How to Use Emotional Intelligence in Recruitment

How to Use Emotional Intelligence in Recruitment At a recent conference, I attended a session led by Rob Gee, a leading management consultant who specialises in leadership, motivation, internal structures and training programmes. He is passionate about business psychology, and specifically how our understanding of it can help us develop individually in the work place â€" on a personal basis and a company level. One of the key areas he explored was emotional intelligence, what we understand by this term and specifically how we can implement our knowledge of it in the workplace. Emotional intelligence â€" a definition Emotional intelligence refers to the ability to perceive, control and evaluate emotions. Much in line with the nature vs. nurture debate, some researchers suggest that it can be learnt and strengthened, while others claim it is an inborn characteristic. Peter Salovey and John D. Mayer have been the leading experts on emotional intelligence since 1990. In their influential article Emotional Intelligence, they defined emotional intelligence as, the subset of social intelligence that involves the ability to monitor ones own and others feelings and emotions, to discriminate among them and to use this information to guide ones thinking and actions (1990). How can we use this to improve our recruitment processes? As recruiters, we know that successfully landing a job is not purely based upon a candidate’s qualifications or IQ score. In addition to experience, what employers want is the right personality type, who will be able to fit comfortably in with the team. When we interview candidates, we go through a number of active thought processes. Without realising it, we are measuring their responses, mannerisms and how well they put themselves across. What we are really doing is assessing their emotional intelligence. It’s that quality, honesty and ability to build rapport that is so often the key to them standing out from the other applicants â€" and this is the type of employee who ultimately helps the client to improve their staff retention and keep costs down. What’s important is how we implement our understanding of emotional intelligence to improve how we increase the quality of our hires; whether we are looking for a new graduate recruitment consultant or we are sourcing the perfect candidate. Get the description right Firstly, when taking down a job description, focusing on the core behaviours is a vital element to sourcing the best person for the job. When discussing the requirements of a vacancy from a client, think about what qualities they are looking for in an employee. A bad job description will describe only specific qualifications required, and the responsibilities of the role. Whilst these might imply the core behaviours the candidate needs to demonstrate in interview, a much better specification touches on the person’s softer skills â€" a more successful specification might include: Adaptable Able to influence key stakeholders Strong communication Able to negotiate Problem-solving Articulate Team player Self-motivated An important part of any job description is an insight into the company culture does the organisation have a strong social side? Is it a competitive environment? All these unique elements will suit different sets of emotional behaviours â€" and as the recruiter it is up to you to match the right type of personality to the organisation, as well as taking their experience into consideration. This approach will result in successful placements and promote stronger relationships with your clients. Psychometric testing To further test a person’s emotional intelligence, psychometric testing (such as the Thomas International Personal Profile Analysis, or PPA) is becoming more and more common amongst recruiters and employers as a means to understanding the applicant’s personality traits. To offer this service to your clients shows your commitment as a recruiter to fully profiling candidates and finding the right person for the job. In a sales-based business, such as recruitment, you can also undertake this testing to assist your internal employment drive identifying the individuals most suited to this type of profession, what motivates them and how well they cope under pressure. In an industry which typically has a high staff turnover, retaining the top talent has to be a priority in order for you to differentiate from your competitors. Trust your instinct… In the interview stage, you are likely to gauge how emotionally intelligent someone is by their body language and how they articulate themselves. Don’t underestimate your gut feeling â€" if someone is saying all the right things, but for some reason you doubt their integrity or their confidence in themselves, it is worth thinking about whether they will give the same impression to the hiring manager. A wise move is to take an extra reference here, that clearly attests to their character in the workplace. Author: Anna Gibbons is Corporate Communications Manager at Sellick Partnership, a specialist legal and financial recruitment agency, and is based in the Manchester office. The agency also has offices in Liverpool, Leeds, Newcastle, Derby and Stoke. Related: The Top 5 Psychometric Tests for Your Career.

