Tag: recruitment

How to Nail The Reference Checking Process

Posted on by Naomi Marshall

Reference checking is a crucial part of the recruitment process. You’d be surprised how often this can catch someone off guard if they aren’t prepared. Make sure you nail the whole recruitment process from start to finish by understanding and being prepared for reference checks!

You’ve made it through the first interview with the recruiter, then 2-3 (or even 4 interviews!) with the client and an offer is now on the table. Then you hear the words “the offer is pending reference checks”.

Now you shouldn’t be shaking in your boots at this point because you if you have performed as a good employee then you won’t have any trouble pulling up a variety of names of people who will be happy to speak on your behalf. But you shouldn’t be complacent either.

Reference checks can be a little tricky if your work history has been limited. However, we understand you won’t have as many ‘managers’ who have overseen your work and guided you. You may need to call upon people who can speak about your character, personality and possibly shed some light on your personal achievements.

Here are Sprint People’s Top Tips to keep in mind when selecting referees to assist you with the recruitment process:

Choosing the Best Referee
The best referee (in the eyes of the recruiter and/or hiring manager) is someone who has directly managed you before. Supplying the person who you sat next to, the one you went to the gym with 3 times a week or even your friend’s manager who knew you ‘reasonably well’ doesn’t constitute a “great referee”. The purpose of the reference is for the potential employer to gain information on how you performed in the role, how you are best managed and key points relating to how they may further develop you in the future.

Ask First
Before offering up the name and contact details of any potential referees, ensure you ask that person if they feel comfortable being a referee for you. Having their name attached to comments relating to a person’s performance is a serious matter and shouldn’t be taken lightly.

Confirm Contact Details With Referee
Double check if your referee feels comfortable having their personal contact details supplied to a hiring manager, HR or recruiter. Maybe they would prefer to only have a work number given out instead of their mobile? Everyone is different.

Multiple Contact Details
Where possible you should give more than one contact number for the referee, e.g. a business landline and a mobile.

Provide All The Information
Offer the full name and title of the referee, also state if this is different from when you worked with them (e.g. have they moved companies, if so was it before or after you left the company). Give a short description of who they are, how you know them. You’d be surprised at how many people send through a referee simply with a name eg Pete Smith, M 0408 XXX XXX– ok so who is Pete, how do you know him, when did you work with him, does he know I have his number??? It could be that I ring him only to ask all of these questions then uncover that he’s not a suitable referee anyway. A waste of everyone’s time.

Keep Your Referee In The Loop
Ensure that the referee is alerted every time you are seeking a new role so they are ready to receive phone calls from employers and recruiters. Remember the referee is doing you a favour and it’s only courteous to advise them each time they may be called upon. There is nothing worse than when we call a referee to obtain a reference, we state the candidates name, let them know the nature of our call and the referee says ‘Who?? Sorry I can’t remember that person and/or I didn’t know they were looking for a new job again‘ etc etc. Not ideal for the recruiter and certainly not a good reflection on you!

Tell Your Referee About The Role
When the referee knows a little about the job you are going for and knows why you want it, they usually tailor their answers and offer advice on why they feel you’d be great in that position. It makes the reference more personal and demonstrates they really know you and your strengths. It always speaks very highly when they are able to recommend you for the position as they understand it and this is often the icing on the cake to a hiring manager or recruiter taking the reference.

Keep Your Referees Up To Date
As your career develops, referees will change (you should supply referees from the most recent roles, no point offering the manager you worked for 10 years ago if you’ve had 3 jobs since then), so keep them up to date.

If you are supplying referee information on the bottom of your CV ensure you keep this up to date and also ensure the referee is aware their name is listed as it will be seen every time you send it out. It’s totally acceptable to simply state ‘referee details can be supplied on request’.

Be Honest
The recruiter or hiring manager may want to check the referee’s credibility on LinkedIn or via the Receptionist at the company listed so if you’re thinking of telling a porky pie on who the referee is – best to think again.

