Parallel HR » Employee Attraction

Looking Back: CareerBuilder’s Top 10 Posts of 2011

Stephanie Gaspary — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 10:00:27 +0000

Yesterday we released our 2012 Job Forecast, including some of our employment predictions for the New Year. But, before we jump into the future, let’s take a look back at the most read posts of 2011:

#1 – Workplace Bullying and Your Employees: What Can You Do? Read more

Do This, Not That: 8 Job Posting Tips for Better Candidates

Mary Lorenz — Mon, 21 Nov 2011 15:00:33 +0000

“We want an ad so compelling that makes someone say, ‘That seems like a cool company. I want to check that out.’” - Jay Goltz

While discussing ways companies can bring in better quality candidates and eliminate hiring mistakes during his recent webinar, Hire With Purpose, small business expert Jay Goltz suggested companies pay more attention to the content of their job postings. While it might not seem like it, job postings play a major role in the hiring process. After all, consider how much time you take to scan a resume – that’s probably about the same amount of time a job seeker takes to review a job posting. In other words, you have mere seconds to grab – and keep – a job seeker’s attention, so what you say - and how you say it - matter. With a little effort, however, you can turn your ordinary job posting into one that truly stands out in the eyes of job seekers, drives more applications and leads to better hires. All it takes is knowing what to include – and what to avoid – when creating your next job posting. Consider the following tips: DO THIS: Utilize keywords as often as possible. NOT THAT: Get keyword-happy. The more keywords your job posting contains that are relevant to the position – and that job seekers might use to search for jobs – the easier it is for search engines to find it; in effect, the higher it will appear in organic search results. Look at your job posting and consider where you can substitute keywords job seekers might use in their searches. (For example, instead of saying, “The person in this position will be required to…” say, “The Marketing Manager will be required to…”) Just don’t flood the posting with so many keywords that you lose the message. DO THIS: Go traditional with job titles. NOT THAT: Advertise for “rock stars” or “rainmakers.” Not only are these terms nondescript, but job seekers aren’t searching for these terms. Stick to advertising for more traditional job titles, which will increase the ability for your postings to show up in search results on job boards, search engines and social media sites. DO THIS: Think beyond healthcare and 401(k)s. NOT THAT: Leave out “Free Bagel Fridays” What may seem like small perks are really a window into your company’s culture. And that, for job seekers, plays a major role when considering potential employers. While you should definitely still include traditional benefits like healthcare and retirement, remember that the little things count, too – and are often what differentiate you from any other organization. In fact, when considering which benefits to include in your posting, seek the advice of those who know best – your current employees.

Veterans Day 2011: A Closer Look at the Challenges and Opportunities Veterans Face

Amy Chulik — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 17:28:13 +0000

Tomorrow, on Veterans Day 2011, we take time to honor the scores of men and women who have fought for our freedoms. While we often honor our military veterans with words, how can we make a difference by taking action on some of those words? A great way for businesses to take the lead on this is by hiring a veteran. This Veterans Day is an opportune time for all of us to take a closer look at the strengths veterans bring to the workplace and discuss ways to help tackle the challenges many face -- and a new CareerBuilder survey of more than 2,800 hiring managers helps us do just that.

What kinds of challenges are veterans facing?

Well, as of October 2011, more than 850,000 veterans were unemployed, and the jobless rate for post-9/11 veterans was 12.1 percent -- well over the national average. This problem isn't going away, but instead becoming more of a challenge: According to whitehouse.gov, more than 1 million service members are projected to leave the military between 2011 and 2016. Veterans' skills are often highly specialized, and it is sometimes difficult for them to determine how to translate those skills to those that employers are seeking in a civilian workplace environment. Brent Rasmussen, president of CareerBuilder North America, has some advice for veterans struggling to reconnect and adapt to a civilian workforce:

“The survey shows that employers recognize the unique value military experience can bring, but that they don’t always understand how military skills fit into corporate America. Veterans will need to clearly make that connection in their resume, cover letter and job interviews as they enter this new chapter of their careers.”

