Friday, February 02, 2007

Information is Power

Is there anyone who roams in or around the staffing industry who doesn't get John Sumser's Interbiznet Bugler? Probably not, which suggests that the piece that ran in a recent Bugler announcing the coming debut of a site called CareerTours is not exactly "new news." In the off chance that you didn't see it, however, here's what was reported:

CareerTours, a national recruitment resource, has developed a new way to recruit called "Frictionless Recruiting" that will provide employers with a revolutionary new way to recruit talent while minimizing the friction inherent in the recruiting process. The innovative process will enable an organization to display its culture using web-based audio, slideshows, and video, as well as sharing a company's organizational structure and management philosophy. The service will launch nationwide on January 15, 2007.
This caught my eye because I thought it was at least one other approach in trying to help both sides of the process help each other as we continue what seems like the eternal and clearly flawed process of trying to find "fit."

I am sure that we all have seen the surveys which seem not to have changed much; at least not as far back as I can remember. Bottom line, the vast majority of those of us who have failed at some point in our careers (i.e. "got carried out sideways as they used to say) experienced that outcome not because of a lack of technical expertise, but fell victim to what has been variously described as "a lack of chemistry," "a personality conflict," or "couldn't fit in with the culture, etc." The story has played out for such a long time that in terms of age it is probably only surpassed by Adam and Eve, and the track record of those that "didn't work" makes Matt Millen's record as GM of the Lions look like Hall of Fame numbers.

When it comes to negotiations, there is an old saying that "Information is Power" and for sure I would be the last person to argue with that fact. When it comes to trying to find "fit", I think the same principal applies. The best tool either the employer or the candidate have to use as they try and make a decision that they both hope (individually and collectively) turns out to be a good one is the exchange of information.

If you read what the Bugler piece has to say about CareerTours "Frictionless Recruiting" one would think that they have found a way to electronically inject sodium pentothal into the process. Strikes me as pretty idealistic to say the least, but since they were only supposed to launch on January 15th, I guess we'll have to wait and see what they will be able to do to "keep it real" so that both parties get something other than well crafted marketing hype.

For my money, the name of the game is research, research, research, and that certainly includes talking to people who work there or have worked there. From an employer's perspective you are talking about a big bucks investment that depending on how you keep score is easily well into six or seven figures, and from the candidate's perspective, it's your life your messing around with.

Try putting a price on that.

1 comment:

aaronbare said...

Information is Indeed Power and Power is what Frictionless Recruiting™ is all about!


The best recruiting solutions produce win-win outcomes in which employers find outstanding men and women and career seekers find their dream vocation and become part of a winning team. Dave Opton is absolutely correct that the best way to accomplish such win-win outcomes is “research, research, research.” The better the information available to decision-makers the better the outcomes.

A career tour, which is what CareerTours is all about, is providing the tools that enable both sides of the recruiting equation to thoroughly research the other in a frictionless manner. By frictionless we mean absent the stress and pressure of formal hiring processes, which tend to distort the reality, and at the lowest possible cost.

The optimal hiring decision results from mutual due diligence and at CareerTours we have found creative ways to enable parties to fulfill their due diligence responsibilities experientially. The employer can create virtual tours of varying levels of sophistication and intimacy. These virtual tours may be as simple as an audio message by the entity’s CEO, linked with a slide show, to a video tour of the department in which an opening exists with interviews of both management and team. Virtual tours might also be Webinars, chat with employee embassadors or job fairs.

CareerTours can also teach its clients how to host real-life tours of their company to a final group of candidates, whether they are looking to hire one person or a dozen. Remarkably this can be accomplished in a manner that, on a cost-benefit basis, can be justified for professional or mid-range positions as well as for high-level executives. The objective is that by the time the point of offer is reached the richness of the candidate’s experience will allow them to accept or decline an offer with a high level of confidence.

The employer’s due diligence is assured through access to a wider range of candidates, using CareerTours word of mouth marketing tools and by creating opportunities to observe and evaluate career seekers candidly while they experience the company’s culture. There are a variety of self-assessment tools that can be employed while also benefiting from the interactive nature of our virtual and real life career tour experiences.