It is so exciting to get to reference stage of the recruitment process, although a reference check can be performed anywhere from the beginning to the end of a professional recruitment process. By following the above tips, you will be prepared and can ensure your reference checks will support the process and not hinder your chances in securing what may be your dream job!

For further recruitment advice, check out Sprint Coach or please don’t hesitate to contact Naomi Marshall directly on 9271 0011.

Naomi Marshall – Director
P: (02) 9271 0011
M: 0422 139 910
E: naomi@sprintpeople.com.au

Customer Service – How Sydney Compares…

Posted on by Naomi Marshall

Is it just me or has anyone else noticed a vast difference between the customer service in Sydney and elsewhere in the world? Recently, I was fortunate enough to unbuckle the chains that attach me to the Sprint chair and head off on a well-deserved (if I say so myself!) holiday to Europe. 7 countries in 4 weeks – a mixture of sun, amazing cities, new cultures and my favourite……NEW PEOPLE!

For anyone who already knows me, I’m an avid travel. One of my favourite things to do is to jump on a plane and experience a new and exciting place. I love the different food, the languages and learning more about the people from other countries and cultures. I essentially love to live and interact with others (probably why I love recruitment so much).

It’s also a great time to calm the mind. Some of my best and most innovate ideas – that form the very essence of Sprint – have been devised in exotic locations. Yes, okay I admit it, I usually do have a vino by my side, and am madly scribbling on a hotel notebook with those miniature pens they all seem to be so fond of.

However, I digress. I have been inspired by this trip to write about how Sydney compares to the rest of the world in terms of customer service. On this trip one of the biggest things I noted was the incredible variation between the levels of customer service (within the hospitality industry) in the seven countries I visited versus Sydney…and at the core of it, it made me very sad.

To put it bluntly, are Sydney people that self-absorbed or do they just not care about customer service?

Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE Sydney but I have to be honest and say Sydney could take a leaf out of a lot of other countries books when it comes to genuinely caring about their customers (noting that my experience was obviously predominately with the hospitality industry).

In other countries being a waiter is deemed a ‘profession’, however more often than not it appears that in Sydney it’s often just “something I’m doing whilst I look for a better job”, or to cover expenses whilst studying.

We travelled for 30 days, which means we had approximately 90 meals away from home. We ate at a very broad mix of places, high-end restaurants, local cafes, hotels etc. We also stayed at a broad mix of hotels. Every single interaction we had with a person who was in a customer facing role was an absolute pleasure. We were listened to, we were important, we felt valued – we laughed, and we enjoyed the experience (immensely!)

Immediately upon arriving back in Sydney, that quality customer service disappeared. We no longer felt listened to, were no longer important and definitely did not feel like a valued customer.
Why is that? Is Sydney just too much of a rat race? Is it that everyone is just too busy (and stressed) to be caring about others? Is it that overseas they’re incentivized to treat the customer well (eg low base pay, working for the tips), or is the economy in such a poor state that they are working hard to hold onto their jobs (e.g. less prospects). I guess the other option is because lots of people are on holidays and it has a more positive/fun/vibrant feel hence they find it easy to get involved as well?

I don’t know the answers but what I do know is that I noted the difference immediately upon my return to Sydney. I felt it when I stood in the queue for a coffee only to have someone else push ahead of me (then pretend she didn’t do it). I felt it when the guy who served me looked like he was half asleep and he certainly didn’t want to be doing what he was doing. Don’t even get me started on the guy in duty free at the airport! There were no smiles. It was a simple transaction of taking the money, writing the order on the lid – next.

We regularly place candidates in roles that demand exceptional customer service, mostly in professional services but in other industries as well. I have no doubt that they are exceeding in these positions. I have just been left miffed about where the customer service in hospitality has gone and want to know how can we get the Sydney standards back up to the rest of the world? Or perhaps quality customer service, in any industry is now a rare commodity and I being harsh on the hospitality industry?

