Dennis Smith of WirelessBlogs.com Fame, was the winner of the RecruitingBlogs.com “RBC Video” contest sponsored by Broadlook.

Our Hero, Dennis Smith, thinking aloud “Should I stay or Should I Go Now?!” as he became our guinea pig as the first to volunteer to jump the bridge at Tensing Pen. It was about 25 to 30 feet up. You would think watching Dennis it was 300 feet – but in his defense, I was petrified as the next diver to follow. If Dennis was scared, I had every reason to be if Mr. Tough Guy questioned the samity of it. Ultimately we both did it 6 times or more. Dennis Adds, ” I think I fractured my collarbone the day before the trip. I finally couldn’t take the pain any longer. So, does that add a bit of drama to the death-defying jump…..with a broken collarbone?! ”

To Broadlook, and RBC friend, Donato, thank you for making Dennis’ exploits possible. It was a memorable trip for all who joined him.

Our Hero, Dennis Smith, thinking aloud “Should I stay or Should I Go Now?!” as he became our guinea pig as the first to volunteer to jump the bridge at Tensing Pen. It was about 25 to 30 feet up. You would think watching Dennis it was 300 feet – but in his defense, I was petrified as the next diver to follow. If Dennis was scared, I had every reason to be if Mr. Tough Guy questioned the sanity of it. Ultimately we both did it 6 times or more. Dennis Adds,

” I think I fractured my collarbone the day before the trip. So, does that add a bit of drama to the death-defying jump…..with a broken collarbone?! “

All due credit to Dennis Smith for capturing the event on video

It was a phenomenal event held by a fantastic movement underway at RecruitingBlogs.com

Jason, you exceeded everyone’s expectation’s including my own. Michelle, we are glad you helped make the vision a reality.

By Dave Mendoza

Email
Linkedin Profile:
Blog: WirelessJobs.com

We continue our conversation with our “Fisherman of attracting Top Talent,” Dennis Smith:

Six Degrees: How many applicants at your present employer do you estimate are hired from your corporate website as compared to how many are hired through referrals?

DENNIS: We are a small company so this isn’t a large number for us. We certainly make 5-10% of our hires each year via our website, but the largest percentage of our hires will come through direct networking activity and employee referrals (90-95%).

Six Degrees: What is the source of the “Most Hires” collected from at your present employer? (In terms of Quantity #)

DENNIS: Without question, the majority of our hires are secured through our direct networking/sourcing efforts, which includes employee referrals, and strong networking activity within our individual networks (LinkedIn – Jigsaw), and personal social networks (WirelessJobs.com).

Six Degrees: What is the source of your “LOWEST COST OF HIRES” – (least amount of invested resources for the easiest hires, regardless of quality) at your present employer?

DENNIS: Easy answer – Employee Referrals are the source of our “Lowest Cost of Hire” by far! Costs associated with our LinkedIn, Jigsaw and WirelessJobs.com are also pretty darn low relative to the investment.

Six Degrees: What talent niche groups do you target and are these particular talent areas specialized under your review?

DENNIS: I specialize in targeting talent groups in the wireless industry. Specifically, this includes technical talent such as RF Engineers (EE’s), and sales and marketing talent within the same industry.

Six Degrees: What types of training in sourcing/recruitment are available to you and have you taken advantage of?

DENNIS: I participated in my first training from Adler Concepts five years ago, but I still go through their training at least 2-3 times/year. Constant reinforcement of how to do the “smart stuff” and how to stop doing the “stupid stuff” (an Adler quote that I love) is critical in our business.

Six Degrees: What recruitment software tools do you use in your day to day recruitment activities & do they translate effectively within all of the different countries where you recruit?

DENNIS: Our team uses Bullhorn and it’s proven to be an excellent ATS and CRM. Other than that, we’ve yet to utilize any other recruitment software. I like what I’m seeing in InfoGist and Broadlook, and will most likely explore them even further in the near future.

Six Degrees: What tools (technology or old school file folder, for example) did you first encounter early in your recruitment career?

DENNIS: I started recruiting in 1996 and our company had a very practical/functional database that we used to track candidate activity and communicate with the hiring managers (can’t remember what it was called). In 1997 I joined AT&T Wireless and we had a very cool tool called Excel : ) that we used quite extensively. However, within a few months, we implemented Restrac and I thought it was the greatest thing since sliced bread (at least in hindsight).

