Making a good job offer to a candidate is super important. If offer negotiations fall through, it wastes huge amounts of time, and you have to start the hiring process over again. The biggest mistake we see at Captain Recruiter when it comes to offer negotiations is low-balling a candidate.
If you make an insultingly low offer, albeit unwittingly, you’ll lose the feeling of goodwill between the candidate and company. The candidate will go through the stages of grief thinking that a mistake has been made, or that you don’t value them, and will eventually feel hurt or angry, sometimes enough to turn down your offer.
To avoid this:
1. Make sure you have a realistic baseline for how much a person in this position typically makes. The best way to find this out is to ask around, ask recruiters, ask other hiring managers, ask other people who work in this position at other companies.
2. Ask the candidate for some information about what salary range/compensation is important to them and what they are looking for.
3. Keep the candidate's root motivations in mind along with why they're interested in working for your company. Make sure you make a case for fulfilling those needs. Compensation is more than just the money part of the offer.
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Thursday, January 12, 2012
Email Etiquette
Captain Recruiter deals with a lot of emails every day. A lot. So we see a whole range of email styles, some more formal, some less so, bordering on rude.
A quick guide to writing a professional email:
"Hi [First Name],
Content. Be polite, brief, and use complete sentences and proper grammar.
Thanks/Best/Take care/etc,
[First Name]"
It really is that simple! Be sure to address people by their names (unless you've been exchanging several emails back and forth, in which case you can skip the salutation) and sign your name at the end. This is especially important if you're writing to a group of people or to someone you're just starting to correspond with.
P.S. Captain Recruiter would love to hear from our readers in the comments section - feel free to tell us what you think or ask us questions!
A quick guide to writing a professional email:
"Hi [First Name],
Content. Be polite, brief, and use complete sentences and proper grammar.
Thanks/Best/Take care/etc,
[First Name]"
It really is that simple! Be sure to address people by their names (unless you've been exchanging several emails back and forth, in which case you can skip the salutation) and sign your name at the end. This is especially important if you're writing to a group of people or to someone you're just starting to correspond with.
P.S. Captain Recruiter would love to hear from our readers in the comments section - feel free to tell us what you think or ask us questions!
Tuesday, January 3, 2012
IDing What You Need In Your New Hire
Not knowing what you want in your new hire is common, and can be a costly waste of time and money. This is especially common in startups where your company has many needs, and is hiring for a new position, or trying to replace a founding team member who wore many hats.
The idea here is not to get stuck on a long list of must-have's for any one position. Try listing all of your needs and then prioritizing the list. Look at the items at the very top of the list and determine if they are typically found together in one applicant's skill set, then start by trying to fill that position first.
Sample of a prioritized list of needs:
1. JavaScript for front end work
2. iOS developer to make app
3. HTML + CSS
4. Rails back end developer
5. Linux admin
6. Photoshop/illustrator
7. Someone to order lunches
Based on this list I’d suggest looking for a JavaScript engineer first. You could probably look for a front end engineer with JavaScript, HTML and CSS. Bonus points could be for Photoshop. That’s a fairly common set of skills to find together, so you won't waste lots of time looking for a unicorn who does everything.
The idea here is not to get stuck on a long list of must-have's for any one position. Try listing all of your needs and then prioritizing the list. Look at the items at the very top of the list and determine if they are typically found together in one applicant's skill set, then start by trying to fill that position first.
Sample of a prioritized list of needs:
1. JavaScript for front end work
2. iOS developer to make app
3. HTML + CSS
4. Rails back end developer
5. Linux admin
6. Photoshop/illustrator
7. Someone to order lunches
Based on this list I’d suggest looking for a JavaScript engineer first. You could probably look for a front end engineer with JavaScript, HTML and CSS. Bonus points could be for Photoshop. That’s a fairly common set of skills to find together, so you won't waste lots of time looking for a unicorn who does everything.
Friday, December 23, 2011
Happy Holidays!
Happy Holidays!
Captain Recruiter will be closed from 12/26/2011 - 1/1/2012, and will return on 1/2/2012. See you then!
Captain Recruiter will be closed from 12/26/2011 - 1/1/2012, and will return on 1/2/2012. See you then!
Thursday, December 15, 2011
Recruiting In The Holiday Season
On the one hand, candidates don't want to apply to jobs:
- They're not thinking about working, they're thinking about vacation! Trip planning, gift buying, etc. make getting a job low on their priority list.
- They're afraid to apply to jobs because they're worried that if they got a response, they wouldn't be available for interviews or would have to ask for time off if they did get the job.
- They're waiting for their holiday bonuses before they leave their old jobs!
