Amazed

Hi Recruiters,

This week, I’m reminiscing about all the amazing people who were willing to share their insights (some speaking at a conference for the first time ever) during our second-ever F.R.B.R. online conference hosted earlier this month.

We had nearly 500 (!) folks attend. Thank you to the speakers, the attendees, and Daniel Harten for hosting.

I’m truly amazed by the experience, wisdom, and advice we were able to pack into a half day, and I couldn’t be more proud of this community.

For those who couldn’t make it, we’re planning another free event next month — stay tuned. In the meantime, I’ll be highlighting my takeaways from each of our speakers here.?

Read below for part 1 of 2.

Industries Matter

Mallory Vachon, PhD , Chief Economist at Labor IQ opened up the event to shed some light on what is and isn’t going well in the labor market.

According to the data, despite job gains in 2023 outperforming expectations, the reality is that growth right now is very sector-specific. In fact, just three industries — government, hospitality and leisure, and healthcare — accounted for 2/3rds of all jobs added. Healthcare alone is predicted to drive 50% of job growth over the next ten years.

Thanks for breaking down the data for us, Mallory.

Lean on the Community

Next up, Sr Technical Recruiter Cassie Lundquist, PRC, CTR, CDR, CMVR, CSMR, CASR, ACIR reminded us that when you’re feeling down, your peers in the recruiting community will always lift you up.

She was willing to share her devastating experience of being unexpectedly let go at Nike as a case in point. Within days of getting the news, she began receiving calls and messages from fellow teammates, hiring managers she had worked with before, and others in the recruiting community offering to help.

The lightbulb realization? The reputation she had worked so hard to build extended far beyond a single employer.

If you find yourself in a tough spot and need to lean on the community, she offers three tips: (1) identify what you need, (2) don’t be afraid to ask your network for help, and (3) actually implement the feedback.

Combine AI with EQ

TA Specialist Tom Brophy spoke about the importance of not forgetting your emotional intelligence when leveraging AI in recruiting.

For now, we’re still in the business of hiring humans. So, like with any new tech, the tools we use to do more need to be embraced without losing our humanity. Tom shared an excellent chatGPT prompt example to demonstrate what that could look like when trying to engage a candidate for the first time:

Although the results gave Tom a good starting place, he still stresses the need for a heavy human edit. Some pointers when editing AI-generated content for an opening message to a candidate:

• Keep it humanistic. Mention how they may not be looking, but…
• Imply that the candidate may have heard of the company
• Mention how impressed you are with their current role/experience
• Talk about what you are looking for specifically and how it impacts the company
• Ask to set up a time to chat

Thanks, Tom.

Creating Impactful Intern Programs

DEI program developer Ryan Carey CDSP talked us through the unique topic of designing an impactful intern program. Let’s face it, we’ve all seen internships with good intentions fail to live up to goals for the company and expectations for interns.?

Ryan’s tips for success:

Set up your strategy and guidelines

• Define your intentions (consider creating a motto to get others on board and inspire ownership).
• Create data-driven goals for accountability and transparency.
• Set milestones and strategic deadlines to provide opportunities to celebrate wins and establish the life cycle for managers.

Incorporate your counterparts

• Before you build out a process, seek to understand the issues or concerns other areas of the business will have — across IT, Security, Compensation, Immigration and Legal, Facilities, etc. This helps you understand blind spots that can help you avoid issues before they happen. For example, a hiring manager may want to hire 20 people but your facilities manager informs you there’s only room to onboard 10.

Make programs live and accessible

• Intern programs should create the building blocks for workforce planning and involve company stakeholders. Make sure your documents are accessible to the entire organization, not just living in isolation on your desktop or unshared folders.

Use internal and external data to drive goals

• Holistic data is critical for a comprehensive strategy. Look at trends in your CRM/ATS, as well as external talent data resources — websites like Handshake, university databases, DEI clubs, etc.

Engage pre-application and post-offer

• Promote with educational campaigns to sell the vision, opportunity and impact, and create ongoing post-hire engagement content — consider monthly newsletters to share latest news or attractions in the area.

I agree with Ryan when he says these tips would do wonders for any TA program.

Get Buy-In

When was the last time a hiring manager had a real handle on the hiring process or candidate experience? TA leader Patrick White 's session focused on why getting hiring managers fully bought in on ensuring hiring runs smoothly for everyone involved isn’t just about making life easier for recruiters but also saving the organization heaps of time, which means a lower cost-to-hire.

One area that can have an immediate impact is getting hiring managers trained on using the ATS (instead of relying on communication through various other channels).

A great tip Patrick shared to get started: Have hiring managers come up with 3 questions they want to ask every candidate and have them put those notes in the ATS.

Building Communities

Recruiting expert Larry Anderson spoke about my favorite topic, community-building. If you’re in need of a network, for career support or otherwise, here are 3 tips Larry shared that I think are so good:

1. Find and reach out to people with a shared experience (even if it’s a shared pain).
2. Give something and expect nothing in return (think about offering a resume review, interview tips, strategic insight, etc.).
3. Set up regular, recurring meetings (this creates deeper connections and group momentum).

Simple and straightforward. Thanks, Larry.

What else is happening in hiring?

• Big Tech is on a generative AI hiring spree
• Amazon hiring slump comes just a year after $2 billion offices open
• Why You Might Be Hiring Engineers Too Soon

Aaron’s Corner

Aaron Iba?ez here. ?? Reading Shannon's post has got me thinking about how strong the sense of community is among recruiters. Seeing how willing the people in this industry are to lend a helping hand to one another has been one of the most inspiring things to witness as a member of the hireEZ team.

Speaking of which...

Our next F.R.B.R. Conference is right around the corner. If you didn't get to attend before, don't miss your chance this time around!

May 28th, 10 am CT. Register to attend for free here: https://explore.hireez.com/frbr-conference-recxrec/

See you there!

— Recruiters