Career Innovations Blog

Let’s face it.  It is a competitive market when it comes to top talent.  The key phrase is “top talent”.  Not the low hanging fruit that applies to every job post as a “qualified applicant”, but the superstar of their industry where the next opportunity is just a phone call away.  Many companies look up to their HR department for all their recruiting needs, but miss the bus when it comes to finding the cream of...

Increasingly, candidates are looking for not only a well-paying position, but one that offers work and life balance. Compensation is the complete picture of pay plus benefits plus work environment and it is what your company has to offer when recruiting and retaining top talent.Determining a salary range demands walking a very fine line between enough to generate interest and ultimately retain talent while still staying within budget guidelines. One of the best ways to ensure...

Who says the holidays are the worst time of year to look for a job? We’ve all heard it. But what makes that true? Is it really true? There are a few reasons why it may not be, offered here for your consideration. Everyone is LESS Busy with Work Stuff   I know, it sounds crazy, but think about it. Between Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s, most industries (other than retail) use the time to recharge. It...

This is a key question in the struggle to find and attract the top talent. Coined in the mid nineteen nineties, “employer brand” means the total package of functional, economic and psychological benefits provided by working for your company. It is essentially the reputation you have, as an employer, that says your organization is a great place to work and the reasons why. Employer branding has increasingly become an active part of a company’s business strategy....

Shortages of talent occur in industries where certain specific skill sets are required but the workforce does not have the education to fill the positions. As an example, there are millions of manufacturing jobs available all over the world, but there is a lack of trained talent to hire. In established countries like the United States, the shortage is in engineers – those planners, researchers and develops needed to create the product of new ideas. In...

Mobile Recruiting, simply put, is recruiting or engaging potential job candidates through mobile devices.The numbers regarding mobile users are astounding: 91% of the population is mobile 19% of job seekers use mobile technology to look for employment opportunities 57% of job seekers would like to be able to use mobile technology to apply for jobs 81% of smartphone users search companies on their mobiles Given the saturation of the mobile market, and the accessibility to several...

I posted this about a year ago and by popular demand this is a re-post! Different year, but unfortunately the signs never changed.  Enjoy! The average American spends 35% of their day at work.  That’s almost HALF.  Why spend all that time doing something that you dislike?  Here are ten red flags that may indicate that it’s time call it quits… Unhappy If you have to drag yourself into work, more in likely when you get...

We network with top talent on a daily basis, so we always come across top producers that are willing to throw in the towel.  From our research, we know that these top producers receive calls from recruiters all the time! What caused the sudden change that makes an employee act on a recruiter's call at a particular point in time? Though a lot of companies have their own process for gathering information from employees that choose...

We pretty much have it all down when it comes to weeding out the job hoppers, poor performers, and that same person’s resume you received for all your openings.  But what happens when you get that perfect candidate in the hiring process and it’s a bust.   Their resume is perfect, but during the interview something just doesn’t sit well with you.  You hate to throw in the towel, because you know the time and money it...

It’s the unemployment rate, the economy, or no one’s hiring.  And these statements may be very much true, but they are also outside factors that you do not have much control over. You can only change your situation or find a solution, only when you change how you approach the problem.  Pointing fingers and playing the blame game does not increase your odds of finding employment.  This only secures your current fate.  If you keep doing...

Some things just never change. Like what most job-seekers look for in a potential job.  Whether they are actively pursuing new opportunities or just testing the waters just to see what’s out there, most stick to the script when it comes to what’s important to them. According to recent surveys from CareerBuilder & Kelly Services, candidates expressed what’s most important to them when considering a job offer.  Top 5 Must-Haves Show Me The MONEY Compensation tops...

As a career placement specialist or some may say a “headhunter” or “recruiter”, I’ve had my share of candidates that have successfully completed the interview process and are selected to be a member of a company’s team, but then are sucked back into their existing company by the “deadly counteroffer”.   Some may disagree that accepting a counteroffer is committing career suicide, but in reality if you accept a counteroffer, regardless of your reasoning, you have just...

As the cost for posting jobs has declined over the years, the quality of jobs and candidates has also gone down. With all of the reduced-cost, free, and social media circulation at our finger tips, this has unfortunately led us to an incredible amount of duplicate resumes, junk resumes, and downright unqualified candidates. Quality Vs. Quantity The average HR personnel receives 25-75 resumes per posting.  These numbers of course vary depending on the type of position...

Throughout my career, I’ve always heard that a well written resume is the KEY to getting a job!   To some extent this is true, but don’t rely on your resume to relay every facet of accomplishments you have mastered in your life.  Frankly,  it would be too long (and in some cases too short) and in reality the reader does not care to know anything that will NOT bring value to what they are originally hiring. ...