So. I can't tell you how thrilled I am that I am now getting more and more questions about the candidate side of the biz! If you want to get right to the great tip about sourcing then just go right down to the bottom of the post.

So, are cover letters and "objectives" on resumes helpful or hurtful?  Most hiring managers, statistically, will bypass the cover letter! DO NOT UNDERESTIMATE this as the implications are far worse.. The stats really show that they don't read it, but that they scan it. They also will thus spend more time reading the cover letter and, of course, the big "objective" opener of the resume. Both the cover letter and the "objective" are a bit of a myth. None ever aid you in getting a job and both can actually CAUSE you from getting the job.

To stump or not to stump.... Should you throw "curve-balls" at your candidates during the interview process?  Frankly, it is critical for a recruiter or staffing specialist to wear two hats when asking these types of questions.  The first hat, of course, is to assess the candidate. The 2nd hat, though, is of salesperson. NEVER forget that how they answer these questions for you will also likely be how they answer them for your clients (when you create a sendout with them). Therefore, I always make sure to ask the SAME question perhaps 4 or 5 ways. Ironically, I often either get very different answers each time OR I get new information each time. Since we try to glean their selling points in an interview, it is key that you have methods to pull out ALL of them.

Ok. Any recruiter worth their salt (never really knew what that means) knows that if you sell an exclusive, that you dramatically increase your chances of placing or filling that order! Well, that's all great, but the real question is how to sell it and how to use it right! Most of the time when I hear a recruiter sell it, it is all self serving... In other words, the benefits to doing it are for the recruiter and not really for the client.  If you can get an exclusive it's also good to sometimes consider discounting the fee, or conversely, if you have to discount a fee, it's often worth exchanging that negotiation "give in" for an exclusive...... So, how do you do it...

  Ok.  Let me make this perfectly clear.  I am NOT a fan of discounting your fees or markups ever, in the hopes that it will bring in more business.  In fact, many of you have already seen this video on why not to do that.  If you haven't, then check it out...CLICK ON ME! That said, it isn't reasonable to assume that prices wont drop during a recession (or anytime when supply exceedsdemand) or that there aren't times when it simply does make sense to lower a feee.   I often hear from people who are concerned about the long term impact of lowering their fees with their existing clients... For example, "Neil. I have always done business with this one client at 30%.. Now, they are doing poorly and the president really wont approve any deal that goes above 20%.  They are hurting and truthfully, I am also.  BUT, if i lower my fee now to 20%, do you think that I will then always be stuck at 20% and will have a hard time getting it back up to 30%?". Well, I have a great easy TRICK FOR YOU! The key is to actually NEVER EVER EVER NEVER EVER NEVER (get it) LOWER YOUR FEE OR MARKUP!! NEVER!!!... BUT.. Feel free, WHEN YOU HAVE TO, to offer a special one time or limited DISCOUNT to your fees!

  What is the "greatest" response that I have ever heard when it comes to the old favorite "what is your greatest weakness?".  By "greatest", one can take it as great for the candidate or great for the interviewer.  I'll start with the greatest for me, as a hiring manager.  Silence  is a classic. Cracks me up every time.  The other one that I loved was how someone just spewed on and on, as if I were their therapist, about how many mistakes they make and how they never seem to be accepted by their new teams. The emotions went from, of course, feeling relieved that I can immediately end that interview to feeling downright bad for this person (at many many levels)..  But now, let's get into what they really SHOULD be saying, and once, again, it boils down to following the simple golden rules of sales.....

I often talk about how much of our industry does not embrace the latest technology and is behind the times.  Over the past year, it amazes me even more, since there are indeed many who are staying current and on the cutting edge.... Yet the majority are still running their desks and businesses like it's, well, 1999 (insert Prince reference here).  The big spamming happened many years ago with the advent of the fax machine... New laws and related law suits pretty much put that to an end.