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home find jobs post resume career tools recruiters More Recruiter Resources View Article Archive Sign up for Newsletter Submit an Article Last Week's Articles Clarify Expectations and Follow-Up with Those 'Tough' Questions Apples and Oranges 5 Steps to Eliminating Time Bandits Use Active Listening to Improve Workplace Communication post this article to: Clarify Expectations and Follow-Up with Those 'Tough' Questions To get people to do what we want them to do, we need to give a clear understanding about how we work and ensure that the client and candidate are willing to comply. Then we ask questions throughout the process to make sure that everything is on track. Such questions include "Has anything changed since we spoke last week?" "Have any other recruiters called you with any opportunities since we last talked?" "Are you still on board to turn your notice in tomorrow?" To make matters worse, the longer you have been in the business the sloppier you become because you just sort of assume that everyone can read your mind and will follow in your glowing and glorious wake of experience. About a year and a half ago, I was marketing a candidate who wanted to make a move to southern California. The relationship was strong and I had known him for several years. I told him that I felt I could help him and he was an eager and enthusiastic candidate. He returned my calls right after I left messages. He Take Our Free 4-Hour Demo - Search Full Resumes, Post Jobs See firsthand how our services can help you recruit smarter and more effectively. Net- Temps is offering a free 4-hour demo of our online recruiting services. Search the resume database with full contact information shown, see how easy it is to post jobs, check out our extensive Job Distribution Network that sends you jobs to over 20,000 additional employment sites. Like what you see? Net-Temps offers generous discounts and easy, flexible payment plans to fit your budget. Start Here Spotlight Your Company in the Net-Temps Staffing Directory - Free Are you a staffing agency? If so, make sure jobseekers and

of 5 was sharp and happy and had the perfect career background. His spouse was an enthusiastic supporter of the move. His employer loved him and didn t have any offices there. The motive to move was strong and pure. The candidate was ready to go. All I needed to do was conduct a slam dunk round of calls to my relationship base and collect the fee. "I ll take care of ya, John," was pretty much my prep with him. "Scott, for some reason this candidate s background sounds familiar to me," the prospective client said when I presented this candidate s background to him. I only had three conversations with prospective employers and this fourth one seemed the most promising and the most eager to talk with my candidate. "Is he from Charlotte?" he asked. employers can contact you. Net-Temps has launched a new online staffing directory. You can submit your staffing company information for possible inclusion in the directory. Takes just minutes! Increase your web exposure and reach more potential candidates. Start here "Um, yes. Why?" "Wait, I think I have his resume right here in front of me. Here it is. Is his name John Smith?" Yes, that was the candidate all right. When I asked the prospective client how he got the candidate s resume he said that it was emailed to him the day before from another recruiter. Why that little... wait. Wait. Wait. Did I tell him to work with me and only me? Um, no. I sort of assumed that he would because the relationship was so good. When I talked with the candidate and explained the situation to him he said that he got a call from another recruiter shortly after the two of us talked and decided to send his resume to him. "Should I not have done that, Scott?" was all he asked me. My mistake. He had no idea about exclusivity of working with me because I never told him about it. I learned the lesson once again of why a recruiter should make sure that everyone is on board with their protocols and is willing to comply. In this circumstance, I should have told John something like this: "I m interesting in partnering with you to help you find an opportunity that you might not be able to find on your own. What s even better for you, once I come across something, is my ability to sell you as a top performer. Because I m an expert in your niche and make a living presenting top performers, they ll take me seriously when I have a candidate that they need to hear about. If you call them they probably won t take you as seriously and will put you in the human resources corral with all the other cattle. With me you get head of line privileges because typically I bypass HR and go right to the top or to those who are really running things. That way, I can tell them something like, Hey, John s a good guy,

of 5 and they ll believe me more than you saying I m a good guy. I can give you the power of third party credibility. What I need from you to be able to do this is a commitment that you and I are going to work together and exclusively. I ll uncover as many opportunities as I can and will make sure that they ll all hear about you, and if you hear about any opportunities then call me first so I can see if I can open the door a lot easier for you." If only I had spent the thirty seconds saying that to John. He would have agreed, would have turned me on to the other opportunity, and I would have had another check to deposit. But at least the experience gave me content for this article. Whenever you need compliance from someone, whether it s a candidate or a client, there are three principles of gaining their commitment: 1. First tell them exactly what you need. "We need to work together and I need you to work exclusively with me." 2. Second, tell them why this will benefit them. If it s a client and you are trying to get an exclusive from them, tell them why it will benefit them to give you this. "Because of the type of performer that you are looking for in the market, I will have to spend a lot of time and dedicate my resources that normally I would give to more of my established clients. (contrast principle). I m okay with this, but I need to ask from you a greater commitment in terms of an exclusive or a retainer (reciprocity principle)." The odds of compliance increase significantly when you tell people why it will benefit them. Remember that it s not about you. It s about them. Make it that way in your communication with them. And if you have not yet bought Robert Cialdini s book on influence, you need to pick it up. (Influence: Science and Practice). 3. Ask those tough questions. When you follow up, ask questions to test that they are still on board. If I had communicated the exclusive nature of my marketing relationship with the candidate, I would have followed up every once in a while, asking things like, "Are you still on board with everything?" "Have you had any contact with anyone else regarding career issues since we last talked?" "Have you received any other calls from other search firms since we talked?" I think the reasons why we fail to spend the time to explain what we need from people, such as an exclusive relationship in this example, is fear. We are afraid of getting a no from them, even though we know that we are doing something in their best interests and that they ll probably be okay with it. We are afraid that we are coming across too salesy or too pushy.

of 5 Get over it by making yourself do it. Recognize your feelings of anxiety when you come across these situations and validate them. I feel anxious telling this candidate for an exclusive. Then tell yourself why you need to push through it. But I need to because if I do not then I open myself up to variables that could take him out of the placement process. If you feel you are too pushy and think you are too salesy, remind yourself that it really does work in their best interests if they follow your lead. If John makes calls on his own they won t take him seriously. If he works with me he ll be on a plane next week flying to an interview. Remember that your job as a recruiter is one of the most powerful in corporate America. You build companies. You build futures. Sometimes it s as simple as taking someone from Rut A and putting them in Rut B. But Rut B is always a better rut. Believe in the power of what you do and take charge of your desk when it comes to communicating effectively with people. And you ll be amazed at how much of a difference this minor change will make in your billings. - Scott Love Scott Love gives recruiters a step by step system that anyone can learn. If others can be successful in this business, so can you. As a consultant and trainer to the industry, Scott has helped organizations get better margins by improving their operational performance and client development strategies, and has helped recruiters to master the business and get better production with more peace of mind. Over 2,500 search firms and staffing agencies in sixteen countries have invested in their own performance improvement through his educational tools, seminars, consulting services, and training programs. Sign up today for Scott's Online Recruiter Training Center subscription to receive a monthly training video, free training conference calls, free access to all his webinars, product discounts, access to Scott's question and answer forum and much more! Copyright 2009 Scott Love top of page email this to a friend this week's news article suggestion printable version Sign Up for InFocus Newsletter, free! preferred format: nmlkji HTML nmlkj Text Email Address: Submit