Yahoo’s who haven’t looked at the company website before their interview

Posted on by February 25, 2013

Clinical RecruitmentMaybe our firm is a bit unique, or maybe I am just a bit naïve, but I expect every candidate who interviews for a position with our company to have at least taken a look at our company’s website and know what we do!  Along the same lines, when I put a candidate in front of one of my clients, I expect that candidate to know what that client’s organization does as well.

More importantly, by doing your homework and knowing what the company does before you speak with a company representative, you demonstrate your sincere interest and willingness to become a part of their organization. It is important for you to express that something the company does, creates, or represents has appealed to you personally. By preparing, you show you weren’t just applying to any job listed, but instead display that you took the time to hand-select this particular company for a reason, just like they hand-selected you for an interview.

During the interview, the hiring manager will most likely ask questions like “What do you know about us and what we do?  How will you fit into our organization? What are your career goals and how will working with this company enable you to work towards obtaining those goals?” You must know what the company does before you can expect them to seriously consider you as a future team member!

Additionally, having background information on what a company does will build your confidence. Knowing what they do will give you insider information to the questions they will most likely ask. This knowledge will also help you leverage the skills and experience you already have, and will give you the opportunity to match those skills to the company’s mission and goals.

Lastly, be sure to note where your research shows the organization is going as you will need to convey that both your and the organization’s goals align. Be clear that where they are headed is where you would like to be and you want to contribute to their success.

For more insight on how to prepare for interviews, check out our other interviewing articles.

Written by Jessica Nguyen

Investing in a Lifetime of Success,

Angela Roberts
www.craresources.com
Facebook

Are you considering a career change? We specialize in clinical recruiting! You can sign up for our Job Seeker email course which provides valuable insight into how to become more competitive in the marketplace.

Should I ask for Severance?

Posted on by February 25, 2013

Clinical RecruitmentWith the last few years of economic turmoil and recovery splattered with large corporate layoffs and an increased competitive job market, we realized the topic of severance needed to be covered. Despite its negative connotations, understanding your rights to severance and how to handle the situation as it arises may prove to be invaluable. So, first things first, do you know what severance is?

What is severance?   Severance is an amount of money given to an employee that is meant to help them during a time between jobs. Although it is most often monetary, severance can also come in the form of extended benefits.  The amount of severance can be predetermined in an employment contract; however, it can also be calculated on factors such as company size, length of employment, hierarchy reached in the company, and other elements depending upon the employment circumstances. When discussing severance, be sure to negotiate because unless otherwise stated in a contract, no terms are definitive.  Be firm in what you believe you are worth, however, always remember severance is given out in situations where a good relationship exists, so you do not want to burn any bridges while negotiating.

Am I eligible?

If you are a w2 employee, you may be entitled to severance if the company conducts massive layoffs without a 60-day notice and you are one of the impacted.  Additional entitlements include you taking an early and unforced retirement, or if you have an employment contract explicitly stating you are entitled to it. The main case for ineligibility is if an employee was fired with cause. Also, in more specific cases, employers may offer severance even though it is not required in order to maintain a healthy relationship and to avoid legal issues being brought up by the employee after leaving the company.  If you feel your employer is negotiating severance in order to diminish some of your legal rights, be sure to consult a lawyer as you will want to make sure the loss of any legal rights will not hurt you in the long run or put you in a compromising position.

Our suggestion to you is simple:  If you qualify for severance, ask for it! Companies plan this as an employee expense, but most people rarely ask for it. Although severance may not be an exciting prospect because it comes with the loss of a job, knowing the facts will help you be prepared for any future situations which in turn will make the down time between jobs a bit easier to manage.

Have any questions? Ask the team here and we will be happy to help.

Written by Meghan Tooher

Investing in a Lifetime of Success,

Angela Roberts
www.craresources.com
Facebook

Are you considering a career change? We specialize in clinical recruiting! You can sign up for our Job Seeker email course which provides valuable insight into how to become more competitive in the marketplace.

How to get the most from LinkedIn Groups

Posted on by February 25, 2013

Clinical RecruitmentWe love using LinkedIn as it is an incredible professional networking site.  We have found that by connecting with clinical research professionals through the many “linking” avenues offered, we have been able to share our open positions and provide job search tips to many individuals in need.

One of our favorite connection avenues is through the use of LinkedIn Groups. If you aren’t a user of LinkedIn Groups, I would highly recommend you consider utilizing the multiple groups on LinkedIn as they can be an amazing way to personally brand yourself and build your professional network.

But how do you know if you are utilizing your LinkedIn Groups in order to get the best experience?

