Posts filed under 'Employee Retention'
Civil Engineering Salary Cuts and Layoffs Continue
By Carol A. Metzner
President, The Metzner Group, LLC and
Managing Partner, A/E/P Central, LLC home of CivilEngineeringCentral.com
Last year an executive at a national civil engineering firm was overheard saying that staff who held the company “hostage” by demanding high salaries and outrageous benefits were now getting a cold reality. They would either accept pay and benefit cuts or would be welcome to leave. After all, they could be replaced by other talented civil engineers who would be happy to have a job. This executive thought the company had been strong armed into high salaries and comprehensive benefits in a demanding marketplace. Additionally, he decided that many employees showed no loyalty to the company during good times. Staff threatened to leave for opportunities and remained when they received counteroffers. Now, he felt that “what goes around, comes around.” Engineering businesses are known as professional services firms. They are only as good as the talent they have on their teams…and the amount of projects in the marketplace.
Salaries respond to market conditions. Clients are driving the lack of return to normal as the supply of work remains low. When engineering consultants are busy, clients are willing to pay higher fees to secure the firm they want planning, designing and constructing their projects. Likewise, when firms are looking for projects to keep their staff employed, salaries are lower as are winning bids.
Salaries are also reflected by the great purge of 55 – 65 year old staff. As politically incorrect as this is to discuss, this economy has allowed firms to let go of senior civil engineers who are technologically deficient in deference to hiring younger professionals who are more marketable. These younger staff are LEED accredited, BIM proficient, command lower salaries which means lower bill out rates and potentially more winning bids. It is more economical to have a senior civil engineer oversee as a QA/QC manager, while junior and mid level engineers produce the work. The job market is now flooded not only with 2009 and 2010 graduates, but also with 35-45 year experienced engineers. Although I understand the thought process behind keeping salaries low in a competitive market for project wins, my previous blog comments in “Never Underestimate the Gray Haired Engineer” holds true. (A future BLOG will discuss the ramifications of removing senior engineers to save dollars).
Firms need to remain competitive to win work. While most will agree that civil engineering salaries had finally reached the level of their high tech counterparts, the economy could not sustain them. Infrastructure needs, natural and man made disasters will force work to our marketplace. But, the economy and clients (both governmental and private) will dictate industry salaries.
Thoughts?
civil engineering jobs :: civil engineering resumes :: civil engineering blog :: civil engineering discussion
10 comments June 2, 2010
A/E Firms: Is Your Competitor Better At Dating?
By Carol A. Metzner
President, The Metzner Group, LLC and
Co-Founder/Managing Partner, A/E/P Central, LLC home of CivilEngineeringCentral.com
Imagine that you are asked to interview with an architectural or engineering firm. The corporate recruiter tells you “The interview will last 45 minutes. There are 5 candidates coming in to interview for 1 opening. You have 45 minutes to talk to the hiring authority. We will let you know in a couple of weeks who our chosen candidate is.” Anywhere in that conversation did you hear “We are excited that you are coming to meet with us. Hopefully we have a good fit with our opportunity and your talents.” ??? If this were a date, I would not have even shown up for coffee!
Even though there can be hundreds of applicants for one job, there are no excuses for recruiters AND hiring managers to forget that they need to sell their firms. Over the past couple of years, employers have realized that they are in the driver’s seat for many open jobs. Outstanding talent find themselves in a situation of competing for jobs with other really outstanding talent. Many firms, corporate recruiters and hiring managers have become arrogant and lazy. This behavior will lead to future recruiting and retention issues.
Several years ago one of my highly sought after senior candidates interviewed with my client. He was also interviewing with one of their competitors. While my client was very interested to have him join their firm, their competitor pulled out all the stops throughout the interview process. The competitor’s CEO and a variety of other key company leaders called the candidate at various times over a week to tell him how thrilled they were to have the opportunity to meet him and that they were excited to have the potential to work with him. They did everything but send a new sports car to his house! He was direct in telling me that while he had established a great relationship with me and the executive he would report to at my client, the competitor just simply “out courted my client.” The competitor made him “feel” that they were excited “as a company” to have him on board. He was overwhelmed with the enthusiasm from his prospective colleagues. My client and I were crushed. Tough to hear.
