My Favorite Posts
I don’t know how you could possibly read any recruiting blog and NOT know what SourceCon is at this point! Between the sourcing challenges and the conspiracy theories of who is behind the whole event, everyone is talking about it! In my personal opinion, it’s about time research got its own billing and I am excited about attending this conference!
A lot of people who have emailed me are looking for some information to help ’sell’ conference attendance to their employers. Here is what I know at this point:
The speakers for SourceCon include a refreshing mix of established talented researchers and sourcers as well as some relatively unknown up-and-comers. Some of the heavy hitters include:
- Jim Stroud (event MC) – EVERYone knows Jim. He is a “Searchologist” and all-around nice-guy. Jim has been in the recruiting industry since the mid-late 90’s and is known best for his blog, Jim Stroud 2.0.
- Shally Steckerl – Shally is the”Chief CyberSleuth” at JobMachine, his sourcing consultancy and research training brainchild. Shally has been around the industry since the mid-late 90’s as well and is known worldwide for his expertise in developing sourcing teams and teaching passive search techniques.
- Conni LaDouceur – Conni is the founder of ExecuQuest and arguably the ‘mother of recruiting research’, having more than 20 years of experience under her belt.
- Dave Copps – Dave is the CEO of PureDiscovery Corporation and a self-proclaimed search geek. He has worked with some small institutions you may have heard of – The Pentagon, the CIA, US DoD, FBI, etc…..
- Tracey Friend – Tracey is the SVP Talent Acquisition with Countrywide Financial. Tracey is literally EVERYwhere, and networked with EVERYone. Special props to Tracey as she and I are both Florida alums!
- Glenn Gutmacher – founder of Recruiting-Online.com and Recruiting Researcher at Microsoft, Glenn has also been involved in recruiting research since the late 90’s and has a great reputation of being one of the best technical minds in research.
I could go on and name ALL of the speakers, but you can go to SourceCon’s website and check them out. The value that all of the speakers will bring to your research knowledge base FAR exceeds the $899 admission cost. As a matter of fact, the speakers who are consultants would charge more than that for less than 5 hours of their time, so the cost is really a steal for what you receive in return.
Some of the topics which will be covered will include:
- Next Generation Talent (X and Y)
- Baby Boomer Gap in the WorkForce
- Definine Research and its Benefit in a Recruiting Organization
- Hidden Talent Pools
- Proactive Pipelining of Talent
- Ethics Surrounding Research and Sourcing
- Competitive Intelligence / Competitive Advantage
- Finding Passive Talent Fast
- Name Generation
Those who are orchestrating SourceCon indicate a true love of research and sourcing, and that is the motivation behind this event. It was not put on to be a vendor-driven revenue generator, but rather as a conference to gather those of us who have an appreciation and deep interest in the function of research so that we may learn collectively from one another.
With that being said, I have been given permission to offer a special promotional discount to anyone who has not yet registered for SourceCon but would like to attend. If you are planning to register for this conference, please use the promotional code ABH0730 when you register. You will receive a 10% discount on the price of conference admission.
I am very much looking forward to meeting all of you who will be attending! See you in Atlanta!
I spent the last half of last week in Cleveland, Ohio working from SearchPath’s corporate offices. This most recent trip, I had the privilege to run into co-founders of Main Sequence Technologies, Martin Snyder and Bill Kubicek, at SPI’s summer picnic. Main Sequence created the applicant tracking system that SPI uses, PC Recruiter. I have been a user of PC Recruiter since my first days of internet research back in 2002 and have watched the product evolve from a windows-based application to a powerful web-based ASP solution. I have always spoken highly of the application as well because I believe it is one of the most comprehensive contact management systems available to recruiters and HR professionals. One of the neatest things about PCR is that all the features it contains are a direct result of suggestions from the users. They take recommendations from their end users very seriously and determine what new features will be implemented based on the number of requests for new things.
