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| Management Recruiters of Cherry Valley - News |
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Gray Skies Don’t Look So Dark For Job Market
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In February, the employed U.S. workforce shrank by 63,000 according to the Labor Department. It is the biggest drop in U.S. employment in almost five years. But how bad does that mean the job market really is?
Every day, 10,000 Americans turn of retirement age. Assuming they take weekends off, that’s more than 200,000 employees leaving the workforce every month. Over the last year though, an average of only 76,000 new working age Americans were added per month to the general population—a 124,000 deficit.
“We need to take a step back and look at the job market as a whole. Residential real estate isn’t doing well, but as much as Americans spend on purchasing homes every year, it’s still only 5 percent of the U.S. GDP. For just about every other sector in the economy, we’re heading towards a massive labor crunch.”
Michael Jalbert
President, MRINetwork
Salaries are skyrocketing in fields like healthcare, where being understaffed simply isn’t an option. Through the last six months, MRINetwork’s internal data, known as PTWeb+™, has seen marked growth of placements in the healthcare field. The sector didn’t even pause for the holiday season, a time known for lessened hiring activity.
While healthcare may be one of the most robust areas of the economy, hiring remains strong in a variety of science, technology, marketing, security, energy and accounting fields. There are even signs of a rebound for mortgage brokers. According to Indeed.com, a search engine for jobs, January may have seen the largest rebound in advertised mortgage broker positions in nearly two years.
“If the economy is unsound, the reason is a lack of talent, not a shortage of jobs,” says Jalbert. “The college educated workforce unemployment rate has consistently hovered at around 2 percent—virtually full employment. We’ve been talking about a massive boomer retirement for years, but now it’s arrived.
“That’s going to lead over the coming years to quickly increasing upward salary pressures as more employers hunt for fewer candidates. The labor shortage is such an overriding issue, that even in a potential global economic downturn, its influence remains strong,” concludes Jalbert.
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4/15/2008
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Retail Overview-Taking Advantage of Slow Down
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Christmas wasn’t anything to get excited about in the retail sector, but it doesn’t look like anyone’s taking the time to lick their wounds, according to Gerald Mitchell, president of Retail Search Group, an MRINetwork office based in Northern California.
“This year retailers switched from Christmas to the spring season as smoothly as I’ve ever seen,” says Mitchell. “Though Christmas was not as strong as hoped, the aggressive inventory transitions have held many retailers see same store, year-over-year sales growth begin to accelerate in 2008’s first quarter.”
But aren’t we in a recession? Isn’t consumer confidence at record lows?
“The retailers I see as poised for success right now have vision far beyond the current economic woes,” continues Mitchell. “If a retailer’s business model is sound, when this is over, the model will still be sound and they’ll do great.”
The job growth Mitchell currently sees in the retail sector is not necessarily coming from stores expanding their staff, but from retailers opening new locations. With real estate prices remarkably lower than in recent memory, companies are taking the opportunity to expand their brands to be in a position to grow once the economy recovers.
“In succeeding in retail, it’s being aggressive in every part of the business that lets you thrive. You’ve got to drive with your foot on the gas,” says Mitchell.
At the Roseville Galleria, not far from Retail Search Group in Northern California, the Westfield owned mall is in the middle of construction on as many as 100 new stores.
While the success of Congress’s tax rebate in May to shore up the U.S. economy is unclear, if it follows popular belief, spending is bound to see a substantial uptick as consumers spend more at retailers both before and after receiving their money. Such an aggressive influx of spending will continue to help retailers’ coffers and further drive them to expand their brands in the near term.
“Americans might say they want to save the check or pay off debt—and some will—but $600 is just enough for an iPhone, a medium-sized HDTV or a nice new wardrobe, and at the end of the day, that’s where lots of the money will go,” according to Mitchell.
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4/13/2008 1:37:09 PM
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Off Shore Puerto-Rico Employment Situation
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As a territory of the United States, Puerto Rico holds a unique position in the world economy. The island was long dominated by sugar production until the 1940’s when President Franklin D. Roosevelt instituted tax benefits to thrust Puerto Rico out of the Great Depression.