The job market is increasing and firms that don’t step up their dating habits will find themselves with mediocre talent and an increase in open jobs as employees run to firms that know how to win them over! What are your thoughts? Have you seen this with your own firm or with your own interviews?
civil engineering jobs :: civil engineering resumes :: civil engineering blog :: civil engineering discussion
10 comments May 4, 2010
Get Rid of Performance Reviews?
Guest Blogger: Larry Courtney
Owner, Larry Courtney Consulting
Management Consulting and Business Brokerage for Professional Services Firms and other Businesses
http://www.linkedin.com/in/larrycourtney
The Wall Street Journal recently published an article about performance reviews by Samuel A. Culbert. The article was adapted from “Get Rid of the Performance Review! How Companies Can Stop Intimidating, Start Managing — and Focus on What Really Matters.”* Essentially the article makes the point that formal performance reviews, based on a recurring periodic calendar date, do not work, they are disliked by employees, and could even be detrimental from a legal perspective, especially when managers tend to provide inflated ratings. Instead the article maintains, managers should be providing nearly daily feedback to employees on their performance.
civil engineering jobs :: civil engineering resumes :: civil engineering blog :: civil engineering discussion
5 comments April 27, 2010
Unhappy Civil Engineering Employees
Managing Partner, A/E/P Central, LLC home of CivilEngineeringCentral.com
Over the past several years, civil engineering employers were faced with dwindling backlogs, staff layoffs, benefit plan cuts and reductions in job fees. This year, those employers are now confronted with a “new” issue: unhappy staff.
The Charlotte Observer ran an AP article in January of this year. It cited study statistical findings:
The study suggests that even those fortunate enough to be employed are unhappy with their jobs. Employees under the age of 25 were the most unhappy, while those in the 25-34 age range were the most satisfied in their jobs. There were no stats for those in the over 34 age range.
Over the past 3 years I have spoken with numerous civil engineering employees who are unhappy with their employers. They report dissatisfaction with cuts in career opportunities, training, benefits and lack of team work. They resist looking for a job that may be more exciting and challenging. They don’t want to be “last person hired, first person to go.” These employees would rather have a job and be unfulfilled, then risk being unemployed.
This sentiment is troublesome for employers. Unhappy employees are not only less productive, but studies show they are less creative and are poor performers. Their dissatisfaction can become like an epidemic infecting those around them. These staff often exhibit unethical behaviors and lose loyalty to the company. If managers don’t recognize destructive behaviors, then they will find themselves with projects that are overdue and over budget.
Employers must offer management training as well as other employee development programs. In the long run, these programs will be more cost effective then repairing the destruction of ongoing low employee morale.
For those unhappy civil engineering employees, last July’s blog: Civil Engineering Jobs – Will Any Job Do? discussed the importance of trying to improve your current situation. You need to take a shared responsibility for making your job or environment better just as your employer needs to step up!
civil engineering jobs :: civil engineering resumes :: civil engineering blog :: civil engineering discussion
8 comments March 30, 2010
Storm Water Job Trends
By Carol Metzner
President, The Metzner Group, LLC and
Managing Partner, A/E/P Central, LLC home of CivilEngineeringCentral.com
The ever-shrinking job market, aging baby boomers and rapid technology growth have created a need for storm water generalists who can do it all—use off-the-shelf and proprietary tools to conduct modeling studies; plan, assess and design storm water and water resource projects; resolve complex problems such as conflicting design requirements and unsuitability of conventional materials; and prepare and review a myriad of reports, including technical and regulatory specifications, contract documents and cost estimates.
No longer is storm water management a niche position filled by hydraulic and hydrologic specialists; now it encompasses everything from business development to contract bidding and administration to project management.
Furthermore, storm water-related jobs are not limited to civil engineering and construction companies; they now are found in federal, state and local governments, scientific consulting and services firms, research and development companies and waste management organizations.
At the same time, rising population growth, crumbling infrastructure, growing concern for the environment and a need to comply with tighter environmental laws and regulations have created increasing demand for environmental engineers knowledgeable of storm water management. Many developers today are taking a proactive approach by working to prevent rather than control problems, requiring engineers who can use science and engineering principles to ensure the preservation of natural resources, the use of environmentally beneficial materials and the health and safety of residents. Environmental engineers also design remediation systems to counter the effects of pollutants on soil and groundwater and retrofit existing storm water systems to mimic predevelopment hydrology and restore ecosystems to their predevelopment state.
