How helpful are Blind CVs? There has been a recent move towards proposing blind CVs in the recruitment process. Intended to increase diversity and reduce bias in areas such as gender, ethnicity and ageism, a number of organisations are committing to this system, including the U.K. Civil Service, the BBC, the NHS,  the European Union, KPMG and HSBC. But…

Getting beyond copy-paste recruitment Copy-paste recruitment is generally business as usual in most organisations. A job description will be drafted for any open assignment. Usually this involves pulling out the old one, or re-positioning the CV of the last successful post holder.  “Get me someone like….” is a common instruction. Even if the post was last filled five…

The link between candidate experience and your talent pipeline Fuelled by decreased unemployment, retiring baby boomers and different workforce expectations and behaviour, the skirmish for the very best top talent is intensifying. Many organisations pay no or very little attention, to their candidate experience process. It’s either outsourced or automated, with varying degrees of success and efficiency. Ads frequently display clauses…

Finding the balance between attitude and aptitude The adage “Hire for attitude, train for skill” is frequently bandied around social media. Yet the reality is that this doesn’t frequently happen as part of a conscious, strategic hiring decision-making process, at least in ones that I’ve ever seen. The question is would it be the right move anyway? New hire failure…

What is  a “slow no?” A “slow no” is a communication device used by hiring managers or recruiters for keeping short listed candidates warm as a back-up plan. It involves indirect and opaque communication, which is a death knell to any search carried out with integrity. It might involve no communication at all, or fluff about delays. Sometimes it’s intentional.…

Do you have nonsense fatigue? I’m starting to see some backlash on the volume of white noise on LinkedIn and other platforms. One writer Cory Galbraith sent out a post which resonated. He has even taken a break from his own writing. He suggests that people write for a number of reasons – to sell a product, enhance a…

Job search, like it’s counterpart, recruitment, is both an art and a science.  It needs to be a successful combination of the strategic leveraging of technology (the science,) with advanced influencing skills, via personal branding and networking (the art.)  Like the planets, when these elements are in perfect alignment, then hey-ho mission accomplished for both sides. The universe…

There was a great post in the 3plus eGazine this week “How to disagree with your boss and not get fired” The guest author made a connection, which you don’t see very often in leadership posts. The writer linked the value of the interview and onboarding process to the presenting leadership issue. She (he?) referred to instances where these challenges can possibly be traced …

Relationship building has always been a key part of any recruitment process. But today technology has shifted the focus as the process becomes increasingly social. Organisations who don’t keep up with the pace and direction of  these social recruitment changes are going to get left behind in their search for top talent. CV Black hole Despite high levels of unemployment recruiters and…

It’s the season for job fairs. These are mechanisms for companies and candidates to screen each other and for both sides to get a feel for the market. They are an interesting combination of informational interview, actual interviews and networking. The skill is identifying which is which and applying the correct strategy. Today, there is discussion about how useful they are…