If you have the answers – please let me know. I would love to hear what you think.

All that said, if you would like to chat more about customer service and what to expect from your staff and how to attract quality talent in this area, contact me on naomi@sprintpeople.com.au. You know what I expect and I wouldn’t put a candidate forward with anything less than that!

Naomi Marshall – Director
P: (02) 9271 0011
M: 0422 139 910
E: naomi@sprintpeople.com.au

Entry Level Candidates Rarely Stay in their First Role….

Posted on by Naomi Marshall

Employers take note! A quick explanation as to why entry level candidates rarely stay in their first roles for 2 years anymore….

Young candidates (code for entry level or those who have very little office experience – or none at all) are simply NOT going to sit at your front desk for 2 years as your Receptionist, unpacking dishwashers, organising couriers and filing for months on end waiting for someone to notice them and promote them to their next job. Nor are they going to be in customer service roles with repetitive tasks, nor are they going to handle mundane or routine tasks over and over…and over for years on end.

This doesn’t mean that the days of ‘earning your stripes’ or ‘starting at the bottom’ are over. It’s simply to say that young candidates today CRAVE new tasks, new information and new experiences. They have access to so much more information than we ever did at school. They’re naturally tech savvy and are connected to the world in ways that we never were.

They’re prepared to do their time in the junior roles but they want recognition and attention – and they want it now!

Often clients say to me: “I need a Receptionist to sit on front desk for a minimum of 2 years before I can promote them”. Or, “I don’t want to have to keep re-recruiting that role.” And “Why don’t they stay long term anymore?”

Employers wonder why after 6/7 months she/he has left and found a job at the place down the road with their friend – with a salary increase and with a slightly pumped up job description.

In my opinion, and from my observations and experience, the days of finding a ‘stable’ job out of school or uni, staying in it for years and working your way up are over and gone. If Company A won’t coach/train/promote then guess what? They’ll just go to Company B to find it. Simple as that.

I hear employers crying out “Young people don’t stick at anything, they’re fickle, they’re just chasing the $$$”. And I am sorry, I sympathise, however I’m just here to state the facts from years and years of seeing this pattern (and it’s getting worse).

Now there is the flipside to this of course – Accept it – Don’t fight it – And come up with innovative ways to keep them engaged.

So… To The solution! What can you do?

• Knowing and understanding that they crave new tasks and new experiences, try to add in new tasks every few months (or even weeks if your new starter can handle it).
• Quite simply if they are unpacking dishwashers, running errands, filing and cleaning up the meeting rooms you can hardly expect a young, bright spark to want to do that for years on end. Even 6-12 months can feel like an eternity to a young person when they have a super sharp mind. Maybe that role is best suited to a traveler who can work a maximum of 6 months, maybe the job simply has a ‘lifespan’ of 6 months?
• If the tasks are simple and you’re consistently having turn over maybe you just need to accept that the job is boring and you won’t keep anyone there for longer than 6 months anyway.
• Discuss small salary increases on a quarterly basis, or even a small bonus. It doesn’t have to be massive. At that level every dollar is being watched so if it’s the extra that pays for their weekly travel pass or a few sandwiches in the city each week then trust me, they’ll be appreciative.
• Or consider shopping vouchers, $150-$250 Westfield vouchers can feel like gold to a young employee. They simply do not have access to surplus cash to spend on themselves when they are on minimum wages.

The short end of the story is that Sydney is a very expensive place to live. Travel is costly, food is expense, don’t even get me started on the cost of living out of home when they’re first setting up a flat.

If that young employee is truly a valued member of your team then start working ‘with them’ and not against them otherwise company B, C, D and E will happy snap them up then you’ll be back to square on training the next junior on how to book a courier……

Naomi Marshall – Director
P: (02) 9271 0011
M: 0422 139 910
E: naomi@sprintpeople.com.au

Employers Remember…The Candidate is Interviewing YOU Too!