Though recent changes in the tax code for U.S. corporations operating in Puerto Rico have lessened the benefits and have stymied some growth, the benefits remain strong. So strong, that they continue to perpetuate the feeling among some economists that the territory, with few natural resources of its own, has an “artificial” economy. Artificial or not, it’s thriving. “Lower than mainland U.S. labor costs, tax benefits and duty free imports, not to mention the weather, make Puerto Rico an excellent place for skilled industries,” says Carlos Rodriguez, CEO of Management Recruiters of Puerto Rico, who has owned the office since 1988. “Pharmaceuticals has become one of Puerto Rico’s mainstays in addition to electronics, textiles, petrochemicals and financial services.
Puerto Rico has a small workforce, only about 1.7 million strong, but is able to tap into the whole of the U.S. workforce with no need for work visas or other complications typical of international recruiting.
A large rural population and high-turnover tourism and service industries cause Puerto Rico to have an unemployment rate hovering around 6 to 10 percent higher than the U.S. It was 10.8 percent in January 2008, as reported by the U.S. Labor Department.
“Manufacturing has been steadily leaving the island seeking countries not governed by U.S. minimum wages, yet the number of skilled professionals who are entering Puerto Rico has been growing at a steady pace,” says Rodriguez. “When the global economy begins to stabilize, Puerto Rico will surge.”
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4/12/2008 2:42:36 PM
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Our Global Footprint
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Every day, we leverage the MRINetwork™ to serve and build relationishps across town or across the globe. Management Recruiters of Cherry Valley provides you with a single point of contact to over 1,100 offices in more than 35 countries, enabling you to gain access to one of the largest talent pools to locate your next impact player.
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4/10/2008
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Welcome to the MRI Network!
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MRINetwork is one of the world's largest recruitment organizations. Through our Accelerated Recruitment™ approach, we find and place Impact Players, those individuals who arrive faster, fit better and stay longer. Providing our clients immeasurable return on their hiring investment by bringing them the people who make a difference in their business every day. The combination of our global reach, industry expertise and streamlined methodology allows MRINetwork to match companies with their Impact Players - the right candidate for the right position
Feel free to browse around and learn more about the services we offer. If you have any questions regarding how we can help your company or your career, don't hesitate to contact us.
Management Recruiters, Inc.
Phone:(815) 399-1942 • Fax: (815) 399-2750
MRCherryValley@MRCherryValley.com
Let us help you build your future.
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4/10/2008
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Middle Mgmt Dilemma
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By the sixth year in the middle-management level, most companies in the United States have already decided whether a middle manager has senior-level potential or has become a “career” middle manager, according to a new study from Management Recruiters International, Inc. (MRI), the world’s largest search and recruitment organization. In the United Kingdom, however, the timeframe is even more accelerated, as the study revealed that most middle managers have only four years to advance to the senior level. The study, which interviewed 200 Human Resource directors or senior executives in the United States and 200 Human Resource directors or senior executives in the United Kingdom, also determined that “career” middle managers are seen as critical to the success of the company.
On average, a middle manager remains in the same position for 6.3 years before being promoted to senior management in the U.S. while in the U.K.; middle managers will spend an average of 4.7 years at that level before being promoted. However, in both countries, if these employees do not make the jump to senior management within that same time period, most surveyed companies said they would be considered “career” middle managers. The study also found that after six years in middle management, in both the U.S. and U.K., the opportunities for advancement to the senior level are greatly reduced. Therefore, middle managers who aspire to senior positions must carefully evaluate their career choices at this time, including the possibility of moving on to a new company, to determine how to best meet their goals.
Additionally, the accelerated timeframe for advancement in the U.K. may be attributed to the fact that middle-management candidates in the U.K. are more likely to inquire about the potential for career growth during the interview process than their counterparts in the U.S. On average, 58 percent of U.K. candidates will ask about opportunities for advancement, while only 41 percent of U.S. candidates will do the same.
“Middle managers who have aspirations to become a part of senior management within their own organization can now be cognizant of how much time they have to reach that goal,” said William Olson, President of Management Recruiters International. “Given this shorter time period, it is critical that these middle managers accelerate their career progression by investigating the available opportunities at their company and positioning themselves as potential senior managers more aggressively.”
