Active vs. Passive Candidates Recruiting on Baseless Merit

Active vs. Passive Candidates Recruiting on Baseless Merit Here’s a topic that’s near and dear to my heart: recruiters’ and employers’ preference of sourcing and hiring passive (non-job-seeking) candidates over active (job-seeking) candidates, and discrimination against the unemployed or anyone seeking employment. Sixteen years ago, I worked for a New York City ad agency that was sold to a larger company and, along with many other employees, I was laid off. As I began to embark upon my new job search, 9/11 happened, leaving the city and much of the country in a deep recession. I tried to look on the bright side â€" certainly there were people who were dealing with much worse than I was. But nevertheless, I was unemployed, and unfortunately stayed that way for many months after. When I eventually reentered the workforce in the recruiting industry, I soon discovered what could have been one of the contributing factors to my long stretch of unemployment. Many recruiting firms often sell clients on the fact that they only recruit passive candidates, and many employers simply demand it. Over the next several years, I worked job searches for clients who would only hire candidates who were already employed. I sourced candidates for recruiters who wouldn’t even consider them if they weren’t currently working, even for positions that had gone unfilled for long periods due to their specialized skill requirements. And through it all, I wondered…am I now contributing to the same cycle of unemployment that I had been caught in a few years ago? Discrimination based on employment status is nothing new in the recruiting world. Recently, it became enough of an issue for states like New Jersey, Oregon and Washington, D.C. to pass laws outlawing it. But in most states, employment status is not a protected class. Even if it were, how many unemployed workers have the time, money or drive to pursue a lawsuit against a potential employer who insists on hiring passive candidates? How would they even prove that their state of unemployment affected the employer’s decision not to interview them? And assuming they could, let’s not overlook how a legal victory in their favor would affect their future job search. The perception In the working world, there are many perceptions that are held so tightly that they often take years, even decades, to break. One of those is the perceived notion that passive candidates are superior to active candidates. Active candidates are desperate, and there must be some deep-rooted reason why they’re unemployed. If they had the skills and drive to be successfully employed, they already would be. If they were willing to work hard, they would have channeled that passion into their job search. Passive candidates are comfortably employed because they deserve to be. Luring them away from their current employer with a better salary and benefits will certainly result in a better hire than someone who is willing to accept anything. Unfortunately, none of these are true. The reality Have you ever known a good employee to lose his or her job? Have you ever worked with a bad employee? Of course! Everyone who has held a job can answer “yes” to both of these. So what makes so many recruiters and hiring managers associate “employed” with “better employee” and “unemployed” with “lesser employee?” Certainly there are occasional cases of employees losing their jobs by their own fault, then not being able to get rehired for good reason. But there are far more excellent employees who have lost their jobs by no fault of their own, and are willing to do whatever is necessary to reenter the workforce and prove themselves. Any recruiter or hiring manager who disqualifies candidates based only on employment status without taking into account previous work experience, education, skill set, personality, drive and determination is doing their employer a huge disservice. Substituting any or all of these qualities with the simple requirement of being currently employed is a quick and easy path to a bad hire, thus forcing the employer to start the search process over again from square one. Furthermore, only considering passive candidates increases the chances of hiring job hoppers, who are only interested in salary and perks, and will jump ship again as soon as a better offer comes along. Active candidates are far less likely to take a job offer for granted, and more likely to work that much harder to impact the company, enhance their skill set, assimilate into the company culture, and prove their worth to the employer who was willing to give them a second chance. There are few employees who are lucky enough to retire without ever having experienced a day of unemployment. Those of us who have been unemployed know that if every employer only hired passive candidates, a layoff or termination would mean the end of one’s career and a bleak financial future. It’s therefore up to recruiters to consider both active and passive candidates for job searches, and to educate clients on the benefits of recruiting based on skills, experience and culture fit as opposed to employment status. After all, the more active candidates that rejoin the workforce, the more passive candidates that will exist for the next job search!

