It would be nearly impossible for a rock star or movie star to have any fame in this world without giving back to the fans.  Whether it is signing autographs, giving concerts, or just saying "thank you", the rich and famous know that in order to keep their status, they must care for the people who keep them popular.

Why should businesses be any different? In this competitive age, consumers have many options. As such, they find themselves plagued with the same old question...Why choose your product? And, with the economy as it is today, fewer customers are buying, period.

So, what can your business do to differentiate? CARE FOR YOUR CUSTOMERS!  Customer support and client appreciation can be the keys to success for organizations around the globe.  Be a leader in total service satisfaction! Listen to your clients, help them, and make them feel important - because they are.  They are your fans. They keep you singing and touring; and they keep you in business!

How effective is your customer service? Being accessible to your clients and developing customer relationships are essential to any organization's long-term success and fame. It's easy! By implementing 24-hour customer support or assigning them their very own customer service representative, clients get the service they need, when they need it.

It's all about experience.  Nobody buys an album or attends a performance to bore themselves or become frustrated.  Fans need to be satisfied in order to remain fans.  Here at iCIMS, we focus on delivering a positive customer experience every time. Can you say that about your company?

So, for all businesses out there - just like the biggest stars on the planet - care for your customers!  After all, if it weren't for them, you couldn't possibly shine in this competitive world.

I would like to take this time to thank all of iCIMS' 800 fans and counting.

Last week’s State of the Union address included a myriad of partisan and bi-partisan talking points - with cheers from one side and stoic faces from the other. But through and through, nothing was as pertinent to both sides of the general public, and coincidently the HR community, as the budgetary blueprint for 2011, or more specifically, the $100 billion designed to create more jobs. Specifically cited in the big budget was the focus on and education of green energy and thus, creation of green jobs.

With green job prep programs popping up across the country, the clean-industry is expected to experience exponential growth in 2010 and beyond. With that being said, those green companies already in existence are preparing for an onslaught of hiring.  Just yesterday, New Haven, Connecticut’s, "green" agency, or the "Office of Sustainability" sought to hire a fearless leader, but after an overwhelming 200 candidates responded to the post, the city had to stop taking applications and remove the job post from its’ website.
"Any resumes that came in, we wouldn’t be able to get to," said Administrative Officer Robert Smuts to NBC Connecticut.

If this case is any indicator, green companies have a lot of preparing to do.  But how does an eco-friendly company recruit candidates in a green manner? Companies of all industries and sizes know that HR isn’t the most environmentally-friendly sector of an organization. From the paper-intensive onboarding process to filing cabinets full of compliance documents – many green companies are struggling to align their core organizational missions with their human resource initiatives. W-4 forms, employee surveys, performance appraisals, exit interviews…the list goes on and on.  Aside from wasting hours on manual data entry and filing old resumes – these paper processes are using an exuberant amount of unnecessary paper.  Let’s take just one aspect of the talent lifecycle – onboarding. A new hire-packet alone includes endless amounts of heath insurance forms, compliance docs, 401k packages, company handbooks and more.  Aside from the time it takes to print and collect these documents – they are taking their toll on our eco-system's natural resources – mainly, trees. Wondering how your organization is treating the rainforest?  Take a look at the Rainforest Maker’s Business Paper Calculator. Feeling guilty yet?

So how can green companies (or really any business) keep their carbon footprint (see greenhouse gas emission refresher course here) to a minimum while hiring and retaining top talent?
 
Eliminate all those paper processes through automation! Talent management systems can spearhead businesses’ green HR initiatives by eliminating time-consuming, paper-intensive recruiting tasks and replacing them with efficient, eco-friendly HR solutions. And don’t let your organization’s commitment to the environment go without reward, get something back!  As part of their corporate responsibility program, iCIMS offers an iCARE discount to firms that clearly commit to reducing reliance on non-renewable energy. Organizations that demonstrate a commitment to solar, wind, and ethanol energy sources are eligible for iCARE contract discounts when they partner with iCIMS for their HR technology needs.

So hey, let’s talk about slime molds. Sure it’s relevant, and besides, we’ll get to HR in a second.

According to research revealed this month, scientists in Japan grew a single-celled slime mold and placed it in a case that mimicked the layout of Tokyo. In order to monitor the mold’s behavior, these scientists took 36 pieces of oat flakes (to represent Tokyo and its surrounding towns) and placed them in the case. As the scientists expected, the mold grew long circular tubes to reach the pieces of food. A mere 26 hours later, not only had the mold developed an efficient network for getting all of the food, but the grid was starting to look very familiar. In fact, when transposed on a map of the current Japanese railway, the rail and the mold networks were extraordinarily similar. What people had taken years to develop, a mold had figured out in a little over a day.