Respondents in both the U.S. and U.K. also noted that when fulfilling senior-level positions within their company, the majority of them would prefer to promote from within. Specifically, only 23 percent of U.S. respondents and 11 percent of U.K. respondents said they consider a candidate from outside the company to be more attractive than one from within.
“According to our study, the majority of individuals in senior management are promoted from the middle-management level,” commented Olson. “Therefore, it is critical that companies focus on improving their ‘bench strength’ of middle-management employees. Hiring managers must make smarter and more strategic decisions when recruiting middle-management candidates, as these individuals represent the company’s future senior leaders.”
The study also revealed that hiring managers are more tolerant of frequent job changes at the junior level than at the middle or senior level. On average, respondents expect a junior candidate to remain with the same company for 2.4 years in the U.K. and 3.2 years in the U.S. For middle-management candidates, that figure rises to 3.5 years in the U.K. and 4.1 years in the U.S. while senior candidates should remain at their current position for years in the U.K. and 5.2 years in the U.S.
Opinion Research Corporation conducted telephone interviews with 200 Human Resource directors or senior executives in the U.S. and 200 in the U.K. Margin of error for each sample of 200 is plus or minus seven percentage points at a 95 percent confidence level.
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4/8/2008
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Why recruiters are worth what they charge
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Written by Paul Hawkinson Publisher of The Fordyce Letter
“When I need a heart by-pass, rest assured that I won’t select my surgeon on the basis of what they charge.”
That’s what an ailing executive recently opined when he was informed by his doctor about his arterial blockage problems.
Why then can corporate executives be so tightfisted when dealing with the acquisition of what is so commonly thought of as the “heartbeat” of their companies … top-talent?
Companies think very little about paying the often exorbitant fees charged by their outside accounting and legal firms … or even to the gaggle of consultants who promise cost-cutting and streamlining miracles in other areas of operations.
Yet, when faced with brain drains, talent deficiencies or the need to replace an employee with a better one, their thoughts too often turn to parsimony. This Wal-mart mentality belies and contradicts their stated objectives to “hire the best,” especially at pecking order levels below the “big picture” executive suite inhabitants.
Of course recruiting fees can vary from firm to firm but, when they do, you will almost always find that those on the low side are sure to exclude some very key portions of the process, all of which are vital to providing the indispensable services necessary to satisfy the needs of the employer.
So why are recruiters worth what they charge? Just a few of the often unspoken reasons are:
Expertise - Nobody knows the employment marketplace better than a professional recruiter … nobody! In-house human resourcers, no matter how effective, view the marketplace through an imperfect or misrepresentative prism and tunnel vision is a major occupational hazard.
Just as physicians are cautioned against treating members of their own families, so too is it folly for an in-house H/R professional to believe that they have an undistorted and unbiased picture of the employment landscape. They are vulnerable to the pressures of internal politics and cultural dimensions which do not hinder the outsider. Street-smart recruiters already know the neighborhood, including the unlisted addresses so often overlooked by the HR insiders.
Cast a wider net – A professional fisherman will always have more to show than a weekend angler. Recruiters are in the marketplace day in and day out. They know the unfished coves, reefs and inlets that are unknown to others. The job-hunter bookshelves are filled with lore about the “hidden job market.” The same holds true for professional recruiters who have a detailed roadmap to the hidden talent sources which will never be accessed by newspaper ads, alumni associations, applicant databases, the Internet or any of the other more familiar sources of people.
There are occasional pearls through these sources (and someone inevitably wins the Publisher’s Clearinghouse Sweepstakes too) but you have to shuck an awful lot of smelly oysters to find them. Recruiters only give you oysters proven to contain pearls. Your only job is to determine which pearl is the best.
Want to catch what you’re fishing for? Hire a guide!
Cost – There is a misconception among employers that the cost of a hire equals the cost of the ads or postings run to attract the person hired. Nothing could be further from reality. Try adding these to the true cost and you’ll see just how cost effective an outside recruiter can be:
Salaries and benefits of the employment/recruiting staffs plus those of the line managers involved in the hiring activity (who are not productive in their normal job pursuits when they’re out recruiting); travel. Lodging and entertainment expenses of in-house recruiters; source development costs; overhead expenses including (but not limited to) telephone, office space, postage, PR literature, applicant database maintenance, Internet access, reference checking, clerical costs to correspond with the hundreds of unqualified respondents, etc.