As you have hopefully seen, craresources has created a LinkedIn Group where we post relevant information about the daunting job search, clinical research industry updates, and our currently available positions. We think it’s pretty great, but are always thinking about you, and wanted to take a moment to provide some tips on how to get the most out of your LinkedIn Group experience. There are a few quick setting adjustments that can make a world of difference regardless of whether you are really invested in the group and want to receive updates all the time or just want to know what is going on without overloading your inbox.

How to: Go to the craresources group homepage. Then under the “More” tab, choose “Your Settings.” Here you can tailor the notifications you receive to best suit your schedule.

    • If you love commenting on new posts, you can choose to receive an email when new discussions are posted, or you can opt to check the group on your own time
    • Digest Emails are great for seeing all of the group activity in a quick summary. For the people who like to review industry happenings over their morning coffee, select to receive daily digests. For those of you who prefer a weekend catch-up session, you can choose to receive weekly digests only.
    • Announcements: This is our latest endeavor to best satisfy our members’ needs. Announcements are special posts from the group owner or manager that appear on the Group Feed, but are also sent to the members as an email. If you only want to see announcements as a group post, unclick this box and there will be no extra emails sent to you. But, if you would appreciate a summary of currently open jobs and updates stay connected and we will send them your way!
    • Lastly, if you are open to receiving LinkedIn messages from other group members, you can opt-in for those added connections.

We hope these quick and helpful hints will greatly improve your group experience with our company and others. Let us know if these tips helped; we are always open to feedback in order to improve our relationship!

Have any questions? Ask the team here and we will be happy to help.

Written by Meghan Tooher

Investing in a Lifetime of Success,

Angela Roberts
www.craresources.com
Facebook

Are you ever involved with the clinical recruiting hiring process or are considering a career change? If so, sign up for our Hiring Manager email course which focuses on how to attract and hire the highest quality candidates or our Job Seeker email course which provides valuable insight into how to become more competitive in the marketplace.

5 Tips to Identify a GREAT Recruitment Agency

Posted on by March 18, 2013

Clinical RecruitmentAlthough my Mom has a vision of me working in a beautiful boardroom with professionals in suits, the outside world visualizes Recruiters equal to sleazy used car salesmen with hairy chests and gold chains.

Right? (no offense to used car salesmen…)

So if you are a client or candidate seeking to add quality professionals to your team or wish to find a new career opportunity, how do you identify a GREAT recruitment agency to work with?

1. They are experts regarding your industry:  Make sure the recruiting agency understands your industry.  In a perfect world, you want a niche recruiting agency which specializes only in your industry.  It is like learning a foreign language – you can take a class in Spanish and only be able to ask where the bathrooms are, or you can move to Mexico and become absorbed in the language…and thus turn into an expert!  A quality niched recruitment agency will make sure their recruiters are “absorbed” in the industry and can quickly identify quality candidates as well as quality hiring companies.

2. They provide Hiring consultation:  A mature recruiting agency will be more than a “match making agency” and will provide training for effective interviewing for both their candidates as well as their Hiring teams.  Additionally, look for agencies who assist with resume reviews for candidates, write job descriptions for clients, and provide consultation on compensation ranges to both candidates and clients.

3. They develop a relationship:   Working with a recruiting agency should be about developing a relationship, not a one-time business transaction.  You should be assigned a dedicated, seasoned, Account Manager….and this Account Manager shouldn’t leave after just a few months.  If you don’t feel your Account Manager is honest, transparent, and is genuinely interested in helping you, then this isn’t the recruiting agency for you.

4. Clients – They offer a guarantee:  Find out if your selected recruiting agency focuses on quality and offers a guarantee on their placements.  If your recruitment team has a robust recruitment and screening process, they will feel so strongly in their ability to identify excellent professionals they will offer a money back guarantee.

5. Clients – They do more than search job boards:  A quality recruiting company will “direct source” into targeted companies to find quality candidates rather than just post positions and wait for the unhappily employed or unemployed to apply.  This means that you are going to hire an employee who has made a career choice to be a part of your company…not just someone who needs a job.

The last statement I would make is about payment.  I would always recommend you work with an agency who behaves like you have them on retainer, but only gets paid when they make a placement.  And by the way, as a candidate you should never have to pay a dime!  These agencies are few and far between, are true partners to you and your organization, and practice the “and then some factor”.

I would love to hear your thoughts about what characteristics you like in a great recruitment agency.

Dedicated to Every Client’s Success,

Angela Roberts
www.craresources.com
Facebook

Are you ever involved with the clinical recruiting hiring process or are considering a career change? If so, sign up for our Hiring Manager email course which focuses on how to attract and hire the highest quality candidates or our Job Seeker email course which provides valuable insight into how to become more competitive in the marketplace.