Storm Water Staff as Generalists
With unemployment on the rise, it is no surprise that some career boards report a 50% decline in the number of storm water-related jobs over the past two years. Fewer jobs usually means that the people who do have jobs have more to do, and that seems to be the case here. More storm water-related employees are expected to come to the job not only with knowledge of the general engineering field, hydrology, hydraulics and water quality, but also knowledge of best management practice design and local, state and federal water programs’ regulations as well as experience in site design, work plan development, data collection and analysis and preparation of technical memoranda, reports and presentations.
To get a job in today’s tight market, storm water-related workers must possess technical knowledge dealing with a range of topics, including soils, pollutants, watershed management, storm water/drainage management, water rights, water quality modeling, environmental permitting and economic analysis. In addition to these hard skills, engineers are expected to be fluent in softer interpersonal skills involving organization, management, communication and problem solving. Successful employees also need to be self-motivated, with the ability to work both on one’s own and within a large team environment.
Higher-level jobs require knowledge of and experience with more advanced topics such as conducting hydraulic, hydrologic and water quality modeling studies, using specialized computer software for data analysis, developing GIS applications and developing and updating computer code to create new analysis tools. Advanced workers also provide senior leadership for engineers involved in storm water-related projects and may prepare proposals and conduct other marketing activities to gain new business.
Storm Water Staff as Environmentalists
Engineers have a long history of working to minimize the environmental impacts of land development and to maintain or improve our nation’s environmental health. Many storm water-related workers are tasked with protecting our natural habitats, systems and resources by finding ways to maintain existing hydrologic patterns, reduce impervious surfaces, maximize undisturbed natural areas, minimize runoff and pollutants and take advantage of the natural retention, absorption and infiltration capabilities of vegetation and soils. Increasingly, environmental engineers are required to provide “green” and sustainable site management technologies and practices, making sure to integrate sustainability into every aspect of the development project.
In 1972, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) enacted the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System storm water permit program to regulate sources, such as developments, that discharge pollutants into U.S. waters and waterways. In 2007, the EPA introduced the Green Infrastructure initiative to highlight opportunities for municipalities to increase the development and use of green infrastructure to infiltrate, evapotranspirate or reuse storm water.
Legislation is changing at a fast pace, and environmental engineers have to keep up with the latest rules, regulations and enforcement procedures at all government levels. Increasing numbers of localities are adopting low-impact development ordinances as treatment control for pollutants and pursuing the U.S. Green Building Council Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design certification. To comply with these environmental regulatory requirements, engineers must be familiar with the specifics of the ordinances and engineering standards related to storm water management in addition to keeping accurate, clear and concise records.
To complete a land development project successfully, environmental engineers have to examine the project in its entirety, considering each design decision in terms of costs and benefits not only to the company and client but also to the environment and balancing the costs of different types of green materials with the benefits of long-term storm water management.
Keeping Employed/Staffed
As this article has shown, storm water management trends, technologies and legislation are ever-changing. In order to maintain a job in this field, it is more important than ever for storm water-related workers to take advantage of every continuing education opportunity that comes their way.
To be successful, storm water-related engineers need a strong understanding of the water/storm water industry and new design standards and technologies. They also need experience in water resources, drainage, flood control and green infrastructure technologies. These individuals must read technical journals, attend professional conferences and interact with colleagues in order to keep up to date on the latest materials, standards and technologies and offer the greatest value to their employers. Even experienced storm water-related engineers need to keep abreast of the latest topics and often can benefit from a refresher course on the basics.
In the same way, if companies want to keep their employees, they must provide not only competitive salaries and benefits but also opportunities for continuing education and enhancement. In today’s work environment, learning new things can be a win-win situation for both employers and employees.
civil engineering jobs :: civil engineering resumes :: civil engineering blog :: civil engineering discussion
4 comments March 15, 2010
10 Ways Social Networking Can Impact Your Business & Career As A Civil Engineering Professional
By Matt Barcus
President, Precision Executive Search, Inc.
Managing Partner, A/E/P Central, LLC, home of CivilEngineeringCentral.com
Remember when musings of the Internet was just a fad? Remember when the compass and slide rule were irreplaceable? Remember when the Post Office was relevant? Well, as it turns out, the Internet is here to stay; if you have a compass and slide rule you just might get your 15 minutes of fame on PBS’ Antiques Road Show; and I can’t recall the last time I paid bill or sent a hand written letter via snail mail. 