- Complete start-to-finish tracking of job orders, including interview records, follow-up reminders, and placement reports
- Ability to dial contacts directly from the database using the MySoftPhone application
- Import compatibility with several data sources such as SearchExpo, Hoovers, and Lexis Nexis
- Web extensions that will allow you to turn your database into a full-service career job board that will handle candidate registrations, resume uploads, job applications, and much more
- Outlook integration – you can sync your Microsoft Outlook schedule and email contact list with your database
Main Sequence is located just east of Cleveland, so Bill and Martin graciously invited me to come and visit their new office building while I was in town. Of course, I accepted! I had absolutely no idea of what was in store for me.
First of all, to even get into the compound in which Main Sequence is located, I had to go through a security gate check. Ritzy!! When I drove up, I was blown away by the beauty of the entire compound. Below is a birds-eye view. The fountain in the center is designed so people can actually SWIM in it. Martin pointed out the people in the fountain when he walked me around the grounds once I arrived. Amazing!
Inside Main Sequence, the atmosphere is very home-y. Martin’s dogs run around and check everyone out in the building, and there are model sailboats all over the place (a hobby of Bill’s, I believe). The chair in the reception area is shaped like a giant hand. The work spaces are very open and inviting. The salespeople are grouped together, as are the programmers, and of course the technical support folks who are on the lower level.
Martin walked me around the office, and then he took me across the grounds to the common area (the big building on the left of the photo). Inside of this common area, it’s like a big rec center. Right in the main entrance is a big reception area with comfy couches and a big screen TV. Somewhere in the building is a theater as well, complete with a DVD library. Out back, there is a big open deck for hosting parties and gatherings. Downstairs is a gym area, complete with aerobic equipment and weight machines. There is also an indoor heated lap pool and a basketball court. To the right of the entrance, there is a large dining/bar area and a banquet hall that reminded me of a rustic hunting lodge. To the left of the entrance are some private meeting rooms. A complete day-care service is 0ffered as an amenity for employees of the companies in this compound. I observed several people in the fountain with little kids when we walked by. Very cool! The thought that kept running through my mind as I observed all of this was Google’s corporate culture. Main Sequence seems to have captured this atmosphere, just on a slightly smaller scale.
When I was brought back to Main Sequence’s office building to meet the tech support team, I suddenly felt a little sheepish because I know over the past 5 years, I have called in on more than one occasion and probably been less than pleasant (I am sure each of them can attest to this!) I shook hands with Mark, Albert, and Diane. Jarrid was helping Diane out when I arrived and I did not get a chance to properly introduce myself, although I know he knows who I am! As a matter of fact, all of them knew who I was, and I wasn’t sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing.
Lesson learned here: do your best to be cordial on the phone when you call in to technical support. There are real people on the other end of the phone and you might get the pleasure of meeting them some day. If and when you do, you don’t want to be embarrassed of the way you may have (mis)treated them at some point.
I had the pleasure of sitting with Diane for about 30 minutes and getting one-on-one Q&A with her on some of the product updates. She showed me a sweet new tool that is almost done with testing and will be released to all PCR users in the very near future. She was also able to clarify some questions I had about a couple of items. Diane was overall very knowledgeable and I was happy that I was given this opportunity to have her help me out.
I was at Main Sequence for less than an hour, but I got a very interesting, and eye opening, glimpse into the backstage production of the tool I’ve been happily using for over 5 years now. I would certainly recommend PCR to anyone out there.
Thanks to everyone I met last week! You all have a great product and I look forward to seeing what new things you continue to come out with.
Forgive me everyone; I have been out of town for a few days working with SearchPath up in Cleveland, so I am opening up the floodgates of things that have been swimming around in my mind that I wanted to write about!
I read this article by Scott Ginsberg this afternoon and had to post it up here. The ideas that Scott outlines are almost a carbon copy of what someone should do to help develop their personal online brand.
By the way, for those who do not know who Scott Ginsberg is, he is ‘that guy with the nametag’. Check out his website here, and his blog here. I’ve always found him to be a neat person to learn about; he took a very simple idea of wearing a name tag to encourage others to talk to you and developed a successful business around it.
