Use Marketing Strategies for Your Recruiting Process

“I just can’t find good people!” Have you caught yourself saying this before? Why does there seem to be a dearth of good employees when you search for them, and yet other businesses seem to find them all of the time? Do they know secrets about recruiting that you may not?

Perhaps they do, or perhaps they just got lucky. The important thing is to decide what you are going to do. You see, recruiting for your company needs to be one of your strategies – a proactive process – and not a knee-jerk reaction when the need arises. All too often, recruiting is seen as a necessary evil rather than an opportunity for growth.

So, what is strategic recruiting? To start with, recruiting must become systemized just like the rest of your business. If you find that your recruiting process is different each time you do it, then you have some work to do. How do you learn the best ways to recruit? Educate yourself, then measure and test to learn from your experience.

One of the best systems for recruiting that I have come across is detailed in the book, “Instant Team Building” by Bradley J. Sugars. It explains an ingenious process for finding the best candidates while eliminating the wrong ones before the interview ever takes place. Plus, it saves you time because the interview is a group session with all of the candidates and your team members. In that sense, it’s a team building activity as well, since the team will get a voice in whom you choose to bring on board.

The main idea in this book is to treat recruiting as another marketing strategy. You need to market your company to potential candidates to find the right ones for your business.

To embrace this concept, you must go all the way back to your Mission, Vision, and Culture statements. What business are you in? Why? How do you work together to fulfill your purpose? Does this inspire you? Does it inspire your team, family, associates? Is this deeply ingrained in the minds of your existing team – even if it’s just you? These statements play a big role in finding the right people.

Understand that finding the right people is more about the heart and soul of a person rather than the body and mind. Of course, there will always be some minimum competencies. However, you will still need to train even the most experienced or seasoned new hire on your ways based on your systems. So look for someone who is passionate about your business and whose personality fits your current culture, and the training will be easy and pleasurable for everyone.

Another aspect of strategic recruiting is that it is an ongoing process. In the book “Good to Great”, Jim Collins points out that great companies are always looking for the best people to employ. In some cases they maintain a relationship after meeting someone and hire them when the time is right. In other cases, they hire them and figure out where to put them later.

Strategic recruiting is a must for every business – and it will save you time and help grow your business!

The Great Eraser – More from Jeff Kortes

Once again, I want to share some words of wisdom from my good friend, Jeff Kortes. Jeff is the owner of Human Asset Management, a recruiting, HR consulting and leadership training firm.

I am a big proponent of continuous improvement and the need to always improve.  Unfortunately, it has brought with it a real negative.  It took me 8 years of watching my two sons wrestle until I realized I had fallen victim to that negative consequence.

My youngest son recently won a tournament by beating the prior state champion in the finals.  It was an incredible match and he wrestled impressively.  As he came off the mat, I shook his hand and congratulated him… telling him that this was the best I’d ever seen him wrestle.  Then, in the next breathe, I nearly said…”BUT you look like you we running out of gas and need to do some extra running so that your stamina improves.”  The kid has just wrestled the best match of his life and here the old man is thinking what he could have done better.  That’s a sad commentary on what has happened to us.

Fortunately… the light bulb went on and I actually remembered the stuff I teach participants in my Execution Focused Leadership® series.   I bit my tongue and let him enjoy the moment.  I talk to supervisors and managers that using the “BUT” word is the “great eraser”… by using it; you wipe out all the positive things you have just said.  Instead of using the moment to praise someone and POSITIVELY REINFORCE the behavior we want, we destroy it with one simple word.

Fifteen minutes later my son asked to see the video of his match so he could see what he needed to work on.  That was the right time for me to say what he needed to work on in order to continuously improve.  There will always be an opportunity to look at continuous improvement in our personal and work lives.  That time is not immediately after a success.  Let your people enjoy an accomplishment and feel good about what they just did.  Don’t take what is a positive accomplishment and wipe it out by using the great eraser…”BUT.”

For more information about Jeff Kortes or to contact him, visit his website.

A Little Shameless Self-Promotion Does Your Business Good

In my days working in the corporate sphere, the people that always seemed to get ahead were the ones that were constantly promoting themselves. In many instances, it was those who promoted themselves well that were advanced over those who were good at their jobs. I often wondered about this, and longed to leave this behind to engage with “real” business.

Funny thing is, it’s not much different in the small, local business arena. It’s the ones that understand how to market themselves that do well, while the others – no matter how good they are – languish and even fail. You may say that this isn’t fair, and you may be right. But the important thing is to understand how the game is played so you can succeed.

