Thursday, May 08, 2008
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| History is bunk. (Henry Ford) |
| Posted by: Bryan Dilts |
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Henry had it right in one sense. History is only the start. What you do tomorrow depends you.
Screwed up yesterday? Okay. Now get today right.
History is bunk. Don't let it be a crutch for failure.
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Still trying to find Flash internet programming in Lancaster, vb.net in Hanover, PA and Harrisburg, PA.
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Wednesday, May 07, 2008
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| Outsourcing is wonderful |
| Posted by: Bryan Dilts |
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China graduates 5 times the college kids that the USA does. Good thing. They have a huge market. China, India, Vietnam, and the Philippines can use a lot of help to get up to American standards.
What keeps the USA great is that we are constantly trying to make life BETTER than it is in America. Everyone else is just trying to make life as good as America.
The outsourcing is done to raise other countries to our level. No one in the USA is outsourcing jobs and raising another country above our level.
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Right now I am trying to find a good Flash programmer in Lancaster PA.
I also need VB.Net programmers in Hanover, PA and Harrisburg, PA.
Know anyone?
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Wednesday, April 09, 2008
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| The tooth fairy is dead, long live the tooth fairy |
| Posted by: Bryan Dilts |
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"You are only great when you believe it."
The Tooth Fairy
My 9 year old, Miriam, told my 6 year old, Micah, that there is no tooth fairy. So he put a note with his tooth that said, "Mom or Dad, I know you are the tooth fairy."
Well, that note disappeared and a new one appeared. It said, "I only take the teeth of children who believe in me. The Tooth Fairy." The tooth was still there, and no money.
Micah was sad this morning. When I finally got him to tell me what happened we had a talk about things that really are. I had Miriam join us.
There are 3 levels of reality.
1. Things that exist. They are. Some are easy to prove, some aren't. They are the same for everyone whether we believe in them or not. The earth, our family, God. They all exist. They don't depend on anything else.
2. Things that are, but not for everyone. We talked about love. Miriam and Micah know they love me. They can't prove it. It can change. But it is very real.
3. Things that exist only while we believe in them. Harry Potter and Mickey Mouse only exist when you believe in them enough to let go and enjoy that story for a few minutes. The tooth fairy only comes when you believe in her. Santa stops coming to our house for you when you stop believing in him or get married. We never believed in the Easter Bunny, so he never came. But he comes to other houses. Even if the Easter Bunny is really just a person who decides he is the Easter Bunny and hides some candy, that is a real Easter Bunny while people believe in him. He is the Easter Bunny.
You are only a great company, salesperson, or country when you believe it. When you stop believing it, you stop being great.
So I suspect that a different note will be under the pillow tonight. Believing in things that only exist when you believe in them is good.
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Wednesday, April 02, 2008
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| Wire Transfer Supervisor |
| Posted by: Bryan Dilts |
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I just got a request to find a Wire Transfer Supervisor for a bank in the Lancaster/Lebanon, PA area.
It is nice to have long term relationships with banks. This comes directly from that.
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| A serial liar |
| Posted by: Bryan Dilts |
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I just got another resume from a guy who can't tell the truth. Each year or two he gets fired (you figure out why). He updates his resume, changing dates of jobs and adding or removing jobs as he sees fit. Then he sends it out.
I confronted him about it years ago. His reply was, "It's not my fault. Everyone is prejudiced against me. Besides, everyone lies. I'm going to lie to them because they are going to lie to me about the job anyway."
Seriously. That is what he said.
It doesn't matter how much I need someone with his talents, I would never go to that poisoned pool. I still check his resume against my records, hoping he has changed. He hasn't yet.
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Right now I am in the middle of a search for a PERL programmer for the Gettysburg, PA area.
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| You need 3 resumes - even online |
| Posted by: Bryan Dilts |
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I just finished talking with a guy who needs three resumes. He can manage, be technical, and do analysis. The trouble is that those three things are incompatible on his resume. So now he will have three different, very focused resumes.
How do you manage that on the job boards?
There are more than three major job boards. He puts a different resume on each job board. Since recruiters use all the job boards, the chances are that one recruiter will find him for any given job.
No problems.
