Admit It, Investing In Passive Candidate Recruiting Practices Is Where It Is At.....

Investing In Passive Candidate Recruiting Is The Only Way To Recruit!

Don't Be Shy About It- Go After The Top Talent You Want From Where You Want!

Investing In Passive Candidate Recruiting if done correctly, tells the story of the competition's talent, the entire potential talent pool, assists with current openings, exploratory openings, talent management and can  hands down increase the time to hire when this information is used to proactively recruit.

Stakeholders involved in any type of recruiting need to be aware that this investment can drastically reduce the cost per hire while yielding the game-fully employed, possibly over performing talent you and your competition may wish to recruit. But you need to get to them first! You need to invest!

How can you reach this super talent?

1. Carefully choose an internal professional with previous research experience (picking up telephone and developing organization charts) or outsource to a reputable, results driven research company to do the work. The objective is to thoroughly break out the companies and teams at the companies of interest. Focus the efforts on comprehensive organization charting.

2. Find biographies of those uncovered by step 1. This again which will help you understand who is in each role, their backgrounds, education and the responsibilities of each.

3. View it, use it and cultivate it! Implement a system where someone in your organization connects or stays in front these professionals every 30, 60, 90, 120 days.  This can be done either internally or externally. We offer this service.

Today especially, we all know the passive candidate seem to be the recruiter’s best chance of filling critical roles, but they also can be the hardest talent pool to win over. You need to engage and build relationships with this talent pool.

4. Implement a strategy that creates a proactive recruiting methodology as part of the recruiting strategy. Remember everyone company want top talent just like you. Don't be shy go get them.

It has been proven that organizations that only use recruiting to fill current and immediate talent needs will often time miss out or be one step behind those that act proactively. So you need to stay in touch with the professionals who are on your radar screen as well as those you want to be on your radar screen.

Investing in Passive Candidate Recruiting & Research can be well worth it. We know. We have over 21oo clients doing this on a variety of levels.

I am on the road now creating awareness about the value of understanding the talent pool and the benefits the recruiting teams can have when utilizing the recruiting strategy that centers around passive candidate recruiting from a specific talent pool. If you are interested, just let me know and I can come visit or set up a web-ex meeting.

Thanks for stopping by.

Sheila Greco sgreco@sheilagreco.com 518 843-4611 ext 221

Proactive Recruiting - Passive, Happy Where They Are Candidates, Need to Be Recruited!

Passive, Happy Where They Are Candidates Need to be Recruited!

Proactive recruiting requires seeking out the best of breed candidates for each search assignment as set forth by the client.  Recruiting needs to be the direct result of contacting people who are sitting at the companies of interest, in a role that may be similar to the client's, are quite happy where they are and are not even thinking about making a move.

Until.....contact has been made! The opportunity has been presented, the conversation begins, the professionals are engaged,  interests are peaked, questions are being asked and the once "passive candidate" is becoming an active one for the role the recruiter is recruiting for.

Passive candidates are not looking therefore in many cases don't even know about  opportunities simply because no one has told them about it. They need to be recruited! So having said that, passive recruiters not proactive recruiters can be missing out on great candidates.

What is wrong with this picture? Recruiters need to be proactive. It is up to the recruiter to make the introduction regarding the opening.  Proactive recruiting efforts can result in recruiting passive,  happy where they are candidates. Makes sense.?Of course!

A major piece to proactive recruiting is getting the message and opportunity out there to the right people! Passive candidates are not thinking about looking for a new job, they are working hard for the next internal promotion! They want to be rock stars where they are!

My advice to recruiters, hiring managers and anyone looking to upgrade their team, and company, proactively recruit.  It is irresponsible to rely on sitting back hoping the right, qualified, best of breed candidates will come to you.

My advice today is to proactively recruit the top recruits before the competitor does!

Once again, Keep It Simple Silly! Recruit proactively!

Thanks for stopping by!

Best regards,

Sheila Greco

sgreco@sheilagreco.com 518 842-4611 ext 221

Recruiting Passive Candidates & Keeping It Simple Silly!

Recruiting Passive Candidates & Keeping It Simple Silly!

