Making The Irrefutable Offer

Under experience, i see you are an expert fetch player? Excellent!

The most crucial part of the hiring process might seem like it’s the interviewing and the vetting, but in reality the success of a candidate placement comes down to you, the Employer. When you have a talented, successful, and vetted candidate sitting in front of you, it should make you a bit nervous not to mess this up. This candidate most likely has other options but is interested in you. Think back to your teenage years of dating when your heart had butterflies and you had nervous hand sweats, and would like, totally die if you messed anything up. This is how we want you to feel about the candidates.

Now that we have you nervous, you can calm down because we’ve got you covered.

When giving your candidate an offer, you have your budget and you have your wiggle room with offering price. But there is more to a successful job offer than just the agreement on number. Here are some ways to make your top candidate an irrefutable offer!

Don’t Drag Your Feet: A candidate this awesome doesn’t come around very often and it’s up to you to grab him before he’s gone. Besides, the interviewing process is long enough without the added delay in decision-making, right? Best policy, day of final interview with the candidate, make a decision and contact them with the offer! Not only are you easing your own and the candidate’s nervousness, it shows enthusiasm that you want them. Everyone wants to be wanted after all.

To Call or Email the Offer? Call them! Remember when we talked about enthusiasm for the candidate? Calling the candidate with the offer so you can convey your excitement for them and be able to answer any questions they might have.

If you call and there is no answer, leave a message for the candidate to call you back and send an email stating the same as your voicemail!

Explain Benefits to a T: Explain your benefits and pay as accurately as possible will help the candidate make his decision quickly and give them a sense of trust for you. This will also be beneficial to you later down the road when an employee is not expecting more out of you then what was promised.

Get A Commitment: Your candidate might want some time to think about your offer, which is OK. However, make sure that you ask if there is anything you can clear up that might be making them hesitate. You want to see what they think about the offer in order to make their acceptance more likely.

Write it out: Now that you have given a verbal offer to the candidate, write it all down in either an email or a letter and send it to the candidate. Be sure to give them a deadline to get a ‘yes’ or a ‘no’ back to you within two to three days. This will hopefully keep them from dragging out the acceptance process.

Of course your Search Solution Group recruiter will be involved in the steps of the offer process, so if you have any questions, we are here to help!

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7 Ways to Ace a Web Cam Interview!

Congrats! You have an interview! Wait, did he say Web Cam Interview?  He sure did!  Before you panic about bad lighting, freezing pictures, and looking like a goof, follow these steps and look like a million bucks!

Eye Contact

Where are you supposed to look? The picture of the person? Yourself? Your eyes are getting anxious just at the thought of getting distracted and not looking in the right place!

The expert recruiters at Search Solution Group suggest Covering The Screen with a piece of paper so only the tiny little camera is showing. This will force you to look at the camera consistently.  It’s good to practice this strategy with a friend, or with your recruiter, before the interview.

Eye Contact Is Important

Quiet On The Set!

If you are planning on having this Web Cam Interview at home, be sure to do it in a quiet room and turn the ringer to silent on both cell and home phones. Keep your children, boyfriend/girlfriend, and pets out of the room.

Try your best to do this interview on your own time unless your employers are OK with you interviewing while at work. If you must interview while you’re at work, try to plan it for your lunch break when you are less likely to get distracted from co-workers and phone calls.

Clean It Up

A messy background can be distracting for your interviewer as well as project an unprofessional light on you. Don’t set up in the kitchen or living room. Find a space with a closed door, blank or tidy wall, and set up a table for your computer. If you are set up in an office, clean up your desk of all disorganized papers and only have relevant materials available for the interview. This will give you more organization and prevent distractions.

Be sure to have the camera on a direct level with your face. Having to angle the camera up at your face will give you a few extra chins as well as a possible up the nose shot. Gross.

Body Language

Nonverbal Communication accounts for two-thirds of what we humans try to communicate. This is why someone who seems like a terrible human being over the phone, is actually very happy and normal in person. The trick with Web Cams are that your brain is telling you to focus on verbal rather than nonverbal since there isn’t a physical person in front of you. Because of this conundrum, you must now consciously focus on your posture, hand gestures, and facial movements in order to make a good impression.