Thanks for sharing, Scott! I hope that you are reading this!
Dan Sweet, who writes one of my favorite blogs, FRACAT, recently ‘tagged’ me on a post he wrote revealing some little-known secrets about himself. So now I am forced to do the same. Thanks a lot, Dan. Just kidding….anyone who knows me knows I am not a very secretive person and am more than willing to share just about anything you want to know. So without any further adieu, here we go!
THE RULES:
1. Post these rules before you give you the facts.
2. List 8 random facts about yourself.
3. At the end of your post, choose (tag) 8 people and list their names (linking to them)
4. Leave them a comment on their blog letting them know they’ve been tagged!
Eight Random Facts About Amybeth:
- I have been researching for over 5 years now, but I am relatively new to the blogging scene – I’ve only been at this for about 9 months!
- When I was in 6th grade, our English classes had an annual ‘Battle of the Books’. We were divided into teams of 3 (I think?) and we had a list of 50 books that we had to read. The Battle part of it was a competition between teams consisting of questions about the details of the books. I wanted to win so bad that I read 45 of the 50 books on the list. My team won, of course
- I graduated from the University of Florida with honors in 3 1/2 years and was waiting tables at a restaurant nearly two years following graduation. Proof that going to college and getting good grades doesn’t always get you your dream job! (there are other ways of achieving success in the world)
- When I was a little girl, my mom used to let me lick the batter from the bowl when she made brownies or cake. (there are raw eggs in cake and brownie batter) She also used to make me little raw hamburger meatballs when she would make burger patties. (RAW meat) Oh, and I also ate a live fuzzy caterpillar when I was 3. I am a healthy adult today and I rarely get sick. Proof that you don’t have to be a germaphobe with your kids. In fact, let them eat dirt from time to time – it builds up their immune system!
- I am 28 years old, I am single, I have no children, and I have never been married. Guess I’m just waiting for the right man for me! I’ll wait forever if that’s what it takes.
- I take guidance from people who have fruit on the tree. Don’t get me wrong, I allow people to share their opinions with me, but I’m very selective about the people from whom I will take advice. Think about it – if you take financial advice from your neighbor, they’ll probably be your neighbor for a long time!
- I have a deep-seeded faith in God and I attribute everything that I have accomplished to Him.
- I LOVE traveling, especially road trips! The longest road trip (driving) I’ve ever taken was from Fort Myers, FL to El Paso, TX (27 hrs). Other long road trips I’ve been on include Cincinnati-Fort Myers and back, East Hampton, CT-Orlando and back, Cincinnati-Kansas City and back, Cincinnati-Raleigh, NC and back, and Cincinnati-Toms River, NJ and back (all of these trips completed start-to-finish within 4 days). And by the way, I LOVE meeting interesting people – if you’re ever interested in meeting me, just give me a place where I can work during the day and somewhere to lay my head at night and I would love to come meet you!
The people I am tagging to continue this chain of revealment are:
- Michael Notaro of Feed The Beagle!
- Simon Meth of Sitting Xlegged
- Moises Lopez of The Sourcing Corner
- Gretchen Ledgard of JobSyntax
- Rick Turoczy of More Than A Living
- Suzy Tonini of Delotte Consulting (with a blog at RecruitingBlogs)
- Jim Stroud of Jim Stroud 2.0
- Leslie O’Connor of Search Wizards
Some of these people I know personally, and some are people whose work I admire and would like to know! Looking forward to their 8 Things…
Who doesn’t know the name Suzy Tonini as of the past week? She’s making headlines everywhere with her research prowess as the latest winner of SourceCon’s series of sourcing challenges. This one was a toughie, but Suzy persevered and was the first to ‘get r done’!
So I’ll go ahead and jump on the Suzy-Fan bandwagon! She is so good at what she does and is sure to give Mr. Notaro a run for his money in Atlanta.