Six Degrees: How did your expectations of being a recruiter compare to the actual, first time you got on the phone or in the cubicle? In your opinion, how do people’s assumptions about our vocation differ from reality?

DENNIS: I think many people pursue recruiting because they are “people-oriented.” Early in my career, I was convinced that all successful recruiters would have an exact personality-match with me: out-going extrovert, with an affinity toward conversation, and a passion for connecting with and helping people. Hello, earth to Dennis….

I learned quickly that this business is not for the faint-hearted, and that one’s ability to survive in this business often rests more on their persistence and drive than their talent and personality (reference to Dan Pink: Persistence Trumps Talent).

Six Degrees: Worst mistake, biggest goof, lousiest practice you thought would fly but didn’t…and how that was a learning experience?

DENNIS: Well, this isn’t something I thought would fly, but it’s one of my biggest goofs so I might as well show a bit of vulnerability.

While at Samsung, I was working on a VP search and was asked by our President to escort him to lunch where he would be interviewing one of our top candidates. At the table, the candidate was sitting to my right and our President to my left. At some point during lunch, while the President was making a rather poignant observation, I reached for my glass of iced tea (using only my peripheral vision as I didn’t want to appear disinterested in the current point at hand). As the glass reached my lips, I realized (to my horror) that the glass isn’t mine. Yep, it belonged, instead, to our unsuspecting candidate.

It was all I could do to keep from choking – spewing – gagging, as in one painful moment, my recruiting career seemed to sink to new depths. However, since neither candidate nor President were aware of my faux pas, my career was soon revived.

Lesson learned: Don’t allow yourself to get too comfortable at the lunch/dinner interview.

Six Degrees: How do you personally expect to facilitate change within our industry, and/or at your place of work? If you started that process, outline the problem, your solutions, and the vision.

DENNIS: I want to continue capitalizing on the personal change that started in my career back in 2004, when I began making myself available to the general job-seeking public (at least within the wireless industry). I’d spent the previous eight years hiding behind the comfort of the firewall, pumping out job descriptions and pushing my job-postings on every unsuspecting job seeker. However, I had no personal interaction with that community. I was too busy and didn’t feel the need to “connect” with anybody.

In the words of Scott Ginsberg, my blog makes me “approachable” to potential candidates and clients and allows me to take the first step in relationship-building. I want to continue being an advocate for recruiting processes that facilitate the improvement of recruiter/candidate relationships, banning all processes that lead job-seekers (and their resumes) to the “great black hole” located near the milky-way.

Six Degrees: “Best practice” you are most proud of developing (now or in the past) in your recruiting career?

DENNIS: I am thankful that I jumped on the web 2.0 band-wagon early in the game and was simple-minded enough to think that a blog could effectively help me target and connect with an audience of job-seekers in the wireless industry. It took few renditions (and four years) before I finally landed on the current theme (WirelessJobs.com), but the people in this community supported me and helped me during that time in a way that was extremely meaningful to me.

As a result, I gained a platform (blog) whose impact on my business has been incalculable, and I witnessed first-hand the terrific impact a community can have on its members when the focus turns to “we” instead of “me.”

Six Degrees: What are some of the frustrating aspects/obstacles to your day to day as a staffing professional and in general?

DENNIS: The company/hiring manager that is quick to talk and slow to act.

Six Degrees: What are the most common themes of strategic and/or tactical mishaps involving past or present HR/Staffing org?

DENNIS: The inability to sufficiently forecast workforce demands and the corresponding budgets (although I must admit, T-Mobile’s getting better and better at this). Also, I believe that we oftentimes fail to look out far enough (future) too

Six Degrees: Considering all of the frustrations you have experienced in your career as a recruiter, — what inspires you as you continue in your career?

DENNIS: Lesson Number 6 in Dan Pink’s latest book: Leave An Imprint.

Six Degrees: What one thing do you ideally hope to accomplish in 2008?

DENNIS: My goal is in 2008 is to have WirelessJobs.com become the go-to site for professionals in the wireless industry. I want to see it become a real community where wireless people hang-out and connect with people all over the world. Whether they are a Web Strategist for Vodaphone in Romania, or a Field Tech for T-Mobile in Phoenix, Arizona – whether they are unemployed, or happily employed. I just want to see WirelessJobs.com adding value to people’s lives.

Six Degrees: Anything you want to plug?

DENNIS: Have I mentioned my site, WirelessJobs.com?

