Tag Archives: hiring managers

Review: Technology Made Simple for the Technical Recruiter

Technical Recruiters will find “Technology Made Simple for the Technical Recruiter: A Technical Skills Primer” by Obi Ogbanufe helpful for developing recruiting strategies and tech skills. AVID Staffing Firm employs IT Recruiting techniques covered by Ogbanufe in her book. Details she delves into include basic programming terms, networking tips, & operating system/network vocab. She even instructs on the art of knowing when a prospective candidate seems to be claiming levels of experience above what’s  present in their work background.

IT Staffing Agencies like AVID Technical Resources will do well to take note of Ogbanufe’s insight and advice. Her experience and familiarity with the topic can be of value to any technical recruiter looking to brush up on a rookie skillset, or polish a seasoned technical career. In an industry that changes at lightning speed, keeping on top of acronyms is key for technical recruiters, and they’ll find the latest and most thorough information in this book. Pick up a copy of ” Technology Made Simple for the Technical Recruiter: A Technical Skills Primer” today, and get smarter!

Skill Testing Online

Any job-seeker who has interviewed with a staffing firm before has probably taken online skill-testing. Staffing firms can purchase online skill tests from test providers like Proveit, Eskill, or Brainbench, which offers testing for candidates in a range of skill sets. Technical test topics include Java, Dreamweaver, and ColdFusion MX. These resources can be useful for technical recruiters seeking to place candidates in roles that require proficiency in these areas. Offered in multiple languages, and in options including in-office testing or remote, skill assessments can be useful purchases for staffing firms.

For candidates, online skill testing can be just as helpful. Rather than purchasing access to skill assessments as a company would, job-seekers can log into free assessment providers like Smarterer to test their abilities in skills commonly sought by employers, such as Excel aptitude, Powerpoint skills, and more.  Candidates who have invested time building relevant industry skills have an opportunity to showcase their skills through an assigned score, comparing them to other test-takers. High-scoring testers may want to display their scores on their Linkedin profiles, or send them to recruiters as a resume supplement. Got Skills? Show them off!

How Not to Find a Job

So you think working for a living is lame? So yesterday? Or if your phone provider is AT&T, just too 5 seconds ago? AT&T TV Commercial — Tailgate LTE (HTC Vivid) . Great. I’m here to help. Here’s a solid instructional on how not to get a job.

  • Come 10 minutes late. Or an hour early. These days, arriving any earlier than 15 minutes in advance of a scheduled interview is a faux-pas. Not as bad as getting there late, but not good. If, hypothetically, you were to want a job that you arrive half an hour early (reasonable if you need to allow for travel delays) burn 15 minutes in the nearest coffee shop. Don’t forget the mints!
  • Come dressed as Barney, or choose any other inappropriate attire. Unless a job specifies a casual atmosphere, or you’re applying for a mall Santa position, you can’t go wrong with more formal dress over casual options. If you’re offered the job, you can always take it down a notch for your day-to-day.
  • Keep your cell phone ringer on during an interview. Arrange so that a friend calls/texts, or both. This will a) make you look popular b) guarantee that you don’t get the job. Perfect! Employers have indicated that one of the most common rising problems they encounter when conducting interviews is behavior that fits this description. Holding up a finger to your interviewer as your phone rings so that you can take a personal call while your interviewer waits will not win you points. You can let your incoming calls go to voicemail for 1 hour out of your day. Really.
  • At AVID, our job placements are exclusively technical, so interviews will contain questions about performing an IT role. If you’re applying for a Java Developer role, and you don’t have a clue as to how to guide your interviewer through your thought process and steps taken to respond to various technical scenarious — congratulations! You won’t be on anyone’s call-back list — your technical recruiter will know enough about the requirements of the role not to recommend you to the hiring manager in the first place, so you won’t have a chance to make multiple analogies to the fashion industry in a formal interview setting (or whatever it is that really interests you instead of technology).

So that’s it, folks! The above rules are your foolproof guide to guaranteed unemployment and a phone that never rings (unless it’s your friend, again). If you should be so foolish as to want a job, try to avoid engaging in any of these behaviors. They won’t do you any favors in your job hunt.

