This is a great article! Number 1 is very true. I disagree with number 9, because I like to get to know you personally as well. Obviously that relationship develops over time. Number 11 is crucial, but I prefer email follow up every other week 🙂

https://www.linkedin.com/today/post/article/20140908140317-176606497-11-things-recruiters-want-you-to-know

1. We want to meet you!
Successful recruiters are constantly looking to add people to their talent pools. The more people we are connected with on LinkedIn, the more people show up in our searches when we try to fill a position. We may not have a position for you at the moment, but we might get one in the future. A colleague could have one. We may move into a company that specializes in your field. We may be at a networking event and meet someone who is looking for someone just like you. Opportunities can be found in the most unexpected ways.

If you send a request with a respectful message in the field summing up your experience (or status if you are a student about to graduate), what kind of position you are looking for and that you would like to join our talent pool on LinkedIn, then your request will be accepted. If it isn’t, then that recruiter is either not active on LinkedIn (one of the Deadly Sins of recruiting) or they are not doing their job right.

2. Some of us run our company’s social media.
Before I began working in this industry, I had always figured that a big company’s marketing team ran their social media or that they hire it out to a marketing agency. However, I have learned that a lot of staffing agencies’ and recruitment firms’ social media is being done by their recruiters. I started building my company’s social media presence when I was a recruiter. Even when my position changed, I was in constant contact with all of our recruiters because my desk stayed in the same room.

This means that you may be just a tweet or post away from an interview. Or someone who can get you in front of a recruiter.

I know one big, global recruitment firm whose Twitter, Facebook, Google+ and LinkedIn accounts are managed by a voluntary committee of recruiters and sourcers who are interested in social media. So, send your favorite prospective employers a tweet saying something to the effect of “I’d love to join your team! I have 2 years experience as a [position you hold or have held that reflects the position you want, or the industry you are in if you want to change positions] Please review my @LinkedIn profile: [with a link to your profile].” I suggest sending your LinkedIn page rather than resume because on LinkedIn, they can connect with you, send you a message or download your resume from there if you had uploaded it. Your LinkedIn profile should match up with any information on your resume anyway.

Most recruiters have their own Twitter accounts, too. If you see that their tweets are professional rather than personal, follow them and then send them a tweet.

3. You will find people more helpful if you ask for information rather than favors.
Instead of asking someone to send your resume to the person in charge of hiring the kind of position you want to be considered for, ask if they know who that is. Chances are, they will ask for your resume and email it over themselves, but they will be more willing t o help you by giving you that person’s information. One time, I did this and not only did she send my resume, but she offered to answer any questions I had and help me prepare for my first phone interview (which I took her up on). All I asked for was the person’s name.

4. Usually, we can be found on LinkedIn.
Type the name of the company you want to work for into the search bar and click on the company page. Once you’re on the company page, there is a section called “How you’re connected” at the right. It also tells you how many employees are on LinkedIn. Click “see all.” At the left, there is a search section. Click “Advanced,” make sure “current company” has a checkmark and then type in keywords for recruiters one at a time (i.e. recruiter, recruitment, talent, sourcer, sourcing). If that company has internal recruiters, their profile will pop up. The same can be done for third-party recruiters as well. Just type in the name of the staffing agency or recruitment firm rather than the company you’d like to be placed at.

5. Check your grammar.
There is no situation in which poor grammar, slang or beginning your sentences with lowercase letters present you as a serious professional. Once a relationship is established, some recruiters and candidates feel comfortable adding an occasional smiley to their emails, but even that I would reserve for close coworkers.

6. Only give us references who can provide us with insight into you as a professional.
Friends and family may sing your praises to high heaven, but that doesn’t help us. The references you give us (when we ask for them) should be coworkers, colleagues, bosses or clients. The only exception to this is if you are in school and have not held a job before. In that case, ask your favorite teachers or professors if they’d be willing to talk to us. As an educator, they know your work ethic, desire to learn, how you communicate, handle problems and how you interact with others which makes them great references if you do not have any professional ones.

7. We probably won’t call you on it, but we know when an excuse is not acceptable.
Even if you are telling the truth, cancelling an interview with less than 24 hours’ notice or not showing up is unacceptable. Some recruiters will reschedule, but that will always be in their minds. If another candidate comes along who is qualified and is respectful of other people’s schedules, we are going to change focus to them. Other recruiters may not even reschedule and just figure that your lack of preparation for the unexpected reflects a weakness that cannot be mended with a second chance. With that said, think of anything that can cause an issue. Call a neighbor or sitter and ask her if she will be available at the time of your interview in case your child gets sick. Plan an alternate route to the location of the interview in case there is an accident that causes a traffic jam. If it’s a phone interview, charge your phone a few hours before if you are going to use your mobile. Type the location into Google Maps, drag the person to the point on the map so you can see the street view and then look at what’s around the building so you can find it when it comes time to get there for your interview. You can also see where parking is.