Tips For Creating a High School PDF Resume

Tips For Creating a High School PDF ResumeHigh school graduation can be an exciting time, but if you want to make sure you put in all the effort that it takes to write a winning resume, you'll need to create a resume that will impress both employers and potential students. This is especially true when it comes to the process of creating a high school PDF resume.In addition to using your high school PDF resume to help put together your college or university application, it's also a great way to highlight your skills and experiences that could lead to a job after graduation. When you're working on this part of your resume, keep these tips in mind to make sure you succeed.When it comes to your high school PDF resume, there are a few things you can include in your work samples. If you have photos included, they should be accompanied by information about the school district that the photos were taken at. This is important because high school students tend to change schools quite often, an d you don't want to be left out of the picture if you are going to be applying for a position that doesn't require a new address.Speaking of your skills, keep your resume as brief as possible, and focus on only the most important parts of the resume in high school PDF. The goal is to get through all of your information without cramming it in. You want to take the time to get to the point quickly and get off to a good start, rather than spending hours going into minute details.When it comes to high school PDF, you'll want to include your course name, number of credits, grades earned, course outline, requirements for advancement, and any extracurricular activities that were accomplished. Of course, you may also want to mention any awards or recognition you received throughout the year, as well as any volunteer service done, which will go along way in making a positive impression.High school PDF resumes can be one of the most effective and easiest ways to make a positive impression, so you should not hesitate to utilize this form of communication. Don't underestimate how much it can help to boost your college or university application.You'll want to ensure that the resume that you use is the best one that you can use. Since high school PDFs are meant to highlight specific skills and experiences, you'll want to make sure that your resume has everything included that will give prospective employer's something to see. When it comes to helping your resume stand out, getting the right information on the front of the document is the key.When it comes to creating a high school PDF resume, remember that you want to include only the information that is necessary to get the attention of a potential employer. With this in mind, ensure that you avoid including extraneous information, and concentrate on only what is relevant.

Have Your Holiday Cards Work for You - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career

Have Your Holiday Cards Work for You - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career Thanksgiving dinner has finished, dishes are clean, dessert is on the table and the newspaper has just been opened. The men are in the family room watching TV and the women in the dining room clamoring over the sale papers strategizing the next morning’s shopping with maps, time charts, plans and lists as if they’re planning Martha Stewart’s IPO. Somewhere in this are sugar-filled children running around playing completely oblivious that this sale paper madness is for them. Here I sit, the vegetarian single city girl who is continually reminded I have yet to provide any grandchildren and even worse, I avoid shopping like the flu. However, I enjoy being with my aunts, cousins, mom, and sister-in-law so I take part in this annual ritual of insanity anyway all the while thankful I live a rather serene, clutter-free existence. Then it happens, one ad grabs my eye, it has holiday cards for 60% off! As a writer, stationary is my weak spot. Handwritten holiday cards This holiday, show your network you care by sending a personal, handwritten holiday card. Think of how few handwritten cards you receive, and send, anymore. When you’re job searching, this is a great way to make a personal connection with past colleagues and your friends. Make your card work for you Remember that there are a variety of faiths and celebrations this time of year and the best way to celebrate them all in is to send a Happy Holidays card. The best cards arrive before the holidays are over, to make sure yours gets there on time, head to the post office before December 6th. Integrate your personality How do you send a card that has your personality if your family is already sending one that has a family photo? Head to the store, pick up cards that reflect your style and personal brand and send them to your professional network. Savvy job seeker tip: include your personal business card to make follow-up easy. Making a personal connection during the holidays lets people know they’re more than just a job search connection or name on your LinkedIn network list. Have fun selecting your holiday cards and then find a café, grab a cup of your favorite holiday treat, and get those cards working for you. Author: Adriana Llames is a veteran career coach and acclaimed author of Career Sudoku: 9 Ways to Win the Job Search Game, released with top book seller Amazon.com. She is creator of   “HR In-A-Box,” a Human Resources software product helping small businesses across America and a professional keynote speaker motivating and inspiring audiences with her focused programs on “9 Ways to Win the Job Search Game”, “Confessions of a Career Coach” and “Nice Girls End Up on Welfare.” For more information, visit www.adrianallames.com

