PRofessional Solutions, LLC

HR Staffs and Recruiters Overlook Qualified Candidates

While some businesses can’t find qualified applicants because of shortages in technology, engineering and the like, a survey by Beyond.com found that poor communication prevents some human resource departments from recognizing good candidates in any field.

We’ve seen it at PRofessional Solutions.  HR sometimes rules out skilled applicants because it doesn’t fully understand what the hiring manager wants.

According to an article in USA Today (http://www.usatoday.com/money/economy/employment/story/2012-07-04/businesses-struggle-to-find-qualified-job-candidates/56022228/1), “The recruiter often ‘has a piece of paper with skills on it and that’s what they try to get out of you,’ instead of a more rounded picture, says Laura Crafton, . . . who’s seeking a public relations job.”

What we see is a set of literal requirements.  If the PR Director tells HR she wants someone with 5-7 years that’s a range; the HR person reads it as a firm requirement.  When offered a talented and appropriate match who might have 8 years of experience, or a little more than 4 years, HR won’t consider him.

Another problem noted in the article arises when employers rely on overly specific keyword searches.  If the keyword is “accredited” but the resume says ABC or APR the recruiter can miss out on strongly prepared applicants.

What problems have you seen with the screening process that keeps talent from getting recognized?

Forbes contributor Kevin Kruse makes the case in his article, “Temps: 3 Reasons to Hire Them Right Now” for using temporary specialty staff in a proactive way instead of for traditional reasons–maternity leave and medical coverages, filling vacancies, expanding your staff during growth periods, supplementing staff during extremely busy periods–which he considers a “reactive tactic to business demands”.

Instead, Kruse poses looking at temporary workforce from a different perspective, a more proactive strategy. He suggests using highly skilled temporary staff to supplement existing in-house talent and provide a fresh perspective on projects. In addition, he recommends the temp-to-perm strategy as an excellent method for hiring permanent staff members.

We, here at PRofessionals Solutions, LLC, couldn’t agree more!

I see many lists of résumé “Do’s and Don’ts” that give advice that doesn’t jibe with my experience, so I was gratified to see the list in PRNews that included some of my top considerations.  Considering that hiring managers generally decide within 30 seconds or less whether a resume should get further consideration, getting this tool right can open – or close – a door quickly.

On the “Do” side, I like to see accomplishments highlighted, a logical chronology, no more than two pages and volunteer work included.

On the “Don’t” list, I’m turned off quickly by being vague, providing a detailed laundry list of your tasks in each job, and sending a résumé without a cover letter (my special pet peeve!).

Share some of the things that grab your interest, as well as your turn-offs, so we can share them with job seekers and freelancers.

•  Matching jobs and temps was safer than playing romantic Matchmaker.

•  She read that most businesses fold in five years and looked forward to an early retirement!

Yet here we are, 18 years later, putting that experience and expertise to use matching our skilled communicators to the needs of our wonderful clients, and finding it MUCH more satisfying than romantic matchmaking!

• She was inspired by the ads about “Bob” from Accountemps.

• The stationery and business cards in the Paper Direct catalogue were so appealing.

Continuing our glimpse into the real motivations behind the creation of PRofessional Solutions, LLC, we offer the next two reasons from the Top Ten list:

• She hoped for a flexible schedule that would allow her to visit Johnson’s Flower Center for “Mad Monday” each month (now it allows weekly yoga class instead).
• Owning a business would make all those networking luncheons tax deductible.

(Or networking evenings, as in this Washington Women in Public Relations event! )

When PRofessional Solutions reached 10 years I wrote a fun Top Ten List of why I created a PR temp agency.   This is PRofessional Solutions’ 18^th “birthday” and National Small Business Week, so each day this week I will share two of those reasons with you.  (See First Client Pat Kelly in photo below.)    Drum roll please! . . . . .

First two reasons Kate Perrin started a PR temp agency in 1994:

1)        Naturally lazy, she didn’t want to take the assignments herself.

2)        Friends and colleagues kept calling looking for jobs and she needed somewhere to send them.