8. We are more focused on your strengths than your weaknesses.
The reality is that you are often more concerned with your areas of weakness than we are. Unless it directly impacts your ability to perform the job we are looking to fill (e.g. a cashier not being a “people person” or a medic not knowing how to perform CPR), we are looking beyond the weakness itself.

For example, I have a hard time remembering information if I don’t interact with it. When I was recruiting, I could tell you exactly where each of my job candidates was because I had been working with them and their files. However, I may forget something that was said in a meeting not even 30 minutes after. When asked in interviews, “What is your greatest weakness?” I added what I was doing to compensate and strengthen that weakness. In my case, I always take notes. For me, the physical act of writing down key points of the conversation helps me remember the information even if I never look at my notes again. It doesn’t hurt to have a written record of everything, either. I have also been reading up on short term memory and trying some strategies to improve mine.

Recruiters and hiring managers want to see how well you know yourself and that you are trying to strengthen your areas of weakness.

9. We are interested in your professional life, not your personal one.
It is the hiring manager’s job to ask about your interests or see if you would fit in with the company’s culture. My job is to find out if you have the skills, experience and passion for the position I am trying to fill. And then get you that interview with the hiring manager. The only outside-of-work information I need is that which affects your professional life. Do you have a car or reliable transportation to get to work every day? Are you planning a vacation or know of any days that you will need to take off? Have you ever been convicted of a crime? I’m not saying be a robot and don’t share your personality, but keep the personal information focused and to a minimum. I do not need to know that your Labrador hunted a bunny and you feel bad about it. Also to this point, do not call us by pet names like “babe,” or “honey.” It is inappropriate and frankly, a little offensive.

10. Keep us in the loop if you are planning to take time off.
If you are working with a third-party recruiter (someone from a staffing agency or recruitment firm who doesn’t work for the same company you are working for) and use our website to submit your weekly time card, we need to know if you are planning to take time off. It saves us a phone call later when we see a blank timecard.

11. We want you to follow up once or twice a week.
Unless we give you a specific day or time frame to follow up during the hiring process, give us a call or send us an email once or twice a week to check for interview feedback, ask about the next step, offer your help with unreachable references, etc.

Originally posted here on Learnist.org
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As Source2’s Sourcing Specialist, I find top talent for our national clients in various industries, although I work mainly on our healthcare accounts. Follow me on Twitter for recruitment news, insights and advice! @EmilyCeskavich

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https://t.co/GF557ppXJH

Read more: http://www.inc.com/jessica-stillman/linkedin-ceo-the-3-qualities-that-make-someone-great-to-work-with.html#ixzz3D1b9REfJ

Hiring an employee who is great at his or her job is a definite win. Hiring one who also helps you enjoy coming into work every day is an absolute home run. What’s the first step to identifying these precious unicorns of the start-up hiring world? According to Jeff Weiner, the CEO of LinkedIn, the first step to bagging yourself this sort of dream employee is identifying exactly what traits you’re looking for.
So what’s the equivalent of a flash of white in the forest that might be a tell you’ve spotted one of these unicorn-type candidates? On social media recently Weiner shared a simple Venn diagram of three interlocking qualities he personally looks for when trying to spot potential employees who will be a complete pleasure to work with:

It became his most shared update ever. To the rest of us, that’s a clear indication of just how sought after this sort of effective and enjoyable employee is. To Weiner it was a signal that there was a definite desire out there in the Interwebs for him to delve more deeply into his hiring philosophy. The result of this outpouring of interest was a recent LinkedIn post offering three key attributes of the employees Weiner most enjoys working with.

The ability to dream big …
“My favorite exchanges are with people who are naturally predisposed to think at truly massive scale and without limitations. When well reasoned, that kind of vision can be highly inspirational, change the way teams solve for a specific opportunity or challenge, and ultimately, transform the trajectory of a company,” he offers as his first most desired trait.

… but also execute
However, it’s not enough simply to be able to talk a good game when it comes to truly massive ideas. The best employees can also break that huge vision down into its constituent parts, overcome objections and execute on the idea. Weiner colloquially calls this the ability to “get sh*t done.”

