The uncertainty caused by layoffs can impact both companies and employees in many ways, most of them negative. During large-scale layoffs, morale and productivity can plummet. Even more importantly, it’s common for firms to lose their focus on the customer. If a firm is to avoid the need for future …

Shifts in the economy are a fact of life. But managers and HR professionals are often forced into recommending layoffs during economic downturns because for months they have procrastinated and put off taking the appropriate preventative measures. As a layoff strategist, I recommend a forward-looking approach aimed at minimizing the …

Few firms really know how to do layoffs right, and unfortunately, there really aren’t any “how-to” books or seminars on layoffs. But taking the right actions couldn’t be more crucial during this sensitive process, and as a layoff strategist, I recommend a structured approach to ensure this happens. If you’re …

Whether as a result of a terrorist attack, natural disaster, or just rapid growth, companies quite often need to ramp up their hiring efforts quickly. But high-volume and high-growth hiring requires an entirely different set of tools and strategies than traditional recruiting. It’s actually a lot more similar to a …

One of the crucial elements in building an employment brand is to develop a “theme” that sends a clear brand message to potential candidates. That theme must clearly communicate what working at your firm is all about. One of the best ways to communicate what you are all about is …

The first week on the job can play a crucial role in motivating and retaining new employees. We often spend lots of time and money recruiting and wooing new employees and as soon as they start we turn around and treat them like barely welcome strangers. We need to begin …

Any savvy recruiter is well aware of the economic downturn that is facing most industries today. If that downturn has not yet affected your job as a recruiter, let me assure you that soon it will. Where I work in the Silicon Valley, the wave of recruiter layoffs is well …

Managers frequently ask me, “What is the best recruiting source to use when you have no budget, little time, and don’t know much about recruiting?” Without hesitation my answer is…use reference referrals. The Definition of a Reference Referral A reference referral is quite simply asking the references (that were given to you …

If you want to dominate your competitors in the talent “war,” you need to act a lot differently than they do. If you expect to win more than a majority of your head-to-head “battles” for talent, you must take a deliberate approach to recruiting. The following 20 rules outline just …

Most managers are not particularly good “salespeople” when it comes to “closing” candidates. Smart recruiting managers therefore provide their hiring managers with the tools necessary to improve their “closing” success rate. One excellent tool that can dramatically help managers improve their sales “approach” is a comparison offers sheet. What is a …