Six Degrees: How Are You Going To Change The Recruitment Industry?

DENNIS: One recruiter at a time. My career has been positively impacted by a few people who personally mentored me (whether they knew it or not): Bill Reeves (EDS), Craig Klein (EDS), Valerie Freeman (Imprimis Group) and Ken Jehling (AT&T Wireless).

I don’t have giant, lofty goals for changing this great profession of ours. But, if I can help make a difference in the life/career of a recruiter, it will be a step in the right direction. That’s one way to leave an imprint.

What will I tell them? I’ll probably just borrow a few lines from Dan Pink and Johnny Bunko:

1. There is no plan.
2. Think strengths, not weaknesses.
3. It’s not about you.
4. Persistence trumps talent.
5. Make excellent mistakes.
6. Leave an imprint.

View my profile on RecruitingBlogs.com

LinkedIn | Bio | MSN | Skype

Email
Linkedin Profile:
Blog: WirelessJobs.com
1st of 2 Parts (Originally featured on RecruitingBlogs.com)

This article is a long time coming, I get to write about a personal hero of mine and one of my closest friends in the industry, and absolutely one of the influences which led me to the world of blogging. He will deny the role of influencer in modesty – but it is all too true and I am here today to take account of a man known by many blogging nicknames so generously provided by his admirers, “Blogging Teddy Bear,” “The Regis Philben of the Blogosphere,” “Silver Fox,” “Stud Muffin” (I heard this from one of his employees who heard women talking in the ladies room at ERE San Diego and also from my wife)

Few in this industry smile as much as Dennis Smith, and few instigate them from those they come in contact as much as our friend Dennis. He is the fellow you have a drink with and can relate to every stress, to every aspiration you have and shares back bullet point by bullet point, making you glad you spoke up. He is modest in all things, sincere in his heart, jovial in his story tellings. His welcoming to any room once you walk in makes you feel like a millionaire – all too, and all telling of what makes Dennis so popular. All of these qualities makes me think he was the inspiration for the character in Sixteen Candles that Molly Ringwald fell head over heals for, remember him? The all-star that was actually kind hearted with little self reflection of his standing among those who wanted to be just like him. If I speak in grandiose terms, it is only fitting to do so, because that is how much everyone seems to like ‘thee’ Dennis Smith. He is not only admired, he is also esteemed and attempts are made to copy this winning formula, – and everyone knows that it is the ultimate form of flattery. Unfortunately what Dennis offers to the community and industry-at-large, cannot be put in a bottle and replicated; there is only one Dennis Smith.

Few contribute as much as Dennis. He was among the first to give the blogosphere a personality. He had the first innovative assortment of widgets within his site. But technology aside, it is the fact that Dennis writes in a folksy style which easily reflects his mannerisms off-line that makes his blog successful. When I first visited Dennis’ site, I knew that I had to develop my own blog. Sure there were many influences, from Shally to Jay Dee, but Dennis gave me the ‘how to” and the regular request for an update on the status of where I was on blog development. Dennis was the kick in the ass. Dennis helped me transfer my social networking persona into a blogging brand.

That is the Dennis I knew and the one I am honored to call my friend. Today, the tables turn, and I have the chance in a lifetime to share the Dennis Smith we see daily on RecruitingBlogs.com up close, and center.

Dennis Smith has over 12 years of experience in agency and corporate recruiting, focused exclusively on the wireless / telecom industry. He is the recent founder of WirelessJobs.com, Inc., and since 2004, has actively used his blog/social network WirelessJobs.com, to build relationships with wireless candidates around the world.

Dennis is currently serving in a contract role at Microsoft supporting the Global Foundation Services team from his home office in north Texas. Previously, Dennis held recruiting leadership roles at WorldLink, T-Mobile, Samsung, and AT&T Wireless. He holds a BS from the University of Texas at Dallas, and an MBA in Organization Development from the University of Dallas.

An avid LinkedIn evangelist, Dennis caught the bug after inviting Dave Mendoza to speak with the recruiting team at T-Mobile. LinkedIn is now one of the most effective recruiting tools in his belt, and the 10k+ members in his “Wireless Jobs” Group serve as an excellent platform for connecting with wireless professionals. Interested in connecting with Dennis? Send an invitation to: wirelessheadhunter@gmail.com. View his profile @: http://www.linkedin.com/in/wirelessjobs.

