As a recruiter with 20+ years of experience I’ve heard the phrase “no thanks I’m very happy where I am at now” more times than I can count, and as recruiters all the world over know this is the equivalent to the brush off “no thanks….I’m just looking” that many of us use with retail sales people. However, what I’m finding as I recruit now is that that very few (and I mean VERY FEW) people bother with such comments as more now prefer to get more details about the job/career path/projects/location & money before making any quick career decisions.

So the good news is that even while they are gainfully employed these passively active candidates are willing to engage a recruiter in a conversation to better ascertain if this could be a better option for their career. The bad news, especially for those recruiters & companies still relying on job boards, is that they still don’t look at job boards, still aren’t actively pursuing jobs and still need to have a better job/opportunity showcased to them to actually recruit them.

With the state of the current economy this topic is highly premature, but as a recruiter who is out there speaking with employed people everyday about the limited number of jobs out there I can’t even begin to count the number of them that have gone into detail about how their employer-employee relationship has changed. While they have no other recourse but continue the status quo and keep there jobs, they are certainly of the mindset that as soon as things get better they are out the door. Now the situations that they reference most are the many decisions that companies have made over the last six months in an effort to save money, and they include everything from cuts in salary (5-20+%), reduction or elimination of 401K contributions and finally changes in health bennies or its cost structure.

Now I completely understand that companies have to do what is necessary to stay in business, but some of these moves have either been handled poorly or are simply not playing well with the employees to the point where they are all very interested in leaving. So as we begin to see the market improve over the next six months I think we will continue to see companies’ loose longtime employees who feel that their plates have been broken and simply want to start anew with another employer that they feel they can trust.

When it comes to recruiting there are many aspects to focus on in the process. Some focus on the sheer quantity of resumes to provide with an acceptable pool of talent in which to choose from while others are more focused on the quality of the candidates and accessing more than just the individuals that are hitting the job boards to insure they are looking at the highest level of talent available to them.

As we know during a downturn in the economy many candidates that have been impacted through workforce reductions are actively seeking roles and are all too willing to send resumes to companies through job boards and directly through company websites, and this has created the impression within many companies (HR/internal recruiters/hiring managers) that they have a tremendous variety in the selection process. Unfortunately the reality is that they are only accessing a small percentage of the potential candidate pool. So even while many good companies are still growing and adding to staff many employed candidates are simply sitting on the sidelines unwilling to put themselves out there and waiting the economy out and looking ahead to better times. The irony here is that companies want to see these people and have the opportunity to hire them, but have no way to access them without really recruiting and let’s face it if you have 100-200 resumes on your desk how much time do you have to really recruit when you have to screen all of those resumes? Not much! So while the normal tendency has been for companies to run the search first before going outside to 3^rd party recruiters we are now seeing an increase in our clients willingness to engage a recruiter to work simultaneously with the internal staff and so to speak “let them compete” for the placement. Sure companies don’t want to pay fees with such scrutiny on the bottom line, but they also want to insure that they get the best talent and the only way to have that happen is to view all of it at the same time.

We all know The Stones sang that “you can’t always get what you want,” but in an economic downturn companies just don’t think it applies to them. Face it the few companies that are hiring feel that the streets are littered with strong candidates just waiting to take their jobs, but the reality of the market doesn’t match those expectations.

First of all most jobs that are open in this tight IT market are highly specialized roles lined up with very visible projects and specific technologies (areas include DW/BI, ERP role & security) and needless to say these positions have always been difficult to fill. Secondly with every company (even those hiring) looking much more critically at costs we’re seeing salary offers that are either below the recent market or at best flat. Finally most companies (as noted in our prior blog here) just aren’t hiring candidates that require relocation even if they have the funding available to them.

So to sum up the situation just because some of the talent you want is on the streets and looking for jobs now it doesn’t mean you’ll suddenly see a flood of highly qualified, local and under priced talent at your door ready and willing to accept your position.

We all know that applying to companies directly or over the web during this downturn leaves many yearning for a better user experience as most are left with more questions than answers. Unfortunately the fear and mystery only continues from there, even if they are one of those chosen to be contacted by the company, as sharing information with the candidate is typically not high on their list of priorities.

Unfortunately some 3^rd party/contingency recruiters fail to make the candidate experience any better as many have moved rapidly in this market to focus solely on the needs of the hiring company. Now it is true the hiring company does pay the fee, and they do guide our search from beginning to end, but if I’m not mistaken candidates have to say yes as well so they are every bit as important. So with interview processes getting longer, decisions being delayed and offers being a lot thinner you better be prepared to share as much information as possible with the candidate about the job, the company, the hiring official, environment, etc. as to ensure that you have a good relationship with your candidate or you may be left with offers getting turned down even in this poor market.