Wendy K.
Recruiting | Sales | Leadership | Insurance Agent | Series 6 & 63 Securities Registered Representative
What is the most CREATIVE sourcing strategy you have ever used...with success?
Describe your most "out-of-the-box" creative sourcing strategy and how it was a success for you...
Answers (17)
Jim N.
National Training Manager - Enterprise Business Group - at VTech Communications, Inc.
Best Answers in: Job Search (1), Career Management (1)
All three names reflected above are tremendously creative with respect to recruiting.
I dressed up in complete Halloween costume and visit each one of my accounts and passed out candy and did trick or treating for loan submissions.
The results were increased submissions 50% that month and continued afterwards.
Tamila A.
Lecturer, Department of Engineering at University of Cambridge
Best Answers in: Facilities Management (1), Government Services (1), Exporting/Importing (1), Internationalization and Localization (1), Offshoring and Outsourcing (1), Equity Markets (1), Personal Debt Management (1), Personal Investing (1), Starting Up (1), Energy and Development (1), Biotech (1), Using LinkedIn (1)
Utilize my reputation as a solid manager who develops her employees and nurtures them like few do, giving them the responsibility and allows them to run with it, have my employees (informally) talk with people in areas from which I wanted to hire and have them pre-screen candidates while promoting the group and its manager. Everybody wins.
Kahlin K.
Fund Development- Special Events Manager at Halifax Health
Best Answers in: Using LinkedIn (2), Job Search (1), Risk Management (1), Advertising (1), Internet Marketing (1), Viral Marketing (1), Ethics (1)
With sourcing candidates, I had the challenge of finding newer and recent grads in the medical industry. I created company Facebook and Myspace accounts and used the search features on the website to source candidates. Profiles have spaces to list one's education and job history. There are contact features on these websites to contact possible candidates, as well as classified sections to post free jobs (like Craigs List) and areas to post bulletins.
I ended up sourcing dozens of great candidates this way-- placing them with clients as well!
Links:
Jim C.
Talent Manager at Charfen Institute (RelativityPress)
Best Answers in: Staffing and Recruiting (2), Using LinkedIn (1)
The most creative and bizzare project I sourced was for a large casual dining chain opening up on the East coast. They needed general managers, but wanted them all from another reputable casual dining company with a killer training program.
Now, most food service people (I came to find out), don't spend alot of time on the internet after working crazy hours, so aren't easily hunted through normal methods. I opted to go directly to the source, calling into every one of the stores from MD to FLA, demanding to speak with the general manager (didn't mention any complaints, mind you, so this doesn't fall into the rusing category...though there was a tone of righteous indignation in my voice)....was immediately connected with the right GM, and told them I was NOT an angry customer but was sent by my client to find them for a great new opportunity. Worked like a charm, and filled all of the positions.
Reminded me of when I first started recruiting...phone book, legal pad, a box of pencils and a 200 lb phone. :)
imho
jc
Can't take credit for it--but saw this very creative Disney approach today:
http://www.dreamcmo.com/
LBM
Links:
I took a teaching position (part time) at UCLA for 3 semesters and taught interactive design and rapid prototyping. This job garnered my not only good talent...but one of the students worked at Idealab. This student recommended my company pitch one of the first DHTML search interfaces (back in 1998). Not only did we win the pitch...and develop the product...but we were awarded friends and family stock...pre-IPO. It got us about $561,000. Not only is teaching a wonderful thing to do for yourself...and your students...but it's a wonderful opportunity to grab talent before they hit the streets...just out of school.
Clarification added January 14, 2008:
"...garnered me not only..." Not..."...garnered my..."
I used to call into companies and pretend to be a college student. I would ask for the manager of the department, saying I was trying to find out about a career in their industry. Once I got to the person I wanted, I would drop the act and tell them that I was trying to recruit them. This worked very well when I was looking for engineers.
Unfortunately, most corporate telephone systems eliminate this method.
Not mine but one of the best I have ever seen.
FedEx packag (has to be seen - very nice) containing an iPod with a personalized message from the CEO to the prospective candidate.
See the link below for the full story
Links:
Found out one of the targets we were trying to penetrate was moving their offices. So we called them as the Interior Designers and and said we had a problem understanding the seating charts/cube layout. We had a Manager from each department outline each department, their entire group, names, extensions, titles, departments the whole shabang.
When we were all done we had about 1500 names and a complete org chart for the company.
This was a simple one...
Links:
1_ Put my business cards in all the software related books at Barnes and Noble.
2) Put my business card on hundreds of cars in the Lockheed Martin parking lot running from security.
Cheers, Kevin
Tania C.
Sr. Manager, Talent Strategy & Acquisition - Interactive Entertainment Business
Best Answers in: Staffing and Recruiting (2)
Not sure if this would be considered creative or just back to basics but what has always been successful for me is to go directly to where your source is. I have done everything from contacting book reviewers (software books) on Amazon.com to chatting up the lines at local deli's and coffee shops near targeted companies.
When I am sourcing I ask, "Who is your acc't rep for [the specific branch of gov't. entity or geographic area]. . . . on such and such street?",
If sales reps are assigned to accounts by territory: "Who calls on
" such & such street",
I can refer to these addresses: [I got them by searching "federal OR government buildings in 'city' of . . . ." as well as nearby city zip-codes or/and main thoroughfares.]
I would have to say contacting a person through a blog and chat room, that works well for me.
Cyndy D.
Executive Recruiter - Information Technology/ERP solutions - Horn Solutions, Inc.
I hate to admit this, and it was totally accidental, but I recruited someone off match.com. We didn't click, but he sure clicked with my hiring manager! :)
I certainly don't recommend posting a profile under false pretenses, like I said, this was totally accidental!
Links:
Cyndy D. also suggests this expert on this topic:
John T. S.
Aeronautics Talent Acquisition Manager for Workforce Strategy, Analytics and Acquisition (WSA&A) @ Lockheed Martin Corp.
Best Answers in: Staffing and Recruiting (1)
interesting one I came across today
http://www.wistv.com/Global/story.asp?S=7630574
Courtesy of the US Army
(1) Starbucks: Everyone loves coffee especially if you are a software engineer breaking your head to debug. So I place some of my requirement flyers and my visiting cards near the cash counter at Starbucks near the target companies (in my case, Google, Microsoft, LSI logic, Juniper). Had a lot of success with this.
(2) Orkut, Myspace, Hi5 - My profile page lists all the technologies I am currently supporting and updates on the recent product development I am hiring for.
(3) Created a Passive Recruiting Search Engine - www.big5hire.com
Mohamed Ali
mohamali@cisco.com
Sr. Recruiter - Cisco Systems
Owner of passive recruiting search enginer www.big5hire.com