Recruiting Passive Candidates & Keeping It Simple Silly (KISS Method) has been my strategy for over 20 years.  The approach, as always is methodical and the process remains the same.  Whether recruiting for a President/General Manager , Java developers, Architects,  Regional Sales Managers ,  Account Managers (BI & Retail), Leaders and Consultants in I/T or Tax & Audit  the recruiting strategy remains the same.   It begins with research/name generation that provides the call/connect list which shows  the potential talent pool that is then used for recruiting and networking.  It doesn't get more simple then this!

Recruiting passive candidates and keeping it simple silly is what I believe to be the tried and true way to successful recruiting.  I have tried, I must admit to just go for it, but it only works for the first 1-2 days, then I find myself stalling a little to regroup which I find to be a waste of time.  Call me old-fashioned, but the more organized I am the more efficient I can be.  I practice what I preach! If you want to hear me preach call me! If you want results call me too.

Here is my 10 Step Keep It Simple Silly Recruiting Process:

1. Kick Off Meeting With The Client

2. Target List Development (Best of Breed, Back Yard Warriors, Direct Competitors)

3. Research/Name Generation - Steps to Uncover the Potential Talent Universe

4. Create Call List/Connect List (in addition to the research, I  recommend using  SGA ExecutiveTracker, LinkedIn, as well as other useful tools to create a comprehensive list. Do not overlook previous recruiting call lists and research) 1-3 days

5. Carefully Create/Craft the Email  & Telephone Message

6. Proactively Recruit/Source & Network

7. Fill The Pipeline With Interested & Qualified Candidates - Present

8. Set Up Interviews

9. Conduct Reference Checks

10. Hire

Pretty simple!

Oh one last thing, you need to be organized in order to be successful. Just wanted to get that one in too.

Who We Are:

Sheila Greco Associates LLC is one of the oldest and most trusted company in the recruiting and research industry. We are able to quickly and cost effectively conduct research/name generation for clients who choose to do their own recruiting as well as recruit solid candidates for corporations and search firms.

I am a trained executive search and research consultant (Trained By Jim Mead & Stan Johnson) so I have personally trained everyone in our firm  just as I was 20 years ago.

If you want to learn more about what we do and how we do it call or email me at 518 843-4611 or sgreco@sheilagreco.com

Thanks for stopping by!

Sheila Greco

Recruiting Similar Talent & Skill Sets Can Be Done Efficiently and Cost Effectively

She is a one of a kind Fashion Super Star!

Whether a company is Rebuilding, Adding, or Upgrading

Recruiting Similar Talent & Skill sets can be done efficiently and Cost Effectively

In some cases companies are looking for a super star like the one in the picture and other times, there exists a need to rebuild, add or upgrade a team. In such cases where there needs to be multiple hires, there are a few ways companies can do this and do it cost effectively. Recruiting today is about efficiency, uncovering quality top talent and its related cost.

Recruiting is a process and when recruiting similar talent and skill sets it is even more important than ever to use a methodical research/name generation step as part of the recruiting strategy.   Research/name generation can be done internally or outsourced.  Either way be sure this step includes a comprehensive target list, targets specific talent (architect, developer, buyer, product manager, sales representative/territory manager, auditor) and the recruiter must have the mindset that in order to begin recruiting there must be at least 50 names on the list (exception: when recruiting tax, audit and consulting talent I recommend a minimum of 100 names). It is a goal, it helps with the process, it keeps the recruiter organized, it can be referenced as time goes on and recruiting continues. It has many great uses.   Now that the research is done and done well, it needs to be followed by a proactive recruiting process.

The proactive recruiting process starts with connecting which can be any way the recruiter wishes; telephone, social networking medium, emailing , texting whatever but you need to connect with all on the list, otherwise the research step is for naught.

Staying organized is a must. It creates efficiency.  A good recruiter can double the size of the list or even triple it.  Now you are humming.....As the connections are being made, potential candidates are being vetted, the best are being presented and those not making the cut are being told it is just as important an activity to create a network of professionals in this space.  The best way to do this is by getting your information (the recruiter's) out to as many people as possible while the recruiting is being executed. Even to those who are not interested. Who knows this could change.

