I haven’t always been a Punk Rock HR blogger. At 
one point in my life, I was a career-oriented employment professional who believed in the importance of HR process, policy, and rules.
Then one day, back in 2002, I was approached by sales representative from AIRS. I held the dual position of Global Staffing Manager and HR Manager for a widely respected insurance company in Chicago, and when the sales representative asked me to lunch, it confirmed what I foolishly believed about myself: I was talented, important, and very punk rock.
- You want to go to lunch with me? Of course you do. Everyone wants a piece of me.
As I ate my free salad and drank my free lemonade, the sales representative delivered a strong message. He said that I was operating in a backwards and outdated way. He said that I had no idea how to identify and recruit talented people for my organization.
“I hate to say this, Laurie, but you’re clueless.”
That’s not the first (or last) time someone called me clueless, but I was taken aback. I thought it was ridiculous to teach HR Generalists and Corporate Recruiters how to use the internet.
It was 2002 and you didn’t need much else to be happy.
*
This experience was a seminal moment in my career. I argued that the internet was all about process and didn’t have anything to do with communication. The sales representative was a nice guy and tried not to laugh at my HR naïveté or my arrogance. In the middle of lunch, he offered me an opportunity to attend as many free AIRS classes as I wanted to take.
He said, “I believe you will walk away from this experience and want every HR Generalist in your organization to do things differently.”
That was a bold statement, and he was absolutely right.
*
I’m telling you this story because times have changed for everyone — except those of us in Human Resources. We pretend to be down with the MySpace and the Googles, but most HR departments are still holding meetings to debate the merit of unblocking Facebook.
As a recruiter, this is bad news for you. You take us to lunch, you send us fruit baskets, but HR is still suspicious of your methods, your motives, and your technology. As business slows down during these tough economic times, I’m offering you the best advice I have as a Human Resources professional:
- Stop selling;
- don’t invite your clients to lunch at PF Chang’s;
- and hold off on the Harry & David fruit baskets.
If you want to be successful in 2009, talk to your clients — and especially Human Resources — about social networking, recruiting applications, and sourcing methodologies. Teach the local Corporate Recruiter how to use Twitter, explain the concept of SEO and how it could benefit her company, and show your clients how you communicate with candidates using a mix of technology and old-fashioned recruiting skills.
Operate as a mentor and offer guidance as your clients learn what it means to identify and acquire talent in the 21st century.
When you invest time and energy in educating your client’s HR team, you are investing in the success of your own career. The recruiting lifecycle will move faster and you will be more successful when you move from being a third-party-recruiter/salesperson to being a teacher, a partner, and a friend to Human Resources.
December 4th, 2008 at 4:48 pm
I agree with Laurie being a former HR person myself. Helping HR folks to see the value of social networking, on-line applications and better ways of promoting their organizations and job opportunities, will benefit everyone. Looking back, I wish that while I was doing my HR gig, and fighting the fires, that I would have been more connected to those similarly situated, knowing that I wasn’t alone and having more external examples to point to for persuading the management team to lead the curve instead of constantly being behind it. I expect that someday HR will come around, but the execution will be a whole lot faster if we help educate them.
December 4th, 2008 at 5:05 pm
The firm I was with in my early days of Executive Recruiting (1999) had a dial up connection. My boss would yell from his office “who is on the internet?” I was, using google to source and recruit. He thought it was a waste of time and should be used for email.
By the time I left in 2006, he saw the beauty of google searches, linkedin and dumped all of the hard cover directories subscription I was originally chastised for not using.
Yep, evolve or die!
December 4th, 2008 at 5:50 pm
Great article Laurie, Straight talk about the subject of social networking in recruiting is something desperately needed. Being educators about social networking is far more valuable activity than just selling it!
December 4th, 2008 at 5:51 pm
Other than the idea that I just REALLY like PF Changs and Moose Munch an awful lot, I agree with you. The fact is this: present a workplace that demonstrates a familiarity with that which technology provides - one that actually speaks the language of the candidates you wish to source - and the rate of return will be a multiplier.
You cannot hope to attract the most savvy candidates using passive methods. Recruitment is a relationship; this is how relationships are built.
December 4th, 2008 at 7:48 pm
Wait, I meant that you shouldn’t take other HR professionals to PF Chang’s. You can totally take ME there because I love the spicy chicken.
December 5th, 2008 at 1:27 am
I’ve never eaten at P.F. Chang’s, even though there’s one less than a mile from my office. I think it has to do with the saturation of Chinese restaurants in the San Francisco Bay Area and the many years P.F. Chang held off from opening a location here. I’d be open to being treated to a meal there for my first time. =)
I’m a strong supporter of all the article describes (other than the tendency to paint all HR folks with the same dull brush), but I also believe a hard working, relentless, focused sourcer/recruiter with no fear of picking up the phone and dialing anyone, will always outperform any recruiter of average intensity even with all the best online tools and Internet search methods in use.
December 5th, 2008 at 7:27 pm
great post and thanks for humility. fruit baskets are for people that don’t know what people really want - starbucks cards… jwt
December 10th, 2008 at 1:01 am
I hate to see fruit baskets excluded as a good way to get in good with a HR Department. Over the years that have opened more doors than any of these new social networking mediums such as Facebook, Twitter, or MySpace. Now I am probably old fashion, I admit that. But don’t forget that everyone loves to receive fruit gift baskets, delighting all your recipient’s senses, from appearance and aroma to sound and taste. Nothing makes as dramatic a statement of how much you are interested in doing business with a company then sending a fruit gift basket overflowing with large, unblemished, ripe fruit, complimented with award winning wines, gourmet cheeses, and irresistible chocolate covered dried fruits and nuts. Matter of fact, if you want to find the highest quality gourmet fruit baskets at the best prices, visit http://www.fruitbasketreview.com. You will find valid and valuable discount coupon codes on Fruit Basket Review as well.