Prep Your Lighting

Lighting is super important when dealing with Web Cam interviews. The right lighting can make you look like a movie star, and the wrong lighting can make you look like the troll from under a bridge.  It might seem like overkill, but even if the room you’re in has natural lighting, and the room is well-lit,  take a lamp of some sort and aim the light directly at your face. Make sure this is a part of your practice to get the best angles and prevent awkward shadows.

Dress The Part

While it might be funny to wear a dress shirt on top and sweats on bottom, our recruiters suggest wearing what you would wear if you went to an in person interview. You will feel more professional and have better posture. Wear brighter SOLID colors  as to not get washed out or be distracting on camera. Ladies might want to wear a bit more makeup than normal.

Smile!

A friendly and confident smile is the best accessory to any in-person, phone, and web cam interview!

Talent Recognition at SSG and The Emmy Awards

Breaking bad finally won the Best Drama Emmy award after 5 season of heart stopping, nail biting, and gut wrenching epic drama. It’s about time!  Another shout out to Homeland and the lovely Claire Danes for winning Best Actress in a Drama! Homeland not only is a fantastic show, but it’s shot in various parts of Charlotte. It’s always fun recognizing places in Charlotte on Homeland. We at Search Solution Group know  we’re excited for the new season to start next week! Apparently a ton of people thought that the Emmys were so strange that the hashtag #WeirdEmmys was trended so rapidly that the internet exploded and Teens everywhere had to actually talk to communicate instead of tweet their every thought.

Great talent comes in many different forms and it is great when an actor or actress gets recognized for their talent and hard work. If Search Solution Group was a TV show, we would probably be one of the most entertaining dramatic comedies to exist. It would all start around the table eating lunch and the ladies have pulled a fast one and changed the TV from the normal sport center to E! news in order to catch up on the latest fashion faux pas of the red carpet. The gentlemen at the table are wide-eyed and horrified at the prospect of not having sports news at lunch. Drama and a near riot ensues, however, they do learn that overalls are making a comeback in fashion. The next day a candidate comes in wearing some fashionable, yet interview inappropriate overalls. We all have a good laugh, the guys tune into E! news more often, and Search Solution Group the brilliant TV show wins Best Dramatic Comedy at the 2014 Emmys. It’s going to happen and it will be #WeirdEmmys2.0!

SSG’s Got Talent!

As an employer, hiring involves time, money, and effort digging through resumes that often result in junk candidates that would be a further waste of time and money. Your frustrating stint in recruiting has left you not wanting to hire anyone, but knowing that you seriously need to fill the position unless you want to be in the poor house.

You might as well sell your business, move to Portland, and live the rest of your days selling organic chicken and growing moon gardens. Yeah, grow some balls and commit to working with the best Executive Search Firm, Search Solution Group.

Here are some reasons why Search Solution Group is the Neiman Marcus of the recruiting world.

• Partnership: From the start of our partnership, Search Solution Group works to develop a strategy that fits your wants and needs like a glove. Search Solution Group works primarily as a retainer Search Firm, meaning that we are paid for our services up front. The benefit of this form of contract is the expertise that comes with working with a retainer Search Firm. While this is our normal procedure, Search Solution Group’s main goal is to find you Top Talent and will work under a contingency contract. This means that we would get paid once the best candidate is found and hired by you.
• Tailored Fit: We tailor your experience to make it the best. If you need help writing a job description, we are more than happy to utilize our expertise to provide that service.
• Streamlined Process: Open communication, diligent effort, persistent pursuit of the perfect candidate, and years of expertise allows Search Solution Group to streamline the recruiting process to bring you top talent quickly.
• Constant Contact: We give you email addresses, phone numbers, cell phone numbers, and are available to your needs 7 days a week. Search Solution Group is extremely communicative and consultative to give high levels of attention to each client.
• Professional Courtesy: Like the attendants who you trust with finding the best quality and correctly fitting suit at Neiman Marcus, the Executive Recruiters at Search Solution Group fit you with Top Talent with a professional manner. Our strong team of seasoned recruiting professionals use their networking, social media, and communications expertise to explore and find the most suitable and desirable candidates for managerial and executive-level positions.
• Fearless: While Search Solution Group consists of  professional and courteous Executive Recruiters, they fear nothing and expect success in every effort they make. Search Solution Group recruiters are aggressive, fearless, and ruthless when finding you the best candidate. We WILL headhunt talent from your competitors if it means finding you the perfect fit.