Long term, recruiters want professionals to know who they are and what types of positions they recruit for. Professionals need your contact information! How do you do this? It is easy! Just ask everyone how they would like you to deliver your contact information to them and also ask how they would like to be contacted next time.  What does this do? It makes you part of their professional network and he/she is now part of yours. You are now connected.

Additionally by having your contact information these professionals can connect with you when they are ready to make a move, want to refer or just chat. You now have a professional friend as well.  Oh so easy......just recruiting, building relationship and becoming a monster networker. It doesn't get any better than this.

Recruiting multiple professionals with a specific skill set can be considered easy, difficult and scary to some. But by knowing and using the recruiting process it can be made simple and cost-effective.  Once again being organized creates efficiency and efficiency creates less effort which saves time and saves money as well.  This is music to everyone's ears. Yes, recruiting multiple talent and skill sets and utilizing an efficient process can and does uncover top quality talent and creates a cost-effective way to recruit.

How can it be cost-effective? Companies have an option to negotiate the fee, suggest a flat fee if the recruiting is outsourced.  If it is done internally efficient recruiting efforts and filling the pipeline with all "A" Players who can all do the job, obviously results in awesome ROI.

Remember talent is a company's greatest asset. So when recruiting, it is important to hire the best, most qualified player who can fit in the company's corporate culture and whose long-term and short-term goals match the company's .

Thanks for stopping by...

Sheila Greco

Looking for Retail Talent? Take a look inside of SGA ExecutiveTracker

 

SGA ExecutiveTracker has many strengths to include retail talent. Our retail clients have hired hundreds of buyers, merchandisers, store managers, store operations, planners and corporate management professionals.

SGA ExecutiveTracker is more than just a research & recruiting tool.   It is a compiled database of  names, titles, emails, biographies and direct dials.   It complements many Daas competitors and LinkedIn.

SGA ExecutiveTracker is not a technology company and does not use web scraping or data dumps to obtain contacts. All our contacts are verified  exclusively by one of   Sheila Greco Associates in-house research teams.

SGA ExecutiveTracker can be segmented by functions, industries, Fortune rank and has many frequent highlights as part of the solution. We track over 14,000 Companies that are part of such lists as  Fortune, Forbes,  Fastest Growing Companies and those that are leaders in their industries. We do not track every company, but many of major ones. We go deep into companies with information that is difficult to obtain and maintain!

In addition to SGA ExecutiveTracker retail strength, one of SGA's  core strengths in the retail sector and our ability to map out many retailers top to bottom, (customized research).  Our clients have the opportunity to use this for recruiting, benchmarking and talent management.

Top Retailers - Let's look inside SGA ExecutiveTracker

Wal-Mart, Kroger, Target, Walgreen, Home Depot, Costco, CVS Caremark, Lowes, Best Buy, Sears, Safeway. We cover corporate management and many, many levels below.

Below we highlighted some great merchandising talent that can be found in SGA ExecutiveTracker.

Linda Hefner Wal-Mart

Michael Donnelly Kroger

Kathryn Kathee Tesija   Target

Timothy L. Rose Costco

Grant Pill, & CVS Caremark News from DrugStore.com

Bob Gfeller Lowes

Kelly Griffith Safeway

Thanks for stopping by and I do hope you check out SGA ExecutiveTracker .

Sheila Greco

Recruiting Top Talent & The Importance Of Creating A Solid Target List

Top Talent can be hiding within the walls of the competition.

But don't stop there!

After reviewing numerous 2012 recruiting predictions and trends,  there seem to be 2 predictions that make every list.

1. The importance, need and desire to recruit directly from the competition.

2. Finding the much-needed talent with mission critical skill sets specific to an organization.

As I begin to think about this and how I can help my clients with these two trends, it has become obvious to me the need to emphasis the importance of a solid target list. The solid target list acts as a roadmap, a plan, as to where the talent may be sitting and poached. So by taking the time to creat a solid target list, long-term will help with identifying and recruiting the hard to find top talent needed by the organization. It is important to know that each target list needs to be specific to the requirements of each specific job. There could be some homework that recruiters may need to do to put together this solid target list, but it will be well worth the time and energy.