Dennis enjoys speaking at recruiting conferences, where he brings focus to his passion for social networking and Web 2.0 technology, and its impact on recruiting and personal brand.

Six Degrees: Tell us of your home world.

DENNIS:I married ‘up’ 23 years ago after meeting the intelligent and beautiful Katherine Rasmussen – together they have five children: Abby – 14 (the resident drama-queen, actress, and singer who packs a mean volleyball serve); Ford – 13 (the family’s personal attorney who loves a good debate and is a natural on lead guitar); Hannah – 10 (remember the name…this whiz-kid is not only the best 1st baseman in the league, she just might also rule the world); Rachel – 6 (like her Dad, this princess loves the spot-light and will most likely fill in for Conan one day); Olivia – 3 (the only girl in the family that looks just like her mom and has the awesome personality to match). Finally, Jack, the 10 year old farm-cat, and Cowboy, the 3 year old Schnoodle, bring the total Smith-family head-count to nine. NOTE: Dennis has personally approved this headcount, but will not be securing additional headcount either today or in the future.

I am Passionate about competitive sports, and I have been coaching girls’ softball for the past five years (2 out of 5 championships isn’t too shabby). I also like a good race and will be spending my next vacation in NASCAR’s Fantasy League Detox Center, located in Talladega, AL.

Six Degrees: How many years as a recruiter?

DENNIS: I have been in the recruiting profession for 12 years, with my first year in the agency environment and the following 11 years in corporate.

Six Degrees: How did you get started as a recruiter?

DENNIS: Pre-recruiting, I was managing a team of account managers at EDS in Dallas. EDS required that all managers take a Behavioral Interviewing class (as if we didn’t know how to interview!). Well, that’s precisely what I discovered (even though it comes slowly to those of us who talk far too much). I took the class and was hooked! I discovered that I really liked the dynamics of the structured interview process and wanted to find a way to incorporate those principles in to my daily job. I decided that week to change careers and pursue recruiting.

In my first recruiting role, I was placed on-site with a big account and given my marching orders: “Fill every job. Get more jobs.” That was also the extent of my “recruiting training.” One year later I joined AT&T Wireless as a technical recruiter, not realizing how much that decision would impact my future in recruiting, as well as my focus on “wireless” (thank you Sue Baker for giving me my first corporate recruiting gig…I still love you!). Six years later, and months prior to Cingular’s acquisition of AT&T Wireless, I joined Samsung Telecommunications in Dallas, TX as the Sr. Manager of Recruiting. It was during my time at Samsung that I met Jason Davis (of Recruiting.com fame), and launched the site that would ultimately morph in to my current blog: WirelessJobs.com.

After two years at Samsung, a former AT&T boss, Paul Kemp, asked me to join his team at T-Mobile. For the next two years I had the privilege of managing their engineering recruiting team, working with the smartest, coolest, and craziest recruiters in the world!

I have since put more resources/energy toward my blog, and to continue using it as a tool to reach passive candidates. I’m enjoying my new roles and the super-fast (wow, is it ever fast!) pace of this profession.

Six Degrees: What single event had the most impact on your sourcing/recruiting career?

DENNIS: “Without a doubt, it was my first corporate recruiting gig at AT&T Wireless, because it gave me the opportunity to work with people like Sue Baker, Paul Kemp, and Ginny Eagle who challenged me and introduced me to the world of wireless at a time when the wireless industry was exploding (1996-97). I do remember one specific event that impacted me more than any other. Ginny Eagle invited this crazy man named Michael McNeal to speak at one of our internal recruiting conferences (at the time, McNeal was reinventing recruiting as the Director of Recruiting at Cisco). He was the first person who told me that I was investing too little time on the front-end with my managers (in the early stages of my recruiting process), and too much time on the back-end trying to get people hired. I know it’s not rocket science, but he basically turned my recruiting paradigm on its ear. I never looked back.”

Do you have a mentor to whom you attribute your overall outlook on recruitment, capabilities, and/or model your career after?

DENNIS:

1) Recruiting Process/Strategy: Ditto my last Dennis: Michael McNeal.
2) Networking – Dave Mendoza has influenced more than any other person in the “networking” space. I have tremendous respect for his willingness to give back to the recruiting community. He makes us better. (No folks I didn’t pay him to say that!!)
3) Community – Jason Davis, David Manaster, and John Sumser have significantly impacted my thinking with regard to “community,” and specifically, the value of our (recruiting) community. It’s been an honor to learn from them over the last few years and to watch as their efforts to build our community have reaped tremendous dividends (I’m not talking $$). When I started recruiting in 1996, I felt like it was “me against the world.” I now feel (and know) that I’m a part of something much larger than myself.

