(1 votes, average: 8 out of 10)
Loading ...Video: What IT job seekers said at CareerDoor’s HiTech job fair
I recently took a trip to the CareerDoor HiTech career fair in downtown Toronto. The event featured a few dozen companies looking to tackle the skills shortage and hire IT pros.
But despite the fact that companies are reportedly desperate for new tech talent, we ran into quite a few job seekers haven’t had much luck taking advantage of the skills shortage. Read my coverage from the event and see what some of the conference attendees had to say in the video posted below.
Add to: del.icio.us | Digg IT | Furl | Google | magnolia | StumbleIT | Wink | Yahoo! Technorati
(1 votes, average: 9 out of 10) Loading ...Recruiting for Top IT Talent Should Begin and End In IT
Let’s assume that there is now or soon will be a shortage of labour in the technology sector. Each day we hear from employers indicating to us they are finding it more difficult to source and hire technology candidates. In addition, surveys and studies conducted by IT World Canada, Robert Half Technology and the team of ITAC, Deloitte Touche and the Conference Board of Canada indicate agreement with this opinion.
If it is indeed a jobseekers’ market then the top candidates can pick and choose where they will work. If you would like them to work for your company, then you need your hiring manager or even your CIO/CEO to immediately be engaged in the recruiting process. In fact, in a talent war environment, hiring managers and senior executives need to be the first point of contact for the jobseeker.
When I was a Vice President of Sales, I scheduled and conducted interviews with jobseekers directly. I let my CEO know when I was conducting such interviews and asked her to book time out on her calendar to meet with candidates immediately following if I felt it necessary.
Therefore, if you are an “A” player in your organization, you no doubt know first hand the attributes most attractive to those top players seeking to work with you. Who could possibly share the insight, excitement and passion you have for your company better than you? How insulted would you be if your introduction to a prospective employer began with a request to fill out a lengthy questionnaire? How enthusiastic would you be if after that initial contact it took days or even weeks to hear back?
Are you making it easy for top talent to connect with you? Are you responding to them in a way they deserve and expect? If not, you are going to loose out on the top prospects which will put you consistently in the back seat interviewing less qualified talent..
Nothing can be more important to your business than securing the best talent. To recruit the best you have to prove you are the best. As a result, you can not afford not to personally recruit. Such a hands on approach will also help with your retention of these top players. Therefore make it your top priority!
Add to: del.icio.us | Digg IT | Furl | Google | magnolia | StumbleIT | Wink | Yahoo! Technorati
(Rate This Article) Loading ...Will You Be Part of The Hot January Labour Market?
During the holiday season many people take time to reflect on their lives and makes changes or New Years Resolutions. While weight loss and quitting smoking have often been top of the list, the trend is now that more and more people are deciding to make choices that impact their work life balance. This has resulted in many new job seekers hitting the market in January.
Will you be one of the job seekers? What can your employer do now to stop your resume from hitting the streets in January?
As an employer what are you doing to ensure your talent does not walk out the door in January? Have you built a plan to capitalize on the Hot Market in January where you will see the largest number of actively employed professionals test the job market?
As an employer a little goes a long way in helping to retain employees. While a large year end bonus, I am sure, is on everyone’s holiday list some small things to consider are:
Ten Small Holiday Ideas that Will Improve Morale and Retention:
1) Mail Holiday cards to employees homes, addressed to the family, letting them know how much you appreciate the individual working for you
2) Give your employees an extra hour at lunch, at least once, to do last minute shopping
3) Do your reviews with them; let them know how they are doing
4) Ask them for a Holiday Wish list of things that you could do to help them succeed in their jobs
5) Take your staff to lunch to show your appreciation
6) Buy a small but personal gift (can be under $20) that you shows you know them on a personal level (music, itunes card, fancy coffee, Tim Horton gift certificate, flower, etc)
7) Give them all money or gift card value $20-$100 and tell them to buy themselves something and have each employee bring it back to office for people to see what they bought and why
Do a company Chris Cringle gift exchange and pot luck lunch
9) Take donations of food, money, toys or clothing and support a disadvantaged family
10) Let them leave early the last day of work before the holidays to beat the rush
It does not take a large financial or time commitment to gain valuable ground with employee loyalty. Employees want to know that you care about them both professionally as well as personally. Spend some time with them, let them know how valued they are and allow them some time for themselves. This will go a long way in keeping them loyal.