Secrets for Making your Recruiter your Best Friend

In today’s job search environment, recruiters often play an instrumental role in a candidates job search, whether the job is in the medical, financial or technical industry, or the position sought is contract or permanent. The reason is that recruiters spend each work day doing for a living what candidates do only during periods of time when they’re on a job search – create relationships with hiring managers and their companies, keep abreast of the most current job openings available, and cruise job boards like Monster, Indeed, and Craigslist, as well as professional networking sites like Linkedin and Yammer. A job-seeker applying to jobs online may encounter at least one position of interest that has been posted by a recruiter. In contacting the recruiter, the prospective candidate for the position initiates a relationship with the recruiter to determine if he or she will be a good fit for the role.

Here’s a secret: cultivating a relationship your recruiter correctly can make him or her your best friend. Mainly because that person has the potential to get you a new job. What is the protocol for candidate-recruiter alliances? The golden rule is – Imagine they’re the boss. If you make contact with a recruiter over the phone, your confidence, ability to describe your past roles and the value you added persuasively and succinctly, and clarity when defining the type of role you want to be your next will be as impressive to the recruiter as it would be to a hiring manager. The type of candidate that impresses a hiring manager is the kind of person a recruiter wants to get in front of the manager. It’s a win-win for everybody.

So here’s the bottom line: when you speak to a recruiter about a role, handle it like in interview. If you meet with a recruiter face-to-face, dress to impress. If your recruiter requests that you send references, or stay in contact once a week, make it a priority to do so, just as you would if you were in long-term negotiations with a hiring manager. Recruiters operate in a fast-paced environment – they’re not going to eat up a lot of your time. An investment of a few minutes a week on the phone with a recruiter you’ve established a relationship with could be the difference between getting the salary and benefits you want in a company you want to work for, or having to settle for less.

IT Recruiters at AVID focus on maintaining relationships with IT candidates with technical backgrounds. As an IT staffing agency that is more specialized that an all-industry recruiting firm, AVID offers candidates recruiters who are experts in staffing for the tech industry, and are best equipped to assist IT candidates with their job search.

Women in Tech

The tech industry tends to be one that is fairly male-dominated. Ask a technical recruiter how many men versus women he or she speaks to in a day when seeking to fill a Java or QA role, and you will tend not to hear the odds stacked in favor of the ladies. While this issue would have been a pet project for Third-Wave Feminists in the 1990’s[1], in the 21st century, enough equal opportunity exists in the work force these days that job types or industries dominated by one gender tends to be by employee choice (arguably). Employers with an eye for diversity may be either actively looking for employees that break with the status quo, or have an ongoing wish list to diversify if the right candidate appears.

An AOL jobs article, for example, cites the IT  job title ‘IT Network Engineer’ as one in which women consistently make 5% more than men when filling the role[2]. Their statistics, below, show that this technical position is on average a male-dominated role by 95%, with only 5% of women choosing to pursue the title, despite the fact that employers offer a compensation incentive for females.

According to Neelie Kroes, VP for the digital agenda at the European Commission, that should change. “It’s a digital world now and the digital world is for everyone. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise,” she advised[3]. Certainly, in the present professional environment, it would be hard to make the case that there is a strong contingent of women trying to break into technical roles and balance out the gender inequality. It’s more socially acceptable at the moment for women to express interest in industries where they tend to hired either more or less equally, or more than men.

If real change is going to take place in the percentage of females willing to enter the tech field, it needs to start at the interest level. Girls in high school are generally not being groomed to be tech-proficient, or encouraged to familiarize themselves with the opportunities and salary levels they could enjoy if they pursued a course of education that would qualify them for roles like the IT Network Engineer. Education initiatives like this could either increase the pool of female talent entering the tech workforce and energize the economy, or it could just prove that the effort to equalize everything may be a little unrealist. It’s possible that in general, women may tend to find more career satisfaction in non-tech roles, and maybe that’s just one of the many differences that will always exist between genders.

Sources:

[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Feminist_movement

[2] http://jobs.aol.com/articles/2012/03/01/jobs-where-women-earn-more-than-men

[3] http://www.womenintechnology.co.uk/news/make-technology-more-inclusive-for-women-mep-says-news-801313746

Company Culture

One of the challenges in a job search is finding a company that has not only the right benefits, but also the right atmosphere as well. How can interviewers assess the culture of a company they haven’t yet participated in? A few cues can better help interviewers understand the company they’re interested in.

