Have you picked up employees from struggling industry companies?

As a follow up from my post last week, I wanted to share with you all the follow up from John Swanson (Editor at W&D) from the weekly email newsletter. I had emailed John my thoughts after reading last weeks issue, and he was kind enough to share my thoughts in his follow up along with their poll results - which were rather interesting! As always, would love to get your thoughts, input and opinion on this topic and any others that are important to you!

John G. Swanson
September 24, 2008
THE TALK... | Management

Survey Results for 09/17/2008:

We have:

Kept things pretty tight in our own company, so we're not hiring. 69%

Looked at possibility, but not found right people 15%

Picked up a few key people from struggling industry companies 13%

Hired many people from struggling industry companies 3%

The results from this week's poll make clear that most industry companies are in a "hold tight" phase. That's not too surprising--given the industry headlines we've seen lately. Some respondents indicate they are looking at picking up talent, however. Thirteen percent have taken the plunge and added a couple of people and 3 percent indicate that strengthened their workforces more substantially.

She admits it may not be easy to do, but Carlyn Burns, a recruiter in the industry with Prolyn Executive Search, emailed me to wrote to say "now is a better time than ever to hire people if you can afford it. It is beyond amazing how much great talent is out there for the taking right now. One company's layoffs or downsizing is another company's dream come true to often pick up a caliber of candidate that they would otherwise never get the opportunity to hire or even find."

Burns also reports, however, there's been a change in the past year, with more companies hiring outside the industry. The main reason behind this, she says, is that many companies are finding it harder to relocate candidates--"as in getting candidates that are willing to take the risk to sell their house and/or take a huge hit on the sale of their house to pick up and move."

She also suggests that "many companies are almost dissuaded by hiring industry experienced folks because they are so negative in attitude about prior window companies they have worked for and may potentially bring that negativity to their next company. " Burns goes on to note: "As I am sure you know all too well, many life long employee in this industry have given up total hope of the industry recovering and the industry being sustained and of course bad news travels quicker than good news. I think it is personally crazy and the industry will be just fine, if not better here soon. Yet, the majority of candidates I speak with are so down in the dumps and negative about the down turn in the industry that many of them are fleeing to other industries as well. That is the scary part to me."

Interestingly, and perhaps somewhat surprisingly, Burns reports that despite the struggles in the industry, "I have never been busier. It is baffling to many, as this year has most definitely been the one year within my involvement in the industry that I have seen so much distress and struggle with many companies in the industry, with layoffs, continual plant closings, etc. In any event, I remain busy…companies in the industry continue to hire me to find them people to fill their open jobs."

In light of the poll results, my take on her last observation is that more than a few companies are positioning themselves for the future. They have the resources--and probably don't carry the debt that other companies have--to invest for the long term. One thing I do know is that we have a lot of private companies in this business--family owned--that don't have to focus on the quarterly numbers and how financial analysts and other third parties will react. These companies have always focused on the long term and I suspect they're doing it now too.

Hire now if you can!

While I am sure many of you have already read the W&D weekly email newsletter, thought this snippet from John Swanson, Editor/Assocuate Publisher of W&D was worth repeating. His point makes great sense and I have personally seen many industry companies doing exactly this right now as there has never been a better time to pick up great industry talent.

A manufacturer contacted me not too long ago to see if I had heard any news about one its local competitors. The reason he inquired is that he was seeing an influx of people from this competitor looking for jobs at his operation.

While I hadn’t heard any news in this particular case, and I wasn’t much help, it reminded me of something said to me not too long ago. “If you can afford to do it, it’s a great time to hire people,” an industry supplier told me. “With some companies cutting back, there’s a lot of talent and knowledge available.”

September 11th Anniversary

We wanted to take a moment to honor and remember the 7 year anniversary of the traumatic terrorist attacks of 9/11. Our hearts, thoughts and prayers go out to everyone affected by this tragic day!

Reasons to Run From a Job Interview

Here's an excerpt from a great article on interview flags from Business Week (written by Liz Ryan). It is often difficult to gauge when to walk away from a job opportunity after a company has wooed you and put you through the interview wringer...hopefully the tips in this article will help provide some clarity on when to run and when to stick the process out! Enjoy!

When a prospective employer makes unreasonable demands on you before things start to get serious, it's a strong signal to hit the road.

Here's our list of Six Reasons to Run:

1) Your employment references are requested before a strong mutual interest is established. Any employer who values a job candidate also values his or her time and relationships. When a headhunter or company recruiter tells you "We'll need to call your references" too early in the game, they're sending a signal that the valuable time of your reference-givers is not nearly as valuable as the time that the company would waste in interviewing you before checking up on you. Your cue to bail.

2) The employer asks for your Social Security number or your approval for a credit or background check before strong mutual interest is established.

When a company says, "We need to check on you before we can spare the time to talk with you," it's time to get out of Dodge. A talent-focused employer will call you for a phone interview (at a minimum) before bothering you for personal information that they won't require if they don't make you a job offer. This type of batch processing shouts, "Get in line to genuflect." Keep looking.

3) You're sent a questionnaire (not a job application) or online test to complete before you've had any human contact with the employer, including a phone call. When a company makes its selection process more efficient by shoving tests in your face before so much as chatting with you, they're sharing their views on reciprocity. "Prove to us that you're worth our time" is not the message that a talent-aware employer sends to the talented people applying to use their talents on its behalf. Reciprocity works in the same that permission-based marketing does; you give something to get something at every step in the process. A smarter company will chat with you, answer your questions about the job, and then ask, "Would you mind filling out our questionnaire, as the next step in the process? Can I answer any questions for you, to help you feel comfortable investing more time in our company?"

4) Unreasonable or short notice to travel for interview. The Vortex becomes more powerful over time, and many a job seeker has called me excitedly to report, "They're flying me to New York City, tomorrow," without stopping to think: "Wait a second, they didn't ask me whether it was convenient for me to fly to New York City, now that I think about it." I know of one situation in which a candidate was pressured to fly to the company's headquarters on his wife's birthday. He was told, "If this isn't a priority for you, it isn't a priority for us, either." He wavered for an hour or two before telling them: "If my personal life and my most important relationship isn't important to you, I don't want to work for you." If they really want you, they can wait a day or two.

5) You're told you can't meet the team, or see the employee handbook, or meet clients (if appropriate) before an offer is extended. This is a big, neon red flag that plenty of job seekers miss in the swirling colors of The Vortex. You need to meet your co-workers. Period. You need to see the employee handbook, which you'll be expected to adhere to during your tenure with the company and which will govern your working relationship. If you will work closely with a client at a senior level, it could make sense for you to meet with someone from the client's team before accepting the job. Ask yourself: Why wouldn't they let me meet the team or read the handbook? What is this employer afraid of?

6) All communication is funneled through the HR rep or the headhunter. Practical matters, like interview times and paperwork flying back and forth, doesn't need to take up a hiring manager's time. It makes sense to have an HR point person or third-party recruiter handling communication with a candidate over these "mechanical" issues. But if you're really interested in a job and have a question for your prospective manager, the manager absolutely needs to take that call. If you can't get the manager's attention now, what makes you think you'll be able to when you work there?

Leave any of these six scary Vortex situations behind and don't look back—you'll have dodged a bullet. You have a lot to offer, and if an employer can't see it as the selection process unfolds, your talents are better used elsewhere.