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Monday, March 31, 2008
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| Waiting and getting very mad |
| Posted by: Bryan Dilts |
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It has been 3 weeks since someone loudly complained, threatened, and threw a hissy-fit because it had taken more than a week for me to tell them if they were going to be interviewed. That's a record.
I'm used to having people applying for jobs under $60,000 per year complain a lot about how long it takes to get hired. They have no patience. If someone doesn't ask to interview them, and then hire them immediately it is a personal offense.
Funny thing, the guys earning over $100K rarely get upset about the length of the hiring process. They know they are asking for a lot of money. They're willing to wait. Sure, they'll call me twice a week, but they don't get upset.
I wonder if getting upset when people don't immediately love you and hire you is one of the reasons those moaners rarely break into the high paying ranks?
I don't know the answer, but the coincidence is interesting.
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| A strange recession |
| Posted by: Bryan Dilts |
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I don't know if we really are in a recession. We are definitely in a slowdown. So, is now the time to hang on to your current job?
That depends on how good your current company is. If your company is hurting and you can get a job at a better company, do it.
If your current company is in serious trouble, you know there will be layoffs. Get ahead of the curve and get a new job if there is any chance you will be terminated. And remember, sometimes they get rid of the best people because they are paying them the most already.
Why get out of your job at the beginning of a slowdown or recession? Because it is easier to find a job at the beginning of a recession before an additional million people are looking for a job.
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Tuesday, December 04, 2007
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| IT talent crunch in India |
| Posted by: Bryan Dilts |
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IT talent in India is falling short of demand. The biggest problem is creating enough people with management and technical architecture skills. Regular programmers are also a problem.
One of the beauties of the Indian economy's growth is that the more it grows, the more it consumes. For now they are happy providing labor for US/European markets. But the internal markets are blossoming too. Indian demand is sucking away the talent base that America wants to exploit, and causing the top Indian talent to focus on what Indians love most, India.
I'm not worried about IT jobs disappearing to India. There is still a shortage of people who can do the job in the USA.
I have two openings for Cognos programmers west of Harrisburg, PA. I need a VB.Net programmer who has a lot of stored procedures experience in Philadelphia. I am looking for an Oracle Financials programmer in Harrisburg, PA. And let's not mention the dearth of cost accountants. I could place 10 CPA's who want to stay in public practice in the next two weeks.
There are openings. Now I need to find the workers
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Wednesday, November 28, 2007
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| Rethinking loyalty to companies and employees |
| Posted by: Bryan Dilts |
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Can a Harvard teacher be wrong? There is a great article at http://hbswk.hbs.edu/item/5000.html .
It talks about the redefinition of loyalty. You can be loyal to your company while you are there, and then be loyal to your next company too. It is kind of like dating. While you are dating you can be loyal to this friend, then loyal to the next one too.
I like the concept.
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Right now I am looking hardest for an EMR specialist in Harrisburg, PA. That means Electronic Medical Records. I need someone who can do project management and analysis on computer systems for that position.
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Wednesday, November 07, 2007
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| Where do recruiters find great candidates? |
| Posted by: Bryan Dilts |
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According to one survey recruiters like me find their best candidates at:
Job Boards: 19%
Job Fairs: 2%
Networking: 50%
Referrals: 29%
In other words, we only rely on the internet for a starting point. We usually go way beyond that to find the candidates to fill a job.
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Monday, October 22, 2007
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| How to help someone who doesn’t know what they want |
| Posted by: Bryan Dilts |
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Yesterday I was asked to help someone who "wants to get into computers". He's a smart guy. Unfortunately he really doesn't know what he wants yet.
Getting into computers can mean programming, writing video games, fixing PC's, running manufacturing robots, taking care of networks, doing business analysis, writing web pages, or writing email ads. So what does he really want to do? He doesn't know.
My job is clear. Help him figure out what he really wants to do. The funny thing is that it may not really involve computers. The first step to getting the job you want is to have a goal, and do whatever it takes to reach that goal. As you strive towards that goal you will find out more about what you really want to be doing for your career.