Sometimes this happens. In a desire to remove inefficiencies, people test out their processes. And, when a solution needs to be implemented, oftentimes, the organically grown one is the best.

With quickly-developing technology, it’s sometimes easy to forget that the best solutions we use today are often those "basic" ones. When you’re looking at talent management, some providers host many bells and whistles, while others focus on their "basic" tools. Either way, each company must inevitably decide what kind of talent management system they want. Is it the old staples or the new-school features? The trick is to figure out what works for you (and what doesn’t): Networking events? Video job postings? Employee Referrals?

This is why we here at iCIMS like configurability in our applicant tracking software. We stress it. If you’re hiring candidates or managing your current employees, you’ve got to have the ability to test out different tools in the system in order to see which work. In the end, the talent management program should be very user-friendly.

For example, we let our clients take advantage of the Talent Platform’s configurability by doing some things for free that other providers usually charge for: we offer unlimited custom fields, workflow settings, screening questions, a robust searching tool and much more. This lets you use a piece of HRIS technology, that’s based on your needs, wants, and preferences, without having to manage your source code.

So keep experimenting and do what works; if a brainless slime can do it, so can you.

During a hectic day at work, do you ever find yourself riddled with stress you can't resolve? In earlier years, my sure fire strategy for stress prevention/relief was my very own “Chocolate Drawer” only to be used in dire stress emergencies (of course), well, and as a post-breakfast snack, lunch dessert, and afternoon bite. A work-inhibiting mental block was no obstacle when chocolate was easily accessible. For quite some time, I thought this was a viable option; until I realized that my strategy was classified as stress-eating...  We all have stress, yes. But the question is: how do we handle it, in a healthy way.

According to the American Heart Association, “stress definitely affects our bodies. In addition to the emotional discomfort we feel when faced with a stressful situation, our bodies react by releasing stress hormones…making the heart beat faster and constricting blood vessels to get more blood to the core of the body.”

Stress isn’t helping our health. So, let's try eliminating some. How can employers help?

Positive Work Environment!

According to a study done by NIOSH, 40% of job turnover is due to stress. Poor working conditions can often be a factor. By establishing a positive atmosphere, stress levels are likely to decrease and as a result, employees are more likely to enjoy coming to work.  Taken from my experience at iCIMS, there are a variety of programs companies can adopt in order to extract such a response.

• Free company luncheons to promote socialization 
• Active “Open Door Policy” to articulate problems 
• Social Events, such as holiday parties or picnics, to foster company assimilation 
• Mentorship programs and frequent trainings to increase employee knowledge and productivity 
• Gym discounts to encourage health

By offering many company-instituted benefits, employees will want to work at the organization, employee engagement will go up, and work-related stress will decrease. But it doesn’t just stop on a company’s end. We, as employees, also need to take steps in order to deal with stress. Here’s a reminder of some things to do:

• DO NOT have a “Chocolate Drawer” - Leads to way too many exceptions…
• Take a breather - Taking two minutes to stand up, stretch and clear your mind, can really put you back on track.
• Keep your schedule and task list up-to-date – Maintaining an organized schedule of to-dos and their due dates will help you prioritize and complete work on time.
• Ask questions – You are not required to know everything about everything. If you are unsure, just ask a coworker or your manager. I promise you won’t get in trouble.
• Relax – Have confidence. You have worked hard, so you can do your job. Just continue to put forth your best foot.
• Make friends – Considering you spend a majority of your week with your fellow coworkers, get to know them! Enjoying your colleagues can make a world of difference.

If both companies and their workers make an effort, a positive, stress-free environment will ensue. So, just remember positive work environment = lower stress levels = happy and healthy employees.

These days, everybody is talking about search engine optimization (SEO) which, as the online traffic coordinator for iCIMS, I know a bit about.  Is my website optimized?  Is my blog optimized?  Are my tweets and social networking profiles optimized?  These are some of the more common SEO questions people are asking themselves.  The internet is a busy place and it can be hard to get noticed, but HR professionals should be asking themselves one important question: Are my job postings optimized?

Companies spend a fortune listing their open jobs on job boards, but recruiters are starting to realize that getting access to the best candidates may not be as simple as signing that fat check.  More and more candidates are starting their job searches with a visit to a search engine, not a job board. If the first point of debarkation for candidates is no longer the job board, the portion of the talent pool which can see certain job postings may be significantly reduced.  This shift in candidate behavior has led me to come up with the following suggestions for HR pros to maximize their jobs’ exposure.

