people2people news | September 7, 2010
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$100 Gift Voucher
Posted by Kaden: October 15, 2009people2people finally caught up with Wayne Simpson today, third prize winner in our 2009 footy tipping competition. As Vice President of Finance at Guy Carpenter, it seems Wayne takes his tipping just as seriously as his budgets; Wayne also placed first in at least one other competition this year. His secret? “Don’t tip with your heart when money is involved”. Not bad advice, coming from a St George supporter!
Wayne is now the proud owner of a $100 David Jones gift voucher for his efforts, and says that he can’t wait for next year’s installment where he hopes to topple Eric Mexis from his mantle of ‘Grand Tipper - 2009′. Best of luck Wayne, that sounds like a challenge!
Kaden Kennedy
Human Resources
Should you really apply for that job?
Posted by Elizabeth: October 12, 2009A candidate who registered with our agency recently asked me how she could improve her resume to increase her chances of getting a job. She didn’t understand why she was unsuccessful time and time again. “I apply for 10 jobs a day and get rejections letters or no response all the time.”
Although it may be necessary to apply for more jobs in the current employment market - the fact is, this approach may actually work against you.
As a recruiter (or employer) we read through hundreds of applications on a daily basis. In our initial screening we are looking for a match between the jobs requirements given to us - generally in terms of previous experience and skills. Unfortunately we’re not able to budge on these boundaries and the candidates who don’t seem to have the appropriate background are immediately ruled out. Having to read a lot applications for people who do not meet the basic job requirements cause much frustration for both the recruiter and employer as it is a waste of time. And if you see the same person applying for every job you are advertising (regardless of experience or skills) you may start asking questions about the candidates motivation, career aspirations and self evaluation skills.
When going through the countless job advertisements online you should read the role requirements carefully and what the role would involve day to day. Can you bring what has been outlined as essential requirements to the table? Are you excited about the opportunity and can see yourself working in this role? Then you should apply now.
If, on the other hand, you know that you do not have the skills or experience - think twice about applying. If you are genuinely interested and want to find out if they would consider someone like you - give them a call and ask. Picking up the phone can make a real difference and it can mean you don’t waste your time applying for jobs you just will not get.
Elizabeth Punshon
Consultant Temporary Services
How to negotiate a job offer
Posted by Lisa: October 8, 2009Well maybe I should say ‘how NOT to negotiate a job offer’. In my role I get to talk to consultants from a number of different agencies and I am the first to admit that I judge them by my own high standards. Generally I am happy to talk with them and its a mutually respectful and beneficial relationship that we have. And mostly they do everything that my client and I need them to do.
Today is not one of those days. Recently my client decided to recruit for a junior - ideally a school leaver who wanted to get formal training in the industry and who was prepared to travel to different sites to gain exposure to the business. We advertised directly and could not find the ‘right’ person - so I was very happy to tell my client that it was time to talk to one of the preferred suppliers on our Agency list. I called up -well lets call him Steve, although obviously that’s not his real name -and asked him to talk to my client directly and find a junior for this great role. Which he did. In fact, he gave us two absolutely brilliant candidates and my client and I were thrilled to bits!
Alas, this is where it gets horrible (if it was a Tarantino movie, this is the bit where Selma Hyek stops dancing on the table with the yellow snake and grows fangs) - the consultant has made a fundamental recruitment 101 mistake. He has not clarified what the client is prepared to pay for the role and he has oversold on salary to the candidate. Specifically - he told the candidate he was putting her forward at $xx which just happens to be $9k more than what she is on now. Face it - if I was a young person who has been working for less than a year & I was told I was going to get $9k more by taking this job, I would have gone out and bought a round of WestCoast Coolers for my mates.
The problem is that the client has offered her $7k less than what the recruitment consultant told her she would get. Now this is $2,000 more than what she is getting right now and she would be working closer to home and less hours - and she would be paid overtime rates as well. If the Recruiter had never told her he would get her $9k more then I am pretty sure she would have been really happy with this offer. But as they say - if wishes were horses.
So here we are and well, nobody is very happy right now. My client is devastated at the prospect of losing the best candidate for the role; the candidate is feeling ripped off; the consultant is watching his ‘it’s in the bag’ fee wash down the toilet; and I am now faced at being back at square one with a disgruntled client, a snippy consultant and no candidates in the mix. Maybe we can retrieve this one from the brink - I am hopeful that we can - but no-one is going to feel good about it. The poor candidate will always wonder if the client undervalued them and got them on the cheap.
I don’t necessarily think that the recuiter is the only one at fault here - my client has obviously not been clear on what she is prepared to pay and she hasn’t gone back to the recruiter to clarify the candidates expectations until the offer has been made and fallen flat. But when you are dealing with inexperienced clients and you are engaged to recruit for them - it is a good idea to take the lead role in that relationship. And here is what you should always do:
- Ask the client what their salary range is for the role - and establish what kind of skills, experience and attributes fall into that range. For example your client may say: “I am expecting to pay between $45 - $55k - but for $55k the person would have to have a lot of industry experience and have been supervising staff. If the person hasn’t got specific industry experience or supervisory experience, I am only going to look at paying around that $45k mark”.
- Find the ‘negotiables’ in what the client is looking for. Clients will often pay more if the candidate has something that exceeds their expectations and conversely they will often pay less for people who lack the right experience, systems skills or qualifications
- When ’selling’ a job to a candidate - always find out what their bottom line is and then sell the job to them at that level. If they end up being offered more than this, they are going to love you, love you, love you. And if the client is getting someone for $5k less than they were expecting to pay then they are going to love you just as much.
- Sell on benefits. Frankly a job offer falling to pieces on salary is shameful. The candidate should be salivating to work for the client -because of location or hours or career opportunities or the chance to gain more specific experience. Very few people are truly motivated by money so find out what is really motivating them to look for a new job and work on those motivations. If money IS their main motivator then find out exactly what they are prepared to move for and take it from there.
Whatever you do - don’t do a ’Steve’!
lisa johnson
manager - onsiite