When creating a solid target list, I usually divide it into categories:

1 Target List, 5 Potential Categories

1.Competitors- Direct Competitors, same size, similar brands and services. (J&J)

2.Best Of Breed - companies with critical mass, best and brightest management teams, (companies may include  P&G, General Mills,  Apple, Google, Goldman Sachs, General Electric etc)

3.Back Yard Warriors - Great companies with great talent where recruiting top talent would not require relocation.

4.Small To Medium Companies On The Rise, but in  your space - Since 2008, great talent has been recruited by these companies and they have benefited greatly so great places to investigate and definitely not ones to overlook.

5.Specific teams within organizations - Those that have been recognized or known to have solid management and team players. (Human Resources Awards, Marketing Awards, Retail Creative teams).

If you need help with putting together a target list, call me at 518 843-4611 or email sgreco@sheilagreco.com. Glad you stopped by sgatalent... Until the next time enjoy!

Sheila Greco

Companies Who Employ Proactive Recruiting Strategies Will Win The War For Talent!

Back to Recruiting Basics!

Proactive Recruiting Strategies Include the Process of Knowing the Potential Talent Universe Before the Recruiting Activity Begins.

So you think you recruit -  but are you really recruiting or just think you are? Proactive Recruiters actively  recruit, search, hunt, seek out professionals who are employed by companies of interest, looking for those who can be enticed by a better opportunity and quite frankly just follow a methodical recruiting process utilizing  back to basics recruiting strategies.   I firmly believe that unless you know who is part of the potential talent universe before you recruit,  you cannot say with confidence that you have actively recruited, presented and hired the best-qualified candidate for the job!

Presenting candidates and filling the pipeline of candidates with only those who come to the recruiter, the company, found on job boards, the internet and are active is a very limited way to recruit. Wouldn't you agree?  I think that by only filling the pipeline of candidates with these types of recruits is what I call reactionary recruiting or passive recruiting. Recruiting in such a manner, in my opinion can be doing  a disservice to the company and clients.

I am not negating the successes that do come from passive recruiting or reactionary recruiting I am suggesting that recruiters need to take a step back, take the time to learn about the potential talent that could be available to the organization and clients. Recruiters really need to proactively use methodologies that uncover or identify potential talented recruits and then go recruit them.

Recruiting defined by Business Dictionary.com sums it up.... The process of identifying and hiring the best-qualified candidate (from within or outside of an organization) for a job vacancy, in a most timely and cost-effective manner. So you need to identify - know who you are recruiting by using research/name generation/traditional telephone research as part of the recruiting process.

Proactive Recruiting and returning to  Back To Basics Recruiting Strategies is  a long-term strategy and can be well worth it if a company truly believes people are their best assets.  No one will disagree with the fact that having top talent, breeds winning teams, that win and can compete on many fronts.

Ask yourself, did I recruit the best available talent during the recruiting process? If the answer is yes, than share your knowledge with the corporation and the client. It will speak volumes.  Winning the talent war does require employing a winning recruiting strategy and it does include research/traditional telephone research, passive candidate research as part of the process. My recommendation is "to be in the know" and to really know who  is part of the potential talent universe before you recruit. I always say, "go get them before they get you! Be proactive in finding the best of breed talent.

Hope you enjoy my Back to Basic Recruiting Presentation and download it now.  I will be scheduling workshops in New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Chicago and Pennsylvania discussing Back to Basics Recruiting Strategies.  So if you are interested, please let me know by emailing me sgreco@sheilagreco.com.

Always here to help...have a great day!

Sheila Greco

Below is an interesting article.

Interesting article in Forbes

Only The Employed Need Apply - Employing Traditional Passive Candidate Research Can Be The Force Behind Doing So

Only the employed need apply.  Agree Or disagree. It is reality to some.

Traditional Passive Candidate Research can be The Force  Behind Hiring The Employed!

