Jason Blais: From the Recruiting Front Lines

In this week’s look back: social media in vacationland, the art and science of winning negotiation, eLearning for HR, and thoughts on the economy.  Read on for quick hits on these topics, or follow the links for more in-depth coverage.

On september 24th, the SocialMediaFTW conference erupted at the University of Southern Maine in Portland.  Yes, it’s true- my home state, Vacationland as it were, does indeed have access to the world wide web, an avid curiosity of social media, and actual universities.  More than anything else, the shear turnout (this event sold out in advance to over 225 attendees) and thirst for knowledge were undeniable indicators that even in the farthest reaching corners of the US, the impact of social media is being felt. CLICK HERE TO READ THE FULL POST

The long term survival of employment websites, aka Job Boards, is dependant upon their ability to provide employers a larger and more effective suite of services targeted to help them make better hires.  It will no longer be enough to simply drive eyeballs to job advertisements, according to the thought leaders at IAEWS’s Annual Member Congress earlier this month.  JobsInTheUS saw the writing on the wall at the end of 2008, and launched a new department to focus on identifying and developing new programs to increase their value to employers who primarily utilize their services to advertise job openings.  The first of three major new initiatives was rolled out in September, with the announcement of six new webinars designed to assist employers in the hiring continuum.  Four of these programs have received HRCI accreditation for General Credits. CLICK HERE TO READ THE FULL POST

More from NextStep Negotiating.  HRSentry and JobsInTheUS signed off on the framework and agreement of a new alliance, enthusiastically completing a successful negotiation. The force of like-minded individuals working together to reach a common goal can be dazzling.  From discovery to agreement, this process was completed in under 30 days, despite a cavernous gap between the desired terms from each side.  The theme of this negotiation?  Where there’s a will, there’s a way.  One aspect of this process worth consideration was the ability to re-frame the model in order to find a new solution. CLICK HERE TO READ THE FULL POST
In an effort to share the data we collect as an industry leading employment website in our markets, we’ve launched a new series of monthly job reports with state specific job data.  These videos are available on JobsInME and JobsInNH currently, and can also be viewed on our new Channel on YouTube.  You can also see these two videos on the home page of this site: jasonblais.com.

The Pinnacle of Successful Negotiation.

When all parties involved in a negotiation walk away in a better position then when they arrived, and when the terms agreed upon are better for each than they would have accepted as their bottom line, you have successfully completed a winning negotiation.  Additionally, this archetype leads to long term goodwill amongst the parties, and, more often than not, to future collaboration.  At least, that’s been my experience, and the ideal of success I’ve set out as my goal as a negotiator.  An agreement I negotiated was signed today by both parties, and I believe serves as an example of the pinnacle of negotiation success.

(Re)Framing the Paradigm.

The agreement signed today sealed a new strategic partnership between HRSentry and JobsInTheUS.  What started as a discussion between like-minded parties, quickly blossomed into a shared vision of potential mutual benefits. While the most important factors that lead to the consummation of this deal were the like-mindedness of the parties involved, and the clarity of the shared vision, the point that I will store in my memory, was the need to re-frame the paradigm to find a common ground for the terms.

Though initially we both felt very confident about our ability to work together, we later found that we were quite far apart on the stipulations we would require.  At one point, this chasm appeared to be wide enough to either suspend or possibly terminate the negotiation.  Each of us had an excellent argument for our side, and we both felt we did not want to degrade the value of our interest in the relationship.  I can now admit out loud that I really, really wanted to make this work.  I believe strongly in the long term value of this affiliation, and am excited by how well their service aligns with my company’s mission and vision.  At the same time, however, I had to ensure that financially this would be worth the level of engagement we would need to provide.

Peace and Quiet Through Low-Tech.

I was attending a conference during the negotiation, and had been acutely tuned in to my Blackberry, monitoring the desires and concerns of both my General Manager and the folks at HR Sentry.  Further delay at this time, I felt, would show a lack of commitment and engagement to HR Sentry that I was unwilling to risk.  Between sessions at the conference, I went to my hotel room, turned off my phone, shut down my laptop, and pulled out a pad of hotel stationery and a pen.  I began drawing diagrams, scribbling notes, and recording my stream of consciousness.  Through this exercise, it occurred to me that at it’s core, the crux of this issue was very similar to a model I had used when working for a travel broker over a decade ago.  From this realization, I re-framed the paradigm and offered a completely new solution, which was subsequently accepted.