• The Dollar Bill: Search Solution Group gives you great talent guaranteed. When committing to the best Executive Search Firm, the price versus the return on investment is more important. Focus on the fact that Search Solution Group will bring you the best quality candidates out there. We search for the needle in the haystack for every client. No exceptions.
• NOT a one-trick pony: Search Solution Group doesn’t just specialize in one industry, We specialize in all industries. Our recruiters have placed candidates in industries that include: Manufacturing, Retail Management,  Distribution, Restaurant, Food and beverage distribution, Management, Energy, Health Care, Consumer Product Goods, Hospitality, Logistics, Oil and Gas, and Technology. Within these industries we place people in Human Resources, Talent Acquisition, Compensation & Benefits, Training, Supply Chain, Operations, Accounting, Finance, and Engineering. 
  
• Constantly Improving: Search Solution Group strongly believes that in order to be the best at what we do, we can never become stagnant or stale. Staying on top of new technologies and systems allows Search Solution Group to continue improving. We are constantly learning, reading, and gaining knowledge that could give you an advantage over your competitor when it comes to what skills your candidates should have.
• We think globally: As a top performing Executive Search Firm, we do not limit ourselves to working with candidates and clients from specific regions or countries. We think globally when searching for candidates. If there is a person living in London who we know will be your best option, we will get that person for you.
• Provide Advice: Search Solution Group believes in providing helpful, accurate, and relevant advice to both candidates and clients through this blog and our website. We are a social and communicative recruiter. You can find us on Facebook, twitter, LinkedIn, and obviously through this blog!  You can also read useful career advice White Pages on Search Solution Group’s website. 

Big Employment is Baloney

A recent question submitted to Career Mojo got us  at Search Solution Group a bit baffled. The question was “How do I get a job with a large company?”  The questioner wanted to land a position with a large fortune 500 company but thought she was being looked down upon for her lack of corporate experience.

The reason this was perplexing is that working for a small company is waaaaaay better than being a number at a large company. The enigmatic logic that the only way to have a successful career is with a large company is dead wrong. While it may be awesome to just sit around all day and wade through the red tape created by corporate culture, working at a small company doesn’t allow the option to be just a cog in the wheel, but a linchpin. The magnificent book by Seth Godin, ‘Linchpin: Are you indispensable?‘ is a good guide to becoming a passionate worker. If you haven’t read it yet, go buy it. Right now.

It is so easy to just become an amorphous lump of clay in a large company and  it takes Houdini-esque performance to care about the projects you are working on when you don’t see the point. You might have a small role in a project, but wouldn’t it be better to directly impact the company with your ideas?

Directly and drastically impacting the direction of development!

Yes, that is a lot of alliteration, and two it is what those who work for small companies get to take part in on a daily basis. It is a lot of accountability, but that’s what makes it great. Having stake in your work makes you a passionate worker and develops you into a successful human being. Another perk is having access to close mentoring and an employer invested in your success.

So you get your voice heard, you don’t have to deal with the annoying corporate red-tape, you have closer relationships with colleagues, you have an accountability and feeling of ownership of projects, AND you get to wear lots of hats (preferably fancy hats)  that lead to a well-rounded professional skill set.

Golden Post-Interview Steps To Take

After an interview, as soon as you can get back to your computer, send a quick and thoughtful email thanking the interviewers for their time.

The age-old suggestion to send a thank you note after an interview is still the best step to take. It doesn’t take long to write a simple note and it’s a good way to reiterate your interest in the position. Plus, any extra time that the interviewer is thinking of you positively is a huge plus.

A good tip to remember when writing your thank you email and note is to KISS ( Keep It Simple Stupid ) !

Sample Layout of a successful thank you note:

Paragraph one: A few quick sentences on your appreciation for the interview and their time. Remind them why you are writing.. to thank them! 

Paragraph two: This is the part where you remind the interviewer of how you are a great fit for the position and how you will be an asset to their company. If you felt you need to improve or add to any question that occurred in the interview, now is your time.

Paragraph three: Emphasize your enthusiasm and appreciation again, thank them, and if you had discussed the follow up process, mention how you are looking forward to following up with them soon. 