Why Professional Resume Writing is Often Top Ranked

Why Professional Resume Writing is Often Top RankedMany professional job applicants often think that they can just write a well-written resume on their own, but this is not the case. The majority of applicants would love to be professionals, but the reality is that they do not have the time for it. Therefore, hiring personnel really need to employ the services of a professional resume writer.Some people actually think that they can simply throw out their resume and send it to whoever they are working with. They do not realize that the reason why they may be shortlisted for a job is because of a resume that does not fit the qualifications of the person. There is nothing worse than someone receiving a job offer without having actually applied for it.One of the reasons why a resume might be top ranked is because of its tone. Professional resumes should be simple, to the point, and professional. If it sounds like it is begging for attention, it will likely be on the top rank of resumes.A nother factor that has been found to be very important is that the writing style of the resume is not so long. It is often said that a resume that is more than two pages long will really catch the attention of the hiring manager. This is one way of making sure that you are not overlooked or passed over in the first interview.It is also important that a resume be able to communicate the right message. If a potential employer is reading an overly lengthy resume then they will most likely pass it by and send someone else on your way. Therefore, it is necessary that the resume be short and sweet.Finally, the formatting of the resume is also extremely important. A professional resume should be formatted to be easy to read. If it is formatted incorrectly, it will surely look wrong, which is never a good thing.When applying for a job it is not uncommon for resumes to be top ranked. However, many of these resumes are also the result of poor application practices. Because of this, any resume should be scrutinized in detail to ensure that it is not a result of poor application.It is possible to write a professional resume. The key is that it should be done correctly in order to receive the proper recognition. Whether you write it yourself or you are going to hire a professional to do it for you, it is important that you take the time to do it right.

You Can Do It! Get a Fantastic TOEFL Score with These 7 Tips -

You Can Do It! Get a Fantastic TOEFL Score with These 7 Tips - Do you start feeling anxious when you think about your TOEFL exam? You and everyone else. Yes, the good news here is that everyone else taking the exam is probably feeling exactly the same way. You can make a great difference in your score by maximizing your potential before and during the actual exam. Maximizing your potential TOEFL score  means that you’ll be totally prepared and ready to do your absolute best work. Sounds pretty great, right? Here’s how you can make this happen! 1. Practice, Practice and Then Practice Some More There’s no way around it, the more you practice, the higher you will score! But do you know how to make the best use of your time, money, energy and other resources as you prepare? Don’t take the test too soon. If you can afford to postpone the test for a few more months, you will gain more time to prepare. Do not sign up until you feel 99% ready. This means you will probably score higher. But be careful: You must make a commitment to yourself to use the extra time to study intensively or you may forget what you learned. Make a study plan and stick to it. See how many practice tests and resources you can get access to and make a plan. You should regularly take practice tests. Try to take one every week or every two weeks. Remember the questions that you most often get wrong, and practice those areas of English. Spend the rest of your time improving your general level of English. If you don’t have access to as many practice tests as you’d like, you can create your own. Pretend you are taking the exam. Save seven practice tests for the week before the exam. Wake up every day like you would on the day of the actual exam and pretend it’s the real thing. Take a full test every day, in exam conditions, and try to imagine you are at the exam. No dictionary, no phone, no help. Time yourself and stop when the time has ended. You will probably feel quite nervous, but that is a good thing! Overcoming nerves is something you need to do. Once you learn how to control your own level of stress, chances are good that the actual exam will seem just like another practice session. You will feel more familiar with the situation, and you will probably feel more confident and prepared. Have a teacher or friend help with speaking and writing. You’ll probably be able to do reading and listening practice by yourself, but you are going to need someone to read your writing samples and listen to your speaking. You need some feedback. Ideally, this person should be a teacher or native speaker of English, but anyone who can speak really good English can help you. 2. Know All the Directions All tests are created equal in terms of difficulty and what you have to do. You are going to read the same directions on every TOEFL test you take. These directions tell you what task you have to do (reading, writing, answering questions) and how much time you have to do that task. If you do a lot of practice tests, you will not need to read the directions anymore. This means you can read them very quickly, click the CONTINUE button as soon as it appears and use this extra time on the questions. Extra time to read, think and answer questions is always good! When you take practice tests, read the directions carefully. Try to remember the directions for each