1. Use appropriate keywords in your posting - A lot of job descriptions boil down to being acronym soup.  Make sure that you actually spell out what you’re looking for in the description so that you capture people who search for “Human Resources Manager,” rather than “HR Manager.”


2. Keep your postings where they are – The more sites they are posted on, including your friendly neighborhood job boards, the better.  This is especially true if they link to the posting on your company’s career portal.


3. Avoid using flash-based interfaces and portals – Flash-based sites are indexed by search engines as blank and, in many cases, forego the benefits of search engine optimization.  You need to make sure that you use appropriate keywords and that the search engine can read them. 


4. Make sure your talent acquisition software enables SEO – Did you know that you can turn off search engine indexing for security purposes?  What I find strange is that some providers of talent acquisition and talent management software do just that on their career portals, robbing their clients of valuable traffic.


5. Employ adequate candidate-screening capabilities – You will be tapping into a new source of traffic for your job postings and thus have more candidates to screen through.  Your time is valuable, so make sure that your talent acquisition software can handle the load for you by auto-responding to candidates who do not qualify.

As companies start hiring through this recovery, the best talent will be the first to go.  HR professionals owe it to their organizations to do what they can to get in front of the best candidates.  While that may not mean an immediate investment in new technology, it’s certainly something to keep an eye on.

Out with the old and in with the new! 2010 promises to be a game-changing year for the talent management industry. As the economy and employment rates show signs of rejuvenation, recruiters are once again faced with the challenge of targeting and attracting top talent.  To prepare for the forecasted increase in hiring (with, thanks to mandated layoffs, a bare bones recruitment staff), successful recruiting organizations have placed greater emphasis on passive candidate recruiting strategies. While HR technology and social media networks have made identifying passive candidates easier than ever, many recruiters still find it difficult to engage these candidates over extended periods of time.

Chances are these candidates receive an introductory email pitching the benefits of working at your organization, but does communication end there? How does your organization ensure that your employment brand remains fresh in the minds of these passive candidates over prolonged recruitment cycles? Maintaining a robust pipeline of engaged candidates is not an easy task.
 
For an increasing number of organizations, Candidate Relationship Management (CRM) now plays a central role in their recruiting strategies. CRM is the practice of building, and more importantly maintaining, meaningful relationships with candidates to keep them engaged throughout an extended recruitment process. An effective CRM program involves ongoing communication with both passive and active candidates and strategic marketing communications targeted at certain demographics in a candidate pool. Effective CRM programs use a variety of mediums to engage their pipeline, including: branded electronic postcards, promotional offerings, company newsletters, etc.

Once this robust pipeline of engaged candidates is in place, it is important for recruiters to take advantage of it; a well-managed and well-utilized candidate pipeline has been shown to significantly lower overall recruiting costs. To maximize their CRM program, a growing number of recruiters are leveraging CRM software technology to streamline their processes and ensure consistence. While it is sometimes necessary to implement a separate CRM technology, many organizations have access to enhanced CRM capabilities directly within their core Talent Acquisition System.
 
In conjunction with ERE, iCIMS is sponsoring the following webinar: “Leveraging Your Current Talent Acquisition System as a Candidate Relationship Management Tool”.   Isn’t it time your organization maximized your HR Technology Investment?
 
This webinar will concentrate on the following:

• The importance of Candidate Relationship Management
• OFCCP compliance concerns and solutions for federal contractors 
• Leveraging your system's electronic correspondence capabilities
• Using hot lists, candidate folders and search agents in your system 
• Social Networking opportunities
• Task and campaign management

This webinar is being offered free of charge on January 20th from 1:00 – 2:00 pm ET. Register Here.

Let us know how you are incorporating CRM into your talent management strategies!

One of the more heartwarming stories in the news last week was that of the “Operation Chihuahua" airlift which has helped relieve overcrowded West Coast animal shelters of their glut of these small dogs, flying them to the East Coast where they are in high demand.  What struck me most when I read about the efforts to move these dogs East was how rare and valued the petit canines are in cities like New York where living space is at a premium, and that animal shelters have compiled long waiting lists of those wishing to adopt Chihuahuas.  This appreciation of how something so small can offer so much in the way of value and reward brings to mind how clients in the SMB market are underappreciated by their talent lifecycle vendors.

While so many Talent Acquisition and Talent Management firms have focused their energies on mergers and acquisitions and claiming their piece of the Fortune 500 marketplace, the needs of the mid-market clients are too often forgotten.  These clients are forced to re-evaluate their SaaS (Software-as-a-Service) opportunities to ensure they are getting the best customer support and reliability they need. As a result, they are skipping over the bigger vendors and jumping straight to the vendors, who have aligned themselves with the mid-market community.