On the other hand, companies have a lot going on other than hiring:
- Lots of hiring managers are on vacation or are preparing to be out of the office, so they don't have as much time to get back to candidates or schedule interviews.
- If there's a team of people in charge of making hiring decisions, even one person's absence holds up the entire process.
-Holiday parties, team off-site meetings, or company getaways mean fewer hiring managers are around to be in touch with candidates.
Captain Recruiter recommends that hiring managers hold off on recruiting around the holidays if at all possible, especially if you are just starting your search. Instead, use that time to figure out exactly what you're looking for and what role this person will fill. Work on scouring your network for people who might be interested, but let them know that you'll reach out to them in the new year.
If you're already in the process of recruiting, don't be afraid to let candidates know that there may be some lag time in the process. Tell them that you'll be out of the office for a few days and when they can expect to hear back from you. Then, enjoy your break!
- They're not thinking about working, they're thinking about vacation! Trip planning, gift buying, etc. make getting a job low on their priority list.
- They're afraid to apply to jobs because they're worried that if they got a response, they wouldn't be available for interviews or would have to ask for time off if they did get the job.
- They're waiting for their holiday bonuses before they leave their old jobs!
On the other hand, companies have a lot going on other than hiring:
- Lots of hiring managers are on vacation or are preparing to be out of the office, so they don't have as much time to get back to candidates or schedule interviews.
- If there's a team of people in charge of making hiring decisions, even one person's absence holds up the entire process.
-Holiday parties, team off-site meetings, or company getaways mean fewer hiring managers are around to be in touch with candidates.
Captain Recruiter recommends that hiring managers hold off on recruiting around the holidays if at all possible, especially if you are just starting your search. Instead, use that time to figure out exactly what you're looking for and what role this person will fill. Work on scouring your network for people who might be interested, but let them know that you'll reach out to them in the new year.
If you're already in the process of recruiting, don't be afraid to let candidates know that there may be some lag time in the process. Tell them that you'll be out of the office for a few days and when they can expect to hear back from you. Then, enjoy your break!
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
The Interview is a 2 Way Street. Pitch Your Company
It's always important to sell your company during an interview if you like an applicant or even think you might like an applicant...
1. What's important to the applicant? One of the first things you should do if you think someone's a fit for your needs to to figure out why this position would be a good fit for them. What's important? Location? Projects? Management style? Compensation?
Take note of these facts because you'll want to bring them up again in the offer process.
2. Keep the interview as fun as it can be.
- Interviews can be long and grueling. Simple kindness like asing the person if they want a beverage, a bathroom break, etc is always nice.
- Even better, take them to lunch and stop grilling them for a while. Let them enjoy the banter of the team and picture themselves hanging out with your crew.
- It's okay to pay an applicant a sincere compliment every once in a while. If they tell you something you like, let them know.
3. Circle back around to what the applicant said was important to them. Talk about the benefits that your company offers and make sure to highlight things that specifically appeal to them. Did they say they have a dog? Make sure to mention the dog-friendly office!
1. What's important to the applicant? One of the first things you should do if you think someone's a fit for your needs to to figure out why this position would be a good fit for them. What's important? Location? Projects? Management style? Compensation?
Take note of these facts because you'll want to bring them up again in the offer process.
2. Keep the interview as fun as it can be.
- Interviews can be long and grueling. Simple kindness like asing the person if they want a beverage, a bathroom break, etc is always nice.
- Even better, take them to lunch and stop grilling them for a while. Let them enjoy the banter of the team and picture themselves hanging out with your crew.
- It's okay to pay an applicant a sincere compliment every once in a while. If they tell you something you like, let them know.
3. Circle back around to what the applicant said was important to them. Talk about the benefits that your company offers and make sure to highlight things that specifically appeal to them. Did they say they have a dog? Make sure to mention the dog-friendly office!
Tuesday, December 6, 2011
Tips for Writing A Job Ad
Tips For Writing A Job Ad:
1. Make it concise, listing only what you really need to see in a candidate under "job requirements". List other skills under something like "bonus".
2. Sell your company! Include a blurb about what the company does, any cool new technologies you use, and any cool projects this person will get to work on.
3. Tell people about benefits and perks you offer. Is it a dog-friendly office? Is occasional telecommuting an option? Those things make a big difference to some folks!
4. Only list requirements that are relevant to the job this person will do. A laundry list of requirements or a super-long job description scares off people from applying, and can make the focus of the job seem different from what it's really like.
5. Edit your ad as you go along. If you talk to a few people and they're not quite what you're looking for, change the ad to reflect your new requirements. If you start working on a new project or adopt a new technology, add that in!
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