Recruiting Perspective

We deal with it every day.  There is always some risk to a move.  New company, new co-workers, maybe a new geographic location.  New product or service, new company structure and dynamics.  What if it doesn’t work out? All candidates have some concern over the risk of a move, but most don’t consider the risk of staying.  The risk of staying in the current situation may be far greater than the risk of making the move.  If the growth isn’t there, if you can’t have the impact that you want to have, to accomplish what you want to accomplish, then the risk of staying is very high.  In that situation there is a very high percentage chance that you will not succeed. In that case, making a move reduces the risk. todd@toddkmiec.com Todd Kmiec & Associates

….in order to generate higher pay rates.  It’s an economic truth.  If there are too few of something the price goes up.  More demand for that widget than there are widgets to satisfy the demand will make them more expensive. In recruiting it takes more than just scarcity.  Try finding a Diesel Mechanic when you need one, or good Manufacturing Technicians with PLC programming.  They are hard to find and there are more needs for them than there are qualified candidates to fill them. However, their impact to the bottom line is only so much, so no matter how scarce they are, there is a cap to how much the pay will go up. todd@toddkmiec.com http://www.toddkmiec.com/

Some good earnings reports in the last couple of weeks may be a real good sign for business.  Companies like Boeing and Apple are reporting good numbers.  Leaders in different industries like this showing solid earnings growth has a big impact. These companies impact all of their suppliers and other companies that they do business with.  If we continue to see industry leaders doing well we can expect widespread growth.  Something we have not see for some time. todd@toddkmiec.com http://www.recruitingblogs.com/profile/ToddKmiec

Despite the recent news about slimming down legal immigration, we’re seeing more companies open to H1B Visas.  The rhetoric on legal immigration is that the Government wants to make sure that legal immigrants coming here are able to contribute to the economy and support themselves and their families.  Basically they are saying they want to avoid people immigrating and going on welfare. That’s a good point.  A better one is that there are a lot of needs that companies have that need a high level of talent and there is only so much of that talent already here.  Is that a sign of real growth?  The need for more high level talent than we already have here? Sure is. todd@toddkmiec.com http://www.recruitingblogs.com/profile/ToddKmiec

Reports are saying that real revenue growth is driving earnings versus just cost cutting which drove earnings for the most part since the recovery began. Real revenue growth from the actual sale of products and services would be a welcome change.  Probably not enough evidence to say for sure at this point, but if that is what we are starting to see it will be very good for business conditions. todd@toddkmiec.com http://www.recruitingblogs.com/profile/ToddKmiec

We are currently in the third longest economic expansion ever.  It’s also the slowest expansion ever.  We’ve had growth of less than 2% for 9 years. Significant economic growth is a high tide that raises all boats.  Less than 2% growth is not that.  A real expansion with significant growth is fun.  It accelerates business growth.  The reality is, growth has been slowing for decades.  Not just the last 9 years. Demographics are not in our favor with the baby boom generation retiring.  After 9 years of slow growth, a period of significant growth seems unlikely and our economy is very mature.   The bottom line is that you can grow a business significantly but it doesn’t make sense to count on a big boost from the economy.  It’s all about the business. todd@toddkmiec.com http://www.recruitingblogs.com/profile/ToddKmiec

In baseball, wins above replacement is a statistic measuring how many wins a player would get you instead of having an average AAA minor league player in that slot. What is the value of a new hire over average to the bottom line of the business?  Or the loss of a good current employee versus the average in their spot? Worth considering. todd@toddkmiec.com http://www.recruitingblogs.com/profile/ToddKmiec

It’s a good question and worth asking because every situation is different.  Sometimes a great hire is the linchpin of the business going forward.  The part you had to have.  The person who will make it all click. Sometimes it’s the only candidate you could find that you could also land and who has the skills you need.  It might be more about a project than the next 20 years.  It might be more about the next 20 years than the next project.  The important thing is to know, and then to act accordingly. todd@toddkmiec.com http://www.recruitingblogs.com/profile/ToddKmiec

Whether you like Donald Trump as President or despise him, he brings some interesting perspective to the table on a regular basis.  Recent actions involving Steve Bannon and Jeff Sessions highlight Mr. Trump’s ability to look at every situation without emotion.  It’s just business. When you aren’t productive and helping the cause or the mission, you’re out, you’re fired, we don’t need you.  When that changes, no love lost, the past doesn’t matter, if you can help us succeed then we need you on board. On either end, recruiter or candidate, manager or employee,  President or cabinet member, keeping the mission in focus and leaving emotion out can be an enormous benefit.  It’s not personal.  It’s just business. todd@toddkmiec.com http://www.recruitingblogs.com/profile/ToddKmiec

Foxconn, the iPhone manufacturer with operations primarily in China, announced last week that they are building a plant in Wisconsin.  For a good 10 years now we’ve heard stories about about onshoring…..bringing operations and jobs back to America. The wage gap has been closing for some time and coupled with incentives and other advantages, like reducing shipping costs, it can be a more attractive to manufacture in the US.  It’s a really good sign and the best part is that there is tons of room for more. todd@toddkmiec.com http://www.recruitingblogs.com/profile/ToddKmiec

Working remotely has some major pluses for both companies and employees and for the last 20 years or so we’ve seen a lot more remote work.  That’s changing.  Many companies are now pulling back on remote work and remote workers.  IBM, AETNA, HP, and Reddit to name a few. Companies are saying they want more control and collaboration.  Even good things get overdone, so a pullback isn’t surprising.  It pays to be aware that there may be fewer remote opportunities going forward as companies figure out what works best for them. todd@toddkmiec.com http://www.recruitingblogs.com/profile/ToddKmiec https://www.facebook.com/pg/Todd-Kmiec-and-Associates-194864617211094/about/

Whatever business you are in, you need to have a defined purpose.  What are you trying to accomplish.  Specifically. If you are playing without a clearly defined purpose you’re going to drift, at least a little.  Valuable time and resources will be wasted.  Your recruiting efforts won’t be focused enough and you’ll be at risk of bad hires that don’t create teams that are as successful as you would like. A properly defined purpose leads to focused recruiting and great hires. todd@toddkmiec.com http://www.recruitingblogs.com/profile/ToddKmiec https://www.facebook.com/pg/Todd-Kmiec-and-Associates-194864617211094/about/

Sourcing is all about qualifications and reach.  You can’t build great teams without the qualifications that are needed to get the job done, so the focus on qualifications is warranted. In the process though, you are going to run into candidates that have most of the qualifications but are missing something.  People are dynamic and there is a lot that goes into what a person brings to the table.  Sometimes the candidate that has most of the qualifications is a significantly better hire than the candidate with all of the qualifications.  At this point you have to go with your gut.  If going with your gut leads you to decisions that work out really well, you need to go with your gut more. todd@toddkmiec.com http://www.recruitingblogs.com/profile/ToddKmiec https://www.facebook.com/pg/Todd-Kmiec-and-Associates-194864617211094/about/