I am often asked by managers and recruiters… “What is the most effective recruiting tool?” As a data-driven person, I know immediately that the answer is… referrals from top performing employees within your own firm is the best source for quality hires. However, if you push me hard, I come …

Most employment systems were designed in the “dark ages” when business moved at the “speed of rock.” In the past when people resigned, a requisition was created and after a relatively long lag time, another person was hired. If the new hire required initial training at the time of their …

HR people are constantly looking for new tools. Attached is a list of proactive HR planning tools that might help you to improve your companies competitive advantage. Share it with your VP HR.

I often find HR people (and recruiters in particular) with an insufficient understanding of the business that they are recruiting for. One of the ways to avoid that pitfall is to talk directly to the senior managers in order to identify their expectations. If you want to get an idea …

Recruiters must realize that (unlike in the past, when the “pool” of unemployed people contained some top performers) the current group of unemployed people is short on top talent. Currently the only remaining viable option is to source, raid, or poach top talent from other firms. Unfortunately most recruiting tools …

A checklist for assessing the quality of college recruiting programs and systems. Almost everyone in the employment field attempts to develop quality employment programs and systems. After studying hundreds of employment systems from Fortune 500 firms we have come up with a comprehensive checklist to use to assess the quality of …

“Too much of a good thing is bad for you” is true for both “sweets” and for interviews. I was at Agilent Technologies the other day when one of their many talented HR reps described “over interviewing” with the accurate and humorous phrase “death by interview.” I laughed and I …

I am constantly amazed at recruiters that attend “average” job fairs and then call it “recruiting.” Sitting at a booth and accepting resumes is hardly strategic recruiting! Job fairs are full of marginal candidates and the sheer number of attendees alone makes relationship building almost impossible. Most firms that take …

There is an ongoing debate among employment managers as to whether it is better to give preference to internal candidates before looking externally to fill vacancy. Older, more established firms traditionally give preferences to internal candidates while fast-growing and more innovative firms tend to focus more on external hires. Although …

There is an ongoing debate among employment managers as to whether it is better to give preference to internal candidates before looking externally to fill vacancy. Older, more established firms traditionally give preferences to internal candidates while fast-growing and more innovative firms tend to focus more on external hires. Although …