To play any game – and business is a game – you need to know the rules. You also need to learn the nuances that set the champions apart from the rest of the players.

One rule in marketing is: Perception Is Reality. Again, this may not seem fair, but it’s true. Rather than whine about the unfairness of it, why not learn how to play the game? To do this, you will have to get comfortable with some good old shameless self-promotion. In order for this to be effective, you need to figure out what is special about you. Why would anyone do business with you rather than with your competitors?

I see so many websites and brochures that miss the mark in this regard. Sure, they talk about their products and services; but they don’t talk about the value of dealing with their company. The “About Us” page on most websites can be counted as wasted opportunities. You need to talk about you, about the people, the culture, the mission of your company. Create awareness in your prospect of who you really are.

If you’re uncomfortable with talking about yourself, tough! You still need to do it. However, a good way to “toot your own horn” is to talk more about your customers than you do about yourself. Proclaim how great your customers are, how loyal they are, how you were able to help them. By talking about your customers, you show a genuine interest in serving their best interests.

Another monumental mistake on many websites is the lack of testimonials. Listen, your happy customers will always be much better at selling than you or your best producing sales rep. So give them the ability to sell for you. This is not only for websites; you should put testimonials on your brochures and even print separate testimonial sheets. Video testimonials are the most powerful, and easy to produce with today’s technology. Social media is a key tool for getting your customers to sell for you. Sites like LinkedIn and Angie’s List, and even Twitter and fan pages on Facebook are built for this purpose. Be careful, though – you need to be sure that what you deliver to your customers is what they will rave about. Read “The Absolutely Critical Non-Essentials” & “Mobilising Your Customer Sales Force” by Paddi Lund and “Raving Fans” by Ken Blanchard & Sheldon Bowles to learn how to get your customers to rave about you on their own.

Remember: In order to succeed in business, you need to be comfortable with promoting yourself.

“Be Happy You Have a Job” and Other Stupid Executive Comments

My friend, Jeff Kortes, owner of Human Asset Management LLC,  has some amazing insights into leadership. He should, he’s got years of HR and leadership roles behind him. I’ve been encouraging Jeff to start his own blog, and I hope he soon does. In the meantime, he said he would be pleased to have me post his thoughts on mine.

Ever talked to an executive or anyone in a leadership role and wondered how they ever got to that position? Many times they say such stupid things that you think they must have bought their way into their jobs. Comments like: “Be happy you have a job” (when they hear complaints about the company) or “There are 24 hours in a day” (when they are overloading you with work) are really counterproductive to the company. Here’s what Jeff has to say on the subject:

While talking with a Human Resources colleague of mine recently she was telling me about the culture in the organization.  The President is very positive on people and does his best to foster that feeling.  The CFO appears to be another matter.  Like many organizations, they have had cutbacks in people and wages have been frozen.  Fortunately, the organization is holding it’s own and they are making money.

Recently, the CFO made the comment to an employee that, “you should be happy you have a job.”  Well I have something to say to the CFO, “Why don’t you shoot yourself in the foot?” because that’s what he’s doing by making a comment like that.  It’s hard enough to develop loyalty among your people without making comments like this CFO did.  When the recession ends…..PEOPLE WILL REMEMBER!

Less than two years ago it was an employee marketplace and organizations were begging for good people.  When things turn around, people will remember comments that you as a manager or as a company make.  When a better opportunity comes along, they will be walking out the door on you because of comments like the one made by this CFO.

My mother always used to tell me,  “If you don’t have anything GOOD to say, don’t say anything at all.”  Mom was right.  Think it if you want…but keep comments like, “Be happy you have a job” to yourself.  If you really want to lead in tough times…be POSITIVE and reinforce to your people that you APPRECIATE them for sticking with you during the bad times.  That’s what a true leader does.

Just for fun, post a comment with the stupid things you have heard from “leaders” (let’s keep it business oriented, there’s not enough room on the web for all of the stupid comments from politicians). Let’s see how many we can collect!

Jeff Kortes, owner of Human Asset Management has expertise in finding talent, training and development, organizational change, and hair analysis drug testing. He is a skilled facilitator and trainer. Jeff has 20 years experience in human resources. His exposure to both public and private sector organizations was obtained while functioning in high tech, consumer products, manufacturing and construction. He has worked with private and publicly held companies incuding Wigwam Mills, Inc., Quaker Oats Company, Midas International, ConAgra, Inc., and the City of Franklin, WI. For more information or to contact Jeff, visit www.humanassetmgt.com

Get Organized – Stay Organized

One New Year’s resolution that I hear people always make is: I’m going to get organized! Sometimes they mean the desk, sometimes the books, or other things that tend to get disorganized.