Unbiased third party input – Contrary to what some believe recruiters don’t try to put square employees into round jobs. A recruiter’s stock-in-trade is their integrity and their reputation for finding someone better than a company could have found for themselves.
For a mid-level to senior executive, the average recruiter may develop a “long list’ of a hundred or more possibilities. Each must be called and evaluated against the position specifications as well as the personality “fit’ with the company and the people with whom they will intimately work. Once this is winnowed down to the “short list,” an even more intensive interviewing process begins to narrow the search to a panel of finalists for review by the client.
This process is not, as some believe, simply romping through the file cabinets, job boards or putting the job opening out to others on the recruiter’s network with crossed fingers that someone good will show up.
It is highly unlikely that a professional recruiter will be plowing brand new ground with your opening. They deal within spheres of influence far more familiar with your needs than any internal recruiter and, more often than not, view the finalists as people who are competent to solve client problems rather than just fill an open slot in the organizational chart.
Because they want to do business with you again and again, they are looking for (and challenging you to excellence by hiring) the “truly exceptional” rather than the “just satisfactory” so often settled for by in-house hirers.
Confidentiality – Advertising or otherwise publicly proclaiming an opening, aside from its cost and demonstrated ineffectiveness for sensitive senior level openings, often creates anxiety and apprehension among the advertiser’s current employees who wonder why they aren’t being considered or worry about newcomer transition problems. Just as often it alerts competitors to a current weakness or void within the company.
Speed – The recruiting process is always faster through a search professional who is continually tapped into the talent marketplace than one having to start the process from scratch. For every day that a key opening remains unfilled, a company’s other employees must grudgingly do double duty. And this doesn’t factor in the profit opportunities or competitive advantages lost to a company because a position remains unfilled or done on a part-time basis by others less qualified.
Post-Hire Downtime – Not only is speed an essential part of the professional recruiter’s process, the ability to locate a person who can immediately “hit the ground running” with a minimum of “ramp-up time” saves time after the hire. All too often, a hire selected through less effective sources, offering a smaller talent pool, requires several months of expensive training and orientation.
Reality – Professional recruiters often recognize ( and have a duty to inform clients) that they may be mistaken as to the type of person sought, the salary required to attract them or the possibilities that the solution might just lie in areas outside the traditional target industries … something an internal recruiter is politically disinclined to do. Too many hirers fail to understand that a professional recruiter’s primary function is not necessary to fill a slot but to provide the right candidate to solve a problem… and say Yes.
Negotiation – Master negotiator Herb Cohen says that “negotiation is the analysis of information, time and power to affect behavior … the meeting of needs (yours and others) to make things happen the way you want them to.” As a buffer and informed intermediary, the professional recruiter is better able to blend the needs and wants of both parties to arrive at a mutually beneficial arrangement without the polarizing roadblocks which ass too frequently materialize in face-to-face dealings.
Prioritizing company resources - It is often amazing to see how much of a company’s revenues are squandered on non-productive perks for existing high-level employees while they penny-pinch on what is every company’s life-blood … talent acquisition.
Club memberships and the like may be fine, but no one with an IQ higher than room temperature believes that these expenditures significantly contribute to a company’s profit margin. But one well-placed employee can be the cause of a company’s profits skyrocketing. And the fee for having hired these people pales in insignificance when compared to the contributions they make to the bottom line.
The next time you think a recruiter’s fees are too high, put them in the proper perspective before asking for that bargain Blue Light special or spinning your wheels thrashing about trying to fill vital openings with less effective (but not necessarily less expensive) uninspired methods. Savvy executive learned long ago that the fee paid to a recruiter is a shrewd strategic investment, not an extraneous expense.
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4/7/2008
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Question..Prepared for Your Interview?
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You want to work for the company, they've seen your credentials and they've asked you in for an interview. You want the job. Here are some suggestions that will help you make sure your interview goes as well as possible.