After you have squared away the important pleasantries, get down to business taking notes on your impression of the company, how you think you did in the interview, and ways to improve your next interview with the company.

Unless the company asked you to get back in touch with them if you have heard from them in a designated time-frame, only reach out to your recruiter if a week has passed and you haven’t heard any response.

Search Solution Group Recruiters are always willing to help with any step of your interview process!

The Great Zig Ziglar: Attitude is Everything

The great Zig Ziglar once said, “Your attitude, not aptitude, will determine your altitude”. As a gregarious and genuinely happy person, Zig Ziglar knew that putting ones best mind forward was the first step to becoming a successful person both in business and personal life.

You can watch Zig Ziglar speak about attitude HERE.

 Now, what do attitude and Zig Ziglar have to do with finding or being the best candidate? People naturally gravitate towards someone who is truly happy with their work, courteous, and inviting towards others. Faking a good personality is not the easiest thing to do, so when hiring, looking at a candidate’s demeanor and personality is going to show you more of their potential than just looking at their achievements.

For those striving to adjust your attitude, follow these few steps laid out by Zig Ziglar in his book “Zig on selling”.

• Accept the fact that you can control your attitude
• Make the commitment to do whatever is necessary to control your attitude
• Evaluate every book, movie, TV show, and game before reading, viewing, or playing with the question “ is this going to help my personal, family, or business life, or is there a better use of my time?”
• Learn one new word every day. The average American only learns 25 new words a year, so by learning a new word every day, you would have a huge advantage in life.
• Read something of value to you for 20 minutes every day. Reading is a dying art form that can truly advance your understanding of the world.
• Use your commute time to learn something. 20% of Americans have a commute that is 20-29 minutes. By using that time to learn a new language or listen to a book, it turns your brain on and makes it work harder and become better every day.
• Carefully choose who you associate with professionally and personally. Having people around you who have the right attitude will help you to be the best that you can be.

I AM THANKFUL FOR…

Hello again!

I must have received a couple hundred emails about my lack of blogs the last few weeks. My sincerest apologies so let me explain and catch everyone up.

Jeremy

This has been a crazy year and it isn’t over yet. But with that being said

I am thankful for once again realizing who my true friends are. I am thankful for the Merrigan’s moving to Charlotte.

I am thankful for an awesome work team that works hard every day and are truly the least selfish people I have ever met.

I am thankful for Tanner who is going to be turning 10 and is still able to jump into the SUV everyday for work. I am thankful for a good Dad.

I am super thankful for Charleston, SC and all the awesomeness it brought to us this past summer.

I am thankful for loyal clients and clients who have given SSG a chance. I am thankful for people who can forgive and understand.

I am thankful for the simple things like a Thank You or a smile. I can go on and on, but

I really am thankful despite my need for sarcasm and my lack of patience at times. I am really thankful for everyone who knows the real me and still comes back for more.

Stella

“I am thankful for Jeremy Gnozzo. Let me repeat myself….I am thankful for Jeremy Gnozzo”

 

Eric

With this time of year being reserved for reflections and reminiscing, here are a few thoughts of my own. I feel obligated to share the great appreciation that I have for the wonderful family, friends, and co-workers that I have been so fortunate to accrue over the years, along with their collective health and prosperity. Some people are blessed with good looks or an exceptional talent; I feel that my blessing in life is the people that surround me day in and day out.

In light of recent events here in the United States as well as abroad, I would like to expand on a certain aspect of my life for which I give thanks every single morning. Given the growing political and/or cultural climate in our great country, I am taking this opportunity to give thanks for MY ABILITY AND OPPORTUNITY TO WORK AND CONTRIBUTE to our society. Our emerging generation seems to have lost the excitement that can be found in working hard, being determined, achieving results, and relying on oneself as opposed to hoping and praying for assistance from another source. We live in America, where it is possible to come from NOTHING and be as successful as you’d like. In my opinion this attitude is fading and being replaced by apathy, a sense of entitlement, and the pointing of fingers at others for personal shortcomings.

My hope is that as people reflect on the past year and their own blessings they will also take an introspective glance and pledge to work harder, strive for greater results, and find a renewed spirit of competitiveness and drive that can return ourselves, our families, and our country to the prosperity that we all deserve

Elena

I’m thankful for God because every day he shows me signs to the right path in my life. Either by people he puts in my life (both good and bad) or experiences he makes me go through, I’m thankful that his presence is always with me and every day, he makes me stronger.