Posted on by Naomi Marshall

At Sprint we are fortunate enough to recruit for some of the best businesses in the market (not that we’re bias at all). However, though we know they’re great and we tell our candidates that they are great, we always remind our clients to remember that in an interview situation, the candidate is interviewing them as well!

It is important for business owners and line managers to remember that as an interviewer, it is also your responsibility to get the candidate excited about the role/company etc. You can’t always rely on your brand to attract the right potential employees to your business. The way that you engage with the candidate and the level of interest that you show in them as a person could determine whether they choose another role over the one you’re offering when it comes to the crunch!

Clients often say that an hour interview is such a short period of time to try and decipher if a candidate is going to be right for their business, but remember, it’s the same for the candidate too! They want to know that you will care about them, foster learning and development and provide them with opportunities to create a true career path for themselves.

Often employers are so focused on “testing” a candidate that they forget to engage with them. I can’t tell you how many times we have had clients come back to us telling us how they really “put the candidate under pressure” or “threw the candidate a curve ball”, or “had their interview poker face on”. When the employer then comes back wishing to offer the candidate, they are often miffed that candidate declines the role because they didn’t get a good vibe from their interviewer and they felt disengaged with the process.

Yes – it’s true that there are a lot of candidates on the market at the moment, but the top quality, hard working, loyal candidates, that most employers seek are still hard to find! If a candidate is sitting in front of you, ticking all the boxes, then it would be such a shame to miss out on them simply because you were trying to trip them up, rather than engaging with them.

Chances are, if you think they are fantastic, other employers will too! So don’t miss the opportunity to tell them how amazing their life is going to be if they choose you. At the end of day, given multiple options, candidates will most likely choose the employer that;

  • Was friendly in the interview and made them feel comfortable
  • Showed genuine interest in them and their development
  • Moved quickly
  • Gave the impression that they would really add value to their business and that they were excited to have them on board.

Yes, it may very well be your brand that made a candidate apply in the first place, but as they sit in front of you in an interview situation… all nervous and excited… subconsciously (or sometimes even consciously) they are waiting for you to sell your company back to them.

Negative Nancy’s rarely get the job!

Posted on by Naomi Marshall

As a recruiter I have met HUNDREDS of people!!! While everyone is different i.e. different skills, appearances and backgrounds, what do you think is the one quality that makes a candidate stand out from the masses???…………………………..POSITIVITY!!!

As an interviewer, no matter if you are an agency recruiter or an internal hiring manager, the most frustrating interviews are held with those that have a negative view on life. The ability to turn negatives into positives is a rare skill, but something that I think everybody should strive towards!

When I ask “Why did you leave your last job”? I am really not looking for any of the following answers;

  1. “My boss was really negative all the time, and I didn’t like him/her”
  2. “I had no friends in the company”
  3. “I haven’t been promoted”

While these things may be true, sometimes it’s all in the delivery of the answer that can make or break your chances at interview. Therefore before you answer, put yourself in the interviewer’s shoes. What are they likely to think of the above answers?

  1. Why was the manager negative towards this candidate? Was it because they were a poor performer?
  2. Why did she have no friends? Concerning.
  3. Were they not promoted because they were a poor performer?

Even if the last company you worked for was the worst company on the face of the earth, it is important to explain to the interviewer the positives that you got out of working there. Honestly, try to avoid even mentioning the negatives if you can help it because when you leave an interview, you want that interviewer to think positive things about you and your experience. You want them to be excited about the possibility of offering you (or helping you to find) a job. I can guarantee you that if you make even one negative comment without turning it into a positive; you will be remembered by the negative -even if you gave 10 other very positive answers.

You don’t want to be remembered as the candidate “that hated their boss”, you want to be the candidate that “was so positive and engaging that I want to hire him/her!”

You may think that you can rely on your skills and experience to get you over the line… however I cannot even count the number of times that I have chosen to put a person forward to a client with a positive, friendly attitude that is lacking the right experience, OVER that negative Nancy with the perfect resume!

Some food for thought…