section. When you take the real test, read the directions of every section again quickly to make sure that you know what to do. Make sure you follow directions and prove that you understand them. In the speaking test, whenever you are told to “use reasons and examples to support your response,” make sure you include specific reasons and examples! For every main point you make, you should present at least one reason and one example to support it. Also, don’t forget that this is a language test, so you cannot just use the same words from the task directions. You must show that you know a variety of English words. Do not use the words “reasons” and “examples” repetitively in your writing, as this can sound annoying to the listener. Try to prove you have a wide range of vocabulary by using lots of synonyms. For example: “My first point is__________. One of the arguments for this is __________. To illustrate this idea, let me __________.” “Another point that I’d like to make is__________and here’s why: __________. In other words, __________.” “Last but not least, __________. It is for this reason that I think__________. For instance, __________” 3. Time Is Not the Enemy Time is not the enemy…if you know how to use it. Keep one eye on the title and directions on your computer screen, but focus on the questions. Don’t waste time on minor issues, like one specific word you don’t know or can’t remember. If this is just one question, it is better to guess the answer than waste 5 valuable minutes thinking about it. Just think about how many correct answers you can get in 5 minutes. You can go more quickly through easier questions, gaining you more points. If you are taking the test online, work on your typing skills. Start doing this well in advance of the test so you can maximize your writing time. If you do a lot of practice tests while timing yourself, you will see that the time you are given is just about the right amount of time. 4. Focus on Grammar and Vocabulary Don’t forget that this is a test of how much English you know. All languages are, in the end, about words (vocabulary) and how you connect those words (grammar). You need to prove your knowledge of English is at the right level for you to pass the test. How do you that? Learn a few new words and expressions every day. Make your own sentences with them. If you just try to memorize them without using them in context, your memorization won’t work. You have to practice new words so they become a part of your active Your active vocabulary are all the words you can remember and use easily. This means you’ll be able to use them in speaking and writing without thinking too much. Here are some really good resources to help you improve your vocabulary and grammar. Prove you learned those words. Try to include them in your speaking and writing practice. Only use the words you know. On the exam, avoid using words and structures you are not sure about. 5. Take Good Notes Practice note-taking when reading and listening in your spare time. You can do this while relaxing with an article in your favorite magazine or a documentary. You can also work with more exam-like texts and academic lectures. Write down information using key words (the most important words) and symbols to save time. You don’t need to write down everything word-for-word. You won’t be able to do that because there is not enough time. Writing full sentences will take you a very long time. Try to develop your own note-taking style to help you save time. For example, listen to the following passage: The study is the latest to suggest that snakes evolved from land lizards that lost their limbs while adapting to a slithery, subterranean lifestyle. Another theory posits that today’s snakes descended from marine reptilesâ€"with a svelte body and lack of legs serving as adaptations to move through a watery home. You may choose to take the following notes, by keeping only the key words and using arrows as helpful symbols. You may also use numbers to show the number of main ideas: snakes â€" lizards, no limbs snakes â€" reptiles, svelte body, no legs 6. Reading and Listening Practice by reading academic texts and listening to lectures and by doing exam-like practice tests. Look for the main ideas. They are usually signposted (marked) with discourse markers. Click that link to learn more about discourse markers. Basically, they are common phrases that introduce information. After you learn what they look like, you will see them everywhere. For example, look for phrases like,“another point that I’d like to make…” and “this takes us to… ” or rhetorical questions like, “why is this so important?” You will find important information near these kinds of phrases. 7. Speaking and Writing To practice speaking and writing you are going to need a partner to work with, ideally a teacher or a friend with good English skills. But you don’t need a partner to be there for you all the time. You can practice speaking by recording yourself and then listening to yourself. You can read writing samples to see how your writing compares. With both speaking and writing, make sure your message is very clear. You can achieve clear writing by following these steps: Decide on your main ideas. Do not change the focus of your writing after you start writing. Make sure you understand the connection between your ideas. Are the ideas different from one another? Are they cause and effect? Are they part of a numerical list or series of steps? Use discourse markers to signpost the main ideas and the connections between them. For example, you can use the following phrases: To show contrast or difference: however, nevertheless, on the other hand To show cause and effect: as a result, consequently, therefore To show a numerical list or series of steps: firstly, secondly, finally