That said, consider yourself forewarned in regards to the utilization of Social Networking sites LinkedIn (44M+ users), Facebook (250M+users) and Twitter (4.5M+ users), among others – don’t be a naysayer, or you will be left in the dust. Chances are, if you are reading this, you are familiar with, and hopefully active on, one or more of these technologies. The key is – how can you make sure your company stays relevant by using them effectively?
10 WAYS SOCIAL NETWORKING CAN IMPACT YOUR BUSINESS & CAREER AS A CIVIL ENGINEERING PROFESSIONAL
1. Recruiting Professionals - Did you see the user statistics in the above paragraph? And those are only the three most popular sites among hundreds. And guess what? I suspect there are likely hundreds of thousands of members of the civil engineering community who utilize these tools and share information. They have put themselves “out there.” By joining these networks yourself and “working the network,” you will find many outstanding professional candidates, both passive and active. This topic of recruiting on social networks is quite a robust topic and information can easily be found online, in books or through various seminars. There are plenty of experts in this area so invest a little bit of time and money to catch you and your firm up to speed.
2. Industry News - Facebook, Twitter & Linkedin all have users and user 
groups who will be of interest to you. You will find that ENR, ASCE, Society of Hispanic Engineers, SMPS, etc all have active users and groups on these sites where news bites and press releases are shared regularly. Also, by connecting with other friends and colleagues within the industry you will often read status updates or tweets in regards to local infrastructure news.
3. Relationship Building – Learn what your colleagues, clients, and potential clients are doing; learn their interests; follow their tweets; make logical and profound comments in response to theirs. You can get a real sense of their personality, interests, etc that will certainly assist during face-to-face marketing efforts.
4. Marketing/Branding – Develop a Facebook Fan/Group page with blog entries, promotions, press releases, wins, job postings, awards, charity events, etc.; tweet these same items; develop a compelling corporate profile on LinkedIn and make sure your employees do as well.
5. Recruiting College Students-This is a “no brainer”. If you want to reach out to the next generation of civil engineers you need to have a strong corporate brand on Facebook and MySpace for sure. 
When visiting college campuses for recruiting trips have a couple laptops up and running at your table exhibiting these pages and invite them to join your pages or groups on line. Come prepared with business cards that provide the URL’s of your corporate social networking sites. College students want to work for firms that understand and are avid users of the web 2.0 technology that they utilize. 85% of college students are active on Facebook, 65% are active on MySpace. Again, a “no brainer.”
6. Recruiting Boomerangs – How often have you had employees of your firm fly the coup, only to return because the grass was not greener on the other side? By staying in touch with well respected ex-employees by 
inviting them to join a group where they will be exposed to all the great news that is occurring with your firm, you are giving yourself a nice advantage above other firms when the time comes that he or she begins to look for a new job. Firms like URS & Toll Brothers, among others, each have “Alumni” groups on Linkedin.
7. RFP’s – It’s only a matter of time before builders, agencies and architects will be tweeting RFP’s.
8. Professional Growth – By joining Facebook or LinkedIn groups, or by following specific associations or trainers or presenters on Twitter, you can remain well informed of all of the conferences, seminars, blogs, articles and publications being offered that you find relevant in your career.
9.
10. Ignorance is Bliss. Do not fall into this trap. These networks are no longer the wave of the future, they are a mainstay. As a civil engineering professional, by not jumping on board you will become a relic – and this label is not something you or your firm will want to be labeled as as the demand for talent begins to hit the upswing.
As you can see, I intentionally left a blank space after #9 – what might you suggest to fill in that blank?
civil engineering jobs :: civil engineering resumes :: civil engineering blog :: civil engineering discussion
9 comments August 12, 2009
Use the Downturn to Make Yourself Part of a Winning Firm
By Bruce Lynch, Vice President of Publishing, PSMJ Resources Inc.
For over 30 years, PSMJ Resources, Inc. has offered publications, educational programs, in-house training and management consulting services to A/E/C professionals worldwide. PSMJ Resources conducts more than 200 educational seminars and conferences annually, supported by major professional societies, including AIA and ACEC. Headquartered in Newton, MA, PSMJ Resources provides more than 150 titles in book and audio, and publishes three newsletters about A/E/C firm management. PSMJ Resources also produces the industry’s preeminent annual surveys on management salaries, financial performance, fees and pricing, and benchmarks for the design firm CEO. On the web:http://www.psmj.com/
I have spent the last few weeks interviewing the PSMJ Circle of Excellence Class of 2009. Circle of Excellence firms ranked in the top 20 percent of firms participating in PSMJ’s Financial Performance Survey that achieve the best overall performance in 13 benchmarks that measure business operations in terms of profitability, growth, cash flow, overhead control, business development, project performance, and employee satisfaction.
