with us. Be really polite, tell them why you’re reaching out and potentially what you might be able to offer them. Always give someone a reason to connect with you.

Q. What about job boards? Craigslist, Monster, Career Builder, Dice, Indeed, etc? Do these really work? Do you look at them?

Job boards are perfect for generic jobs or for those “hard to fill” positions you’re not going to find in your everyday candidate. Good candidates are not on Monster; good candidates are either employed or actively networking and reaching out. I get so many referrals on a daily basis that I don’t need to search on job boards.

Q. What else are strong candidates doing that you would recommend others should follow?

• Good candidates are researching the recruiting companies, finding their contact information and actively reaching out. If someone connects to us through our site, we’ll meet them. Larger firms might take more work but you should target who you want to meet and then take action to go meet them. Target your search instead of randomly applying to hundreds of different positions.
• Good candidates ask the recruiters how best to follow up with them. Some recruiters don’t want regular follow up while others like me love regular status updates. If you are the one in 20 Project Managers that keep in touch regularly, when I have a PM position open up; I’m sure to call you.
• Good candidates take the meetings with recruiters seriously. Even if we don’t have a position today, that doesn’t mean we won’t get a req tomorrow. If you leave a good impression, we’ll remember you for that next position.

Q. Michelle, what should someone do if they need a job “yesterday”?

Submit your resume to the larger vendors and keep your options open. You probably won’t get the position you want, but it’s a good way to get out of the mud. I asked our Staffing Director his thoughts on this particular question too. He also mentioned that a few of his friends have taken unpaid “intern like” positions with startups that don’t have enough funding for a full time position yet. People are doing this to stay fresh on their skills, keep their brain active, and if the startup takes off and they do have funding for a full time position, you will be the first person they hire.

You can contact Michelle by visiting Xtreme Consulting or emailing her at michelle@xtremeconsulting.com.

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To read more articles on the 2009 job searching strategies, career development, psychology of interviewing, and resume techniques, subscribe to our RSS feed or get updates by email.

Learn more about the author Paul Anderson.

I see so many small businesses and individuals fail to reach the next level of success due to the people they associate themselves with most. In fact there is a saying that your income is in direct proportion to the average income of the top 10 people you spend most of your time with.

This makes sense. When you spend time with people, in order to maintain rapport, you have to adopt some of their attitudes and belief systems. Over time this takes over your mental processing and you start to filter information the way they do.

It’s not who you know; it’s who they know is really a fact. If you’re job searching or wanting to connect with such and such person, you can’t just rely on quantity of people in your network. You must have a quality network of people that have strong connections. Success breeds success; successful people associate themselves with other successful people and their combined power continues to grow on a daily basis.

If you build a strong network of people with genuine relationships, you’ll never have to job search again. Just look at some of the successful Fortune 500 executives. They’re always being solicited to come run another company while they hold top positions. One example is Paul Brown (former President of Expedia.com). Paul has managed his career very well. He has a top MBA from the Kellogg School of Management. He went to work for top consulting firms such as the Boston Consulting Group and McKinsey. He then specialized in travel and became a well-known expert in the travel management industry. Later when he decided to leave Expedia, he already had another offer as President of Hilton Hotels.

Paul’s career is not random attempts of applying for jobs and great interviewing skills. Instead it’s a carefully crafted plan along with a strong network + mentors that are dedicated to his professional success.

If you want to succeed in your career, start building solid relationships. Work your way up and increase the quality of people you meet; network with connectors, connect to politicians and executives, attend charity events and meet the affluent.

As the saying goes 80% of jobs are recruited through networking and never make it on the job boards. Wouldn’t you like to get a job like that? What are you waiting for? Start networking today!

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To read more articles on the 2009 job searching strategies, career development, psychology of interviewing, and resume techniques, subscribe to our RSS feed or get updates by email.

Learn more about the author Paul Anderson.