Fairy Tales and Workplace Success - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career

Fairy Tales and Workplace Success - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career Most of us read fairy tales during our childhood. Did you ever notice that fairy tales actually show us ways of being successful in difficult situations? Also, they teach us how we should think and behave in order to survive in any condition. Therefore, we should not underestimate the importance of fairy tales as adults and take lessons out of them. Below you can find some examples for these lessons. Always Be Cautious: Let’s look at the Snow White and Red Riding Hood examples. The main lesson in both stories is that we should not always trust everyone and tell everything! You may have allies in the workplace but don’t forget that there may also be people who are smiling on your face and talking behind your back. You should always be cautious about what you tell to others especially, if you are gossiping about coworkers. Otherwise, one day someone can use these gossips against you. Get out of Your Comfort Zone: Look at the story of the Little Mermaid. She is not like the other mermaids in the sea. She wants to get out of her comfort zone and try new things. She wants to be a human being so she does everything she can in order to reach her goal. If you always stay in your comfort zone and don’t push your limits, you cannot improve yourself. If you don’t improve yourself, you cannot move up! You always have to set yourself goals and do your best in order to reach them like the Little Mermaid. Be Creative In Your Solutions: Another great fairy tale example is Rapunzel. Rapunzel shows us that every problem has a solution even if the problem seems impossible. The things you need to do to solve all of your problems are, to figure out what tools are available to you and to think outside the box to be more creative. Have a Great Team: Well, the story of Smurfs is not a fairy tale but still it is pretty well-known around the world. If you look at Smurf village, you can see that everybody has different responsibilities according to their skills and Papa Smurf is their leader. What you can understand from this story is that if you want to be successful and be a great leader, you need to surround yourself with people who have the right skills for the right job. Without the perfect team, you cannot move up the career ladder.

Why Use a Resume Writing Service When Creating a Resume Yourself?

Why Use a Resume Writing Service When Creating a Resume Yourself?What can be better than a resume service that can help you make the best resume for your next job interview? You might think that this is simple, but the truth is that there are many different methods of creating a job application. While you will want to learn about the method that will work best for you, here are a few things to take away from this article that can make your resume much more unique and professional.In order to help you get the best resume writing service, you will want to understand what each resume service is looking for. What do they look for in your resume? This is a great place to start when searching for a good company to help you create your resume.The process that most resumes require takes a lot of time and is very involved. With a resume writing service, you will not have to worry about writing this. Instead, you will focus on your cover letter forms and your professional experience.The cover letter is usually what is read first. With the best resume writing service, they will be able to keep your cover letter professional and above board. Your letter should never leave out any important information or omit information.Next, you will want to look at the professionalism of the writing that they provide. With your resume, you want to have a professional looking resume. Many job seekers do not take the time to properly write their resume, and this makes it look less professional.There are many professional resume writing services out there, and you will want to be sure that you find one that provides you with a professional manner. There are many job applicants that are able to be successful because they are willing to hire someone who will write their resume. They do not need to spend any more money than they need to, but this is just something that you should consider as well.With your letter, you should be able to show how you can adapt to a new environment or even a new career. You want to be able to talk about the industry you are in, the skills that you possess, and your experience. You should also be able to provide a letter from your references that can be used in place of your resume.Now that you know how you can make your resume stand out, you should take a look at how you can make a good quality letter as well. You want to make sure that your letter looks professional writing is not something that you will be able to go wrong with. A good letter will also highlight how you are willing to learn about a new skill or the industry that you are in.

