Many recruiters and bloggers discussing how they were starting to get busy  

You had recruiters texting how the upcoming new year brought hope

While the bloggers were writing that they think they can cope.

All around there was chatter and twits I could read

But there were a couple of people who seemed to be a different breed

See these were the candidates that no one listened to

I just hope that one of them wasn’t you

These recruiters and bloggers tweeted about Social Media and how it arrived

Some said it was all they did between 9 am and five

They were planning events to attend up until the fall

But wasn’t really sure if they could make them all

While these social events take place every day

They only address what can bring recruiters and bloggers a big payday

The candidate who suffers wondering how to change their luck

Can only hope these people aren’t in it to make a fast buck

You have all these recruiters vying for client jobs

while candidates stand in long lines at job fairs that look like a mob

there are Job Boards that have posted all the same jobs as before

while candidates fill out online applications for the same job once more  

we have  Online Talk Shows who try to help and have fun

I know it’s a fact because I have one

But let’s not forget at the next event that you plan

talk about candidates whether it is a woman or man

they are the ones who look for your help when in need

besides what are the holidays about but doing good deeds

So when putting together next year’s plan

remember the candidates who need a helping hand.

So in closing let me just say what a long year it has been

 but I hope you all prosper in 2010.

When you think about it…what is Employer Branding?  Isn’t it employers doing the right thing by running a company that people respect and where employees want to work? Often I think if an employer has a catchy slogan they believe it is enough to attract attention, get people interested in their product and their brand is secondary.

Do you really believe you are in good hands with Allstate?

Do you think you will save 15% on Car Insurance by switching to Geico?

Does “Buy American” really mean it was made in America?

If you believe these all to be true then send me some of what you are ingesting.

These are all catchy slogans that through the years have been constantly in our face, repeated impressions upon repeated impressions. After a while it is like a form of brainwashing.

Did people really listen when E.F. Hutton spoke? Apparently not they are out of business.

Did you really think that Smith Barney did things “the old fashion way”?  Hardly, they did it the same as everyone else.

Can an Employer Brand make or break a Company?

In my opinion, “yes”. When the management of a company from the top down treats people with the respect they deserve and makes decisions within an organization based upon what is good for the company and rewards employee work ethic, catchy slogans are not critical. Employees will help them retain and attract quality talent.

There will always be those people, who for whatever reason when they leave a company, whether downsized or terminated, who will have negative things to say about their employer. However, if you know it’s not true and your other employees have nothing but positive things to say then that person will be like…the boy who cried wolf.  No one will listen and their comments will fall upon deaf ears.

One problem is that employers are not practicing what they preach, they are downsizing in areas and at the same time giving huge bonuses. They are eliminating positions and then creating the same position using a different job title and hiring someone for half the salary. When that starts to happen you have uproar from many employees and then people start to listen. Not even a great slogan will come to the rescue.

Employer Branding should be nothing more than employers treating employees the way they want to be treated, making going to work enjoyable and staff feel as though they make a difference.

If employers have nothing but their own best interest in mind then an Employer Brand is about as effective as a square peg trying to fit in a round hole!

After all, does Frosted Flakes really taste “Great” as Tony says? OK that one I will give you.

9. When you speak in 140 characters

8. When you wake up at 3 am to tweet someone

7. When fast food becomes a norm. so you don’t miss anything

6. When you become known as a follower of @BillBoorman

5. When you think that if you are not logged in people miss you

4. When you have little blue birds hanging from your car’s rearview mirror

3. When you are feeding your family dinner at lunch time

2. When you believe that @Animal really is a puppet

And the #1 reason…….When you think this song is kewl… http://tinyurl.com/cbputo.

Recruiters on average are receiving 75 more resumes per job per day was the last statistic I read. With that said this is still not a reason to not return phone calls of candidates that they have interviewed either via telephone or in person. That is just a recruiter who was not trained well and has no one’s interest in mind but their own.

Recruiters have always worked long and tiresome hours so what is any different now? Some say it is the Gen Y generation who while they will work and give it 100% when they are at work refuse to put their job before their social life. Others say it is because so many resumes are received that do not pertain to the current opening. While others believe that  some jobs don’t exist or have been long ago filled however remain out on Job Boards. How?(a) because the company didn’t remove them or (b) because they were posted to a job board who uses aggregators and while the job was removed from the original job posting board it wasn’t from the other 1000 job boards it was blasted out to and populated (a reason why we do not use job board aggregators).

What some recruiters don’t seem to still understand is that a Candidates time is still as valuable as theirs and possibly even more when they are out of work and only they know what their circumstances are. They spend sometimes upwards of 20-30 minutes or more filling out online applications, then if their resume is one that catches the eye of a recruiter they are either prescreened or interviewed via phone or in person, if that goes well they are told someone will get back to them to set-up another interview when the next person in the interviewing process is available. For most candidates that is the last they will ever hear from the recruiter. A week or weeks go by with no follow up call, letter or e-mail nothing just time and money spent which is why candidates have grown more and more cynical about recruiters. Candidates are starting to wonder if recruiters even know what they, their clients or the hiring managers are looking for. They ask how can so many people go on job interviews and be not right for a position? Recruiters see the resume and more times than not speak with a candidate via phone prior to scheduling an in person interview. So if they were good enough after the phone screen to bring in to interview they must have impressed that  recruiter. Why then unless they have 2 heads, don’t bath, are obnoxious or just outright lied on their resume  is it  so many  never hear back?