The interesting thing is that some people seem to make that same resolution year after year. It makes me wonder if they just never get organized or if they do and get disorganized after a month two. The first reason is due to procrastination. We humans will many times let ourselves off the hook for the things that we don’t like to do. I suggest the book “Eat That Frog” by Brian Tracy, which is all about overcoming procrastination.

The bigger problem is getting organized only to let that unravel over time. You know how it goes: you got the stuff off of the floor and can actually see some of your desk, then before long, it’s worse than ever.

How did that happen? I think it all comes down to creating systems to keep you organized. It can be as simple as having an inbox and an outbox. However, it’s also important to document the process for each box. What happens to everything in the inbox? How does it qualify for the outbox? And what happens to it from there?

Many people say, “I have everything systemized… in my head.” Well, then you really don’t have a system. You have a head full of information that does nobody any good. Remember, it’s not a system until you write it down. Then, you can make room in your head for more important things, like remembering your anniversary.

It’s amazing how being physically organized also created clarity and peace of mind. That’s because you no longer need to remember everything, or wonder if you forgot a step of your process. The important thing to remember when systemizing your organization is to Make It Easy! If you make it complicated or difficult to comply, chances are you and your team will not follow your system.

Let me give an example. With all of the software on my computer and all of my memberships in social networking websites, I had so many passwords floating around in my head that I finally started to forget which password went where. I started spending too much time trying to remember, or pressing the “Forgot Your Password” button. Plus, I know that I should change my passwords every 30 days or so. It all got to be overwhelming. So I finally downloaded a password management software. Now, I don’t have to remember all of those passwords, just the one to get into the password tool. This is one form of systematic organizing using a technology solution.

So you see, getting organized is rewarding. Break it up into small tasks and get going. Or hire a professional organizer to help you. Whatever it takes, make this year the year that you actually get it done!

Make 2010 a Great Year for Your Business

As we recover from the New Year’s revelry, we all want to make 2010 better than last year. Most of the comments I’ve heard from the news or social media, is that 2009 was less than desirable (using politically correct terminology). It’s funny, because I think we said the same thing about 2008.

As I said previously, New Year’s resolutions are pure folly. You need to create a solid plan for success. So, here are some things to focus on.

Profitability: How can you increase your profits this year? If you own a business, then your main goal is to turn a profit. What strategies will you put in place to have increased profits over last year? You should take a look at your pricing strategy. While it may be difficult to increase prices across the board in this economic climate, you cannot afford to go a year without an increase. You also need to consider your cost structure. Have you cut all of the fat out of your operation? This question leads to the next topic, which is:

Productivity: In a typical business, the highest expense is payroll. I’m sure that most businesses have cut payroll to the point of pain (not the best solution). My question is: What can you do to get more out of your employees. That doesn’t necessarily mean unpaid overtime. How can you streamline the processes in your business to make each employee more efficient? (Hint: Your team probably knows this one.) What systems can you improve to get the most out of every day?

Cashflow: While it’s nice to be profitable, you can go bankrupt while turning a profit if there is no cash flowing through the company. What can you do to increase sales? What new marketing strategies will you test this year? What will you do to get rid of your slow-moving products to make room for faster turning ones?

Customer Relations: Do you know why your customers buy from you, or your competition? Do you know what they are saying about you to their friends? When is the last time you thanked your customers for their support, and let them know that you care?

Team Wellness: To continue pulling on the productivity thread, your team needs more than just better systems. They need great leadership from you, and sometimes they just need a break. It’s a proven fact that people are far more productive when they go away on vacations each year. In addition, what can you do to make your work environment fun? What will you do to recognize their contributions? (And don’t say that their paycheck should be enough!)

How would it be if you would see marked improvements in each of these areas by the end of the year? I think that would make the next New Year’s celebrations much happier. Indeed!

Forget the New Year’s Resolutions and Create a Plan

It’s that time again when we reflect on the year that’s about to close and evaluate our position compared to the previous year. This is also the time when people make their New Year’s resolutions. I’ve always found it peculiar that this tradition has endured for such a long time when it seems so futile.

I rarely see anyone holding to these resolutions beyond the first couple months of the year. What’s more, resolutions are entirely too vague: “I’m going to lose weight” or “I’m going to make more money”, etc.