4 Content Marketing Tips to Help Your Personal Brand - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career

4 Content Marketing Tips to Help Your Personal Brand - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career Content marketingâ€"in the form of sharing useful content such as blogs or videos with web viewers who relate to your brandâ€"can be one of the most successful digital marketing methods for your personal brand, but only with a solid strategy in place. According to the Content Marketing Institutes 2015 B2C Content Marketing Report, 47 percent of the most effective content marketers have a documented strategy in place, while only 5 percent of the least effective content marketers have devised strategy. With the abundance of types of content and channels to distribute content on, its easy to get overwhelmed. Use these four simple techniques to positively use content marketing to boost your personal brand and extend your reach and visibility in the global online space. Produce Meaningful Content on Your Website First, determine your target audience and what passions you have that relate to your professional objectives. You might want to create written posts or videos where you share your expertise by teaching the audience a new skill. This helps cultivate an image of you as an authority in your field. Dont just promote yourself in your content. Think about the content consumer first, and how you can best help them. To brainstorm ideas for your content, ask yourself: What topics am I an expert on? What is the best way to convey my knowledgeâ€"through writing, a podcast, a photo slideshow, an infographic, a video, or something different? Would I be more helpful I interviewed another expert and weaved their testimonial into my content, or if I made their interview the primary content focus? How can I make my content more accessible to more types of users, such as by adding a transcript to a video for hearing impaired visitors, or by adding photography to a blog post for people more likely to want to consume images? Regarding frequency for posting on your own site, a 2015 study by HubSpot found for companies with 10 employees or less, blogging at least 11 times per month is ideal. The study also found companies that published at least 16 blogs per month received three-and-a-half times more traffic than companies that published four posts or less per month. Start out slowly in the beginning if youre trying to find your content marketing rhythm, but aim for continual higher frequency. While your content should not focus on you, it should help you generate positive sentiment and exposure for your personal brand. Achieve this by linking back to an About Me page through your author bio link so people can learn more about youâ€"and do business with youâ€"if they like your content, or add a call to action to get in touch with you at the bottom of the post. Offer to Guest Blog Now that youre an exemplary content-producing machine on your own website, search for other stars in your industry you can network with and whose audiences you can also share your professional prowess with. Choose influencers you admire, reach out to them and tell them why they interest you, and explain how you relate and how you can help their audiences. Offer to create a post for their website, and ask for a link back to your website in return for your useful content. This generates a positive backlink that benefits your personal brands search engine optimization, while exposing you to a new audience that might lead to new business. Here is a step-by-step guide on how to do guest posting effectively. Also, let them know youll promote the post through your own network via a promotion on your website, through an email newsletter, or via social media. By offering to help other influencers, theyll be more likely to help you promote your content, as well. Host Guest Content on Your Site Like guest blogging on other sites exposes your personal brand to new potential contacts, letting an authority create quality content for your site is also beneficial. Your site becomes more well-rounded and a better source for insightful information that will help drive traffic up, while the guest poster is likely to share their post through their own networks, bringing new visitors to your website. You can also use guest content to promote your own related content. Keep in mind, promoting your personal brand is not the goal with hosting guest content. Rather, make your sure any promotion of your content is relevant and non-invasive to the post. A simple way to ensure this is to use a widget on your site that automatically displays related posts on the bottom of the article or video. You can also include “Read more related to this topic” links on the bottom, and customize what you share. Content marketing is a waste of time if no one is seeing your content. Entrepreneur recommends using paid outlets, such as sponsored LinkedIn updates, to increase your reach, but amplifying your content doesnt have to be costly. Save time and money by using free social networks and digital connections to get your content to more targeted consumers. Set up profiles on all applicable social networks where your target audience is. Content related to personal branding will most likely be useful on professional networking sites such as LinkedIn, while journalists and media pros are also likely to have Twitter accounts. When promoting your content, write posts with search engine keywords in mind, and include a call to action to entice those who see the post to click. On the content post, encourage discussions to keep readers engaged and coming back to posts by asking questions on the bottoms of posts, or by promoting a discussion via the post you share the content through. Dont just copy and paste links into social networks or on message boardsâ€"experiment by sharing photos or videos from your content to better adapt to the networks algorithm, and constantly test posting times and types of posts to optimize your reach. Once youve built relationships with other influencers, share your content with them when you feel its relevant to their audiences. A successful content marketing strategy is based on how much value you provide for both an audience and those who help you share your content. Create and share with a philosophy focused on helping, and youre on your way to strengthening your personal brand through content marketing.

Professional Resume Writing

Professional Resume WritingAs a professional in the IT industry, you will find that your resume is your vehicle to get that job. You should be aware of what your resume should be and how to make it count. The content is very important in making your resume stand out from the rest of the applicants. Here are some tips to get your resume noticed.Professional resume writing is an art. It takes time and practice to do well. If you are looking for a quick way to create a professional resume, or want to save money on this form of advertising, you should consider using a freelance writer. Many freelance writers can help you create a professional resume that is easy to read and display to potential employers.One major use of these types of professionals is to create a resume with creative content. Your goal should be to highlight your talents, and the skills that you possess. Use creative content in your resume to make it stand out.The content in your professional resume should be clear and concise. While you may have a well-developed professional vocabulary, it doesn't mean that the employer can't understand you. Make sure to keep your words as short as possible so that you can be read easily.Keep in mind that your technical knowledge is important to the employer. When it comes to technical language, the goal is to emphasize your technical skills. For example, you might use terms like servers, switches, routers, and hubs. These terms help to show off your technical knowledge to the employer.Lastly, your professional resume must include your work history. Most jobs require you to give the employer some details about your employment. This is especially true when you are looking for a new job. If you don't use a professional resume writer, then you may not give the employer enough information about yourself.Employers are used to seeing resumes, so it is natural that they will check them out. They are already familiar with many of the same things as you are. With a profes sional resume, it is crucial that you have detailed information about your previous employment. It can also be helpful to add a photo to your resume.To help you write your professional resume, you can go online and find out a number of free resume writing tools. You can also find professional resume writing help, and sample resumes, on the Internet. Remember that there are many free resources, but many professional resume writers charge a fee for their services.

