iCIMS Hire Expectations™

It's that time of year.  In the dead of summer, we're busy barbecuing every weekend, eating copious amounts of water ice to stay cool, working on our tans (or hoarding SPF 70 sunscreen), wrapping presents, and putting up the tree, stockings, and tinsel.

Wait...what?!

Yes, it's finally here! We've waited six months, and at long last the time has come for...Christmas in July!

Okay, while I may be in the minority of people who are excited about this quasi-holiday fast approaching on July 25, I invite you to conjure up a holiday scene, sip some eggnog, spray your office or car windows with fake snow, and get started on your wish list for Santa. You can even make two lists to keep things organize: one for personal and one for professional use (that way you can ask for an iPod and an ergonomic desk chair at the same time).

Need help deciding on some work related requests?  How about asking for one of these?

More Friends: Social networking is a way to bolster the number of people who have access to your life, but by now many recruiters are leveraging it to expand their pipelines as well as their personal popularity. The joy of reeling in qualified candidates via social networks can be sweeter than a holiday sugar plum! You know they’re out there, and being able to leverage tools that enable branded microsites and mass job postings across the web can get you and your brand in front of the masses.

Fewer Delays: If the elves don’t make all the toys in time, then there will be some disappointed children (and bloggers) out there without any gifts under the tree. Likewise, if there are numerous delays throughout the pre-hire process, then there will be some disappointed hiring managers when the talent they need isn’t in place. Ask Santa (or your CEO) for an applicant tracking system equipped with scheduling and electronic workflow that will ensure the right people sign off on new hires at the right times.

Extra Insight: Think of all the frustration you could avoid if you didn’t have to spend all that time figuring out reports and looking up how to run formulas in the help menus for Excel. There are tools out there that can run all those real-time reports for you, giving you easy, quick insight into your metrics…and also freeing you up to look into other aspects of your work (or to look into ways to make sure your gingerbread house doesn’t collapse like it did last time).

So, maybe Santa won't be delivering goodies next week.  Everyone deserves a vacation, and from what I gather on TV, he’s most likely soaking in the sun in his Bermuda shorts and downing carbonated beverages. But look on the bright side, you're ahead of the game with decorating for December, and Ol' Saint Nick can get a jump start on your wish list once he gets off the beach!