In the current buzz about candidate recruiting, the question arises, “How does recruiting passive candidates help build competitive advantage?”

Amitai Givertz, Principal, AMG Management Advisors, states “The real challenge for HR is twofold:

*  define the differences between active and passive candidates, understanding how to develop winning strategies for recruiting the best candidates, and

*  develop recruiting strategies that address the organization’s hiring needs, now and into the future.”

Systematic approaches to candidate profiling identify hard and soft skills, experiences, and attitudes that an “ideal” candidate should possess. Following that, one can determine where to find them. Givertz states that while both are qualified for the job, the real difference between active and passive candidates is their level of engagement in their employment.

Knowing that passive and active candidates fit the same profile, successful recruiters, advises Givertz, need to find ways to bridge the gap of interest and availability between the candidates and the recruiter’s job requirements. Candidate’s employment interest levels can and do change due to a variety of workplace circumstances, and they can move a passive candidate to an active one. Extreme cases, such as natural disasters or forced lay offs, can propel a candidate from passive to active quickly.

Givertz believes a blended approach provides the best of both worlds. This means the first step is identifying who are the best candidates, finding where they are, and creating ways to engage them. The next step to becoming competitive is managing internal resources for managing talent.

Creating a pool of both active and passive candidates reduces the time it takes to fill a vacant position. Many employers have discovered that passive candidate sourcing and active candidate development require separate teams and resources. Others continue to use the full-cycle approach, believing the pay-off is consistency, workflow, and accountability, according to Givertz. Both methods ensure a wider pool of candidates. Using these strategies to recruit ahead of an organization’s needs is less disruptive organizationally when a vacancy does occur.

Complete article: Zoom Info February 2008 Recruiting Newsletter

My job requires that I review recruiting websites daily, and therefore have seen some that are very effective at explaining the value of using their firm. I also spend a lot of time talking directly to executives about incorporating Resume Spider with their job search strategy. I find that career seekers draw different conclusions about executive search firms that sometimes are not accurate.

If you are a Recruiter, Career Coach, or Resume Writer, and are in search of some good material for your job seeker clients, you might consider referencing the following content. It is very compelling relating to some facts about Executive Search Firms:

Why Has The Executive Search Profession Grown So Extensively? 

The predominant reason is today’s maturing of management as a professional function. This development brought about a realization that the success of an organization depends largely on the quality and performance of its people.

The organization with the best executives is most likely to move ahead of its competitors. Therefore, ways had to be found to develop the best from within and recruit the best from outside.

The gradual understanding that executive search firms are the main means of bringing about better utilization of scarce executive talent has been seen and endorsed by many successful businesses.

There is no way…

Read more at: http://www.nationalexecutivepersonnel.com/about_search_firms.asp

MINNEAPOLIS, MN — The Twin Cities online labor market is running strong despite economic setbacks from 2005 hurricanes and surging fuel prices, according to figures released recently from the Monster Local Employment Index. Recruitment increased 3 points - from 111 to 114 - between February and March, mainly from demand in community and social services, military and defense sectors, as well as the food prep and servicing industries.

Employers also looked for people to fill spots in the accounting and finance industries, which increased in demand in correlation with tax season and federal accounting requirements. Steve Pogorzelski, president of Maynard, Mass.-based Monster North American, said Minneapolis is one of the hottest labor markets in the U.S., comparable with Denver, Phoenix and Sacramento. “March’s numbers suggest to us that the Minneapolis labor market is a very diverse and solid core of business service companies and high tech industries which isolated it from the boom and bust of other labor markets.”

The health care sector also showed a boom in demand in this first quarter of the 2006. Pogorzelski said the index showed recruitment in health care support rise in 24 of the 28 top markets surveyed. In the Twin cities, numbers in the health care support section grew four points, or 3.4 percent. “As America ages, this will continue to be on high demand in the very long-term future,” he said.