In this economy, recent college grads are not the only people hopelessly searching for work. Many Gen Xers and Baby Boomers with years of experience under their belts find themselves out of work with the recent recession. The unemployment rate is still miserably high at 8.3% and the number of college graduates returning home is higher than ever, at about 50%. It may seem like a good plan to just wait out the storm. Once the economy improves, we Millennials will be able to find the perfect job, right? Don’t be so sure. There are several things that have proven detrimental to our job search ranging from lack of experience to our (overly-generalized) generational mindset.

Millennials Don’t Know How to Hunt

We apply to job after job and usually hear nothing back. What are we doing wrong? We’ve learned to send resumes, but what else should we be doing? Is that even the best option?

What to do

Grant Cordone advises that instead of sending resumes, like the 17 million other college grads, Millennials should “target 4-6 bosses and do whatever it takes to get in front of them.” Do not appeal to HR or a supervisor. Go straight to the boss, and sell yourself hard.

If you are able to get yourself in front of the CEO/President/Director, kudos to you. Cordone is right that this is the most likely action to get you results. However, this is easier said than done. More plausible options are to try and set yourself apart, make sure your resume is at its best, and follow up. Just take care not to harass the employer! Send one email, two tops in the following weeks after you have sent your resume. Make your email clear, concise, and memorable.

Millennials Expect the World on a Silver Platter

I dare you to disagree. Honesty time: when we were kids, how many of us wanted to be the President when we grew up? How about an astronaut, actor, singer, or writer? How many of us wanted—and still desperately and not-so-secretly want—to be rich and famous? Our parents told us we could be these things. As it turns out, we can’t. Not all of us anyway, but we continue wanting to make a difference. Millennials want to be recognized for our achievements. As fresh graduates with little to no experience, how can we contribute? Especially when we cannot find jobs? Well…the jobs are out there, Millennials. It’s this mentality of ours, this sense of entitlement that is making our hunt difficult.

What to do

Before Millennials can have a glamorous job, we need to pay our dues, just like our predecessors. No one becomes successful overnight. Take the job with the long hours and low salary. Work hard, prove that you deserve more, and you will get there with time.

We Can’t Make Up Our Minds

If that promotion never comes, at least you will have gained some experience that can aid you in your next search. The problem is that we tend to give up too quickly. Millennials have been labeled as job hoppers. The average time spent in one job used to be about four years. Our average is closer to two. This isn’t really surprising considering our environment growing up. When we bought a new phone (or it was bought for us), we switched it out for a newer model as soon as possible. We bumped around from major to major in college, trying each on for size and bailing ship when it wasn’t quite right. “What do you want to be when you grow up?” is no longer a question for children and teenagers. I’m still asking myself this question, along with many, many Millennials. Trying things on for size is second nature to us. If it doesn’t work, move on. Unfortunately, having multiple jobs in a few years gives the impression of instability and a lack of loyalty. Not every employer is willing to see this practice of ours as ambitious or strategic. They have been instructed to see numerous short-term jobs on a resume as flaky.

Obama on Instagram

A recent article from Forbes delineates a few ways the Obama campaign has been using social media in its political outreach efforts:

• -Fielding questions and speaking with ordinary citizens in a Google+ hangout after last night’s State of the Union address.
• -Holding a Twitter townhall meeting to get a greater sense of voter concerns.
• -Using Instagram to document the campaign trail.

Recruiters have integrated social media into their day-to-day business activities, posting jobs on their networks and sharing content with their followers.  But President Obama’s campaign demonstrates how you can take social media to the next level, using it as a vehicle to drive events and connect with people outside of your network.

Whether you’re attending a job fair or tradeshow, hosting a webinar, or conducting interviews on a college campus, don’t leave your twitter handle behind.  Social media is as big an aspect of the event as renting a booth or booking your flight.

Executing Social Media Events

Unlike holding spontaneous day-to-day conversations with your networks, holding a social media event takes some planning.

The Focus.  What do you want to get out of the event?  Are you curious what technologies your candidates find most effective in their job search?  Or maybe you want to pick the brains of a few thought leaders in your industry.

The Medium.  Choose a platform that will best suit your focus.  If you want to hear from a large pool of candidates, Twitter.  If you want to have a deeper discussion, video chat may be the way to go.

The Moderator.  Choose a moderator who can keep the virtual conversation on-topic.

The Marketing.  Get the word out with other pre-event marketing through press-releases, emails, articles, and print materials.  Let people know why they will benefit from participating, & how they can get involved.

What makes a good recruiter great?

While everyone has a different opinion on what success really is (wealth?  notoriety?  the elusive work/life balance?), there are a few themes on what makes a recruiter a big success that keep popping up again and again.