At the beginning of any negotiation, particularly when in regard to strategic partnerships, alliances, or collaboration, it’s natural to conceptualize the entire process in advance, based on previous experience and your knowledge of what’s most likely to occur.  This can be dangerous.  When you think you know the answer to a question, it affects not only how you ask it, but also how you hear the response.  As Deepak Chopra would say, we mustn’t become slaves of our own experience, but rather stay open to infinite possibilities.  One way to do this in the negotiation process is to actively re-frame your paradigm, in search of new solutions.

…SOCIAL MEDIA HAS LANDED IN MAINE!… And it was ushered in by the who’s who of the industry along with a couple hundred people hoping to catch a glimpse of the new being, and, if possible, learn more about it.

Hosted at the University of Southern Maine’s Portland Campus, SocialMediaFTW was a smashing success, selling out in advance, and packing the breakout sessions as people flocked to this conference to figure out how their business could benefit from social media engagement.  SocialMediaFTW (or #ftw09 the official twitter hashtag) was the brain child of Rich Brooks, Chrystie Corns, and Jaica Kinsman- three early adopters of social media in Maine, and all with tremendous professional experience.

I was called by Rich a couple months back, and asked to present a session on Using LinkedIn for Business.  I had a terrific time, and was glad to see a packed room.  In fact, I believe nearly all of the 12 different breakout sessions were at or near capacity. A true testament to the interest and engagement created by this new media.

Here are some of the quick thoughts I came away with from this event:

• 45 minutes per session wasn’t enough time to teach or learn about any single subject area.
• The variety of programs offered was excellent and covered a truly thorough view of social media for business.
• I LOVE presenting live at conferences much more than presenting via webinars!
• While the content helped build interest, some presenters were clearly trying only to generate leads for their businesses.
• Just because someone’s a genius in their field, they don’t automatically qualify as a great presenter.
• Of the presentations I saw, there was a good mix of basic and mid level education going on. (hard to do high level in this time frame with such a varied audience)
• There truly was something for everyone.
• The networking time was effective, and a great way to actually meet some of those folks I only knew through social networks!

In closing, I left the conference very excited and optimistic about the growing engagement of these new media outlets across all types of businesses here in Maine.  From my experience, the internet and these types of platforms are actually much more relevant and important in states where the population is spread out.  Maine, and NH and VT for that matter, are all laggard adopters of new technologies and trends, so I’m glad to see we’re finally jumping on to this ship, so we can all rise with the tide.
Want more on the conference?  Click here for the dialogue regarding #ftw09 on Twitter.

As an industry leading recruitment resource for the past decade, JobsInTheUS has worked with thousands of hiring managers and HR professionals, read through tens of thousands of employment advertisements, and spoken to hundreds of thousands of job seekers through our outreach and education programs.  Learning from this experience, along with participation in local SHRM chapters in ME, NH, VT, MA, and RI, and a commitment to ongoing education, JobsInTheUS has developed a web-based education and training curriculum for the HR community and small business owners and managers.

The new eLearning series will launched today with the presentation of 20/20 Employment Branding.  Each month, JobsInTheUS will present two different topics, which registrants can attend via webinar.  Four of the programs have already been approved for General Credits by the Human Resources Certification Institute.  While these programs will be promoted heavily in New England, the web-based learning platform allows for registrants from anywhere in the world.

Here are the current programs on the schedule:

• Internet Recruiting 101 (HRCI Approved for 1.5 General Credits)
• 20/20 Employment Branding (HRCI Approved for 1.5 General Credits)
• Organizational Staffing 200: Working Through a Recession (HRCI Approved for 1.5 General Credits)
• Employment Branding 201: Communicating Your Employment Brand
• Employment Branding 202: Employment Branding Analytics
• Social Media: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly (HRCI Approved for 1.5 General Credits)
• Reinventing Your Company: Best Practices

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE ABOUT THESE PROGRAMS

As I mentioned in my earlier post from the ere.net expo and the IAEWS Annual Member Congress, I will be writing 7 posts in 7 days related to those events.  This is number two of these seven.