Virtually every executive I have spoken with from this exclusive group of design firms has told me that they have used the economic downturn to improve the overall quality of their staff. Many super-talented people with very impressive resumes – as well as star students coming out of design schools – are available and obtainable for firms that have the muscle to make it happen.
Are you one of these people that’s going to add value to a firm that is prospering in the face of tough economic times? There are a number of factors that determine the answer. In general, firms that are looking to upgrade staff try to improve their overall position in specific geographic locations, in services offered, and in markets served. To upgrade at the management level, firms are looking to hire market and/or thought leaders. In upgrading staff, firms are looking for people with direct apples-to-apples experience with a specific market or service offering or that bring valuable knowledge on the latest technology.
Here are some examples: If you are a project manager and you are a super client champion in a specific geographic area, research firms that may be interested in expanding their services in your area. Sell yourself as someone who comes to the firm with a ready-made base of new clients. If you are a K-12 program manager, look for healthy firms that may want to expand into the K-12 market – your addition to the firm gives them the opportunity to hit the ground running. What if your expertise is in a market that is currently sluggish like residential construction? Sell your value-add expertise. Do you have relationships with zoning boards or permitting authorities? These are tangible benefits that can elevate the profile of a firm overnight.
For non-management design professionals, sell your direct experience with a specific market or service. If you design health care facilities, get letters of reference from health care professionals with whom you have worked directly. Having direct experience using Building Information Modeling (BIM) software like Revit is a huge selling point as more firms work on BIM-designed projects. If you have recently graduated from design school, sell your facility in new software applications and your ability to train up your peers in these applications.
It’s also helpful to have a relationship with a professional recruiter – even if you end up finding an exciting new job on your own, these people have the experience to serve as a sounding board and alert you to opportunities you didn’t know existed.
If you are good and you have the skills and experience that other firms see as an “upgrade”, you will always be impervious to the ups and downs of the economy.
All the best,
Bruce
civil engineeering jobs :: civil engineering resumes :: civil engineering blog :: civil engineering discussion
Add comment July 22, 2009
Civil Engineering Jobs – Will Any Job Do?
By Carol Metzner
President, The Metzner Group, LLC
Managing Partner, A/E/P Central, LLC home of CivilEngineeringCentral.com
I recently received this email from an experienced civil engineer: “I don’t care where the company is located or what types of civil engineering projects I will be working on. After 3 months of being unemployed, can you just help me find a civil engineering job?”
By now, we all know the difference that a couple of years can make.
It wasn’t that long ago that candidates would turn down good opportunities for a variety of reasons: too far of a commute; didn’t like the workspace (“I want my own office”); job title wasn’t right (“I want a Department Manager title”), etc. An upcoming CivilEngineeringCentral.com newsletter author spoke with me about an excellent article he wrote for us entitled, “Advancing Your Career.” Specifically, he lists “Top 10” ideas that one can use to help advance his/her career. Among the 10 bulleted items, the article suggests assessing where, and for whom one works. It is suggested that you then evaluate whether you are in the right company with the right people to help you reach your professional goals. I question whether many of our readers have the luxury to make these types of assessments at this stage in life.
On the company “gossip” websites, employees of A/E firms complain in great detail about their employers. In many instances they report that they will leave their employers as soon as the market allows for them to identify another job. But, for today, they will stay employed and endure their perceived incompetent management, demotivating work environment and inadequate compensation. Most are saying “any job will do”– for right now.
When the market bounces back, companies who are ignoring management training and evaluations will find voluntary turnover rates skyrocketing! Staff at all levels will leave in droves and recruiting to replace them will be a financial and logistics nightmare. Hopefully, HR leaders will keep an eye on employee comments and hold technical managers accountable during the current market.
Until then, while job security is more important now than in the recent past, there are still a lot of good opportunities out there to consider. Don’t stop evaluating your career goals– just be more selective in your search. And, make sure to either talk to your HR representative OR use your anonymous employee feedback system to alert management that you don’t just want “any job” located “anywhere.” You deserve to take an active role in making the one you have much better.