For those who use Traditional Passive Candidate Research as part of their recruiting strategy, recruiting the employed really is not anything new. I am not saying that only the employed are targeted to fill the potential candidate pipeline report, but the emphasis is put on finding candidates who are residing at the companies of interest to include competitors, best of breed companies, back yard warriors and other companies the hiring manager has had success recruiting out of. A great way to connect with these professionals is to employ Traditional Passive Candidate Research into the recruiting process.

Not everyone knows about Traditional Passive Candidate Research. That is okay, but should your client ask you for passive employed candidates you should become aware of it. Simply put it is the process of  identifying potential candidates from a target list of companies created by the hiring manager based upon past successful hiring results. This process goes right for the jugular. Calling into companies and getting right to the people of interest. I am not saying to ignore the internet or research and recruiting tools  to find talent. You can use them, but don't solely depend on them.

The benefits of Traditional Passive Candidate Research - can far outweigh using free and paid for service research and recruiting tools.  The center of the search process is undeniably the research phase so it needs to be done right and it needs to be done by those who know how to do it. Having access to top talent right from the beginning can and does shorten the recruiting cycle, not to mention helps the recruiter recruit with knowledge. Most Traditional Passive Candidate Research provides not only names of potential candidates, but reporting relationships, emails, direct dials and often times specific information around the executives and their teams.

Let's face it, hiring managers drive the process and know who they  need. Often times they turn to the internal talent acquisition team to get it done. Depending on internal capabilities, hiring can be done internally, outsourced or a combination of both. Either way the goal remains the same, there is a need to find best of breed talent yesterday. Traditional Passive Candidate Research empowers recruiters to be focused, the ability to get to the right candidate faster, a channel that allows the recruiters to engage with potential candidates, network, and can assist with branding a company just by connecting. Oh, such power! And yes, it gets the recruiter to the employed!

I am not saying to ignore the unemployed...... but do recruiting partners/clients want to see these folks from you?  It depends. Some do, some don't. Remember you don't make the rules! You can choose to follow them or opt out. However in today's world and according to many articles in the news, there are corporations publically saying the employed need apply or privately doing so. Either way,  in order to be a successful recruiter these days, you need to know how to  find the employed.

A few things to ponder.....

Do you agree that the best talent are those who are employed?

Do you consider that statement of "Only the Employed Need Apply" to be discrimination against the unemployed?

Please feel free to comment. My opinion is that as a recruiter you always want to find the best of the best, the "A" Player talent. So do just that. I look forward to hearing from you.

Sheila Greco

www.sgatalent.com

Organization Mapping - A Great Way To Learn About The Competition And Be Aware Of The Talent

Where Is The Talent? Who Is On The Team?

The Latest Trend Reveals Much Needed & Wanted Information

There are tools such as SGA  ExecutiveTracker,  LinkedIn, Google,  Passive Candidate Research, Social Networking and niche ones that assist with peeling back the onion, but the best way to Map an Organziation and capture this information is by speaking with people on the inside and those in the "know."

Mapping competitors, best of breed organizations and back yard warriors are super hot right now. Organization Mapping provides a cross functional picture of an organization. Pictures speak in volumes (organization charts) and can help with making recruiting decisions, talent management strategic planning and is widely used for competitive intelligence purposes. Today, smart companies are moving toward strategically aligning recruiting with competitive intelligence teams. Should you be doing the same? Or have you been using recruiting as a way to gain information about your competitors for quite some time. If you have you are not alone.

Where Is The Talent

Organization Mapping  shows how  the target companies are organized, where the teams fit within the organization, the size,  unique titles, if there are any,  and much more.

Who Is On The Team?

Now you know where the team is, you want to know about the players.   You want to know who are the stars on the team, their backgrounds, education, years with the company, diversity, greatest accomplishments. What you can do with this information can be endless! Can this help with current & future challenges!

Building competitiveness these days requires more than just your brand name, your product/services, and customer service just to name a few. It's about talent too. You need the right people, doing the right things! You need the best talent on the market. You need superstars. As you continue to build your teams you need to be aware of who is out there. We have heard the phrase, "people are our company's greatest asset,"  I agree! There is a lot of truth to this, but  I sometimes wonder if companies really mean this and believe enough in this that as they recruit they sincerely look to hire the best available.  If you believe in this you need information that helps get you there. Please read this interesting article written by Jennifer Blanchard | HRTools.com Business Writer.

