Sometimes It Just Depends

Last week I had the honor of participating in Drexel University's MBA Recruiter Round-table.  Which I have to say, and I feel like an HR-nerd for saying this, but it was fun. Six HR pros sitting around a table on the lower floor of a small amphitheater-style classroom talking, pontificating and debating recruiting issues in front of an audience of future MBA graduates.

Before the event we were all supplied with two pages of questions ranging from one end of the recruiting spectrum to the other, essentially seeking advice from writing resumes up to accepting offers.

The Solution

After the event the organizers expressed they were glad the conversation went in the direction that it did.  The organizers frequently receive requests from their students to supply them with The Solution...the one sure way to land a job.  The round-table conversation supported the notion that there isn't one.  "It depends" was the answer uttered frequently during the discussion. 
For example:
"How long should my resume be?" "It depends."
"Should I put my website on my resume?" "It depends."
"How do you select who gets interviewed?" "It depends."
"What is the best way to get a job: networking, answering ads, etc.?" "It depends."
"Who makes the offer?" "It depends."

"It depends" made the rounds frequently because each of us had different backgrounds and work in different types of organizations.  There were also several moments of consensus as well.  But all-in-all, the round-table presented the world of recruiting from many different sides and presented it as it is: designed, developed and implemented by humans ... therefore not simple, not conveniently packaged and in some ways, not perfect.     

Overall I was impressed by my colleagues around the table and I think we gave some great advice.  My three favorite ones were:
1. Study body language because HR / Recruiters have.  Be careful to know what they know so as not to give the wrong impression, even if you're dressed to the nines and speak well.
2. Never place your cell phone on the table in front of you during an interview.  Even if it is off, you're telling the recruiter my phone is more important than this job.
3. Always stay abreast of job searching trends.  If you're in a job for ten years and that job ends, chances are trends have changed: maybe recruiters want resumes on pink paper, maybe wearing sandwich boards is the best and most respectful way to get attention, or maybe having your parents call the recruiter surpasses networking.  I don't know what the future holds.  But neither does anyone else. The point is if you want to stay relevant, you have to keep paying attention.

The Attention

Paying attention to job searching trends is not always easy.  And it's usually not fun.  But it doesn't have to be time consuming (trends aren't changing that quickly).  I wished we had had time to explore this during the round-table.  If we had I would have added there are two easy ways to stay abreast: (1) Get online and subscribe to recruiter blogs. If you want just one: try RecruiterBlogs.com. and (2) go to SHRM.org. to get a peek into the world of HR.

And for HR folks: The most important aspect of the round-table for me was this sense of outsiders looking in. Even though I believe non-HR folks have a responsibility to themselves to stay relevant, HR folks have a responsibility to keep providing information about who we are and what we do.  To the outside world, sometimes what we do is not obvious, or can be explained in a nutshell.  It's our responsibility to discourage belief in silver bullets and/or secret handshakes and to continue the dialogue about the human dynamic.  Sometimes that means not providing the answer that is desired.  Sometimes it just depends.