We don't need to reinvent the wheel, we just have to make it roll better!

I was fortunate enough to spend three days recently with Frank De Raffele, of Entrepreneurial Excellence and this was one of the key quotes that stuck with me: "We don't need to reinvent the wheel, we just have to make it roll better!".  So it got me thinking about how this applies to the recruitment industry.

There are very few recruitment companies out there who are even trying to reinvent the wheel to make it roll better.  Many large companies are stuck to the traditional model of recruitment and despite everything that is going on around us, have not changed their way of thinking. 

What is refreshing to see is that some smaller and newer agencies are approaching the way they deliver service to clients and candidates with a complete focus on quality and personal touch.  We were one of the first companies in Ireland to not pay commission to our recruitment team, and now this is catching on, with more and more companies taking this route to increased client satisfaction, which is fantastic to see.

To those companies who are pushing boundaries and are innovating to improve the perception of our industry, I applaud and thank you.  I look forward to sharing ideas and best practice as we connect and collaborate.  Working  together we can change perceptions. 

I was very grateful this week to be given an amazing opportunity for a large recruitment project which was referred to me by a business owner in recruitment that applies the same philosophy to the industry as Expect Talent, although in a different target market.  Givers Gain in action again, we help each other a lot even though we are in the same industry.   

I learnt a great deal during my time with Frank de Raffele about the importance of core values, leadership skills and the real impact of applied teamwork.  The concept of making the wheel roll better is fascinating and I firmly believe that by breaking from the pack and doing things totally differently to the rest of the industry we can play a part in changing the way the world does recruitment. 

How are you making the wheel roll better in your industry?  I would love to hear your views.

"Delivering Happiness" thanks to Smarter Egg

"Delivering Happiness" is one of the best business books I have ever read, for a number of reasons.  It now has us even more focused on delivering happiness to clients and candidates, as well as focusing on the happiness of our own team.  Tony Hsieh who wrote this book is the CEO of Zappos (http://www.zappos.com/) and describes their incredible story, so thanks to Tony for his genius.  I would never have been exposed to this book were it not for Aodan Enright who runs an fantastic business in Cork called Smarter Egg (http://www.smarteregg.com/). 

I have been a Smarter Egg for 2 years exactly to the day, so what better day to focus my blog on this aspect of Expect Talent.  I meet monthly with a fantastic group of 10 people from all walks of life and business to explore ideas and generate discussion around the latest business books.  Thanks to Smarter Egg, this experience has completely transformed the way we think about our approach to the recruitment industry.

In "Delivering Happiness", Tony Hsieh outlines the 10 core values of Zappos:

1.  Deliver WOW through service         
2.  Embrace and Drive Change
3.  Create Fun and a little Weirdness     
4.  Be Adventurous, Creative and Open-Minded
5.  Pursue Growth and Learning             
6.  Build Open and Honest Relationships with Communication
7.  Build a Positive Team and Family Spirit
8.  Do More with Less                          
9.  Be Passionate and Determined
10.Be Humble 

What a great list, but the thing about Zappos is that every single employee commits 100% to these values, and its not just "a meaningless plaque in the lobby" to quote Hsieh.  If you are intrigued by any of these then you should definitely read the book!  The stories are fascinating and now you can even go on tours of the Zappos headquarters.  Some of the great ideas that I implemented from Zappos include:- 

1.  A library of the best business books around, now in the office (complete with beanbag seats!) available to the whole team - everyone reads or listens to a minimum of 1 book per month, upskilling the team and encouraging learning is so important to happiness at work, and the books give us all creative idaeas.

2.  A Culture book, the Expect Talent team recently defined our own core values and wrote about what the culture of our business means to them. I recently heard a great quote "Culture Eats Strategy for Breakfast!".  Zappos now publish theirs annually.

3.  We now have a Staff Happiness factor, and ask the team every month to rate how happy they are with different aspects of their job, and we ask them to come up with ideas on how to improve their experience and happiness working for Expect Talent. 

4.  We now hire people based on our own list of core values:  Passionate about WOWing Clients and Candidates, Quality-Focused in Everything we Do, Always Reliable.

I love the hiring process that all Zappos employees go through, everyone has to be a match to their core values regardless of skills and experience.  They even offer to pay every new starter $2000 to quit after their first 2 weeks!! 

The Zappos story, is one of Profits, Passion and Purpose.  I continue to learn all the time through being a Smarter Egg, and I would like to congratulate Aodan on a fantastic two years, I feel very priveleged to have been involved in the first ever Smarter Egg "Tribe" which helped Expect Talent to "Break from the Pack", with "Creative Habit", my "MOJO" firmly back and strong knowledge of "Where Good Ideas Come From", I am confident that I can contribute a huge amount of my success to being a Smarter Egg.  

Flipping the Recruitment Model on its Head

In December 2010, Expect Talent will celebrate 5 years in business, which is something we are really proud of, not only are we still here, but we are considered one of the fastest growing recruitment companies in the country. Our turnover has already more than doubled this year and our client base continues grow, attracting leading multinational employers nationwide, and it got me thinking... 

