Comments on: The Outlook for Recruiting

By: Hai Nguyen

Hai Nguyen — Fri, 08 May 2009 10:08:03 +0000

Philosophical perspective on the recruitment industry. I think the industry needs down turns like this. Recruiters who are resourceful will come out of this recession better equipped for whatever happens in the future. Nothing mystical about it, just common sense, innovative thinking and positive focus on moving forward.

By: Small and Midsize Employers Lead Innovation, and the Recovery « The Staffing Advisor

Thu, 26 Mar 2009 05:31:44 +0000

[...] reason, I’ve written extensively on the need for search firms to innovate. In a post on “The Outlook for Recruiting” on ERE, Raghave Singh reached a similar conclusion. ”…much of the growth in jobs is [...]

By: Keith Halperin

Keith Halperin — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 02:21:35 +0000

As an alternative, I can also provide a personalized job search for $2,000 for the first month and $500 for each month thereafter.

Cheers,
Keith 415.586.8265 keithsrj@sbcglobal.net

………………………………………………

Rather than hire career development professionals to provide formal training, our firm is generating additional revenue by partnering with a career coaching organization founded by a fortune 500 HR VP.

By: Larissa Wennerstrom

Larissa Wennerstrom — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 00:36:48 +0000

Who knows how weak or long the recovery will be. In this downturn, even our strong candidates need great advice on how to compete. Rather than hire career development professionals to provide formal training, our firm is generating additional revenue by partnering with a career coaching organization founded by a fortune 500 HR VP. This business goes to market through a MLM model and you earn money by simply introducing people to a career coaching service. http://www.mycareermovement.com/members/larissasearch/

By: Alan LaRotonda

Alan LaRotonda — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 13:11:45 +0000

Great article. Recruitment will continue, but its ranks may shrink considerably, beyond what we witnessed at the beginning of the decade. I read an ERE article a few weeks ago in which the case was made that sourcing will become extinct as social networks begin to interact. This article reinforces that sourcing will not go away anytime soon, and I concur. The only thing that will change are the people in sourcing (or recruiting) who are unable to adapt to the new marketplace and evolving technologies. I didn’t respond at the time, but since I’m typing, here goes: As long as in-house recruiters do not have the time to adequately scour their ATS or utilize the ever increasing pool of recruitment tools available to identify qualified applicants for their open positions, sourcers, contract recruiters, and agencies will step in to fill the void.

By: Robert Bialk

Robert Bialk — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 19:09:32 +0000

http://www.thealist.biz/ This worked for me.

By: Keith Halperin

Keith Halperin — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 18:41:26 +0000

“20+ years of greed, incompetence and irresponsibility.” : That’s a good description of what the fortunes of the recruiting industry have been built upon. (I’d also add arrogance and fear.) I sense that there is an underlying belief/hope/prayer that after this economic “blip” is over, we’ll go right back to “business as usual,” where large numbers of decent, hardworking, reliable recruiters and sourcers are able to make middle/upper-middle class incomes hiring people for companies in the same old ways, or maybe using “the Wonderful Web 2.0 which changes everything!” Well folks, I believe we’re do for a “sea change,” because *95% of corporat recruiting (at least for big companies) relies on processes which can largely be eliminated completely, automated, internalized if external, or outsourced for no more than around $3,500/month. If you’re an Executive Recruiter or a Specialty Recruiter, you’ll be sitting pretty for the foreseeable future. On the other hand, if you aren’t delivering a world-class or high-value add or high-touch staffing service, you better improve/change your skills, or start looking for a new job.

I liked Maureen’s, Shally’s and Glenn’s recent ERE article on training. We should train/retrain folks for these areas which pay well and won’t go away. These include things like being master- closers, relationship builders, and project managers to act as liaisons for the outsourced teams and the client/employer.

One way or another, we should learn to adapt to new circumstances or prepare to be overwhelmed by them.

Cheers,

Keith “Ask Me How” Halperin
keithsrj@sbcglobal.net 415.586.8265

“In the 21st century, everything changes and you gotta be
ready!”
- Captain Jack Harkness

*This is based on http://www.careerxroads.com/news/SourcesofHire09.pdf
100%- (7.8% Direct Sourcing + 2.7% Agency)/2 = 94.7%. This assumes that half of agencies’ hires and sourcing could have been done internally with better planning. (The sourcing figure already includes internal sourcing, but doesn’t break it down.). -kh

By: John Sroka

John Sroka — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 18:16:12 +0000

Raghav may need to spend less time writing and more time managing his business. The website of his staffing business http://www.thea-listllc.com has expired.