As far as what you as an Employer can do to capitalize on the Hot Labour Market; don’t put off your recruitment efforts, double them up for January. What ever works for you ensure that you are maximizing your market exposure and direct recruitment initiatives during this period. Most January job seekers will test the waters and many will stop entertaining new career opportunities as early as the end of the month. Job Postings usually increase in January by 50% so job boards are certainly an option. Our company implemented eCareerFairs to help jobseekers and employers connect directly from the convenience of their desktops. Most other major recruitment vehicles should also have special opportunities to take advantage of this short but HOT market, don’t miss out on this window of opportunity make sure you are taking advantage of the influx of top talent into the market.
Add to: del.icio.us | Digg IT | Furl | Google | magnolia | StumbleIT | Wink | Yahoo! Technorati
(1 votes, average: 10 out of 10) Loading ...IT managers: Ambassadors of first impressions
My sister-in-law, who recently graduated from university, is trying to get her career off the ground. As we all know, though, getting that first real job is hard when your experience is limited to stints in the service industry. That’s when my wife stepped in. She came up with a way to describe working at the snack bar of a local Cineplex Odeon as something far more important. All it took was a title: “ambassador of first impressions.”
Read the rest of this entry »
Add to: del.icio.us | Digg IT | Furl | Google | magnolia | StumbleIT | Wink | Yahoo! Technorati
(1 votes, average: 10 out of 10) Loading ...Keep your resume safe, and your data even safer
Mari-Len wrote an article in the latest CW that I thought was really inventive. After the recent scandal around Monster.com losing all kinds of user information, we realized that resumes — which often include a laundry list of personally indentifying e-mails — are becoming a new vector of attack. So she talked to the experts about how to make sure that the C.V.s they put out there don’t wind up as bait for phishing schemes and other fraudsters.
Add to: del.icio.us | Digg IT | Furl | Google | magnolia | StumbleIT | Wink | Yahoo! Technorati
(3 votes, average: 7 out of 10) Loading ...Maybe you can get a better job this Fall
Robert Half’s hiring forecast is out today. The good news: 14 per cent of the CIOs surveyed said they expect to add people in the fourth quarter, while two per cent expect cutbacks. Best-bet verticals: finance, insurance and real estate. Most intriguing was that the consulting firm broke it down by region. Apparently Moutain and Pacific zones are the ideal places to find a job right now. Go west, young IT managers!
Add to: del.icio.us | Digg IT | Furl | Google | magnolia | StumbleIT | Wink | Yahoo! Technorati
(2 votes, average: 7.5 out of 10) Loading ...Those in the field don’t want to hear about a skills shortage
Mari-Len wrote a story in the latest CWC about labour issues affecting the IT market, but not in the usual way. Instead of just trotting out the same old facts and figures (which are always dire, for some reason), she tried to address the concerns raised by readers who get angry every time we publish articles about how many companies are looking for good IT people. We tend to get letters, for example, from people who say they have been looking for months, or that employers’ expectations are uninformed and unrealistic. Hopefully this balances out the various points of view.
Add to: del.icio.us | Digg IT | Furl | Google | magnolia | StumbleIT | Wink | Yahoo! Technorati
(1 votes, average: 7 out of 10) Loading ...Full Time Versus Contract
With the tightening labour market I am already seeing a shift in the number of job seekers now looking for contract work versus full time. How will this further add to the sourcing difficulties companies are experiencing now?
As an employer, will you adjust your hiring to allow for contract workers?
As an employee will you be looking to make the move to a contractor?
Add to: del.icio.us | Digg IT | Furl | Google | magnolia | StumbleIT | Wink | Yahoo! Technorati
(3 votes, average: 10 out of 10) Loading ...The old ‘chief cook and bottle washer’ sounds about right
In the latest CW Mari-Len wrote a piece about some of the weird new job titles that are cropping up in the enterprise. Some of these, like chief risk officer, might be the kind of thing an IT manager will become, although it’s not always clear to me what’s a lateral move here and what’s really a promotion.
Read the rest of this entry »
Add to: del.icio.us | Digg IT | Furl | Google | magnolia | StumbleIT | Wink | Yahoo! Technorati
(2 votes, average: 10 out of 10) Loading ...Nobody wants a new boss in the summer anyway
A report from the Association of Executive Search Consultants indicates that there wasn’t as much recruiting going on among senior technology industry executives during the second quarter of this year. That could just be the seasonal doldrums, or it could be a sign that things are levelling off again. Let’s hope for the latter.