So, let’s look at what iCIMS, the leader in mid-market dominance, is doing (warning, blatant self-promotion). Besides being named the leader in total service satisfaction by Bersin & Associates, iCIMS has remained committed to what it does best: serving small to mid-sized clients in their Talent Acquisition and Management efforts.  And this focus has paid off, as iCIMS’ dominance of the SMB market has propelled it into the #2 spot among providers of SaaS talent acquisition solutions as it prepares to enter its 2nd decade.  And of the over 225 new clients that iCIMS signed in the record breaking year of 2009, over 70% were in the mid-market.

From the tiny teacup Chihuahuas that are finding new homes in downtown studio apartments and even in subway-bound handbags, to the mid-sized variety Chihuahua mixes like the one that my neighbor shares her more spacious midtown pad with (she claims he is half German Shepherd!), these West Coast transplants are finding just how accommodating the Big Apple can be, in much the same way that iCIMS’ SMB clients appreciate the flexibility and scalability of the iCIMS Talent Platform.  Offering a single, highly configurable technology Platform that can grow and evolve with each client as they grow, accompanied by customer support that even a Great Dane would love, more and more small and mid-sized businesses are finding a home with iCIMS every day. 

If 2009 was the year of doom and gloom, it looks like 2010 might just be the year of cheer and sunshine. OK, maybe that’s a bit overboard - but some good news does seem to be on the horizon. Take this article from inc.com for example, which looked at the hiring and salary numbers for small businesses in December of 2009 and came back with some pretty encouraging news.

“According to the SurePayroll Small Business Scorecard, hiring is up 0.8 percent month over month -- that's the greatest month-over-month hiring increase we've seen since February '08. That brings us to a year-to-date increase of 3.4 percent...and more of the month-over-month hiring increase is made up of employees and not contractors.”

So what does this mean for 2010? Optimism. 

“In a late December survey, two-thirds of SurePayroll customers indicated that they predict their revenues will be up in 2010, and the same number feel good enough to say they believe the economy will get better in the New Year. Now that we're seeing more hiring, we should see more spending, and so an upward cycle can begin.” 

This is obviously great news. We rely on the vitality of small businesses.  As the United States Department of Labor points out, “The nation’s 17 million small, non-farm businesses constituted 99.7 percent of all employers, employed 52 percent of private workforce and accounted for 51 percent of the nation’s sales.”

So what are these small businesses doing to prepare for an uptick in hiring? Good question. Hopefully they have begun to consider talent acquisition systems – which would help in the sourcing and recruiting of new hires. And taking it a step further, hopefully some of these small businesses have begun to think of their talent management processes holistically, and so will look for a talent management system that can automate and streamline their processes from start to finish – managing candidates to managing employees. Viewing the entire talent management process in such a holistic sense would mean greater efficiencies and cost-savings, with such processes as applicant tracking, performance management and employee data management all housed within one, cohesive system. With any luck, that will equate into even more hiring and that much more success for said small businesses.

So what are we waiting for? Bring on the optimism!

Once upon a time, I found myself facing the inevitable.  I was leaving University to enter the workforce, but not the one you are thinking.  I was five months away from relocating to Tokyo, Japan to teach English at a private company.  As I got in my car, I waved goodbye to my Alma Mater and rode off into the sunset, and by sunset, I mean New Jersey.

Following my return home, I was often bombarded with two questions: "Why five months, Karen?” and “Is the Company not really that interested in you??"  Even after the 10th time, I would laugh off the questions with a smile, and would remind them of their own personal onboarding experiences.  There's a lot of paperwork!  Ok, so maybe five months is a bit longer than your average company, but we are talking international here.  Salary agreements, tax forms, compliance documents, visa requirements, and the list goes on. 

And so it began.  I received a large packet of HR documents in the mail that were to be filled-out, signed and mailed back to Japan.  Staring at the huge pile of papers, I sighed, and got to work. Referencing online sources to ensure accuracy, I completed the forms, made copies for my records, and got them in the mail after a few days. Feeling a sense of relief, I continued on with my life. That is until three weeks later when another package arrived from my company in Japan.  The letter read as follows, "Dear Ms. Bucks:  We kindly ask that you fill out the forms included in this package. Sincerely," the HR Department.  Some of the forms were exactly the same. But with zero reason to question their process, I spent another weekend filling out the enclosed forms, making copies, and sending them back. Little did I know, this was only the beginning of the organizational inefficiencies I would soon experience.

