to quote mary mcgovern
Yesterday I was pretty torn between two industry thinkers/doers, cheesman and weddle (via cheeseman). The arguments in their postings were sound, but I have to admit – for some reason the assertions on either side just felt off (for things that you have an opinion on but you can’t explain why please see blink).
I am contrary to summarising other bloggers’ discourse (maybe just lazy) so you just gonna have to read them; trust me am doing this for your own good.
Well from that read, here’s my tablet:
- There are no passive or active job seekers. If you’re looking for a job, you’re looking for a job. The theme has been seriously harmed by the fact that job board or career site visitors have been called “active”.
- If you are an extraordinary performer, you will always make time to look for the next best thing, specially if your current occupation is not fulfilling, or if you are ever ambitious, etc. But if you decide not to go to a job board and instead use your network, present biz cases to potential employers, research the company, etc. doesn’t mean you are passive!
- The job board visitor, amongst which there is a number of serial applicants, do what the AP headhunter pointed in his post should not be done (via Michael). If by any chance someone is to be called passive is the guy that puts 200 jobs in the basket facility on your site, pushes the apply now button and waits for offers. I am not calling him active, or passive.. I am calling him lazy.
- Job boards and vertical search engines might end up being the lazy job seeker tools of choice.
- Lazy job seekers might create a lot of churn, but I won’t say (yet) that these are lesser-quality candidates.
- Online classifieds tend to send unqualified leads to advertisers (Weddle says that only happens in recruitment; I say there are tyre-kickers for real estate ads, and – ahem – cars). One solution for the hirer might be to pay the advertiser per qualified lead (e.g. an applicant not rejected in the first filter – visa permits, etc.)
- The challenge for those who decide to put up a corporate career site is how to avoid the unsuitable lazy job seeker.
I am going to get me a helmet now, just in case. Have a great weekend.