After an absolutely exhilerating day participating in the Annual Member Congress of the International Association of Employment Websites, I was prepared to sense some level of deflation as I entered day two of my trip, and day one of the ere.net expo.  After all, I work for a group of employment websites , and this was a conference primarily geared toward full time corporate and 3rd party recruiters. These were the people paid to find the talent that’s theoretically not looking for work on websites.

As I entered the presentation hall, it was apparent this was a big deal. Hundreds of attendees packed the hall, and the stage, video, and sound system were absolutely top flight.  The opening welcome remarks were given by Kevin Wheeler (another sign this was a big deal), the President and Founder of Global Learning Resources, who’s client list includes PriceWaterhouseCoopers, Eli Lilly, and Sun Microsystems.  Wheeler gave a nice, and nicely brief, welcome, and ushered in what may have been the best presentation of the three day event.

The keynote presentation, entitled “Impossible Is Nothing” Recruiting, was given by Steve Fogarty, Recruiting Captain for adidas North America, along with Steve Bonomo, Head of Global Recruiting, adidas Group.  Two men who clearly eat, sleep, and live adidas branding and recruiting.

Initially, I had little hope for this presentation- what can our site learn from these guys, and what can I bring back that will translate to smaller businesses.  In fact, one of their admissions was that their greatest recruitment edge was the athletes who endorse their products.  What they realized was that people identified with the brand of adidas through the athletes, and therefore, their ability to bring in people who were passionate about working with them was also linked to these athletes.

Great.  First notes on my note pad, “key to successful employment branding = sign sponsorship deals with international stars…simple ” .  -That’s exactly what I have written on my yellow legal pad.

As they went on however, the two Steve’s did a masterful job of connecting their research to the development of their employment brand, then illustrating how they reinforce an leverage that brand to attract top talent.  The following bullets highlight some of the great thoughts they shared:

• At the executive level, their company understands that employee productivity is directly related to employee engagement
• Talent Acquisition department is modeled after sales/marketing department, even using the words candidate and customer interchangeably -
  • Employment Branding = Marketing; Sourcing Candidates = Sales
• There are only 2 fundamental principles in Branding that a company can affect- Choice and Expectation
• There are three driving forces to affect Brand: Focus, Alignment, and Linkage
• Utilizing an activity called Differentiation in Degree v. Differentiation in Kind, they were able to identify what really makes their work environment unique (this is where they realized that the athletes were key)
• One tool to remaining focused on their brand was to the creation of a Brand book, with illustration of how the employment brand related to all areas of the talent acquisition process.
• Talent Acquisition Process: Perception, Initial Contact, Screening, Interviewing, On-Boarding
• Best in class methodology includes building a recruitment web space that is monitored and analyzed just like an eRetail site
  • Where do they go when they enter?
  • What are they looking for?
  • What leads to the application/sale?
  • Where do they leave from?

All in all, this was an amazing presentation that showed the audience the power of a fully realized and supported employment brand.  As someone who consults with employers on employment branding, I found myself feeling please both because much of what they said reinforced the work we do, and also because I learned so much more about the process.

As you’d expect, there was no sense of deflation after this start of the day, and it just got better after that.

As I mentioned in my earlier post from the ere.net expo and the IAEWS Annual Member Congress, I will be writing 7 posts in 7 days related to those events.  This is the first of these seven.

One of the primary topics for discussion at the Annual Member Congress of the International Association of Employment Websites (IAEWS) was how social media growth is affecting the “job board” industry.  In fact, of the seven seminar topics presented, social media was an integral piece of four of them, and was touched upon in two others.  Just by virtue of the floor time devoted to this topic, it’s pretty clear this is a major issue, and one that many people in my industry are worried about.

Ultimately, the question comes down to this: Will social media platforms cause the demise of internet job boards. Put another way, are internet job boards dying?  I won’t keep you in suspense- the answer to those questions is a resounding NO.  And that’s not just my opinion as a director with an internet recruiting resource.  Honestly, that’s merely the conclusion I come to no matter how many ways I roll this around in my head.  Thinking critically, it just doesn’t make sense.