If you’re going to resolve to do anything, commit to making a plan. Creating a plan for the year can have a much more powerful effect because, if done correctly, it will give you something to shoot for and some guidance along the way. You should also revisit your plan every quarter to evaluate how you are doing, and determine if you need to make any adjustments.

Now, I’m sure some of you are terrified at the thought of creating a plan. You’re probably thinking of that business plan you created eons ago which is now collecting dust in the… where is it again? Rest assured, I’m not referring to anything more than a simple map that shows you how to get from where you are at to where you want to be. You don’t need to describe everything in excruciating detail (unless that is what you like to do). In fact, the simpler you make it the better, because then you will be more apt to follow it. Think of your plan as your own personal “Easy” button.

Planning will also be a much more rewarding process because you will be able to see your progress instead of giving up because you feel like the resolution is too hard to keep (which it probably is). The process of planning should keep you from overreaching because it’s meant to be a pragmatic approach.

Creating your plan should start with your dream. What is it that you want from life? What are the big things that you want to achieve? Your dreams will not be part of your plan, but should always give guidance to your planning.

Next, what goals do you want to achieve in the next year that will help get you closer to your dream? Again, don’t put more on your plate that you can handle. In the same sense, don’t make it too easy. Challenge yourself so your goals are meaningful.

Be sure to put your goals through the SMART test. If your goals are not Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Results-oriented, and tied to a Timeline, get rid of them or refine them. For example, a non-SMART goal is: I’m going to lose some weight. On the flip side, a SMART goal is: I will lose 15 pounds by March 30^th. Another example of a non-SMART goal is: I’m going to make more money. Try saying: I will increase my annual Revenues by 25% while increasing my Profit Margin by 10%.

Next, determine the actions that you will need to take in the next 90 days that will contribute to achieving your goals (expressed again as SMART goals). If you focus on your activities in quarterly increments, you will be able to measure your progress and speed up or change course if you need to. Be sure to write down your goals and keep them in a place where you will always see them. This will motivate you on a daily basis and keep you focused on achieving.

By the way, by going through the planning process you will find that some of your “resolutions” were really not goals at all but activities needed to attain said goals. A resolution of “I’m going to start exercising” is really one of the things you will need to do to attain that SMART goal of losing 15 pounds.

Finally, execute your plan, get results, and remember to celebrate your success!

Don’t Just Leave Your Comfort Zone – Expand It!

A few years ago, I received some training at a ropes course. The exercises were meant to teach teamwork – which they did and a whole lot more. I found most of the drills to be doable, especially since we were double tethered to protective cables. But then we were led to the “tower”. You see, I have a bit of a problem with heights – especially when I am being asked to jump from a eighty-foot tower. I was attached, by a couple of pulleys, to a zip line that was supposed to carry me out 300 feet towards the earth. When it was my turn, the kid that hooked my pulleys to the zip line (who looked perfectly at home while squatting on the corner of this wooden tower that was swaying in the wind) said, “OK, just jump off when you are ready.” …right… I sat there for what seemed like an eternity. But then I decided that I had better just get it over with. And I had a blast!

Why was I so overcome with terror? I had plenty of safety equipment to protect me. And nobody that jumped before me fell to the rocky ground below – no skeletons, blood splatters, vultures circling overhead… nothing. What was it that had me paralyzed while I was sitting on that tiny ledge eighty feet above the desert ground?

A good definition for FEAR is False Expectations Appearing Real. You see, I had to change my belief system before I could jump. I had to believe that I would not die by jumping from that tower.

It’s the same thing when trying something new in your business. You have a great idea – something that will really set you apart and make you tons of profits. No one else in your industry has ever tried this before, but you are sure that it will work. And then what happens? A little voice inside says, “You can’t do that!” For some reason, you believe this voice and forget your winning idea.

Why are we so paralyzed with these self-limiting beliefs? And we encounter them all of the time. How often do you stop yourself from achieving success by telling yourself, “You can’t do this because:

• “You’re not smart enough.”
• “You’re not the right social class.”
• “You’re a woman.”
• “Etc.”

Why do we buy it? Because we’ve been told these things since we were children.

Many people talk about stepping out of your comfort zone. The problem with that is that most people will step right back into it. Then you never really grow to your fullest potential.

In order to experience real success, you need to break free from these fears and use the gifts that God gave you to attain your objective. Mark Twain said, “Do the thing you fear most and the death of fear is certain.” In other words, don’t let fear rule over you – rule over your fear. In so doing you don’t just step out of your comfort zone, you expand it. Then you can tackle the next big fear.

Come to think of it, I’d love to find a place around here that has a zip line.