Preparing for the interview
Thorough preparation is critical. It is great for your confidence in the interview room and it leaves a very positive impression with the interviewers.
Get the logistics right. Time, location, interviewer's name and position title.
Do your research. Find out as much as possible about the company: size, scope, location of branches and offices, financial/share performance, range of products and services, etc. The company website and annual report are two very good sources.
Do some more research. Make sure you have key data in your head about your existing and most recent employers.
Do even more research. Ask former co-workers to tell you about your professional traits. What did they most admire? Try to find some faults as well. This leaves you more prepared for questions such as "what are your greatest faults" or "if I were working with you ...".
Prepare questions. The employer will be trying to work out whether you fit the available role. You should also take the opportunity to ensure that the company is right for you.
Practice (see below). Take time to run through some of your answers. Don't over-rehearse, but make sure that you are coming across confidently.
Present yourself well. Find out what the company culture is regarding business dress. If in doubt, go more formal, not less formal. Make sure you are well groomed on the day.
What you should practice
When practicing for an interview, you should focus particularly on the way you answer questions.
Be descriptive. Don't just answer "yes" or "no" to questions. But also avoid "over-answering." Make your answers colorful but not lengthy.
Sell yourself to the interviewer, but without exaggeration or telling lies. You are there to market yourself, "blow your own trumpet" and explain why you'd be right for the role. But don't come across as arrogant.
Avoid making negative remarks about your current employer, or past employers or colleagues. This will only reflect on you in the interview.
Be determined. Make it clear that you want to get the job, even if you are given information in the interview that sheds a new light on the role. Be positive, and then evaluate the opportunity again when you are away from the interview. Don't burn your bridges.
Have positive body language, and maintain a good posture.
Remember: expect unexpected questions. It's fine to pause for thought. It's also acceptable to admit you don't know the answer.
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4/7/2008
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Beware of the Counter Offer
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A tax accountant with a Chicago-based public accounting firm accepted a top corporate position at a local manufacturer that paid $15,000 more than he currently earned. But the accountant changed his mind after his firm's senior partner made him a counteroffer. The partner dangled a plethora of incentives, including the promise of a partnership in the near future. Three months later, after the tax season ended, the accountant was fired.
A manufacturing manager with a medium-sized metal products company in Albuquerque, N.M., accepted a new position that included a higher salary and better benefits. But he decided to stay put after his company agreed to match the offer and told him of great things on the horizon. However, he wasn't told that the firm might be merging with another. Six months after the executive decided to stay, he was merged out of his job. Following nine months of unemployment, he landed a lower-paying position.
Ask any executive recruiter and you'll hear dozens of heartbreaking stores like these involving counteroffers. Unfortunately, more executives seem to be getting and accepting them because of the inconsistent economy. Companies are operating with reduced staffs and any defections from the ranks create problems for those who remain. It's much easier for employers to sweeten the pot to keep executives from deserting than to conduct grueling and expensive searches for placements.
Mathew Henry, the 17th-century write, said, "Many a dangerous temptation comes to us in fine gay colours that are but skin deep." The same can be said for counteroffers, those magnetic enticements designed to lure you back into the nest after you've decided it's time to fly away.
But in good times, or bad, the dictum remains constant, counteroffers should never be accepted...EVER! Those few rare instances where accepting one is beneficial occur about as frequently as being struck by lightning.
The Right Perspective
A counteroffer is an inducement from your current employer to get you to stay after you've announced your intention to take another job. It doesn't include instances when you receive an offer but don't tell your boss, or when you tell your employer about an offer you never intended to take in a classic "they-want-me-but-I'm-staying-with-you" ploy. These are merely positioning tactics that can reinforce your worth by letting your boss know you have other options. Mention of a true counteroffer, however, carries an actual threat to quit. Interviews with employers who make counteroffers, and employees who accept them, have shown that accepting a counteroffer--tempting as it may be--is tantamount to career suicide. Consider the problem in its proper perspective.
What really goes through a boss's mind when someone quits?
"This couldn't be happening at a worse time."
"He's one of my best people. If I let him quit now, it'll wreak havoc on the morale of the department."