Organization Mapping is the current trend. I believe in it and can see the value it has.  Be in the know! Know your competitors, know the talent and create the strongest team you can so you can win!!! Having top talent on the team creates at a minimum competitive teams and often times winning ones! But you can only do this if you are aware of the best players out there.

Good Recruiters Recruit - Better Than Great Recruiters Prepare Candidates

Even with Research, Recruiting, Sourcing, Networking, Identifying Passive Candidates and Evaluation - It All Can Be For Naught..

No Matter What the Scenario, Recruiters Need to Prepare their Candidates for the Interview Process.

Identifying passive candidates, sourcing, networking, recruiting, evaluating and presenting with knowledge are things  great recruiters can do in their sleep - but preparing a candidate for the recruiting process can be a whole different story.

As I have stated over and over again; good recruiters fill the pipeline of candidates with ease but the job really doesn't stop there.  As a passionate professional in recruiting and passive executive research, I cannot stress enough the importance of preparing a candidate for the interview process.

You would think that when you are recruiting best-of-breed talent you wouldn't have to prepare them for the interview process - right?  Well, let me tell you, beyond contrary belief this is not the case.  Believe it or not it isn't a fact that every candidate we find knows how to interview or prepare for the process.  All your hard work can be gone in a moment if your candidate walks into the interview with an outfit only fit to be worn by Lady Gaga herself.   Although she is an incredibly talented artist and fashion guru, wish I had half of what she has, her attire wouldn't quite be the fit for most of corporate America.  Having said this, my disclaimer to my fellow recruiting professionals is to prepare your candidates (whether you think they need it or not) with any and all the information you have regarding things such as company culture and what is expected of potential employees.  This is part of the process that is most often neglected or we just assume candidates know on their own.  Perhaps they do but why leave it up to chance.

Tips for preparing candidates for the interview.

1. Discuss the value of dressing for success.   This has been known to be a very sensitive subject with candidates - so tread lightly and use those personal skills you have developed throughout your years of recruiting.

2. Educate the candidate, discuss the corporate culture, the company,  the process, the biography of the hiring manager and why the position is open.

3. Explain the role and what is expected (an insider knowledge is always good).

4. Discuss with them potential questions to ask regarding the position.

5. Help them sell themselves.   Provide them with hot buttons that are relevant to the hiring managers expectations.

6. Advise them to be honest about their experiences and what they are interested in doing short and long-term.

7. Be sure to tell them to follow-up with a thank you to all they interviewed with.

These are just a few very basic things that I have seen get overlooked by recruiters because they are under the assumption everyone knows how to interview.  The fact is, professionals who have been in a particular position for any lengthy time period has more than likely no idea what is expected of them in today's interviewing environment.

Recruiters, yes you are trained on how to recruit.   But success also rests on completing and filling the assignment. I believe that preparing candidates for the interview is an important part of the process as you continue finding, recruiting, networking, sourcing the best of breed talent for your clients each and every time.

Enjoy the holiday weekend and thanks for visiting us at http://www.sgatalent.com

Additional Expert Advice:

http://www.money-zine.com/   Preparing For The Job Interview

Ten Tips on Preparing For a Job Interview

Recruiting Women In Technology SGA's 2011 Study Sneak Peek Preview

Since 1993 we have been specializing in recruiting and conducting passive executive research in the I/T World

The fact is that there are still fewer Women than men In Technology to Recruit!

Our results for just the Fortune 100 are in.  For 2011 there are 17% Women In Technology Leaders in comparison to 15% in 2004 and 12% in 2007. Finding top notch women in technology is becoming less difficult, there are just fewer out there.   No wonder why women in technology continue to encourage young women in high school and college to major in technology. These professionals are mentors and active in multiple related associations and organizations.   As most technology recruiters are aware, recruiting technology professionals can be challenging within itself and women in this space are considered "a hot commodity".