So who will be the third contestant? Word on the street is that Jeremy Langhans might pull it off. Russ Moon could, but it was brought to my attention that he is now ineligible for the contest! Anyone else contending? Alvin Hom? Chris Cox? Terri Coligan? Can’t wait to see who it will be.
On a sort-of related note, for anyone who is attending SourceCon, I’d like to know who would be up for sushi one evening. I would imagine we can get some quality sushi in ATL. If you’re game, I’m a big fan. Shoot me a comment or an email!
Filed under: Research
Wanted to make sure everyone gets a peek at my buddy Mike Notaro’s latest blog post on hex values and email. Mike has certainly been making quite a splash lately in the research arena! Great job, Mike. You are a force to reckon with – can’t wait to see you at SourceCon!
….Ms. Pamela Dixon of SSi-Search in Atlanta, GA! I’m excited to connect with Pamela because I will also get a chance to meet her live in Atlanta when she and I both attend SourceCon in September.
Pamela has worked in sales in several industries, including technology and health care, and currently she is a Principle with SSi-Search, specializing in leadership, health care, and technology searches.
Only thing I hold against Pamela is that she is a Wildcat (she attended the University of Kentucky). Just kidding, Pamela
Thanks to every one of my connections. I am so happy to be able to offer help, recommendations, knowledge, or anything else you may need! Please feel free to reach out to me any time.
Happy Networking!
Filed under: Research
Shally Steckerl and Sheila Greco collaborated last week for a webinar and Shally recently posted some of the Q&A. About halfway down the list of questions, I noticed one particular topic that has been one of interest to me over the past few months:
Q: Hope this question gets in. Do you overlap on all duties–ie. soucer/researcher/recruiter or do you separate them and just have a defined process. Or does your sourcer always/never make those initial calls. Just want to know your definitions of what you think each person should / does do as part of the recruitment strategy?
Shally’s answer:
It depends on the size of your organization, and the number of hires you are expected to complete. If you are one of a very few recruiters then you will most likely need to do both the sourcing and candidate relationship. In mid sized or large companies, with economies or scale, specialization becomes more important and there you may have different teams of sourcers, recruiters, and cold callers.
So, size really does matter! When you are operating a recruiting organization with just a handful of people, you probably will not have the resources initially to hire a dedicated researcher and everyone must pitch in to cover all the bases. However, as your organization grows it is to your advantage to invest in job specialization. This means bringing on dedicated researchers and/or investing in a research solution that is outsourced. This specialization allows for greater coverage of an industry and will allow your recruiters to do what they do best – recruit – without having to put as much time into the research portion of their job.
Thanks for sharing this information, Shally and Sheila!
This question was presented to the Recruiting Blogs community on Friday by Jeremy Langhans, a well-known and talented executive sourcer at Cisco Systems. He asks which job function within a recruiting organization is more important – the sourcing or the candidate development? In Jeremy’s opinion, in executive search candidate development is most important.
My thoughts on the topic of importance however, as I responded, are that comparing ‘importance’ of the recruiting function vs. the research function vs. the hybrid function (sourcing) is like asking ‘which came first, the chicken or the egg?’ and asking the question to both the chicken AND the egg. (in the end, we all get scrambled!)
Filed under: Networking/Social Media
Since I joined LinkedIn, I’ve enjoyed connecting with each and every one of you! Of course, I do not know all (nearly) 1000 people personally, but I do know many of you, and everyone else I am happy to contribute to your networks through introductions, referrals, and such.
I am SO close to breaking the 1,000 1st degree connection mark! I know I’m not breaking any records here, but I am excited about developing such a broad, informative, and all-around interesting group of connections. Who will be number 1,000 in my network? Stay tuned….I anticipate finding out before the end of the weekend.
If you’re NOT connected with me yet, I invite you to! Please click on this link and send an email to ahale at searchpath . com. Make sure to put in your message body “I’d like to be your 1,000th LinkedIn connection!”
Happy Networking! 