 A few reasons for this may be:

(a) The recruiter is having someone else review the resumes and do the pre screen so the in person is the first they speak to you

 (b) They don’t take the time to sit with the hiring manager prior to starting to recruit for the open position and now realize that you are not the fit they thought you may have been.

(c) They don’t get a clear or detailed requisition.

These are just some reasons or as some candidates are now calling them “The Excuse” that when and if they ever hear back they are being told. 

Agency Recruiters have no reason not to call candidates back even if it is just to keep an open line of communication. Candidates and their referrals are a big part of how an Agency survives. Without Candidates all those Job orders an Agency has means nothing.

Recruiters need to remember that it could them sitting there in the same position as that candidate they promised to call back but never did.

I have spoken to so many HR professionals who can’t find employment and can’t understand why. Here is a blast for you turnaround is fair play in some people’s eyes. Could be the person working that job order or recruiting for that position is someone you rejected in a prior position. HR is a large Industry but a small world. People don’t forget how they were treated.

In fairness to Recruiters on both sides this is an unusual time and for the most part recruiters are making the best of a tough situation however compare it to the mid to late 90’s at that time if you were recruiting you had so many jobs you couldn’t find enough time to source candidates but I am sure you always made the time to keep in touch with your client or hiring managers. It is no different now, while the jobs are fewer now the candidates are the ones looking for your call or feedback. Have the same respect and let them know that while it may have not worked out this time that you will keep them in mind for future positions or while it is taking longer than usual to make a decision that you will get back to them as soon as you hear something.

Remember in this business whether you are an agency or corporate recruiter you are only as good as your last placement.

As we all huddled together now that all the people in the buildings had emptied out in the streets around us I could see so many of them standing staring in disbelief. You couldn’t help but feel helpless that you wanted to do something but you couldn’t at that time. As I looked around what I also noticed were many people with Video Cameras taping what was happening and began to think how strange that was people don’t go to work with video cameras and we weren’t in a residential area. Later we would find out that many of these people were part of an extremist group located in NJ.

As time went on the scene became more and more gruesome and surreal. The ferry where we were standing about a block from began crossing the river bringing back the bodies of victims some alive some whose bodies were charred and burned beyond recognition. As I turned back to look across the river I remember hearing a loud noise which sounded as if a plane had hit the building directly behind us but in horror I saw that the first tower imploded. The screams and cries of the people around us was like nothing I ever heard before people screaming they are all dead Oh my God they are all gone. A short time later the second tower fell and just as it did you could hear the loud sounds of engines as two F16 fighter planes screeched between the two buildings were we were standing as if we were on location of the making a movie however this was real and a movie like this no one would want to ever see again. Things had now become chaotic all around us and people were being escorted by police out of the area it was a nightmare, cars couldn’t move, people wondering if friends and possibly loved ones were ok , they had no way to know cell phones and all communication was lost for a time. All transportation that was available was being used to get those in the city out and all victims to hospitals. The waterfront were my office was had been made into a makeshift morgue for about 3 days following 9/11. I will never forget upon reopening the office the horrible site of mangled debris and the stench you could smell for almost a mile. We all often wondered what toxins were being released but we were always told the air quality was safe.

We all have since heard the heroic stories of people who gave their lives or put their own life at risk to help others. Who can forget the families of people missing walking the streets for days holding up pictures of loved ones in the hopes of someone saying that they recognized them and knew where they were. Who could forget the story of people being lead from the towers by someone who they didn’t even know and those people don’t even know if that person made it out themselves. Yet people are still suffering and government looks the other way. These are the people who in many people’s eyes as they are in mine were the heroes, the first responders the ones who were lucky enough we all thought to survive, heroes, those who worked feverishly afterwards in the cleanup to find any trace of life in the rubble and while many of them are now coming down with illnesses at an alarming rate our government and others are doing nothing to help these people.

Does there always need to be disasters to have government respond to people’s needs?

 Here in the U.S. I remember watching George Bush as he stood at Ground Zero a couple of days after 9/11 and said he would do whatever it took to help the people affected by 9/11 and bring the people responsible for this to justice and George Bush did nothing but bring this country to the brink of bankruptcy. Why are we spending billions of dollars to fight a war in Iraq and Afghanistan to free people who George Bush said were being tortured by their government yet his administration is being accused of the same. Why do we fight so woman in these countries no longer need to wear burkas yet every day here in this country you see 1000’s wearing them? Why do people who put their lives at risk to help others on 9/11 and the days that follow now need to beg to get help when they themselves are ill? The governments answer is that there isn’t any proof that these people became ill because of being at Ground Zero every day yet large majorities have come down with the same illnesses and they have no family history of any of these illnesses.

