TLNT reports that two out of three workers are actively looking for a new job. This is on top of the number of unemployed people who are currently looking for work.
If you are a recruiter or HR professional in any area — I don’t care how specialized — and you can’t find a candidate to fill a job, you are doing it wrong. Go find another job.
“You don’t get it. There’s a war for talent out there, Laurie. I cannot find candidates who have [experience, education, savvy]. I can’t find candidates who possess the right kind of cultural fit.”
Uhm, no. Bullshit.
There are plenty of reasons why jobs go unfilled but much of it has nothing to do with a lack of qualified candidates. In some cases, job descriptions are poorly written. In other cases, hiring managers are either poorly trained or racist/sexist/ageist/biased against the disabled (even in a subconscious way) and won’t accept diverse candidates. And everyone knows that companies want cheap labor. Robot monkeys who are paid with electronic bananas would be preferable over human beings who need health insurance.
And what are a majority of HR professionals and corporate/third-party recruiters doing to get Americans back to work? Not much. Instead of encouraging clients to hire a candidate who meets 60-80% of the qualifications — or taking a stand, being accountable, and refusing to work on future requisitions if a company can’t make a decision and hire someone — Human Capital professionals are attending conferences and bemoaning the state of the workforce. They complain about a war for talent. And they think that the solution to filling vacancies in their organization is to hop on Facebook and institute some kind of ‘employer branding campaign’.
Don’t even get me started about employer branding. You want to hire someone great? Get on the Twitters and do this. Announce —
- We’re hiring.
- We pay competitively and we offer benefits.
- We treat our employees with respect and we have a track record of doing the right thing.
- Unethical, lazy, or stupid behavior isn’t tolerated from anyone — and if you’re hired, we will hold you accountable.
- Here’s how you apply for a job.
War. For. Talent. My Ass. It’s not that hard. I know. I’ve done it.
The war for talent is overstated by HR teams and recruiting professionals who lack the required skills, resources, and backbone to hire talented people. The next time you hear a Human Capital professional talking about a war for talent, tell ‘em your story. Tell ‘em how you are a good human being, you have great skills, and how you just want to work at a decent company and make a contribution.
And then ask for a job. Right then and there.
If we don’t start holding someone accountable for getting Americans back to work, we’ll never get out of this mess. I am holding Human Resources and recruiting professionals accountable. How about you?
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One of your best pieces evah! On the mark!
thx dude
Brilliant, Laurie! Simply brilliant, as always.
thank you
Brilliant. Short. Sharp. Commonsense advice.
Yet so many HR teams manage to over complicate it.
I hope to god someone uses that job ad. To the point and no bullshit.
we over complicate it to justify our existence…
We are awash in a sea of talent. Sad to say that there is a lot of trash in the sea. And I don’t blame the flotsam and jetsam for being flotsam and jetsam, well, I don’t blame them as much.
If management lived up to it’s moral obligation – #7 in Druckers list to *develop people* in technical and organizational skills – there would not be as much flotsam and jetsam.
And if people took responsibility for their careers and worked to improve and develop their personal behavior, well, you know what I am about to say.
Nonetheless, the sea is still filled with very nice talent. Talent is like capital – it goes where it is appreciated.
Another great post Laurie!
This is off subject — but I’m still not sure we have an understanding of who is talented and who isn’t. Are talented people talented all of the time? Can we pay someone to be talented 67% of the time and just be okay with the slack?
One recruiter told me that most companies are looking for an “exact DNA match” to fill positions. Thats a bit short-sighted, don’t you think HR?
Chris,
I had a manager very sternly and seriously tell me I needed to make a particular program “part of every employees DNA.” She was the grossly misplaced, head of “Talent Management”. And was a sci-fi horror of a nutbag to work for.
omg ugh
Employee DNA? Really?!? Most companies have no idea of:
1) What employees actually need to do in their jobs, and
2) What skills their employees have to apply to said jobs.
The term DNA gets tossed around like a cheap whore. Recruiters and hiring managers need to get over themselves.
cheap whore, lol.
so true.
Hell I’d venture a guess that most of them also have no idea what DNA is.
I was just sitting here thinking if you can change adult DNA, you probably have a lucrative career outside of an office setting. May possibly involve sharks with freakin’ laser beams on their foreheads.
I’ve been hearing similar complaints for years.
My theory is this: that by the time a job req is “done” (meaning completely overstuffed), the HR people and anyone else in hiring feels they have to match everything. Not matching everything can get you in trouble, so they then go on an unrealistic quest for someone that, by the odds, isn’t available or would never work for them.
There’s pathology all throughout the system.
or the managers feel they have to match everything — and they match nothing.
Yeah, people feel they have to match everything. If they don’t, THEIR jobs are on the line.
Hiring someone who can tick of bullet points covers your butt even if they fail.
Oh I hate that.
Pretty common sense stuff here. Unfortunately, not everyone has common sense.
so true
We’re hiring. – True
We pay competitively and we offer benefits. – We mean to say we reduced our benefits and wages because our employees have less options. You didn’t believe that bullshit line about valuing talent did you? We are slaves to the stock biatches..
We treat our employees with respect and we have a track record of doing the right thing. – We are working on this, but its hard when your not willing to give up 12 hour work days.
Unethical, lazy, or stupid behavior isn’t tolerated from anyone — and if you’re hired, we will hold you accountable. – Some of those people were let go, some were promoted, we talk about performance management but who really has the time for that?
slightly cynical today, sorry..
LOL this is so true it hurts my face.
Superb!
xo
I hear Chris on the “Exact DNA Match” thing. Hiring companies’ standards are too high. Often, I’ll interview for a job, which means that I’m among a pool of candidates. I’ll get reject