Six Degrees: Tell us about your current gig:

DENNIS: “I currently serve in a contract role at Microsoft supporting the Global Foundation Services team from my home office in north Texas. Prior, I served as the Chief Seeker of Wireless Executives at WorldLink, Inc. (it’s great when you get to make up your own job title!). While our team had a breadth of focus that spans several industries, my primary concentration was recruiting wireless executives for several large domestic and international telecom / wireless-related companies.”

Six Degrees: Tell us about your experience on the speaking circuit :

DENNIS: “I have been a panel speaker at both ERE and Kennedy Conferences, and a speaker at the Jacob Fleming Recruiting Excellence Conferences. In 2008, I look forward to serving as a Recruiting Technology (Web 2.0) Expert Panel Advisory Member for the Human Capital Institute.”

“In the years I have known Dennis he has always been kind, thoughtful and proactive. He sees the potential in people and lives up to a high standard of commitment in helping them achieve it.” July 13, 2008. Shally Steckerl, Chief CyberSleuth & Founder (Talent Acquisition Consultant), JobMachine, Inc,

“Dennis Smith is by far one of the best recruiting partners I’ve had the pleasure to work with. He collaborates on solutions that create win-win solutions and is the consummate team player. Dennis hires and leads people to success allowing them to achieve their full potential. He is accountable to company, team and customer. Whatever team Dennis is on, he takes it up a notch!” April 18, 2008
Paul Kemp, Sr. Recruiting Manager, T-Mobile USA

“Dennis Smith was guest lecturer for my Career Management & Life Transitions graduate class. Dennis’ presentation was on recruiting, social networking and interviewing. I highly recommend Dennis as a speaker. He presents his material in a very natural, relaxed manner, sprinkled with humor and intense passion for his work. My class and I thoroughly enjoyed Dennis’ presentation and more importantly learned a lot and laughed a lot – a powerful dyad in the classroom. I am confidant that Dennis’ presentation will be the highlight of the entire semester and will no doubt boost my teaching evaluation. Thanks to Dennis for delivering everything I expected and more! Candace Hinkle, SPHR Manager, Human Resources Adjunct Professor, DBU” October 21, 2007
Candy Hinkle

“Dennis is the best boss ever and just an all around great guy! He inducted me into the recruiting blogosphere and really taught me how to creatively source for candidates. He always encouraged me to push the envelope and have fun no matter what I was working on. I would recommend Dennis 100%!” May 2, 2007
Kristi Young, Contract Jr. Recruiter, T-Mobile

“Working with Dennis was a pleasure and I would be very happy to recommend him as a Recruiting Manager.” October 10, 2006
Vicki Bell, Senior Recruiter-Sales, FedEx Kinko’s

“Dennis is an exemplary manager. His skills at building relationships is key to his success. His knowledge and abilities not only help him to develop his direct reports but, others that don’t necessarily report directly to him. I’ve found that I always reach out to Dennis when I need advice on how to handle challenging issues or developing strategies related to business needs.” June 22, 2006
Susan Newman, Talent Acquisition Manager, T-Mobile

“Dennis Smith is part of the upper echelon in recruiting, the placed where the rarified air requires a hands-on leader to be both a knowledgeable business person and an insightful, creative, and persistent recruiting guru. Dennis gets “it” (I’m not talking about Verizon) and his ability to productivity connect with people, hiring managers and his fellow recruiters reflects this “it”.” May 21, 2006
Steve Levy, Principal, outside-the-box Consulting

“I have known Dennis for a long time, we first met at AT&T. Dennis is a dedicated business professional that is incredibly personable and a leader in the recruiting field. Dennis is extremely conscientious and dedicated to his work. he is a great family man and has a unique passion for people!” April 27, 2006
Kurt VandeMotter, SVP of Sales and Marketing, Bluestreak Technology

“2nd time is a charm! I’ve had the pleasure of working for Dennis twice at different companies. He encourages and makes you want to put your best foot forward. He brings a consultative approach to his clients and a fresh perspective.” February 2, 2006
Michelle Balatico-Hayes, Sr. Technical Recruiter, T-Mobile