It was time!  I was about to move to Japan.  I stuffed my suitcase to the legal limit and boarded the plane.  And what a fantastic job it was.  I loved my coworkers.  I loved my students.  There was just one thing I disliked: their hr processes.  How unbelievably frustrating!  From an employee standpoint, the onboarding program and employee performance management system were not structured.  Employee appraisals were erratic in schedule and worker feedback often was irrelevant or too general.  Without examples and specific advice, how was I supposed to know what I was doing right?  I believe I did improve during my time there, but did I really do my best?  I suppose I will never know.  Anyway, I returned to the U.S. after a year and a half.  I often wonder, if I had received more feedback, would I have stayed longer?

According to Bruce Pfau and Ira Kay, authors of The Human Capital Edge, people need structured performance recognition and feedback.  Helping them overcome their weaknesses can improve their disposition towards their work and ultimately towards the company.  And, I 100% agree. Superior onboarding and performance managament systems are extremely important to employee retention.  If not given the right tools, such as organized trainings and detailed performance appraisals, positions become static and, for lack of a better word, boring.  If given the right tools, employees have the opportunity to learn how to grow, improve and succeed.

There are three questions I’d like you to ask yourself. One, have you and your coworkers improved since your hire dates? Two, if yes, how has your company helped you all do that? And, three, are you happy doing what you are doing?  If you are unable to answer these questions with confidence, take a look at your company's onboarding process and performance evaluation tools. The first step to answering positive to those questions is to improve the employee experience!

Last week, I called my bank to see if a specific check had cleared.  After spending a few minutes unsuccessfully navigating through the menu, I still didn’t have the information I needed.  No matter what option I hit, I couldn’t get a live person on the phone.  I hung up, redialed, and hit multiple menu options in the hopes of getting a live person.  Finally, I was speaking to someone…someone in the wrong department.  They politely offered to transfer me to the right department.    Great…After a few more minutes on hold, yet another person picked up the line.  Oops, wrong department again.  Another polite request to transfer and then the magic click…I had been disconnected.  Third time was a charm, right?  Well, it was.  I was able to connect with a live person, the right person, and yes, my check had cleared.  A simple task which should have taken maybe one or two minutes ended up consisting of three phone calls and about 30 minutes of wasted time. Let’s just say, that I was less than impressed with the service I received from this institution.

So, how good is your customer service?  Many companies tout world class, superior customer service, but do you really know how good their customer service is?  Most people find out how good (or bad) a company’s customer service is only when you need it.  And usually when you need it, it’s a time sensitive issue. 

In a previous life, I was part of company that adopted an Applicant Tracking System to facilitate our application process.  All of the companies talked in great detail of their superior client support.  The HR technology we selected mentioned on many occasions throughout the vetting process that their site was easy to use and changes could be made quickly.  We felt as if we’d made the right decision with our selection; however, they never truly defined what “quickly” meant in making changes or what “superior customer service” entailed.   I quickly found out.

It was a Friday afternoon around 4:30pm and I was having trouble running an important report. I called the provider’s help center and was told that I did not have the appropriate contract level to talk to a customer service agent.  All communication and questions needed to be directed to an agent via email.  That email would be ticketed and responded to within 24 hours. 

I was flabbergasted.   Seriously, I can’t talk to a person in order to resolve this???  I had to communicate via email only???  And my ticket would be responded to within 24 hours???  It was Friday at 4:30pm and I needed to get the report done.  Unbelievable!  Though frustrated and slightly ticked off, I complied and sent the email.  Afterward, I promptly told my partners of the situation with this vendor – all of whom were dismayed. 

We regrouped on Monday and contacted our sales representative to hash out the situation.  It was explained to us that our Service Agreement did not include personal customer service and/or access to a live person.  For that, we would have to pay an additional cost – on top of our monthly fees.  I’d never heard of such a thing.  Moreover, the information I was trying to gather was crucial to closing a business deal.  Fast-forward to contract renewal time - it wasn’t going to happen.   The reason was simply, when we needed help, the vendor wasn’t there for us.

So just how good IS your customer service?  Do you talk a good talk or are you proactive about your customer support?

When evaluating services, systems or even banks, make sure to ask the “post sale” questions.  What if I need to call you at 3:00am – will someone answer?  What if I need help at 6:00pm on a Friday, can I talk to an expert?  Will there be a fee for asking for help?

In a world of increased technological speed, go back to the basics to ensure that your needs are being addressed now, three months from now – a year from now.  Make your service providers earn your business down the line.  For me, poor customer service will always be a deal breaker!