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Recruiting
News,
Training &
Commentary by
Bill Radin
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The
Recruiter's Digest
Recruiting
News, Training & Commentary by Bill Radin |
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August, 2005 |
Off
the Computer and Onto the Phone
"How do
I get my recruiters off the computer and onto the phone?"
That's the number one question I get from frustrated managers. They
can't seem to convince their recruiters that time spent on the phone is
infinitely more productive than time spent online.
My answer? I tell managers that recruiters, like the rest of us, tend to
obey the laws of human nature. Given a choice, they will:
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Seek gratification that's instant,
rather than delayed; |
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Select tasks that are easy and
entertaining, instead of tasks that are difficult or require
imagination; and |
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Settle
for mediocrity when faced with obstacles, rather than fight for success. |
Recruiters aren't predisposed to fail. But as managers, we
often encourage them to fail, by unconsciously giving them the means to undercut
their own performance.
Winning Their Hearts and Minds
When managers hire
chatty extroverts and watch in horror as they morph into silent zombies,
who's to blame? If your company's bustling bullpen devolves into a
clatter of keyword strings and Google searches, can the
recruiters be totally at fault? I think not.
Fortunately, human nature has many different faces. If you want to
change your recruiters' behavior--and improve their performance--here are
some common-sense leadership tips that will help accentuate the positive:
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Never
tell a new recruiter that something is difficult. If you do, it will
telegraph an underlying excuse for failure--or worse, instill a sense of
fear. For example, instead of describing cold calling as risky or frightening, tell
the recruiter that cold calling is simply the best way to network with
new people, develop new business and make a lot of money. |
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Keep your signals straight. If you
want your recruiters to stay on the phone, don't confuse them with a
lot of administrative instructions or technology issues. The simpler
you keep their tasks, the more they'll be productive. |
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Eliminate distractions--or better yet, don't initiate distractions in the
first place. If the computer monitor becomes the sole focus of attention and
you feel it's a distraction, don't be afraid to take it off the
recruiter's desk. Put it in the "research library" and restrict the
recruiter's access. |
Pinpointing and eliminating distractions is one of the most important
tasks for any manager. And above all, it requires good judgment, because
a distraction to one person (or one business model) may be a
facilitating factor for another.
For example, there are thousands of recruiters who directly benefit from
online recruiting, job boards, keyword searches, and so forth. But
there are also lots of recruiters and businesses for whom these technological
"tools" are nothing more than a disabling distraction.
If computer tools enhance your recruiters' performance, by all means
use them. But if they start to attract too much attention--and stand in
the way of performance goals--get them out of sight and
out of mind until they prove otherwise.
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