For the next few weeks my staff and I will begin to once again analyze women in technology and release our findings to all of you and the world.  FYI it consists of 1000 Companies.  Stay tuned for the results of SGA's Women in Technology Study.  This particular study is so much fun!

The 17 We have identified from The Fortune 100

1. Charlene Begley President and CEO of GE Home & Business Solutions and Senior Vice President and CIO for GE

2. Linda Sanford, Senior VP, Enterprise on Demand Transformation & Information Technology, IBM

3. Patricia Morrison EVP & CIO - Cardinal Health, Inc.

4. Beth M. Jacob, Executive Vice President, Target Technology Services and Chief Information Officer

5. Kim Hammonds, Chief information Officer of The Boeing Company

6. Nancy Davis, Vice President and Chief Information Officer UTC

7. Maria R. Morris,Executive Vice President, Technology & Operations MetLife, Inc.

8. Linda Gooden is Executive Vice President of Lockheed Martin’s  (IS&GS)

9. Diane M. Bryant,Vice President and Chief Information Officer (CIO) of Intel

10. Rebecca Jacoby Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer Cisco

11. Barbara G. Koster Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer for Prudential Financial

12. Susan O'Day, Senior Vice President & Chief Information Officer The Walt Disney Company

13. Twila M. Day, Vice President and Chief Information Officer at SYSCO Corporation

14. Eileen Slevin, Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer, New York Life

15. Linda A. Mills Corporate Vice President and President of Northrop Grumman’s Information Systems

16. Theresa Wise  Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer of Delta Air Lines

17. Noel Brown Williams Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer HCA Information Technology & Services

This is it for now, but stay tuned..

If you are interested in this full list feel free to contact me at sgreco@sheilagreco.com.

Thank you for visiting  www.sgatalent.com

Executive Recruiting Trends

The Importance of Human Touch and Pipeline Development are Center Stage for 2011's Executive Recruiting Trends

The Top 5  SGA has Heard Lately………

#1 In-sourcing vs. RPO:

This trend is toward selective, not full, recruitment process outsourcing. We will see outsourcing occur more often in the recruitment of high-volume, repetitive roles, and for the function of candidate sourcing only. There will be more RPO growth in the U.S. than Canada; more Canadian markets are focused on building internally. More executive recruitment functions are moving in-house, which is reflective of a growing transparency in the market. Increasingly, candidates can go online and see for themselves who holds which recruiting or leadership positions at a company, for example, rather than being forced to stay in the dark or play the guessing game to get in contact with the correct person.

#2 Talent Pipelining:

The importance of building a talent pipeline, as it helps employers get more return out of their recruitment efforts using the fewest resources, build a stronger employment brand, and create better relationships with candidates. Talent pipelining needs to be built into the recruitment process for key roles, as the push of relevant content and information to “nurtured” candidates helps build a company’s employment brand and increase passive candidates’ engagement and trust.

#3 Human Touch is Needed:

A poor or lengthy recruiting process can really hurt your organization’s chances of bringing the best talent onto your team. Just as candidates must sell themselves to you, you must sell your company to candidates. What’s your employment value proposition; how are you attracting, engaging, and retaining quality talent?

Begin to create a more candidate-centric recruitment process by adding more of a “human touch” to your process. Communicate with candidates when at all possible, and let them know where they stand as the process moves from phase to phase.  View all candidates as a customer or potential future customer, client or employee.

#4 Social Media for Recruitment:

Social media: It can be really overwhelming. Most of us are familiar with the major social media platforms — and they are playing an increasing role in recruitment as companies realize they must diversify their recruitment efforts to stay on top. Mobile technology is emerging as a recruitment channel, as companies are also realizing the power of texting and mobile apps for recruitment. Even location-based social networking sites like Foursquare have growing possibilities for businesses and recruitment. Tablets like the iPad are also becoming more popular for work use as these devices increase the business applications offered, and companies are beginning to examine the power of tablet applications to help strengthen their employment brand and company profile.

Video interviewing is a trend that more and more businesses (and candidates) are starting to pick up on, and platforms like Skype, the largest network on the Internet, are also becoming more popular for use in interviews or for virtual meetings.