14 comments July 15, 2009
Back to the Boardroom: Engineering Leaders Are Returning to the Workplace
By Carol Metzner
President, The Metzner Group, LLC and
Managing Partner, A/E/P Central, LLC home of CivilEngineeringCentral.com
The civil engineering market has seen the return of well respected senior executives. Those who either retired, or semi-retired have been enticed away from the golf courses, lakes and tennis courts back into the boardroom. Not that many of them had fully retired; but, they had found a comfortable consulting medium which has now turned into a minimum of 40 hours. Why is this return happening in the numbers that it is occurring?
Last month I spoke with the CEO of one of my clients. In 2007 I had assisted the firm on executive recruitment for their succession plan. The CEO had planned his retirement in two years. Last month he told me that he put off retirement for another year or two. He stills enjoys his work and is experiencing success with new avenues for his firm. He jokingly (with a tinge of seriousness) said that after the stock market losses and engineering market downturn, he had virtually worked for “free” for the past year and a half. This sentiment is a recurring theme with senior leaders.
Talking to several of these returning or non-retiring executives, I have seen several common themes:
1. They are fortunate to be healthy and energetic;
2. They had a history of success in building, leading, managing or cleaning up firms;
3. They are finding retirement not all they imagined it to be;
4. They love the engineering business and when called upon to “fix” something that needs repair, they can’t resist;
5. They have the expertise in technical areas that had been dormant and are now in the forefront of the industry;
6. They enjoy their work.
These execs are making changes in their firms in many important ways. For example, with technological advances such as SKYPE and other avenues for “virtual meetings,” many executives tried to minimize busy travel schedules by cutting in person regional office visits. This meant that they were less available to staff, less visible. Employees of “Best Firms” stress the importance of feeling valued and known by company leaders. Accessibility to these leaders is of paramount importance to them. Returning executives understand this and several have re-established travel to branch offices – they are bringing back the “TOWN HALL” meetings! While industry morale has been lower than in past years, the increase in potential opportunity is pulling companies up by their boot straps. To compete for work, companies need involved and committed staff. These smart executives can teach future leaders a few things. Connecting with employees in person, who are the heart of the company, is never a bad thing.
For whatever reason engineering leaders are returning, or postponing leaving…let’s learn from them. They have survived past recessions, lawsuits, bad press and staff shortages. While the industry is changing, some aspects of running an engineering consulting practice has not, or maybe should not. Let’s take advantage of mentors and pay attention, learn while we still can!
civil engineering jobs :: civil engineering resumes :: civil engineering blog :: civil engineering discussion
1 comment May 21, 2009
What Can An Animated Squirrel Teach You About Hiring?
By Matt Barcus
President, Precision Executive Search, Inc.
Managing Partner, A/E/P Central, LLC, home of CivilEngineeringCentral.com
If You Have a Minute-and-a-Half…
What you just witnessed was Scrat, from Ice Age 2, working his tail off to get his prized acorn…he came SO close, but in the end he failed.
How many times have you come SO close to hiring the right candidate, but in the end you were not able to “seal the deal” ? In breaking down this video we can dissect how his mission is very similar to yours as a hiring manager, human resources professional, or recruiter in the civil engineering industry attempting to seek out the perfect candidate and what can occur if the proper steps are not taken.
The Hunt
The same way Scrat has pulled out all the stops in reaching his goal, you have exhausted your candidate database, your batteries in your electronic Rolodex have gone dead, you’ve dangled a boat load of “benjamins” in front of your employees encouraging referrals, you have scoured the job boards and resume databases, you have mined your way through the Internet, you have blasted through your contacts on LinkedIn to no avail…in one last ditch effort you have even discovered how to “tweet”, and as a result, you have found your acorn…errrrr, your perfect candidate!
The Capture
Visible and within reach, you loosen up the candidate with an introductory phone call that progresses nicely. At the end of the conversation you invite the candidate in for an interview…SWEET! The candidate goes through a multi-interview process and the outlook is positive, from where you are standing anyway. You feel awesome, you reeled ‘em in hook, line and sinker, he’s yours, sign him up.
The Fall Off
Wait, you told everyone in the office, you had the announcement ready for your next company newsletter, you had the press release prepared…what happened? You had your candidate right at your doorstep but he never stepped over the threshhold. Now you’ve lost the candidate and you have fallen back into the depths of the same search where you found yourself not so long ago. How could this possibly happen?