"I've already got one opening in my department. I don't need another right now."
"This will probably screw up the entire vacation schedule."
"I'm working as hard as I can and I don't need to do his work, too."
"If I lose another good employee, the company might decide to lose me too."
"My review is coming up and this will make me look bad."
"Maybe I can keep him on until I find a suitable replacement."
"We're working with a skeleton crew already. If I lose this one, we'll all be working around the clock just to stay even."
What will the boss say to keep you in the nest? These comments are common:
"I'm really shocked. I thought you were as happy with us as we are with you. Let's discuss it before you make your final decision."
"Aw gee. I've been meaning to tell you about the great plans we have for you, but it's been confidential until now."
"The VP has you in mind for some exciting and expanding responsibilities."
"Your raise was schedule to go into effect next quarter, but we'll make it effective immediately."
"You're going to work for who?"
"How can you do this in the middle of a major project? We were really counting on you." (They're always in the middle of one.) Just a Stall Tactic!
Let's face it. When someone quits, it's a direct reflection on the boss. Unless you're really incompetent or a destructive thorn in his/her side, the boss might look bad for allowing you to go. It's an implied insult to his management skills. His/her gut reaction is to do what has to be done to keep you from leaving until he/she's ready. That's human nature.
Unfortunately, it's also human nature to want to stay--unless your work life is abject misery. Career change, like all ventures into the unknown, is tough. That's why bosses know they can usually keep you around by pressing the right buttons. Before you succumb to a tempting counteroffer, consider these universal truths:
• Any situation is suspect if an employee must receive an outside offer before the present employer will suggest a raise, promotion or better working conditions.
• No matter what the company says when making it's counteroffer, you'll always be a fidelity risk. Having once demonstrated your lack of loyalty (for whatever reason), you will lose your status as a team player and your place in the inner circle.
• Counteroffers are usually nothing more than stall devices to give your employer time to replace you. Your reasons for wanting to leave still exist. They'll just be slightly more tolerable in the short term because of the raise, promotion or promises made to keep you.
• Counteroffers are only made in response to a threat to quit. Will you have to solicit an offer and threaten to quit every time you deserve better working conditions?
• By accepting a counteroffer, you have committed the unprofessional and unethical sin of breaking your commitment to the prospective employer making the offer.
• Decent and well-managed companies don't make counteroffers...EVER! Their policies are fair and equitable. They will never be subjected to counteroffer coercion, which they perceive as blackmail.
If the urge to accept a counteroffer hits you, keep on cleaning out your desk as you count your blessings. And, if you decide to stay, hire a lawyer to put your newly won promises in the form of a long-term no-cut contract.
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4/7/2008
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How to Get the Most Value from Your Recruiter
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The successful partnering between you and your search firm is a two-sided arrangement that requires trust and professional respect. Your approach to the partnership influences the speed and outcome of the search process just as much as the recruiter’s skill. One of the most important factors is your understanding of the process and the part you play in it. Here are a few suggestions that may be helpful:
Do your homework before meeting with the recruiter. Define long- and short-term expectations for the job. Think through key organizational issues: reporting and working relationships; number of people the new hire will manage; who he or she will work with most closely.
Make sure that your team agrees on the objectives of the position and that they are willing and able to commit time and energy to make the hiring process a top priority.
Be prepared with the key elements that define the job description, such as:
Title
Objectives
Criteria for measuring performance
Major issue that new hire will address immediately
Organization charts
How many and what kind of people will be managed
Current budget of the department
Salary, including bones, incentive plans, benefits
Career path opportunites
Provide additional information your recruiter needs. Be explicit about the chemistry and corporate culture of your company. Share both good and bad, positive and negative aspects of the job and have no surprises waiting.
Establish high standards in evaluating candidates, but be sensitive to feedback. Understand the trade-off between the candidate qualities you require and those you desire.
Keep things moving from your side: conduct candidate interviews promptly; give timely feedback; maintain security and confidentiality.
A successful search is a team effort. You and your recruiter complement each other’s knowledge and strengths. A spirit of partnership will go a long way toward enabling you to reach your staffing goals.
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4/5/2008
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