“Dennis is one of the best managers/co-workers that I have ever worked with. Anyone who is lucky enough to work with him will know exactly what I am talking about.” January 10, 2006
Tammy Cho

“Dennis was a great asset to our Company and HR Department. Although Dennis frequently dealt with numerous challenges, he was always very professional and very easy to work with. He is very hard working and dedicated to his job and company. He also brought a much needed fun loving personality to our office. I hope I get the opportunity to work with Dennis again in the future.” December 6, 2005
Jennifer Kirby, Sr Compensation Analyst, Samsung Telecom

“I applaud Dennis management skills and his ability to challenge your thinking as a recruiter. Having been a recruiter himself gives him an edge as a manager. He listens and takes into consideration the teams’ feedback and or concerns. Dedicated describes Dennis is every aspect of his life.” December 6, 2005
Diane Pipkin, Recruiter I, T-Mobile

“I know Dennis as a recruiter for me at Samsung. He not only recruited me but also helped my team to grow from 1 to about 30. I only have to evaluate the candidate’s technical strength and adaptability to my team environment. Dennis will ensure about everything else. It was great fun to work with Dennis and see my team at Samsung grow.” December 3, 2005
Nachiket Acharya

“Dennis has busted his hump since he came in the door of this organization. I would work for Dennis again in a heart beat; he has done more for me in 30 days than any previous supervisor has done in years but I need more than 400 characters to do him justice.” December 2, 2005
Jason Hahn, Executive Recruiter, FedEx Kinko’s

“I worked with Dennis Smith at Samsung Telecommunications America and he was the Sr. Mgr, Recruiting/Staffing. He is very smart and a driven person. He is professional, humorous, and a well liked person. He tried to match great people with great jobs!” December 2, 2005
Jeanette Hotze

“I have known Dennis for some time now. We worked together in a prior assignment where I came to know his competencies; management style and follow through. We clicked immediately since our philosophies on recruiting were very similar. I was very happy we were able to maintain our network together when he moved to FedEx-Kinkos. His integrity and commitment is outstanding.” December 2, 2005.
Cal Henline

“I worked with Dennis when he was at Samsung. He is a focused and energetic individual. I would welcome the opportunity to work with him again. Should I have the appropriate opening in my organization, I would not hesitate to bring Dennis in.” December 1, 2005
Steve Gobeli

“I have 15+ years of Recruitment experience. * As Staffing Manager Dennis was very settling and positive, ALWAYS informative, supportive, available as a sounding-board, and gives direction when needed. * He would present ideas in consultative ways that would be easy digestion for our clients and upper management. * I’ve worked for only a few good Manager’s, and he is one of them…” December 1, 2005.
Antonio Young, Sr. Recruiter (Sales), FedEx Kinko’s, Sr. Manager, Recruiting

View my profile on RecruitingBlogs.com

LinkedIn | Bio | MSN | Skype

Visit RecruitingBlogs the next two days for Live streaming Videos of industry Super stars. Jason Davis and Dennis Smith play Talk Show host to the masses.

View my profile on RecruitingBlogs.com

Few people have as magnetic a personality and that news anchor way of bringing attention to people and events in the recruitment industry as Dennis Smith. I have a profound admiration for Dennis, and by way of his video blogging, you will clearly see why and what you missed at last week’s conference.

View my profile on RecruitingBlogs.com

LinkedIn | Bio | MSN | Skype

By Dave Mendoza, MasterCybersleuth, Affiliate Partner, JobMachine, Inc.
(720) 733-2022

Tuesday, November 6, 2007 at 1 p.m. (ET)

Moderator:
Jeanne Sturges, Managing Editor of RecruitingTrends.com

Panelists:
Chris Murdock, Executive Sourcer, Yahoo!
Dennis Smith, Senior Manager of Talent Acquisition, T-Mobile
George Seiters, Sr. Director Corporate Solutions Product Marketing, LinkedIn

Have you ever used an ordinary phone book to call a CEO at home – and gotten referrals from his wife?
Are you familiar with Web 2.0 technology and its power as a recruiting tool?

Have you used LinkedIn to find likely candidates?
How about “stunt” recruiting, like using the release of Halo as a way of connecting with techies?

Those are just a few examples of the kind of unconventional (but effective!) recruiting tips and techniques you’ll take away from this eye-opening interactive seminar.