Managers have long paid close attention to the impression an interviewer conveys through their use of language, dress, and credentials. Interviewers pursuing a job that will be the right fit for them for the long term should use that information to advance their best career interests as well. The interviewer who conducts a mental interview of their own will have higher chances of selecting a position that’s a great match, equating to higher job satisfaction rates and better longevity per company.

Interviewers who prefer highly structured, corporate atmospheres will tend to have the best working relationships with managers who suit up for interviews. Interviewers who want more casual environments should look for managers who sport a business casual look to interviews. When posing interview questions, do managers use more formal language, or do they feel comfortable with a more casual verbal approach? Language can be another cue to candidates as to whether or not they want to continue the relationship past the interview.

At AVID, many of our IT jobs are filled on a project-by-project basis via contract work. A prospective candidate for these types of IT roles might never meet his or her technical recruiter face to face – or even the project manager, for that matter. For IT jobs that are fulfilled via telecommuting, the above-mentioned cues may not apply – the contracter potentially has only an impression of the recruiter and manager formed via phone interviews. In these cases, the verbal & communication style cues become more key, but at the same time, the culture fit may be less important or irrelevant if the job is primarily telecommuting-based. In scenarios where interaction with management doesn’t play into the job, the job description and duties become the central focus, and as long as the skillset is a good fit for the candidates’ background and interests, the candidate is free to count culture out of the equation.

Lastly, it’s common knowledge that interviewers should look their interviewers up on Linkedin or other professional networks to get a little background on them before the interview. Rather than assessing the interviews purely from an informational perspective, however, candidates should pay close attention to their interviewers level of education and past experience from a personal angle, to determine how high the likelihood of common ground would be if the interview goes well. The takeaway? Interviewers – start thinking a little more like you’re on the other side of the hiring table.

The Mobile Job Search

The increasing sophistication of cloud computing and smartphone application suggest inevitable changes to come in the job-seeking landscape. With major job board websites like Monster, Careerbuilder, Indeed and Craigslist offering phone application versions of their sites, it’s a matter of time before job hunters adapt their search techniques to the advantages provided by advancing technology.

One of the most powerful ways phone apps can impact a job search is portability.

Technical Recruiting Goes Mobile

With mobile job searching apps, the job-seeking landscape is poised to evolve. Candidates who store their resume on their phones can check out and apply to new jobs in their chosen industries while riding the T to a resume workshop, or an interview.

Gauging the Job Search Pace

The most obvious potential impact of mobile job searching is a shorter job search through a more efficient use of time. Mobile apps allow candidates better flexibility in maintaining relationships with recruiters as well. A candidate seeking an IT position could contact a recruiter by email via an online job posting and receive a reply while grabbing coffee. The candidate could stay in touch through Linkedin, and follow up with the recruiter a week later over the phone using contact information on the recruiter’s Linkedin profile. Mobile networking is about portability and adaptability – a job search that keeps pace with a candidate’s schedule. Mobile job searches could lead to higher placement rates for recruiters and quicker interview requests and offers for candidates. As candidate familiarity with mobile job-searching grows, additional benefits may materialize that recruiters can use to their advantage.

Here at AVID, where technical recruiters place IT candidates, listings on Linkedin and Monster are part of our recruiting approach. Adapting to the mobile job search is an important part of our recruiting strategy.

Technical Recruiting Companies Responding to Your Emails?

Do you fire off emails instantaneously and always provide an update?  I will let you in on a little secret: not everyone is as prompt and efficient as you.  It can be frustrating waiting around on a response from hiring managers or IT recruiting supervisors for the go on a project or decision.  Before technical recruiters and prospective candidates assume they are being ignored, here are some reasons why you may not be getting a prompt answer back.

Did You Hit Send?

Embarrassing as it is, sometimes IT recruiting companies make honest mistakes.  An email a technical recruiter thought he sent may be sitting in limbo within their draft folder.  Did the IT recruiter accidentally send the email to the wrong person?  If so, retract the error by apologizing to the accidental recipient and immediately send the email to the correct person.

Also, check the wording in messages.  IT staffing firms may have been vague in their requests or sent their emails to multiple recipients.  If this is the case, send a message defining the request and ask a specific person for an update.  Chances are the recipients are confused as to who should respond.

Busy Signal

The recipient could be buried in work and has not yet found time for email.  If they have, they may have read it and acknowledged it, but moved it off to the side for a higher priority.  When IT headhunters experience this situation themselves, they should try replying to IT consultants and acknowledge having received the message and will provide an update shortly.  This allows the sender to know that their request is in process and has not been lost in email clutter.