“If a goal is truly visionary, it’s going to be confronted by doubters, skeptics, and those threatened by its realization. As a result, there will always be walls put up on the way to achieving the objective. Some of the most capable people I’ve worked with know how to go over, around, or straight through those walls by virtue of their resourcefulness and sheer force of will. In other words, they just ‘get sh*t done,'” Weiner writes.

And have fun doing it
Both of the above traits could theoretically be found in a jerk who managed amazing things while making the office miserable. To have the complete trifecta for Weiner, you need to not only accomplish audacious goals, you also have to promote general happiness while you do it. “I’ve reached a point in my career where I want to be surrounded by people who not only share a vision, but a genuine commitment to upholding their company’s culture and values. They are team players, don’t take themselves too seriously, and know how to have fun,” he concludes.

Got all three? Then congratulations, you are officially great to work with. Found an employee with this trio of traits? Congratulations again! You’re in for some good times ahead as colleagues.

Read more: http://www.inc.com/jessica-stillman/linkedin-ceo-the-3-qualities-that-make-someone-great-to-work-with.html#ixzz3D1b9REfJ

http://www.tlnt.com/2012/11/01/the-3-most-hated-interview-questions-and-how-you-can-juice-them-up/

The 3 Most Hated Interview Questions – and How You Can Juice Them Up by Don Charlton

When you’re asking interview questions day in and day out, it’s easy to fall into a rut.

Even the most intuitive and engaging hiring managers may find themselves rattling off the same set of stock questions every day, and thanks to Google, these prompts are less effective than ever before. Applicants search online for common corporate hiring questions and then simply memorize their responses. It’s hard to learn anything about your candidates when they’re telling you exactly what you want to hear.

If your company could use a little help making better hiring decisions, it’s time to give your stock interview questions a badly needed makeover. Try these creative alternatives to break through the scripted dialogue and assess candidates for who they really are.

Hated Interview Question #1
Bad: Tell me about yourself.

Better: What’s the most exciting thing that ever happened to you?

As one of the first interview questions posed to most applicants, this opener is meant as an ice-breaker.

The problem? Most candidates will recite a response that tells you nothing you didn’t already know from the cover letter and resume. To help them ditch the script and open up, ask interviewees about the most exciting thing they’ve ever experienced instead. The answers you get might surprise you.

A candidate who talks about the birth of his son shows that he’s committed and loyal. An applicant who beams while describing his first published piece of poetry gives you a glimpse of his creative side, and someone who’s gone sky diving or deep sea diving reveals that she’s not afraid to take chances and try new things.

Remember, when your questions are interesting, your answers will be, too.

Hated Interview Question #2
Bad: Where do you see yourself in five years?

Better: What do you want your job title to be when you retire?

Some interview questions have no good answer. This is one of those questions.

If candidates say, “Right here,” they seem ambitionless. If they reply, “Moving on to the position I really want,” then they seem uncommitted. If they say, “Sitting in your seat,” they come across as predatory, and if they steal Mitch Hedberg’s line and answer, “Celebrating the fifth anniversary of you asking this question,” they might get points for humor, but you won’t learn anything about their passions and goals.

Making the time frame less immediate will help you to uncover what applicants truly enjoy and what drives them to succeed. That’s the kind of information you need to make the best employee selection decisions you can.

Hated Interview Question #3
Bad: Tell me about a time when you had to overcome an obstacle.

Better: Let me describe a problem you might encounter while working here. How would you solve the problem?

Most applicants are prepared to tell you a story that paints them as the business equivalent of a superhero flying into a burning building to rescue orphans. Sometimes these stories provide valuable insights into a candidate’s character, but often these tales are unrelated to the kind of work the new position requires.

To get an idea of how your new hire would handle the decisions she’d have to make in her new position, use a real, concrete example and ask her what she’d do. You can even formulate questions designed to reveal different qualities.

For example, the question “What would you do if you found out a colleague was fraudulently inflating his sales numbers?” is a lot different than “If your business to business sales took a dip a few weeks before your performance review, what would you do?” Pointed questions can tell you a lot about a person’s social skills, integrity, technical knowledge and expertise.

Conducting an hour-long Q&A session that’s stuffed with clichéd interview questions is no way to start a business relationship. It’s trite, it’s uninspired and above all, it’s boring, both for you and for your interviewee.

Energize your interview sessions by revamping your questions. Not only will the process become more enjoyable, but you’ll get the information you need to make even better hiring decisions.

Remember what Tony Robbins once said: “Successful people ask better questions, and as a result, they get better answers.”

This article originally appeared on The Resumator Blog.

Don Charlton is a Web entrepreneur, developer and speaker. His company, TheResumator.com,, helps employers hire with confidence. Contact him at don@theresumator.com.