Designed to provide you with successful but little known “guerrilla” tactics, this event will make you something of a magician at sourcing, boost your career, and best of all, get results!

A glance at the faculty listed above tells you that Recruiting Trends’ Jeanne Sturges has brought together a team of true experts for this event all heavy hitters with deep experience in these special techniques for sourcing difficult categories of candidates.

Sponsored by LinkedIn, this interactive seminar is FREE for you and your entire recruiting team.

Sponsored Webinar:

Uncommon Sourcing Techniques That Uncover High Value Talent
– Presented by Jeanne Sturges, Managing Editor of RecruitingTrends.com

Sponsored By:

About the Presenters:

Chris Murdock is a Sourcer with Yahoo!’s internal Executive Recruiting team in the corporate offices in Sunnyvale, CA. Chris actively drives the knowledge and talent management strategies for the acquisition of Director and Vice President candidates across all of Yahoo!’s business units. Prior to joining Yahoo, Chris was an Associate in the Menlo Park, CA office of Heidrick & Struggles and worked with software, hardware, and semiconductor clients. Chris joined H&S in January of 2001 in the Seattle office as a Research Associate and worked primarily in the technology and consumer industries. In March of 2002, Chris was relocated to Menlo Park where he eventually became a Research Associate for the technology practice and served as a global resource.

Prior to joining H&S, Chris worked in the Retail Practice of TMP Worldwide in Atlanta, GA. While with TMP, he worked on CEO, General Merchandise Manager, and various VP and Buyer level searches. Chris graduated from Vanderbilt University in 1999 with a BA in History.

Dennis Smith has over 10 years of experience in agency and corporate recruiting, primarily in the wireless industry. As an Executive Recruiting Manager for T-Mobile, he is dedicated to meeting the needs of the HotSpot and Engineering Operations teams in the company’s Central & Southern Regions. Prior to joining T-Mobile, Dennis held recruiting leadership roles at Samsung Telecommunications and AT&T Wireless. Dennis’s passion for recruiting, as well as his desire to be an active participant within the recruiting community, sparked his first blogging activity in December ’04. Since that time, he has been an active contributor in the recruiting blogosphere, participating regularly on Recruiting.com, ERE Blog Central, and his personal blog, www.WirelessJobs.com. Formerly known as the “Masked-Blogger,” Dennis currently enjoys the freedoms associated with mask-less blogging.

George Seiters is Sr. Director Corporate Solutions Product Marketing at LinkedIn. George joined LinkedIn from Advent Software, where he was the Director of Market Intelligence. In his 15 years at Advent, George developed extensive experience in business strategy and voice-of-customer based product development. Since joining LinkedIn, George has been working with corporate staffing groups to help define the next generation of LinkedIn tools for recruiting.

Consulting

Executive Careers

Executive Recruiting

Corporate Recruiting

Investor Relations

2007 Kennedy Information, Inc., a BNA Company
Phone: 800.531.0007 or +1.603.924.0900

By Dave Mendoza, Master Cybersleuth, JobMachine Inc.

At Kennedy Expo, Las Vegas on May 9th, I had the opportunity to serve as Blog Panel Moderator. I was privileged to have distinguished All-Star colleagues, such as Dennis Smith, Gretchen Ledgard, Shally Steckerl and Steve Levy join me as blog panelists, to elaborate on what forms and to what extent blogs have benefited recruiters. It was an invigorating discussion and we received fantastic questions from the general assembly. In a magnificent illustration of how dramatic Recruitment blogging has immersed itself into the mainstream within our industry, – over two thirds of the audience stood when asked if they had either heard or read a recruitment industry blog. My blog panel colleagues shared my enthusiasm with the fact that audience participation in this genre had increased significantly from prior Kennedy Expo events.

Our Blog Panel explored the following issues:

Dennis Smith, Sr. Manager, Executive Recruitment, T-Mobile USA
Over 10 years of experience in agency and corporate recruiting, primarily in the wireless industry. As a Talent Acquisition Manager for T-Mobile, he is dedicated to meeting the needs of the HotSpot and Engineering Operations teams in the company’s Central & Southern Regions. Dennis’s passion for recruiting, as well as his desire to be an active participant within the recruiting community, sparked his first blogging activity in December ’04. Since that time, he has been an active contributor in the recruiting blogosphere, participating regularly on Recruiting.com, ERE Blog Central, and his personal blog, TalentBloggers.com. Formerly known as the “Masked-Blogger,” Dennis currently enjoys the freedoms associated with mask-less blogging.