Shannon Seery Gude, VP-Digital for the Bernard Hodes Group provided the keynote presentation, and talked at length about effective online reputation management.  Gude provide many well-referenced stats on the growth of social media, but also shared excellent insight to why job boards are getting a bad rap.  It was her position that this industry doesn’t have enough of a voice online.  In this day and age, people learn by searching on Google and other search engines.  While many people post rants about the “death of job boards”, nearly everyone doing so has a vested interest in this position- such as 3rd party recruiters, resume distribution platforms, or recruitment ad agencies.  Gude’s advice?  Engage in this new media.  Generate content in social networks and in blogs, which are both highly indexed by search engines, and tell the positive stories and real world results being achieved through recruitment advertising on internet job boards.

A committee assembled by the IAEWS also provided a preview of a Future of the Industry report they are assembling.  As you’d expect, this report revealed the underlying fear that our industry is in danger.  It also illustrated just how much time, effort, and resources are being allocated in the job board sector to adapt to social media.

One of the most compelling presentations came from Chris Forman, CEO of AIRS.  If you get a chance to listen to this guy, or work with him, I’d suggest you take it.  He came across as smart, well read, thoughtful, and able to utilize his critical thinking skills to postulate plausible assumptions about the future of social media and recruiting.  As Forman points out, we can’t deny the growth of social media, nor can we ignore the power of social network platforms.  From his research, he shared this staggering statistic- in 2008, one in eight marriages were between people who met in social media.

That being said, Forman also believes that this growth provides great opportunities for job boards to increase market share, and develop better tools and services.  One of the most poignant comments he shared, was that HR tends to be a risk averse department, and this quality will help shield recruitment and job boards from social media intervention, giving us time to develop new ways to integrate.

Getting back to my initial statement, that social media won’t supplant job boards, nor will job boards simply cease to exist, many of the thoughts and concerns were aired during group sessions, where the members were asked to participate in a group dialogue.  When our group looked at how our industry, and our services are viewed, there seemed to be a wide variety of perceptions.  While most agreed that there was a perception that job boards were becoming outdated, it was widely agreed that at the end of the day, these services work.  And they don’t just work for the employers who pay to advertise, but they also work for the job seekers who use them to find work.  This is what any good service, product, or industry hopes to achieve- Pervasive Customer Satisfaction.

When you really begin to break it down, job seekers will always need to know where to look to find volumes of job opportunities.  While it’s great, and imperative, for companies to post jobs on their own site, it simply wouldn’t be plausible for job seekers to have to search for jobs company by company.  Additionally, not all businesses hire computer savvy individuals, and literally millions of job openings are still coming from very small businesses, and for jobs that are non-technical.  The employers are far less likely to invest the time and resources to create career centers on their own sites.  Likewise, most small businesses will NEVER have the time to search through social networks, seeking out one resume at a time.  While I am certain that this type of activity will grow for employers who employ full time recruiting departments, it simply doesn’t work for the more than 70% of employers who are considered small businesses.

So, as I mentioned, when you begin to look at the job search / job advertising relationship critically, and break down the behaviors, drivers, and demographics of the users, it’s very hard to come to any other conclusion.  Internet job boards have proven to be an excellent use of technology, that provide value to both job seekers and employers.  While all businesses and industries evolve over time, when something makes this much sense, and is this easy to use, it’s here to stay.

Here’s the September 2009 Job Report, brought to you by JobsInNH.com. Each month, I’ll take a look at the labor market data we collect as the state’s leading employment website. This month, we’ll take a look at some key data points that illustrate a slow recovery during the second quarter. It’s also beginning to look like June will represent the bottoming out of the labor market in New Hampshire.

Let’s start by taking a look at the August state wide job posting numbers. At month’s end, there were just under 1,700 active job openings posted on JobsInNH, up more than 20% since June. During the month, however, only 1,430 new openings were posted, compared to 1,300 in June. As these number show, the job openings are being filled much more quickly than this time last year.

