it's ALL about the experience

Sins of the Recruiter

I had to laugh when I saw this newly launched blog which is all about the (mostly) clueless behaviors of recruiters trolling for fresh meat. Seen through the eyes of a software development contractor who launched his search for a new gig a few weeks ago, it is an almost-daily log of recruiting behaviors that are least endearing to candidates.  Talk about first impressions...the posting tags read like a scene from a bad bar pickup: clueless, desperate, moron, foot in mouth, rookie.

Call it morbid curiosity, but I'm going to stop by again soon to see what some poor recruiter-schlump has done now to warrant a public flogging.

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I'm Claudia Faust, and in my day job I’m the head of Products at Improved Experience, where we help employers use feedback to measure and manage engagement for competitive advantage in hiring and retention. Learn more about us here.

Technorati tags: recruiting, first_impressions, improved_experience

The DNA of engagement

I spend a lot of my waking hours thinking about engagement -- what it is, how you get it, and how it can be measured and improved.  It sounds strange, I know -- but I'm not alone (and hey, you're reading along).  The more I research the topic, the more I discover the variety of definitions and expectations: some folks think it's what you do to others, others think it's what you're responsible for yourself.

So what is the DNA of engagement?  What are it's most basic, combustible elements that, when combined, create passion, commitment, and competitive advantage?  Over at RecruitingBlogs.com today I'm exploring the topic from a slightly different perspective...here's a peek:

...it took a nanosecond to sum up the chaos: while mommy was speaking to a clerk a short distance away, the 4 year old was methodically loading up the basket with jars of jam. In the spirit of cooperation, his younger brother (about 2 and a half I think, seated in the basket and clearly enjoying the game) was liberating the jars by dropping them back out of the cart and onto the floor below. The baby watched in glee as the jars bounced, crashed, and generally made a really delicious mess...

Drop by for a read, and leave me your comments.  Who knows?  I may even reach out to you for a little more of that product research.

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I'm Claudia Faust, and in my day job I’m the head of Products at Improved Experience, where we help employers use feedback to measure and manage engagement for competitive advantage in hiring and retention. Learn more about us here.

Technorati tags: engagement, recruiting, recruitingblogs.com, improved_experience