It’s a buyers market! There is a load of inventory that can be had for low prices. You can
You're Hired!
pretty much list what you want and demand that you get it, when you want it, at the price you are willing to pay. Are we talking about the housing market? No, it’s the labor market and employers are the buyers!
Employers can ask for a laundry list of very specific skills and offer below market rates for many positions and still find plenty of candidates. The question I ask is….is that what you really want, an employee who fulfills a checklist that you got for a good rate?
Recently Wharton professor Peter Cappelli wrote an article admonishing companies for their inflexibility in hiring requirements. This article hit the twitter verse and became a hot topic. There was certainly a buzz among my unemployed friends and some colleagues in HR. These two groups were on different sides of the argument, both with very valid points.
View of the job seeker: “These job requirements are so detailed and tailored to the company, they must be written for a specific person.” ‘ I applied for a job that had 22 requirements, I met 21 of them and didn’t get a call, I guess I also needed to know their specific software system” “I can’t believe that there is someone who meets every one of those requirements, if so, I am never going to get a job!”
View of the HR Manager: “I am so sick of having to go through a 150 resumes for every job posting, if picky requirements reduces my work in any way, I’ll take it” “You wouldn’t believe the people who apply for these positions, really, a guy with 5 years of golf pro experience wants to be our sales director!” “My hiring manager is strapped and has limited time to train a new hire, the more exact experience the new guy has the easier it is on the manager.”
Employers, don’t you want more than a checklist as your next employee? This is not the time to be short-sighted. Try this exercise. Look around your department and consider who your key employees are. Where did they come from? Did they advance through the company or did they come to you fully trained with a checklist of skills? What is it that makes them so valuable, is it their skills or is it their knowledge; is it their attitude, their passion for the work, their commitment to your company? Managers, do you really need to train the new person yourself or is this an opportunity for a key staffer to develop some coaching skills? Don’t be do what is best for the long-term.
I urge you to think strategically and to look for the candidate with the best fit for your team, your department, your company. Start with the list of requirements and divide them into “must haves”, “would like to haves”, and “wow, bonus points”. Then when the resumes come in make sure they have all the “must haves”, some or most of the “would like to haves”, and then take a look at the bonus items including some items that maybe you didn’t consider at first. Don’t ignore experience that doesn’t seem to tie directly to the job at hand. A mechanic who volunteers with Habitat for Humanity probably works well in a team, follows directions, and is willing to do what it takes to complete a job. Consider this as a bonus! An applicant for Controller who has 5 years of controller experience instead of the 8 years you are looking for, who previously was a personal trainer for 6 years could be a great fit. Consider the abilities to build trust and relationships that successful Controllers need, wouldn’t a personal trainer be good at these softer skills? Bonus point!
In full disclosure, I am now on both sides of this issue. I will be unemployed at the end of December and have started looking for a new position. Wow, the requirement lists are a little overwhelming and can make a person feel pretty inadequate. At this same time, in my current position, I have filled several open positions and am working to fill two more. Yes, the requirement lists have gotten more detailed as we try to filter out the overload of candidates we get, but we have learned that the perfect fit on paper is very rarely the best fit for the job. By broadening our parameters, we have gotten some great new hires that are already seen as valuable additions to our company.
Related articles
- Are Employers to Blame for the Skills Gap? (money.usnews.com)
- Job Descriptions…HR Hype or One of the Best Business Tools Ever (jembusiness.wordpress.com)
- Have you read the WSJ blog on why companies aren’t getting the employees they need? (sfbaybiorecruiter.wordpress.com)
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