August also showed a 10% increase in the number or employers actively posting jobs on JobsInNH since June, though that number is down 35% from August of 2008. As you would expect, job seeker traffic to the website continues to rise. In June the JobsInNH website hosted more than 470,000 unique visits, generating over 2.4 million page views. While the visits are up more than 20% over August of 2008, the number of page views has remained level, as there are fewer jobs postings to view.

Next up, let’s take a peek at what kind of jobs are available. Looking back at the August numbers, one small glimmer of optimism can be found in the job postings by wage type. While the majority of job openings are for hourly wage positions, those numbers are shrinking slowly, while Salary job openings have been growing for two straight months, and now represent more than 25% of all job openings posted on JobsInNH.com. We also look to the job types to assess the market. Full time and part time jobs are both down from July, but still up significantly over June of this year.

The question on most people’s minds of course, is what jobs are out there, and where are they. As you would expect, the majority of job openings in New Hampshire are in the Manchester and Concord areas, with job counts more than doubling in both Hillsborough and Rockingham counties since June. While those numbers are remarkable, the real sign of recovery is evidenced by the fact that every county in the state showed an increase in job openings since June on JobsInNH.

The view of job openings by industry segment reflects the success of the government’s Cash for Clunkers program, as the largest gains were seen in the Automotive and Manufacturing sectors. Healthcare, which has become unusually flat since the end of 2008, is also showing renewed strength.

Need more proof that we’re on the road to recovery? Of the 70 job categories that JobsInNH tracks, nearly 85% showed an increase in job postings on the website since June, and of the 15% that had fewer postings, none of the losses were in the double digits.

Jobs, Talent Acquisition, & Money: The Insider’s World.

Beginning on September 9th, hundreds of the most influential profiles in talent acquisition descended upon the Westin Diplomat Resort & Spa in Hollywood, FL to shape the future of how people find jobs, and how employers find people.  Two of the most powerful associations in this world held major events- The International Association of Employment Websites’ (IAEWS) Annual Member Congress, run by Peter Weddle, and ere.net’s (ERE), founded by David Manaster, Fall Expo.

As a first time attendee, it’s clear that this is the epicenter of the recruiting universe.  Over 3 days, top executives from leading job search engines, such as JuJu.com and Indeed.com, recruitment advertising agencies, such as Shaker Advertising, TMP, and Hodes, job boards, such as SalesGravy, HotJobs, and Jobing, along with private recruiters, vendors, and corporate recruiters participate in panels, seminars, and networking events that ultimately shape how people and employers connect.  Discussion topics range from how Adidas corporate recruiters develop an engaging brand, to how boolean search strings can be used effectively to source candidates; from how ad agencies work with media, to how OFCCP regulations will affect the recruitment process.

Make no mistake, the influencers here are powerful, are moving a great deal of money, and are effectively driving behaviors in this space.  As a business development professional in the media side, I found this event to be exhilerating, fascinating, and truly enjoyable.  New ideas abound.  Creativity is rewarded.  Impossible is nothing.

To adequately capture this experience and share it in more detail, I will be adding 7 posts in 7 days beginning on Sunday, when I’m settled back at home.  Each day will have different content, and will examine a different aspect of this event.  Stay Tuned.

In the meantime, you can stay up to date by following the conference on Twitter using the hashtag: #ereexpo

Title: SocialMediaFTW
Location: University of Southern Maine, Portland, ME
Link out: Click here
Description: I’m very excited to announce that I’ll be presenting at this workshop!

About Social Media FTW

Social Media FTW is the brain child of Rich Brooks, Chrystie Corns & Jaica Kinsman. As local organizers of the monthly Maine Tweetups and Social Media Breakfasts, the three saw a need for more social media education for small business owners, professional marketers and enterprise level executives. The Social Media FTW group aims to bring industry leading Social Media speakers, networking events and educational classes to Northern New England.

The Social Media FTW Conference will include sessions taught by industry leaders in social media, blogging, podcasting, branding, internet marketing and so much more. This half-day conference promises to deliver hands-on help for those who are new to Social Networking as well as higher level strategy sessions for those already involved in Social Marketing efforts. Register today to attend the Social Media FTW Conference.
Start Time: 12:30 PM
Date: 2009-09-23