New job resources for veterans

Resources are popping up everywhere to help veterans adjust to their new civilian lives and find jobs. In New Brunswick, NJ, for example, veterans are learning to release stress, heal, and adapt to civilian life through music classes, and CareerBuilder has recently launched a job site matching military veterans and employers, EmployVets.com. Exclusively for veterans returning to the job force, the site includes a tool for discovering how one's military skills translate to the civilian world, career advice and resources, and much more. Sites like VETransfer are aimed at helping veterans with an entrepreneurial streak start their own businesses by connecting them with financing and equipping them with the necessary resources to get their venture started. Veterans who believe they have a skills gap hindering their job search can also participate in the CareerBuilder Re-Employment Initiative, a paid internship program aimed at helping veterans and unemployed job seekers bridge the IT skills gap. This paid program will consist of several weeks of classroom training followed by up to six months of on-the-job, hands-on training with an assigned CareerBuilder software developer. Interested? See the job description and apply here.

Move Your Recruitment Strategy Forward by Taking a Step Back

Beth Prunier — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 14:53:19 +0000

**Is your recruitment process based on what you know about job seekers…or what you think you know about job seekers?**

If there’s one thing over 15 years of in-depth research on job seeker behavior and perceptions have taught us, it’s that now, more than ever, experience matters when it comes to the ability to drive quality candidates to apply for your open positions. A recent CareerBuilder and Inavero study revealed that top talent wants to engage with prospective employers and experience what it’s like to work for their company before they decide to apply to a position – and they’re increasingly utilizing emerging technology to do it. How do job seekers really see you? Three questions to ask If you’ve never taken a step back to consider the experience you offer candidates – from their perspectives – it’s time to do so now. Below are three forms of emerging media candidates utilize today to find opportunities and research potential employers. In effect, they also provide employers the opportunity to interact with and engage with job seekers on their terms. The following exercises will help you see the experience you’re providing candidates – from their point of view.

Are You Mobile Friendly? Try searching for jobs at your company from your mobile device. Is your company's career site "mobile-friendly" and easy to navigate? Are the pages easy to view and read? Can you easily search for and retrieve opportunities and information about your company? The rate at which people are using mobile devices to exchange information is growing exponentially – and it’s showing no signs of slowing down. If you don’t have a ‘mobile-friendly’ website that enables easy navigation and viewing, you’re missing out on a crucial opportunity to reach the growing number of job seekers who search for – and share – opportunities and information on their mobile devices.

Do You Engage on Video? Enter the term "work at [your company]" on YouTube. Then do the same for your competitors. If you were a candidate, which company would capture your attention more? As the fastest-growing medium for consuming content, videos have an ability to engage candidates and tell a more complete story that is unmatched by any other medium. They are also easy-to-create and can live on nearly any platform by which job seekers search for jobs (job boards and search engines, social networks, company websites, etc.). From “day in the life” videos” to employee testimonials, video gives companies an edge in offering job seekers a peek into the experience of what it’s really like to work for an organization.

18 of Your Burning Social Media Questions, Answered

Amy Chulik — Sun, 06 Nov 2011 11:00:25 +0000

A few months ago, Amber Naslund (or @ambercadabra, as some of you may know her), VP of Social Strategy for Radian6 , hosted “Social Media for Small Businesses,” a webinar encouraging small businesses to take a look beyond likes, fans and followers and rethink the way they view how they’re using social media to help [...]

2011 Opportunities in Staffing: How to Make a Bigger Impact With Clients, Candidates and Employees

Amy Chulik — Fri, 04 Nov 2011 22:04:46 +0000

Last week, recruiters were treated to a webinar that delved into the inner workings of the staffing experience from the perspectives of the client, the job seeker, and internal staff. In Opportunities in Staffing: The Client, Job Seeker and Internal Staff Perspective, presented by Leah McKelvey, Director of Corporate Marketing for CareerBuilder and Eric Gregg, CEO [...]

What Do Employers Predict This Season Will Bring For Holiday Hiring?

Amy Chulik — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 16:38:48 +0000

As the carved pumpkins of Halloween were being given their final touches and trick-or-treating hosts were filling up their baskets for throngs of excited children, stores across the U.S. were already looking ahead to winter holidays -- and many employers had already lined up their seasonal staff for the busy time ahead. Yes, seasonal hiring is in full swing, and though employers expect to hire at similar levels this year as last, according to a new CareerBuilder survey of more than 2,600 employers, a year's time has brought more perks in pay, 29 percent of retailers planning to have extra hands on deck around the holidays (a moderate decline from 2010), and nearly one-third of employers planning to turn some seasonal staff into full-time, permanent members of their team. INFOGRAPHIC: 'Tis the Season for Holiday Hiring: What Employers Predict This Year Will Bring Sales, customer service, technology, shipping, and administrative support are all hot areas for holiday hiring this season -- let's take a closer look at what else is happening:

Retail and hospitality outlook

As mentioned above, nearly three in ten retailers will have extra staff on hand to help this holiday season, a moderate decline from last year, and 10 percent of hospitality companies will add seasonal staff this year, the same percentage as last year. What do the similar patterns in seasonal hiring from last year to this year mean for the economy? As Matt Ferguson, CEO of CareerBuilder, explained:

“Employers are keeping the status quo for holiday hiring as economic uncertainties shake consumer confidence,” said Matt Ferguson, CEO of CareerBuilder. “While retail has the lion’s share of seasonal jobs, you can also find opportunities in various industries and corporate roles."

Where is seasonal hiring happening industry-wide?

Many different types of companies are hiring for seasonal staff this year, in various functional areas where they need help the most during the holiday rush. Across all industries, popular areas for recruitment this holiday season include:

Customer Service – 30 percent
Administrative/Clerical support – 16 percent
Shipping/Delivery – 15 percent
Technology – 12 percent
Inventory management – 10 percent
Non-retail sales – 9 percent
Accounting/Finance – 8 percent
Marketing – 8 percent

Better pay is on the way

CareerBuilder CEO and Warren Buffett Talk U.S. Job Creation and Economic Recovery

Amy Chulik — Fri, 28 Oct 2011 20:57:18 +0000

When (almost) alone in a room with American business magnate and investor Warren Buffett, what do you ask him? CareerBuilder CEO Matt Ferguson appeared on Bloomberg Television's "In the Loop" this morning to talk about just that. Buffett, Ferguson and a few other business leaders met last evening during Buffett's stop in Chicago for an event for Junior Achievement, and discussed everything from U.S. job creation and the outlook for our nation's economic recovery, to philosophies on business and the housing market. This was the first time Buffett and Ferguson had gotten a chance to meet. On "In the Loop," Ferguson shared a couple of highlights from their discussion:

Executive-Level Hiring is On the Rise: What 23 Percent of Employers Are Doing About It

Amy Chulik — Thu, 13 Oct 2011 17:27:05 +0000

As we move through still-uncertain economic times, it's not a surprise that many companies are looking for new ways to main a competitive advantage. The more surprising thing to learn may be that nearly a quarter of employers (23 percent) expect to hire for executive-level positions over the next six months, according to CareerBuilder’s new nationwide executive hiring forecast of more than 2600 hiring managers and human resources professionals.

Which industries plan to hire for executive-level positions most over the next six months?

35 percent of IT companies
25 percent of health care companies
24 percent of sales companies,
23 percent of professional and business services, financial services, and leisure/hospitality companies.

Many employers often look outside the office doors when looking to recruit for these executive-level positions:

18 percent prefer to look externally.
Half of employers place equal emphasis on internal and external candidates.
One-third prefer to look internally.

A Jobs Solution: Innovation, In-Shoring and Education

Guest Contributor — Mon, 10 Oct 2011 14:15:27 +0000

By Russell Glass, CEO of Bizo As hiring professionals, we’ve all been there. Your teams need support, but you don’t have the budget or resources to hire the desired people. Perhaps you find yourself in a hiring position, but can’t find the candidates that fit the bill. The difficulties of being a hiring manager are not characteristic of one particular industry or field. Everyone, from President Obama to the store owner next door, is faced with the difficult decisions that surround job creation and hiring. So what do we do? Location is Not a Barrier As the CEO of Bizo, a fast growing company in the technology industry, I have a simple solution, “in-shoring.” Here at Bizo, we not only hire the most highly-skilled people, but we also hire them just about as fast as we can find them –wherever we can find them. Bizo is just one of the tens of thousands of businesses that are in the same position. We realized early on, that to successfully build our company, we needed to hire only the best people. However, hiring people solely based in the local San Francisco Bay Area was a significant limitation—and sacrificing quality talent was just not something that we were willing to do. At the same time, we didn’t feel that we could build the right tight-knit culture we wanted by off-shoring to countries like India, Belarus or other far-away lands. The solution? Again, a simple one: use powerful, effective and inexpensive collaboration and communication technologies like Skype, Google Docs, Dropbox, instant messaging, and web conferencing to manage our company’s remote workforce and “in-shore.”