Forgot

Humans forget!  Sending a follow up messages is an excellent way to remind the recipients of a request while asking for an update.  Be mindful not to follow up too often, though.  Spamming your IT recruiting firms every hour or every day for an update is a sure way to get on the recipient’s bad side.

Not Important

Some email messages do not need responses and just add to the clutter.  Before hitting send, think if this email is important.  Try picking up the phone and giving the person a call, rather than cluttering their inbox.  They may appreciate a personal message more than another new message in their inbox!

Ignoring all messages is not only rude, but it is poor business.  Think of a time you could not reach a live person.  Wasn’t it was frustrating?! Manage your own company by providing the best customer service possible!

IT Recruiting Companies Working with White Noise

Do you work in an IT staffing environment that is cluttered with noise such as music, loud talking, or random distractions?  Perhaps you work in a dead silent area where you can hear a pin drop.  If you enjoy these conditions, by all means continue working!  If you find that you are having trouble focusing, the IT recruiters of AVID Technical Resources suggest white noise to help keep you on track.

Do You Hear That?

The funny thing about white noise is you typically do not realize it’s there until it’s turned off.  White noise helps to block out static noises that could otherwise disrupt your work.  Almost every college student has hit the library to study for finals or perfect their resume, only to be irritated by the dead silent air and frequent disruption of page turning, sneezes, or pencils dropping.  With background noise in smaller areas of IT recruiting firms, these distractions are instantly reduced.  This allows individuals to focus and gather their thoughts.

Less Distracting

There are plenty of ways for technical recruiters and hiring managers to distract themselves from different background noises, but often these distractions can cause noise clutter.  If one IT recruiter is listening to his music and another chooses to drone out the other’s music with a song of his own, soon there will be chaos.  Be mindful of others when choosing your selection and keep the volume low if you choose to do this.

Some can ignore the music and continue working, but when they hear a song they are sick of, they will keep changing the song until they find one they like.  Other IT headhunters may become hung up on lyrics and cannot think clearly.  The best thing about white noise is, there are no words and the music plays itself!

Where to Get It

Your white noise might be right in your IT recruiting office.  That fan, air conditioner, or vent can provide you with the right amount of white noise to cancel out the sounds of shuffling paper or opening and closing of doors.  If the volumes of distractions are too loud, consider buying your own white noise machine or playing music.

Everyone works differently, so be mindful of your habits!

What Not to Wear to IT Job Interviews

You have heard it before: it matters deeply what you wear to an interview.  Now that you have your outfit together, are you breaking one of the interviewing apparel taboos?  Take a second look at your outfit and accessories. Make sure you aren’t sending some inappropriate messages with your choices!

Head

Unless you are trying out for the Red Sox, avoid any head gear.  For the ladies, put away your flashy earrings and tone down the makeup.  Plan out your hair style the night before the interview.  It might sound crazy, but what could take you only five minutes of styling may trip you up if you try something different.   

Shoulders

Get that suit tailored!  Nothing looks worse than an ill fitting outfit.  It can also affect your confidence.  You do not need to buy a whole new wardrobe!  Look to your closet and touch up some of your business clothes.  You will have a new look and feel more comfortable with clothes that fit well.

Cover up those shoulders, too.  Often, some interviewers mistake clubbing attire for business professional apparel.  If you have to question it, put it back.  The same goes with any type of sweat shirt material.

Knees

Skirts that are too short belong in the club, not the IT recruiting office.  Wear nylons with your skirt.  A brand new pair is recommended to avoid runs or embarrassing holes.  Never wear lounge pants, no matter how laid back IT recruiting companies may seem.  Jeans are also a taboo when interviewing.  Remember, you always want to dress a bit more professionally than how you perceive hiring companies.  This will save you and IT staffing companies any potential embarrassment or mistakes.

Toes

Flip flops are never socially acceptable when interviewing with technical recruiting companies.  Wear closed toe dress shoes or pumps, not sneakers.  If you feel uncomfortable in high heels, do not wear them.   Dressy flats are fine. Your feet will also thank you later!

Other

Leave the backpack at home and pick up a briefcase to carry your portfolio.  Be mindful of your perfume and cologne, as the technical recruiters and hiring managers may have sensitive noses.  You do not want to be known as the smelly interviewer, either, so practice good hygiene!