By: Robert Bialk

Robert Bialk — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 18:06:07 +0000

Interesting perspective Raghav. It is interesting that since the market has been up over the last week; it has created some optimism… at least in Chicago. Hopefully, it is not a false rally. If you enjoy Raghav’s writing, take a look at “Presidential Pardon” a great book he authored that stands up over time. You can find it at Amazon.com

By: Roxana Ramos

Roxana Ramos — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 17:08:26 +0000

I agree with the comments that have been posted regarding this being a great article, but also still being too negative. As an immigrant to this country, I firmly believe there is no place like the U.S.A., where you have a conglomerate of people from all races and cultures, constantly pushing the envelope of innovation to higher and higher levels. My take is that out of this period of “necessity”, (the word necessity is relative if we compare ourselves with many other countries), will come even more innovation and more opportunities….they may just be different ones. The word opportunity is described in the Thesaurus as: a favorable condition, an advantageous chance…. I think I see the glimpse of a positive message somewhere in that description!

By: Joe Gammage

Joe Gammage — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 17:00:17 +0000

A bit too pessimistic for my taste. The Phoenix analogy is a bit over-the-top and dire for the reality of a business correction. Unfortunately, the Eco-Hypochondria that plagues our society today will make this a far steeper cyclical downturn than it would typically have been.

By: Jim Sullivan

Jim Sullivan — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 16:38:06 +0000

Good article, thought provoking but still too negative in my opinion. We still have over 90% of the population employed and paying their bills on time.

Even in the worst of times some companies are hiring and taking advantage of getting the best people to help their companies grow and prosper. We still have a lack of good professional talent in this country – that is not going away anytime soon.

The entreprenurial spirit is still alive in this country and even though the “big” companies are reducing staffing levels – none of them can continue to do so without impacting the employees that are left (they end up being overworked and lacking any sense of stability and in turn start looking for better opportunities). The smaller companies and new start-ups will now be able to hire top notch talent without the stiff competition from the “big” firms. This in turn will help these companies grow and hire more people and the cycle repeats.

The doom and gloom that is presented by the media is (per a journalist friend) what the metrics say people want. I have stopped listening to them and have decided that the way to go is forward with a positive attitude that hard work and persistence will, as always, pay off in the long run.

The only thing that is guarenteed is that things will change. If you stand still and don’t change then you could be part of the unfortunate group that doesn’t make it to your goals.

By: Steve Brainard

Steve Brainard — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 16:20:09 +0000

Let’s be honest here, nobody, myself included, really knows what the future holds. We have all been affected (personally and professionally) by the recession, but I certainly don’t think the mood is “more sour than ever before”. There was a perfect storm in the financial and mortgage markets brought about by 20+ years of greed, incompetence and irresponsibility. The government is taking steps (hopefully the right ones) to right the ship and when the dust settles, we will be able to start putting the pieces back together again.

I had the privilege of visiting with an engineer from Germany on a recent flight and he reminded me that America is still the most innovative country in the world and that we “make some really great stuff”. I am a bit embarassed to admit that it took the words of someone from another country to remind me of how privileged we are to live here and that despite the short-term challenges we face, our resolve will see us through. We all need to step up and start believing in ourselves and each other and tune out the gloom and doom.

By: Daniel Goyeneche

Daniel Goyeneche — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 15:39:19 +0000

I also believe that while “Finance” may not have big hiring needs, the flip-side is the Insurance industry, which may be a dark horse here. However, given the catastrophic failure of AIG and other big firms, job seekers look for stability, which private Insurance companies can offer. At the same time, these businesses will grow because of their very nature – private/mutual vs. for-profit – and time-tested business models that can still experience growth in tough financial times.

By: Kevin Fallon

Kevin Fallon — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 15:01:43 +0000

Another great article – Maureen is right – thought provoking indeed…….some folks clearly have a gift and Raghav is one of them …..thanks

By: Maureen Sharib

Maureen Sharib — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 11:30:43 +0000

This time it’s like the legend of the Phoenix. It lives for a thousand years and once that time is over, it builds its own funeral pyre, and throws itself into the flames. As it dies, it is reborn and rises from the ashes to live another thousand years. We’re at the end of the thousand years.

As always, thought provoking.