Reflections on the unconference TruLondon

Today was an auspicious event: Trulondon an unconference planned by Bill Boorman, and his merry band of geniuses.  I have admired Bill from afar because he embodies something sorely missing from the industry of recruiting: a heart of gold.

It has been an honor to participate in Bill’s blogradio show over the past few weeks.  I am the girl who toots the horn of compassion.  We simply can’t take the “human” out of human resources, yet so many try.  There’s been much discussion about whether or not HR is dead.  No, not dead yet, to quote Monty Python.  Perhaps we might kill it with the soul sucking attitude that recruiters are there to tag, bag and deliver candidates for positions as if they are cattle to be herded into positions.  Ok, I get it, recruiters find people for jobs, rather than jobs for people.  However; with that said I am inspired by the model of recruiting that many in the UK have embraced.  In England, recruiters value the needs and concerns of the candidate equal to those of the client.  They are not merely square pegs in square holes.  They are human beings.  They are also in a position to provide job orders to recruiters in the future.  Therefore, I assert it makes sense to treat candidates with respect, and offer them the generous time one would an employer.

On today’s show there were recruiters from Scotland, Canada, and the UK.  While I sincerely appreciate the diversity of many viewpoints, I beg to differ with certain opinions.  For instance, a guest on today’s panel suggested that recruiters must be ruthless in order to be effective.  I heartily disagree. In fact, I posit that the word “ruthless” ought to be removed from the recruiter’s vocabulary.  It is neither effective, nor does this word engender the spirit of sales.  Isn’t recruiting, in its finest form, a type of skilled salesmanship?  Does it not make sense to be customer focused? I understand the viewpoint of the recruiter who suggested we ought to be ruthless. Does it not make better sense to reframe the argument to say that rather recruiters should be discerning and pragmatic. From a practical standpoint, this is a more helpful viewpoint.

I make no apologies for being a customer service evangelist.  From the time Blanchard published his book “knock your socks off customer service,” to the present tense, recruiters should take a note out of the play book.  Customer service is the NEW customer service, as I stated on today’s blog radio show today.  Everyone is our customer, both candidates and employers.  Therefore doesn’t it make sense to provide rave worthy customer service to everyone we work with in today’s tenuous market?

During the discussions of #Trulondon, I picked up on another trend: Gen Y, the new recruiting strategy.  Does it make sense to develop a new recruiting strategy to attract and retain bright young people?  Or, should we customize our recruiting strategy to the needs of the client, and of the position regardless of the age of a candidate?  The business model must be re-examined, or we should have our heads examined.  We customize, personalize, and evaluate the needs of the customer on a case by case basis.

While I digress, the point is the same.  Recruiting is every bit as responsible to the art of stellar customer service as any other industry.  In fact, if we are to be successful, we must never lose sight of this fact.

Respectfully submitted,

@HRMargo Margo Rose http://hrmargo.com