Here’s a quick look at what the successful recruiters do…

1.  They track metrics.

At the end of the day, all that really counts is the number of job orders you fill.  But it’s so interesting to look at all of the steps in between.  What factors correlate with increased placements?  Is it the number of cold calls you make per day? Is it sharing jobs with social networks?  Successful recruiters know what numbers they need to hit on the way to their targeted number of placements.

(p.s. want to measure your recruiting metrics, but don’t know where to start?  here’s a great resource –> the metrics blue book.)

2.  They adopt new technology quickly.

Part of closing a new client or gaining the trust of a hot candidate is always being available.  And we are constantly evolving in how we are available to each other.

Right now, tech-savvy recruiters are adapting to mobile recruiting in two ways:

a.  Being accessible in mobile web browsers.  People want to do everything from their smartphone.  They want to shop, reserve a table for dinner tonight, and they want to search for jobs.  So having a website that is accessible via a mobile device is a no-brainer.

b.  Being accessible on the go.  As a recruiter or account executive, you aren’t always tied to your desk.  You’re out networking with people, facilitating interviews, and giving presentations.  Having access to your ATS from your smartphone or tablet is a major part of being productive while you’re away from your desk.

3.  They pick up the phone (see item #1)

If you’ve been tracking metrics, then you know that a certain amount of output yields a certain amount of input.  Whether it’s cold calls or touching base with old clients and new connections, dialing out helps bring them in.  Whether they use VOIP technology to slice through lengthy call lists faster, or dial the old-school way, successful recruiters are putting their time in on the phone.

4.  They get there first.

Especially in high-volume contract staffing, the early bird gets the worm.  Presenting a hot candidate means nothing if someone else has gotten there first.  If speed isn’t your game, you may want to work on marketing your exclusivity agreement.

5.  They move forward with purpose.

Whether you work a blended desk, or run a large firm, growth is always a goal, and making more money is always a goal.  But it’s easy to burn out on the way to either of these goals without a core purpose.

Call it a value proposition, call it a mission statement, but your purpose defines why you come into work every day.  It helps you to move past setbacks and disappointments, and helps to make your brand more enticing.  And successful recruiters have a great purpose – to help companies grow by find them great talent.

What do you think?  Do you find these habits present in all successful recruiters, or are they just myths?

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image from here

Netflix Prices on the Rise - Are You Raising Your Recruiting Fees Too?

Netflix is raising the price of renting DVDs through the mail by 60% – and customers are none too happy about it.  The announcement of the price increase has the web all a-twitter with thousands of complaints on Facebook and other websites.

What used to be a $10 monthly fee to rent physical DVDs in addition to online streaming will now cost customers $16 a month.  Customers can still subscribe to the streaming service only for $8 a month.  This change in price structure will undoubtedly push consumers toward online streaming options, following trends in the entertainment market.  Netflix is confident that people who rely on DVDs will continue to shell out the cash, and while it is a move to increase revenue, it is also a move to phase out physicial DVDs and set up Netflix as a top contender in streaming video.

As the economy stabilizes, should recruiters begin raising their fees as well?  It may have been a while since you raised your fees, or you may have even cut your fees to stay afloat in a floundering job market.  But is now the time to consider hiking up your fees?

Do you have a niche in the market? Like Netflix, when you have a great service, you can afford to raise your fees, no matter what the economic climate is.  Identify the services you offer that your clients cannot live without, and raise your fees accordingly.

Are you looking to phase out a service you offer? Perhaps there is a service your firm offers that presents more problems that the revenue is worth.  Charging premium fees for an out-dated service can help phase it out.  Then, you can focus on the real revenue generators, as well as the services you see being in demand in the future.  Plus, clients who really need a service that is falling by the way-side will be willing to pay for it.

What factors do you consider in raising your fees?  Will potential backlash from clients prevent you from making a strategic pricing move like Netflix did?

What’s wrong with Charlie Sheen? As a huge fan of “Two and a Half Men”, I am truly saddened by his behavior, greed and lifestyle. He’s a talented actor that has everything in the world: money, good looks and a family. However, that’s just not enough. Drugs and “the goddesses” have take over his mind.

Because of his erratic antics, CBS has halted production of “Two and a Half Men”, leaving Sheen without a job. However, he’s “going to war” and wants $3 Million per episode to return to the set and filing suit with the network. Also, to create an army of followers and collect more funds, Sheen has manipulated the media with his live and “passionate” interviews and tweets; and he’s “winning” more and more fans. I myself have fallen to this manipulation by watching all the MSNBC interviews (it’s like watching a train wreck or real-life soap opera).

Imagine Sheen is your employee. He’s obviously popular with fans and works hard on the set. However, his character does not mesh with company culture; and management will not allow him to abuse CBS’s reputation as a top primetime network.

As the employer of a disgruntled employee, there are many ways to handle this situation. Management is obviously giving him time off to work out his personal demons or possibly this is the time to just move on and start a new project.

How would you deal with disgruntled employee Charlie Sheen?