There seems to be an injustice and while I understand that you can never put a price tag on anyone’s life, the victims of 9/11 Families have been well taken care of. People lost Fathers, Mothers, Sons, Daughters, Aunts, Uncles, Cousins, Grandmothers, Grandfathers and more on that day. No money can replace that but what about all the families of first responders and those in the days following helped with the cleanup who are know losing the same family members. How are they being taken care of? How are they being treated? Other then the few charities that were started to help raise money for these people they are treated like everyone else. They have medical bills that are mounting and all they hear is Oh by the way sorry to hear you are ill or sorry to hear you lost your father, mother son, daughter etc. Is that right? In my opinion this is a tragedy in itself and needs to be addressed so please take a minute when you can a just write a brief letter to your congressman and ask them why these people need to suffer now when they only went to try to help those who were suffering then. Thanks Paul

 The Show was about GEN Y and his guest was JTODonnell proponent of the generation. JT is Founder of CAREEREALISM.com – A Nationally Syndicated Career/Workplace Author – Corporate Trainer and more which you can get on her twitter bio @jtodonnell.

JT is of the belief that this generation needs to be mentored and coddled more than prior generations. Why, because their parents were still walking them or driving them to school when they were seniors in High School. A generation that when all through their lives whenever something happened that was not what the child felt was right Mommy and Daddy would go and fight their battles for them or when they received a B in school their parents would call the teacher and ask how they could not have given their child an A.  A Generation where the Parents call employers when their Son or Daughter doesn’t get a Job or doesn’t get the pay raise if they last long enough to qualify and ask WHY? A Generation who want to tell businesses the hours they can work not the hours they are needed to work. A generation that few have any work experience while attending school because Mom and Dad took care of everything. Is this all their fault? No, but any ambitious person is going to want to do things for themselves and stand on their own two feet before they are 25 years old.

Listening yesterday we heard over and over how they need to be trained and nurtured longer than previous generations, perhaps we should have asked their parents when the nursing and bed wetting period was over what they wanted them to be when they grew up and started training them from that point forward! Let me just say every generation had its issues and every prior generation always found fault with the generation that followed but the Gen Y generation is not the same. They expect everything like the kid when you were growing up whom if you didn’t play his way he was going to take his ball and go home.

 I am not saying that everyone in this generation is like this however it is the larger majority. I had a Recruiting Business and hired many people in this generation. Why? I was given many opportunities in my life and feel that everyone deserves that opportunity to prove themselves., many disappointed, not because they weren’t trained or nurtured but because they would spend the day on their PDA or Cell Phone texting, others looked for ways to change everything they did and some even crying when you asked them to pick up a phone and make some cold calls. It is part of the job they wanted to do.

I along with my life partner raised her son who was of the Gen Y generation and even though when we met he was 10 years old, we instilled in him the values he needed to stand on his own two feet and although we could have handed him everything on a silver platter we didn’t, not because we weren’t good parents but because we wanted him to understand that the real world is a place where no one gives you anything for nothing and to be a success it takes hard work and perseverance. So when he was going to college he decided he wanted to work so that when he graduated he could go into a position and have something to offer not go into a job and be trained and nurtured. We are both proud to say that he has hired right out of school for the largest and most prestigious Geotechnical Engineering firm in the country. Did he get this job solely because of us NO, it was because he had the desire to succeed and not have someone else do it for him.

 I wish everyone in this generation much success because they at some point will be the leaders of this country, let’s just hope they see before that happens that things aren’t always as easy as they are when others are fighting your battles and success is earned not given.

Now as far as Animal we will all be pulling for you when and if they do a remake of the Wizard of Oz and if not perhaps you can at least get into the next Mad TV skit of the Movie.

Now if you go to work every day and work hard you are lucky if you can make ends meet, pay your bills, live in an apartment, hopefully your employer doesn’t get rid of you because you been there to long and those golden years are now spent working because you can’t afford to retire and if you did you are probably working part time so you don’t have to dip into all your savings. What Happened?

What Happened is:

Too many Company Executives worried about making the bottom line look good to get that BIG FAT BONUS….

Too many people feeling they didn’t have to work hard to get ahead IT IS OWED TO THEM…..

Too many College and Universities Career Counselors being out of touch with the corporate world and giving grads FALSE SALARY EXPECTATIONS….

Too many Companies outsourcing work for cheaper labor and still having to keep a staff  here to interpret what is going on there then after a while they realize IT DON’T WORK!
America has always been the Melting Pot of the world, a place where people could come and make a life, live the American Dream, work hard and in the end be prosperous and enjoy those older years.

What Happened!!!

I will share  Links to Other Peoples Blogs, Other Sites, Etc.

I will blog about what it was like on the Corporate and Staffing sides of the business. 

Please feel free to share your Comments!