Using these mediums can be powerful — but the content you put out and the messages you are sending to candidates and employees must be relevant.

#5 The Demand for Experienced Recruiters:

Recruiters today are being asked to do more with less, making it increasingly difficult for them to be successful. The demand for experienced recruiters is high — and the recruiter of yesterday has changed to reflect a demand for those who have an in-depth knowledge of the company for which they’re recruiting.

What are you hearing?

Presenting Passive Candidates With Knowledge

Successful Recruiters Are Knowledgeable Ones!

Having Knowledge about The Candidates & The Potential Target Universe Makes You The Expert!

Chapter 5

Presenting With Knowledge. It says it all. You are totally aware of the potential talent pool! You sourced, networked, recruited and can say with confidence to your clients, we recruited the best from the companies you wanted! As you present the candidates you present the knowledge you gained during the recruiting process. You share with your clients the passive candidate research, organization charts, the top 7 and the 3-5 you believe are the best. Having the knowledge allows you, the recruiter to show that you listened and you are the expert.

Happy Hunting!

Knowing who you are looking for is the first step in finding them…

Recruiting Top Talent Requires Knowing Who You Want & Knowing Where You Need to Go to Find It!

Executive Research & Passive Candidate Recruitment

Chapter 1 Who

Who are we looking for? We start by creating the Profile/Job Description. The description should be simple and include such things as title, reporting relationships, overall role & responsibilities, qualifications such as particular skill sets and experience, and education. You also need to know who the client is really looks for and needs & wants. What makes he or she tick.  Remember, likes like likes so you need to know as much as you can about the hiring manager, the team, what the team is good at and what the team is not so good at.You can use this information as you begin to think about the research & recruiting strategy. Why? As you fan out from the target list you have other places to look for potential talent Stay tuned. As you go through this exercise you will now begin to understand the talent you need to find, recruit, and present

Chapter 2 Recruiting and Research Strategy

This step is very process driven and simple. This will include such things as creating the target list, the appropriate level or title we are seeking, favorite companies that the hiring manager or company has had success recruiting from, not the mention the ones that have not been so favorable. Discuss direct competitors, industry leaders, back yard warriors, best of breed companies, just a few categories that need representation when creating the target list.  Keep in mind, this step is the foundation of every successful assignment and is the starting point of finding and identifying top talent and uncovering the potential talent universe.

As the target lists are created, edited and finalized, the research phase begins. This includes building organizations charts around the talent of interest at each of the target companies. As the research is being conducted, it is imperative to not only obtain the names, titles and complete organization charts, but you must also be sure names are spelled correctly, titles are exact, emails gathered are verified and direct dials are confirmed. This makes reaching out to these folks easier and with a variety of ways.

Below is an example of an organization chart used for recruiting.

Intelligence is Everything....

Hiring Intelligently is the Only Way to Hire.

Being aware of the potential talent pool is critical to your success.

How do you know you recruited the best just because you made the hire?  Well, the truth is you don't.   You need the intelligence to be sure you did.  You do this by being totally aware of the potential talent universe.  You need to have the "inside view" of the talent pool of the professionals on your target list.

Time and time again we have proven there are significant benefits of knowing where to find the best talent, who they are and how to obtain access to them.  This is all available by using passive candidate research when you recruit.  This is done by building organization charts centered around the talent you are seeking.  This process does not necessarily need to be expensive but any cost involved is well worth it.

Successful companies have the intelligence on their competitors, back yard warriors, best of breed companies and the talent within each.

In order to be competitive you need to have the best talent.  Today a company's best asset and competitive edge is its people.   Having said that, when you are recruiting and/or looking to upgrade internal talent, become aware of whom the best players really are.

Follow my SGA Playbook and come back daily for information regarding recruiting the best with knowledge and intelligence.

Monday - Chapter 1 Who

Tuesday Chapter 2 Recruiting & Research Strategy

Wednesday Chapter 3 Recruiting Campaign

Thursday Chapter 4 Evaluation & Selection

Friday Chapter 5 Presenting With Knowledge & Intelligence