The employee referrals debate today Employee referrals programmes have been around throughout history. Research suggests that Julius Caesar created the first programme when he offered up to one-third of a soldier’s annual salary for referrals into the army. Employee referrals are a way of finding candidates for an open role by asking current employees for introductions…

I’ve seen some hot discussions between recruiters around terminology and data used in the career coaching sector. The one that makes temperatures rise is the phrase “the hidden job market.”  As someone who sits on both sides of the table, I have sat back in reflection mode monitoring what has been going on. I’ve also…

We are in the middle of a tumultuous convergence of three crises: health, economic and social justice. In some areas we need to layer on political upheaval. And we are not talking emerging markets here. The “Coronacoaster” as it has been named, is creating upheaval and uncertainty in most markets. Some have been decimated. Many…

 In candidate driven markets, hiring managers are the sellers For years the recruitment process has been powered by companies in the happy position of being in  the driving seat. Today, things have changed in a candidate driven market. In a supply driven market, companies posted ads, shortlisted some candidates, put them through rigorous interviews and…

Researchers and pundits in the media are predicting the advance of AI and automation with jobs tagged for disappearance. Andrew Ng suggested in 2016 “If a typical person can do a mental task with less than one second of thought, we can probably automate it using AI either now or in the near future,”  As…

Very often those leading or working in toxic workplace cultures are unable to see things how they really are. Bad habits and behaviours are so deeply ingrained that the individuals involved no longer notice. Or if they do, they make excuses “That’s how he/ she is” or “that’s the way we do things here.”  Then…

Most companies include interviews as part of their hiring process. Sometimes they are one to one, or perhaps with different members of the team or others involved in the hiring process. Interviews can be held in panels of two or more, but very often they are sequential with candidates meeting one person after another. They…

Every head hunter wants to identify, attract and place the best candidates.  But how smoothly the whole process goes can depend on the personal relationship a head hunter or recruiter has with the hiring manager. It is it one that is too frequently overlooked. All parties have to work together to attract and hire the…

Social media is now becoming an unforeseen danger zone for HR Managers. Career coaches are constantly exhorting candidates to take care of their cyber foot print, especially at entry-level. All recruiters and head hunters usually check out applicants online before meeting them. Line managers have been warned to pay attention when liking and sharing inappropriate content…

Abuse has no place in any environment, but especially a professional one. This includes physical violence against individuals or property, or even feigned or threatened violence. Nor should there be any verbal abuse, yelling, swearing or humiliation of any kind related to race, appearance, nationality and anything else you can think of, that would make someone feel demeaned. Add to that “no…