Why and How? Honestly, I can put it down to the fact that from Day 1 we completely flipped the traditional recruitment model on its head.  We entered an extremely competitive market in 2005, in a booming economy and decided to break from the pack.  Why do what everyone else in the industry is doing?  We started by listing down all of the frustrating and annoying things that most (not all!) recruitment agencies do on both the client and candidate side of their business and decided to do the exact opposite. 

I still have the notebook when I was brainstorming my grand plans to be an entrepreneur, when Expect Talent was just a dream in my head. I thought I would share today some examples of the how we flip the model on its head:

No Commission for the Recruitment Team

This to me is fundamentally one of the main reasons that our industry has a bad reputation, recruiters should be placing candidates for the right reason and not because its their next commission payment.  Recruiters in our team are not salespeople and have no placement targets to meet, so their approach is consultative and in the best interest of both candidate and client, not their own.

Hire People from Outside of the Recruitment Industry

This has been one of the keys to building a phenomenal team, the approach we take to recruitment is so different, that it is much easier to train and upskill excellent account managers with passion for customers on how to recruit, than it is to un-train habits from recruiters who have previously come from within the industry, this is definitely our preference and has allowed us to build an incredibly talented team internally.

Treat Every Vacancy like an Executive Search Assignment

Regardless of the level of seniority, if each vacancy we work on is treated like an Executive Search Assignment, the search becomes completely pro-active and creates a shortlist of a maximum 3 top candidates, we will never be the fastest but we will always deliver the best quality.  That's why over 90% of candidates we put forward secure client interviews, one of the highest ratios in the industry.

Detailed Interview Profiles for every Candidate

Why put forward a CV without any detailed information about the candidate?  Our clients use a professional service to save them time and hassle and to secure the best talent.  Unique and detailed profiles on each candidate mean that hiring managers and HR teams can make an informed decision about the person based on the competency and situation based interview we conduct before submitting a candidate to a client.

Five years ago, I believed passionately that our strategy would work, and now I know without question that flipping the traditional recruitment model on its head was the right path to take and continues to give us the edge.  I am getting all nostalgic this week as I prepare for our 5th Birthday party which will be held in December in the Blackrock Castle Observatory, and look forward to thanking all of the clients, candidates, suppliers, friends and referral partners that have played a part in our success so far.  Here's to the next five years and beyond...

Interview the Interviewer; Great questions to ask...

An interview is a two-way process, and as a candidate it is always tricky, especially at the end, when the interviewer has asked all of their questions, and now turns to you and says "Is there anything you'd like to ask me?".  Your preparation before you walk into an interview, could be the difference between you getting hired or not.  

My advice is to write a list of at least 10 questions, and expect that ALL of your questions will be answered, before you get a chance to ask them.   There is no greater turn-off as an interviewer than a candidate who says "No. I think you've answered all my questions." This shows a lack of curiosity, and lack of interest in the job. 

Here are a few questions to add in that you could ask at an Interview:-

- What are some of the skills and abilities necessary for someone to succeed in this job?
- Why do you like working here?  What is really fantastic about this company? 
- Who will review my performance and how often? 
- Tell me about the best member of the current team and what makes them successful?
- Could you describe your company culture & the type of employee who fits well with it?
- How much opportunity will I be given for personal development and upskilling?

Make sure that you demonstrate interest in the answers, rather than just rattling off a list for the sake of having questions.  Even though some of your questions may be answered during the process, you can always ask the interviewer to expand on an area that came up during the interview, and having some like the above ready for when you get to interview the interviewer.    

It is also useful to know what kind of questions to avoid, these include:- 

- How much will I get paid and what additional benefits do you offer?
- Why did the last person leave?
- How quickly will I get promoted?
- What are the working hours, and how much holiday will I get?

These are all great turn-offs for your interviewer, leave the questions related to benefits, salary and contract to the employer to bring up. Your motivation for the job will be poorly demonstrated by asking questions like this.  Also, make sure that you don't ask questions that could easily be answered from the company's website.  This demonstrates a lack of research, and again a lack of interest in the position.

Remember, you have to make the right choice about the company you work for, in the same way that the interviewer has to make the right choice when hiring, so getting a really clear idea about what will be expected and why they are an employer of choice is an important part of the interview process. 

Top Tips for Hiring: Skills & Experience not enough...

The top companies in the world are always looking to hire the best talent, however its not just about now, its about hiring for the future.  In todays competitive candidate market, just having the skills and experience is not enough.  

5 Top Tips When Hiring

TIP 1 - Know what you want before you start the recruitment process

Hire for experience and specialist skills; someone too junior requiring lots of training can be a very costly exercise, even though it may seem the cheaper option.  On the flip-side, someone totally overqualified may seem like a good idea, especially in the current economic climate, but will only cause you retention issues as you struggle to keep them challenged enough, what happens when the job market changes?  It is important to really know what skills you need, and avoid trying to hire one person for two different jobs, if you need Administrator who will be able to make cold-calls, you will rarely find these skills in the same person.