How To Be More Confident At Every Job Interview Youll Ever Have - Margaret Buj - Interview Coach

How To Be More Confident At Every Job Interview Youll Ever Have Job interviews can be a tremendously stressful task. Feeling like you’re being judged from top to bottom gets to a lot of people, so it’s nothing to be ashamed of. However, it is something to be conquered. With the right training and mind-set, a job interview stops being something to fear and something to succeed at. If you need help feeling confident and ready to throw yourself out there into the big, bad world, this guide is here to help. We have tips to fill you with confidence and keep you prepared for anything that might come up in your search for success. Unlock the confidence in your own success How you bear yourself and think about yourself is the most important thing in an interview. People can read a lack of self-confidence if you don’t know how to control it. Learn how to believe in your own success. If you can’t do it alone, then don’t be afraid to rely on professionals. MRB Coaching is one of the services that can have you exuding the confidence you need to carry yourself through anything. Improve your interviewing Self-belief is crucial but if you want to be truly impressive, then take the extra step to present yourself well. Learn the right balance between confidence and cockiness. Be just as willing to listen as to talk. Don’t talk too much. There are lots of skills you can learn to make yourself the perfect interviewee so try practicing them, whether it’s with a friend or just a mirror. Prepare Preparation is just as much about being ready for the specific interview as learning how to interview well. Do your research on both the position and the company as much as possible. Answering a question by using context that’s relevant to the job you want is going to be impressive to your interviewers. Being able to ask specific questions is just as good, showing you have attention to detail which an employer will always want. Develop your skills Make yourself an essential hire to any employer not just by showing vague attributes like attention to detail and propriety. These skills are important, but having extra utility to an employer is even better. Talents can make you stick way out above all the other candidates who also have attention to detail. Extra languages, ICT skills and knowledge in another field might not strike you as relevant to the job. However, those skills show your versatility as a hire and your ability to do more than the job demands, making you all the more valuable a catch. Get as many references as you can get your hands on References are like gold. Testimonials are just as good. Have a whole portfolio ready, either physically or on a LinkedIn profile. An interested employer can read all about you or you can pick and choose the ones that you believe are best suited to the job. Asking for references or testimonials can be an embarrassing process but don’t let that hold you back. The right word from the right person can be the deciding factor.

Re-Inventing Wheels 9 Job Search Resources that are great just the way they are

Re-Inventing Wheels 9 Job Search Resources that are great just the way they are My preference has always been to find existing solutions rather than coming up with new ones.   I have found this saves me time in the long run. It is just the way I think.   Some of you   live to re-invent wheels and as youve heard, innovation is a good thing! But some wheels are fine just the way they are.   Really. There are lots of wheels in job search, or perhaps it is just one big wheel. Rather than creating them from scratch, perhaps all youll need to do is slightly adjust the air level for your particular journey. Here are some of my favorite wheels.   I hope they take you where you want to go: Harvard Business School Pitch Builder Harvard knows how to do things well, therefore, I cant think of many other resources I would recommend over this to help you construct a brief statement to describe your talents! Alas, this tool is no longer available. LinkedIn Yes, many of you are already on this social network. But are you really using it?   Is your profile the best reflection of what you have to offer?   Have you incorporated Slideshare presentations or Box.net files?   Are you engaging in group discussions relevant to your profession?   Are you using status updates?   Are you responding to status updates?   Oh, I could go on and on.   If youve created your profile and are waiting for something to happen, wellyou need to start the engine on the car before it will go where you want it to go. Interviewing Advice: Nick Corcodilos: Ask the Headhunter ® covers a broad set of issues related to interviewing. Your one-stop resource for every topic related to the job hunt?   Job-Hunt.org Google.   If you arent using Googles many tools to help improve your efficiency, what are you waiting for?   Google profile, Google talk, Google Alerts, Google Blog Searchendless! JibberJobber.   Having trouble keeping track of all the people, jobs and companies youre interacting with? This free tool is worth your effort to learn.   Really, how are you keeping track of everything and everyone you need to follow up on? Indeed.com If you only have time to scour one job board (not that I recommend this practice) Youll find this wheel gets a lot of traction. Tim Tyrell-Smith has a host of wheels on his site, Tims Strategy.   Go get them! Social Networking for Career Success is the one book that provides tips/tricks/advice and instruction on some of the most popular social networking tools and techniques! These are just some of my personal favorites to help you get your job search wheels moving.   Adjust and adapt as necessary. What wheels are you using?   Please, share!