Gretchen Ledgard, co-founder of JobSyntax
Gretchen Ledgard is a technical recruiter turned employment marketer. As a co-founder of JobSyntax, Gretchen helps software engineers and small technology companies develop and implement personal and employment marketing strategies. Prior to JobSyntax, Gretchen worked at the Microsoft Corporation where she sourced, evaluated, and closed software engineers for the company’s international, college, and industry recruiting teams and later managed marketing programs which attracted the industry’s best technical talent to the company. Gretchen holds a BA in English Literature from Vanderbilt University.

Shally Steckerl, Chief Cybersleuth, JobMachine Inc.
Shally is a talent acquisition strategist, speaker and recruitment consultant originally from Columbia, South America, now residing in Atlanta, GA. Most recently Mr. Steckerl managed the Research Arm of Microsoft’s Core Technical Assistance Sourcing team. Prior to joining Microsoft he has consulted with leading organizations such as Google, Genetech, Disney, Wal-Mart, Coca-Cola Enterprises, Cisco Systems, and Motorola where he has been instrumental in architecting centralized recruitment models. Because of his passion for the Internet as a recruitment tool and his continually innovative methods, Mr. Steckerl has developed a reputation as an authority in Internet search, and a pioneer in recruitment research. An accomplished author, consultant, and trainer, Mr. Steckerl is a frequent contributor to many industry forums and speaker at leading conferences. He is the founder of JobMachine, Inc. and www.jobmachine.net. He is the 2005 Recruiting.com Winner of the Best Recruiting Research Blog Award for his blog, Cybersleuthing.

Steve Levy, Out of The Box Consulting
Bringing to the table substantial business experience outside of HR (sales, marketing, information technology, software development, management consulting, patent law), Steve works with companies to plan, design and implement creative systems, processes and infrastructures that improve workforce planning, talent acquisition, and talent management while strengthening financial and operational performance under demanding business conditions. Steve was the Electronic Recruiting Exchange’s first blogger and presently offers his points of view on sourcing, recruiting, on-boarding, and business with Maureen Sharib on The Recruiting Edge (Blog of the Year Nominee, 2006). He is on the Board of Directors for the New Jersey Metro EMA, the Board of Advisors for JibberJobber.com and BountyJobs.com, and the Metrics Committee of the HR Metrics Consortium.

NOTE: Stay Tuned for Information on the Next Kennedy Conference & Expo in Orlando, Florida on November 12 & 13, 2007.

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Voices from the Recruitment Blogosphere

Today, I thank CM for taking the time and effort to respond and participate in this week long series as we develop a collective discussion on the value proposition of recruitment blogging as both Influencer and StakeHolder.

By CM Russell,
Founder, Author of Recruitingfly.com

1. 1) What substantive **EXAMPLES** exist where blogs have influenced the products vendors develop, or the way products are marketed, etc?

I see blogs increasingly being used as PR platforms for new products and industry news. Some companies are starting blogs to promote themselves and foster communication with clients (i,.e. http://www.bullhorn.com/blog) while some PR professionals are reaching out to industry bloggers to announce new products in hopes the blogger will review or mention it. (i.e. http://secretsofthejobhunt.blogspot.com/2006/11/whototalktocom-new-job-referral.html>)

2. What instances would you suggest are instructive in terms of the power of viral marketing where recruitment blogs have played a major role?

Cheezhead’s ebay auction for his trip to SHRM last year. Without the blogosphere it wouldn’t have happend. Other than that most of the viral examples would be negative ones like the buzz surrounding jobster’s recent announcements. Most of the posts were of the negative variety surrounding their moves.

3. What we are looking to highlight is the transition from journal to industry partner, and any perspectives you can share would be helpful.

Perspective: the smart recruiters/hr pros are using blogs to reach candidates on a more human level. I cite 2 bloggers as example, Dennis Smith, Staffing Manager, Engineering at T-Mobile who writes the blog wirelessjobs.com and Martin Burns of ZoomInfo who writes “Good to Know”. Both of them are company sponsored blogs and both attractive candidates. The cost: $0. Priceless!

Here’s another possible example;

Use of Adwords by Accenture….might they have listened to Cheezman?

http://recruitingfly.blogspot.com/2007/02/accenture-recruiting-in-adwords.html

CM Russell