TIP 2 - Hire for adaptability and willingness to learn

Use interview skills and testing to see how candidates cope with changing environments.  What your company looks like now will most likely be very different to what the company will  look like in 3-5 years time.  A candidate who can adapt to changing circumstances in the business is most likely to thrive and grow with you.  They will feel challenged and you secure a long term employee.  New ideas and innovation can and will come from within your internal talent pool.  In addition, hunger to learn is a very important trait to look for.  A brilliant candidate who is trainable and responds to coaching, mentoring and upskilling is equally as important.  Most skills can be learnt, so finding candidates who are willing to learn is key to future success of your business.

TIP 3 - Hire for a positive approach to work - Attitude, Attitude, Attitude!!

Leading companies will never settle for candidates who just see the opportunity as a job.  They are looking for people who are constantly striving to improve their own performance and the performance of the company.  They are people who see the overall picture, they see the role as being bigger than themselves.  A positive approach to work is high on the criteria of many leading employers. At Google they look to hire smart and innovative people who fit well with company culture, but most importantly they look to hire candidates that want to make an impact.  Someone both motivated to deliver results, as well as demonstrating  total confidence in their ability to deliver the results is more likely to get hired.

TIP 4 - Hire for Leadership Skills

Whether you are hiring at a senior or junior level, it is a valuable skill to look for.  It is all about the candidates potential to become a leader.  They need to understand what needs to be done, and then influence and motivate others to achieve results, no matter what level of the company they start at.  Ability to manage both people and tasks is critical.  Many companies are now creating an internal talent pool of future leaders.  Promoting from within increass morale and retention.  Learn about leadership skills through the interview process and look for this potential at the recruitment stage.

TIP 5 - Look for a demonstrated ability to Network

The depth and diversity of the candidates networks can play an important part in the hiring process.  A candidate who is able to network and willing to network is a vitally important skill in any business related role, even more so in leadership roles and sales or marketing.  A candidate that would instantly be able to bring in new contacts, new customers and increase sales through their network can be a serious consideration for leading companies.  A demonstrated ability to network both online and offline can often be the deciding factor between two brilliant candidates. 

Whether you are in HR, a hiring manager or a jobseeker, I hope you found this blog useful and I would love to hear your comments.   

Where does top talent hide in a recession?

It's a great question, and one which many employers are currently asking.  The best talent is rarely out of work , and is almost always not proactively looking for a job, so how can you tap into the best talent for your business?  This video gives great insights and tips for sourcing top talent:

Key points from the video are summarised below:

1.  Your Own Staff
Never overlook your internal team, grow your talent inhouse and promote from within where possible.  Leverage the networks of your teams and colleagues you work with, as they may know someone you could hire that would be perfect for your business.

2.  Become well Connected and Actively Network
Top candidates will not usually be actively looking for work, and will almost always be fully employed, even in a recession.  Making use of online networks, industry related events and your own contacts to seek out the best talent, this is always a great strategy.

3.  Be Proactive
Recruitment shouldn't be a last minute thought when a vacancy arises, develop relationships within your industry and become an Employer of Choice, build your talent pool all the time so that you can leverage a strong network when the need arises to hire.  Offer internships and get to know the local graduate careers officers for young talent in your profession.  Always seek out potential hires before the need arises.  Recruitment can take time; securing the best talent and quickly can save you a lot of money and time.

4.  Work with a professional only when you need it
Make time to brief your recruitment partner well and take ownership of the process.  Identify exactly what you are looking for and hold the recrutiment company accountable for quality and retention.  An outside perspective, and an expert in seeking out the top talent in your industry is often important, especially for business critical positions.  It is vital to work with a partner that will understand your business, your teams and your company culture, often the cultural fit is most important, then skills, capabilities and experience follow. 

Top talent is out there - FACT! However, finding the right people, attracting them to your business and keeping them is all about having a strategy for recruitment and retention of the best your industry has to offer. 

Welcome!

Welcome to the official Expect Talent Blog, the place to gain insights and bright ideas on recruitment, job-seeking, and hiring staff of the highest quality.  Whether you are looking to hire the best talent into your company, change careers, or find that dream job having been made redundant, we are here to help.  In this blog we aim to give you that small nugget of advice that might just help you along the way.

If you are frustrated by the recruitment industry then you can join the club!  This was the reason why Expect Talent was started, so forget everything you already know about recruitment, here is where we challenge the typical way of doing things, and flip the recruitment industry on its head.  We are changing the way the world does Recruitment and in our blog you can find out how...

So welcome to first time readers and I hope you enjoy what we have to say.  We welcome your feedback, views, comments on this blog and of course look forward to helping you in some way whether you are a candidate or responsible for hiring in your organisation. 

Thanks for joining us on our blogging journey, and please get in touch, we would love to hear from you.

Samantha Rathling
Managing Director
sam@expect.ie