Failure To Plug The Holes
You had your candidate the same way Scrat had his acorn. The pipes began to burst, you duct taped the holes temporarily and juggled the candidate as long as you could. But in the end, he accepted a position with your nemesis two exits down off the expressway.
Unfortunately I have witnessed this scenario all too often in my career as a search consultant. The goal of course is not to learn how to plug the holes (because you saw what happened to Scrat when he tried to do so), but rather how to prevent those unexpected bursts from happening altogether.
- Be On Time. The same way you expect a candidate to arrive on time for their interview, make sure you are on time as well. Prior to the interview make sure you exchange cell phone numbers in the event that something arises that is going to cause you to run late or have to reschedule. Last week on our LinkedIn discussion board we learned of a candidate that arrived to his interview on time, but was made to wait thirty minutes before the hiring executive was able to invite him back for the interview. Once the interview begins the candidate may be pre-occupied with the fact that he had to wait thirty minutes. And even if he does get over it and the interview goes well, that thirty minutes of unjustified monotony sitting in the lobby has created a seed of doubt in that candidate’s head as to how you or the company may operate…as if they do not care about people.
- Don’t Skimp. If the interview was scheduled before lunch or before dinner, and it is going well and you see it carrying over for some time, take the candidate out for a meal. Not only is this a memorable gesture, but as always it gives you the opportunity to evaluate their demeanor in a public setting. And if the IHOP is the closest restaurant to your office…you might want to try the NEXT closest restaurant.
- Get Off The Fence. Make a decision. Once the interview(s) are complete, your ability to get off the fence and make a decision is crucial. Don’t let the engineer in you be the cause of losing the candidate. The longer you sit in a deep contemplative state analyzing the potential hire the less interested the candidate becomes and the more likely he is to be scooped up by another firm. Even if it’s a no-go, communicate this to the candidate. Your failure to communicate even the decision not to hire the candidate will be remembered, and you never know when you may need to call upon that candidate down the road.
- Avoid The Low Ball. Evaluate your current salary structure and make nearly the best, if not the best offer you can, right off the bat. This shows you are serious. If the candidate is considering other offers on the table, even though you make it known you are open to negotiation, the first impression of you attempting to short change them more-often-than-not leaves a sour taste in the candidates mouth.
- Remember Magnum, P.I. Make sure you, your human resources staff or your recruiter conducts a full and comprehensive investigation. By understanding all the details of the candidates compensation (and I mean ALL the details) and benefits you will limit the sneak attack the can often occur at the end of the process. You know, the sneak attack when the candidate has all but officially accepted and then he drops the bomb that he is declining your offer to accept another? Make sure your understand their current and desired title and responsibilities. You could make a fantastic offer, but “if the shoe don’t fit” then you have wasted your time. Uncover their hot issues. Why are they looking to leave? What was the initial appeal to your firm? Speak to references to get a better understanding of their strengths and weaknesses so you can be prepare to offer an opportunity that will improve their weak points and tone up their strengths. And finally, know what they are up to. This may be a little tricky without utilizing a seasoned search consultant, but you need to find out what other firms they are meeting with and what the details are of any other offers they may be considering.
- Make Sure The Fat Lady Sings. The old saying holds true during the hiring process. You must continue to close the deal with the candidate until the day they walk through your door. There are a number of things that you can do to minimize the chances of them accepting another offer from another firm, or a counter offer from their existing employer.
- Require them to provide their current employer with no longer than a three week notice, though a two week notice is even better; any longer and that leaves a large window of opportunity for them to change their mind.
- Have them sign an offer letter. The psychology behind having a candidate sign and return an offer letter to you is huge. It shows another level of commitment beyond the verbal acceptance and holds them more accountable.
- Meet with them once a week for lunch until they start in order to discuss their office set up, their technology requirements (blackberry, lap top, etc) and to prepare them for the projects that they will be working on. This mentally pulls them in closer to you and further away from their current employer or any other firms that may be dangling a last minute carrot.
- And finally, have Human Resources invite them into the office to fill out the hiring documents so they can hit the ground running on their start date.
By following some of these simple steps you will find that your ability to bring on top talent will be sure to improve, and you will be able to have your acorn…and eat it too.
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Add comment April 23, 2009