Applicant Tracking Systems Dont Work

Applicant Tracking Systems Dont Work Applicant Tracking Systems Dont Work Applicant tracking systems dont want you to apply. The people using them agree on both sides of the equation. A recent post by blogger Liz Ryan detailed the horror of online job applications  in a recent Forbes.com article. The actual people using this technology also decry about how they are broken, and go from one system to another searching for a better solution, sort of like wandering travelers lost in a desert. What this boils down to is that for the candidate (aka job seeker), even the people who run applicant tracking systems hate them, and despise how they dont work. This means that as someone looking for work, you cant just sit at home and apply online. At the National Resume Writers Association conference in September 2014, one of the speakers revealed the startling statistic that if you apply via websites using applicant tracking systems, you have a 2% chance of getting an interview. Where the real mojo lies is in getting yourself in person, live, in front of the decision maker through networking. Which means a 50% chance of getting an interview for a job. So where do you want to spend your energies? Where is your ROI? Everyone is harping on focusing on networking for a reason because it works. Applicant tracking systems do not. When you have both candidate job seekers AND human resource managers complaining about how applicant tracking systems dont work, then the answer is pretty dang clear. You need to get out there and start shaking the interview tree using good ole-fashioned networking, personal contact, and more importantly, the follow up needed to build up meaningful, real relationships that will pave the way to interviews. There is no easy button (read: sitting at home and clicking send using applicant tracking systems) here.  It takes much more than that. The people getting interviews are the ones who have taken the long-tail approach of building connections BEFORE they needed a job. Think about that, and remember that anything worth doing is not easy. And run with it.

Twitter and Job Search I Hear You, But am I Listening

Twitter and Job Search I Hear You, But am I Listening I recently watched a documentary called Hear and Now about a deaf couple that decides to get cochlear implants at the age of 65. While the surgery allows them to hear, they are unable to process what they hear and they find it difficult to translate the words they hear into their intended meaning. They can still only read lips, as they have been doing for 65 years, in order to follow a conversation.I couldnt help but compare this couples frustration to the frustration that many job seekers feel when they try to incorporate the microblogging tool Twitter into their job search. Twitter can help job seekers hear multiple messages about job search strategies and job leads, but it can sometimes be quite difficult to process so much information and figure out what to pay attention to and what to block out. Unfortunately, many abandon Twitter quickly if they cant get the hang of it and end up not taking advantage of what could be an excellent tool for complementing their job search.Below ar e some tools to help you better manage your Twitter account and remove some of the frustration that can come with using it.ResearchTwitter Search. Its like Google for Twitter. Put in any search term and see whats being discussed on Twitter. Normal 0 false false false MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 Tweetscan. Works like Google alerts and searches tweets based on keywords.Twist. Allows you to view popular trends discussed on Twitter or show more recent tweets on a particular topic.Twubble. Lets you search who your friends are following and pick out others you may want to follow.Twemes. Follows tweets that have embedded tags that start with a # character. This is particularly useful for keeping up with real-time activities associated with a live event such as a conference.Twitterholic. Lists the top 100 Twitters based on number of followers.These tools can help you locate other like-minded people who are discussing topics that interest you. They can also help you come up wi th content for your own tweets and find more people to follow and build community with.Organization/Time ManagementTweetdeck. Personal browser for staying on top of your tweets and peeps and connecting you with your contacts across Facebook and Twitter.Tweetake. Allows you to backup your Twitter followers, favorites, direct messages, friends, and tweets.My Tweeple. Lets you alphabetize and manage your followers. You can easily locate and follow others and block followers.TwitterSnooze. Lets you temporarily block tweets from your verbose Twitter friends.TweetLater. Lets you schedule tweets for future release, automatically follow new users, and send automated thank you notes to new followers.Twitsay. Lets you leave a voice message that is converted into a tweet.Twitter can get very crowded and very noisy very quickly. These tools are great for creating efficiencies and ensuring that you are using Twitter to optimize its value rather than rob you of critical job search time.