I’m thankful for my family and friends who have been here for me through this very difficult year.

I’m thankful to the people I work with.

And I’m thankful to my boss, for giving me the opportunity to work and develop my skill set while looking for the right path in my life.

Ashley

I’m thankful for my loving family

I’m thankful for wine

I’m thankful for my friends

I’m thankful for my health and happiness

I’m thankful that I have heat because I’m always cold

I’m thankful for my best friend Christina

I’m thankful that I met and fell in love with my boyfriend

I’m thankful that I found a job that I can succeed at and work with amazing people who make me laugh

I’m thankful for Amelie’s salted caramel brownies

Vince

I am thankful for my three beautiful children, an awesome and promising future with Search Solution Group, and great friends and family!

 

Michelle

I am thankful for my family, baby clothes and old friends

 

Julie

I am thankful for my pets and more pets

 

Aaron

I am thankful for the Cleveland Browns not being the worse football team and Iphone apps.

I am thankful for the folks at Search Solution Group and especially Tanner!

 

Tanner

I am thankful for Jeremy (aka my dad) bringing me to the office every day.

I am thankful for Eric leaving his garbage can very low so I can steal paper.

I am thankful for getting table scraps from everyone at lunch.

I am thankful for my daily walks and lying on people’s feet under their desks at the office.

I am thankful that everyone forgives me for my bad gas that I cannot control….ha!

 

Lauryn

I am thankful for God who leads me each day and helps me to be the best

person I can be.

I am thankful for old friends, new friends, and all the memories we have made together this year.

I am thankful for my amazing siblings I can’t imagine my life without them.

I am thankful for having the strongest, most caring, and talented mom in the world.

I am thankful for my dad and the way he believes in me.

I am thankful for my extremely large yet close family we are so blessed to have so many of us to lean on for support.

I am thankful for my job(s) and the great people I work with

I am especially thankful this year for my independence

“If you are going to be a Bear, be a GRIZZLY”

REPUBLICAN OR DEMOCRAT? BIG BIRD OR ELMO?

 

Republican or Democrat, shit you could even be an alien and there is a good chance you know what Sesame Street is; Ernie, Bert, Oscar the Grouch, Cookie Monster (my favorite), Elmo and the forever infamous Big Bird.

We all practically grew up with Sesame Street and these characters. But why would you want to pick on Big Bird and get rid of him? He is by far the biggest of all the puppets and I imagine could be a really mean drunk if he is drinking. Plus hanging out with Elmo all day would piss me off and make me want to drink! I might even recommend anger management classes just to deal with Elmo all week. Don’t pretend you never wondered why someone hasn’t beaten up Elmo.

Think about Elmo for a moment. He is the new guy on the street (Baltimore crew); he just walked in and is all of a sudden is the center of attention. What has Elmo really accomplished? A few holidays ago he was the hot toy stuffed with plastic and feathers. If you pushed a button he would dance, make some noise, be amusing for a moment then quickly become annoying and never leave your house. HELLLLLL if I wanted that in my life I would date another stripper, stuffed with plastic, annoying, amusing for a few moments and really never leaves your house, PLUS is any stripper really a good “dancer”. I don’t think so. There is not much of a difference between that loser Elmo and a bad pole-dancing stripper.

Now Big Bird is the guy who is going to be the center on the puppet basketball team, the fighter on the puppet hockey team and be the first to stand up for his other fellow puppets. There are no other big puppets on Sesame Street, but what about the Muppets? Kermit, the great Gonzo and Miss Piggy they could use a seven foot yellow bird in their crew. Big Bird would make the Muppets a power house, a potential dynasty and give them street cred (as we say in the hood).

Regardless of whether you liked Mitt’s debate the other night he could be the catalyst that finally brings Kermit a puppet championship. It’s tough being green, as Kermit would say. But finally that conniving weasel Elmo would be on the unemployment line or forced to be on stage dancing to “Pour Some Sugar on Me” by Def Leppard. From what I hear is the most popular stripper song of all time, again from what I hear.

I wouldn’t know…I’m practically a saint!