Businesses that Choose to Ignore Social Media Will Lose

I know what you’re going to say: “You’ve talked enough about Social Media! I’m just not interested!” Well, I’m here to tell you that it’s not going away. You’re going to have to deal with it sooner or later.

There are many who dismiss Social Media (a.k.a. Web 2.0) as a fad: “Pretty soon, everyone’s going to get tired of this and things will get back to the way they were.” Yea, that’s exactly how it turned out with email, television, and radio, right? Face the facts: more people get their news from social media than from traditional media. Facebook just announced that they have over 350 million users – that’s larger than the population of the United States.

I understand that it may be scary to get into. There is so much to learn that it’s hard to know just where to start or where to focus. It’s a good idea to do some research and get some training. There are even consultants that help you with a good majority of Social Media activity.

It’s also important to understand that Social Media is not just a new way to advertise. In fact, advertising is just one sliver of the use for Web 2.0. At this juncture, I just want to clarify that I specifically use the word advertising instead of marketing. That’s because I believe that all activities that I will describe below are facets of marketing.

The answer to the question of where to start is to listen. And this is where any company that dismisses Social Media as a fad makes a fatal mistake.

You see, whether you participate in the conversation or not, people will talk about your business. In days past, this would give you limited exposure. Today, one comment about you from a patron can spread to thousands of people around the world in seconds real-time! This is what Erik Qualman, author of Socialnomics, describes as “World of Mouth”.

He also says that Social Media has made it necessary for us to live as if our mother was watching. I’d like to change this to say: Conduct your business as if your toughest and most vocal critic lived there.

In Erik’s book, as well as in Twitterville by Shel Israel, there are countless stories of businesses that ignored Social Media and suffered grave and embarrassing consequences. Word of poor service spread around the globe like wildfire, complete with photos.

Conversely, some companies traditionally known for poor service jumped in to the conversations and used Web 2.0 to repair their relationships with their customers. This participation created raving fans, while the other companies’ inaction created powerful detractors.

Does this scare you? It should.

You won’t be able to control what’s being said about you; but if you start listening and participating, you’ll have a chance to influence how the world perceives you.

Remembering the Great Jim Rohn

On Saturday, December 5^th, the world lost one of its greatest luminaries: business philosopher Jim Rohn. It’s a shame that this didn’t make the front page headlines in the major news outlets, because this man’s contribution to the world is tremendous.

Jim Rohn was born to an Idaho farming family in 1939. When he was twenty-five years old, Jim met his mentor, Mr. John Earl Shoaf. It was when he worked for Shoaf in his direct sales company that Jim became a millionaire – in four years time.

Yet, it’s not the “rags-to-riches” story that makes Rohn so special. Jim is so highly regarded in the realm of great leaders and successful entrepreneurs because he shared all of his knowledge with anyone who would listen. Mr. Rohn was very generous with his wisdom, yet I perceive him as being very humble. I was always impressed with the fact that he constantly spoke about his mentor. He didn’t take credit for the ideas he presented, and often downplayed any of his own teachings as being simple common sense.

That is the beauty of Jim Rohn’s teaching. He presented things in a very simple, straight-forward way that anyone could understand and apply. The vast majority of today’s leaders in business owe their fortunes to Jim Rohn’s philosophies. Great personal development and business leaders such as Tony Robbins, Brian Tracy, Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hanson and Brad Sugars will tell you that they would not be where they are today if it were not for Rohn.

Let me give you an idea of the things that Jim taught. He said that you are paid based on the value that you bring to the marketplace. Using his words, “You can make $5 per hour taking out the trash at McDonald’s. If you whistle while you do it, you’ll probably make $6 per hour due to your positive attitude.”

Here are a few more of Rohn’s quotes that every person should know:

• “Work harder on yourself than you do on your job.”
• “Don’t wish it were easier; wish you were better.”
• “Success is what you attract by the person you become.”
• “Discipline is the bridge between goals and accomplishment.”
• “A good objective of leadership is to help those who are doing poorly to do well and to help those who are doing well to do even better.”
• “Formal education will make you a living; self-education will make you a fortune.”
• “If you don’t like how things are, change it! You’re not a tree.”
• “Success is nothing more than a few simple disciplines, practiced every day.”

There are so many more, but I don’t have the space to include them. Take the time to learn from this remarkable man. Jim Rohn’s teachings will benefit your business and your life.

If you want to learn more from Jim Rohn – and you should! – visit his website. There is a lot of great information and access to his countless books, CD’s and DVD’s.