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Friday, October 19, 2007
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| He turned down the job offer |
| Posted by: Bryan Dilts |
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Sometimes the job is just not right. You get the offer you wanted, for the job you wanted, and you have to turn it down. It is not a problem when the job is NOT what you expected. If you find out the company or work environment has problems, tell them no before they make an offer. It is when the offer is everything you expected and you have to turn it down, that there is a problem.
I had that happen yesterday. It hurts. The candidate should have done the soul searching after each interview. The job was not turned down because of anything job or company related. They all exceeded his expectations. It was turned down for personal reasons. I'm glad he could see the reasons, I just wish he had done his soul searching earlier.
So, I am looking for a Controls Engineer again. Someone who knows PLC's, electronics debugging, ProfiBus, etc. It is a great job at Harrisburg, PA.
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Tuesday, October 09, 2007
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| He said, "Recruiters have never done much for me." |
| Posted by: Bryan Dilts |
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I was talking to a job hunter who said, "Recruiters have never done much for me."
I understand the sentiment. It depends on what you expect. As a recruiter I help people get jobs. I also do a whole lot more.
1. I help you get your resume to look good enough to get you interviews.
2. I find jobs you didn't know about and submit you for them.
3. I talk to hiring managers and try to give you an unfair advantage.
4. I give you guidance on better interviewing.
5. I remind you to send a thank you note after the interview.
6. I follow up and follow up and follow up with hiring managers.
7. I negotiate a higher salary.
8. I help you resign successfully.
9. I smooth the way into your new job.
Now, you'll notice that a bunch of those I do whether you get the job or not. As a recruiter I may not get you a job that I find for you, but I will help you get a job even if I am not paid for it.
One more thing. If I find a better candidate anytime during the process, I will present him to the company. My driving loyalty is getting the best person for the job. I am absolutely not committed to second best. I'll help you, but you need to be the best candidate for a job. Live with it.
I help people get jobs. I help some people get the job I send their resume off to. However, I have a huge impact on a lot of job seekers as I help them to become more employable, even if I don't find them a particular job.
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Monday, October 01, 2007
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| 4 new jobs in 2 weeks - and casinos |
| Posted by: Bryan Dilts |
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It feels like a casino. Sometimes the odds catch up with you, and you win.
In the last two weeks I have placed 4 people in new jobs. I would love to do that every two weeks. The fact is that I work hard and do that maybe twice a year. In between I have months with no placements, and months with 1 or 2 placements.
The difference between my job recruiting and placing people in jobs, and a casino, is that I only help people. I don't take money from little old ladies or people who are spending their family food budget to gamble. When I find a great person for a great company, the company pays me. I help hte company make a lot more money, and they give me a chunk of it.
In the meantime I also have the chance to help people make positive moves in their careers. It may be going from unemployed to working. Even more likely is that the person is moving from one job and company to a better job at a better company.
I'll keep playing the odds. I'm trying to figure out a system so that I can consistently place 4 people every 2 weeks. Whether I can or not, I'll be helping people with their resumes, networking, interview skills, and career goals.
I love my job. Now I just need to get better at it.
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Friday, September 28, 2007
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| She’ll start tomorrow |
| Posted by: Bryan Dilts |
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One of the most rewarding parts of my job is filling a need immediately. Yesterday I was asked to find an RPG language expert who could start this morning. I worked on it for 5 hours, with only faint hope for success. I finally found the perfect person. She starts today at 8 a.m.
It is fun and makes you feel very good when you can do something like that.
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Wednesday, September 26, 2007
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| Would you take a 50% pay raise? |
| Posted by: Bryan Dilts |
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One of my candidates was recently offered a 50% pay raise to stay where she was instead of leaving. She turned it down. They also offered to change the environment and culture. She turned that down too. Here's why:
1. The old company culture was still there. You can put lipstick on a bulldog, but it is still a bulldog.
2. There was still little opportunity to advance. A man may be the king of his house, but that title of king doesn't mean much.
3. They were still using ancient technology and unlikely to upgrade. Sure, a new computer would be great, but a new abacus is not really a new computer or new software.
4. The job was still dependent on government contracts that were up for review so there was not job stability. When the boss says, "We may be out in December", pep talks don't make you feel more secure.
She was smart. She changed jobs for good, solid reasons that money won't fix.
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Monday, September 10, 2007
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| When I don’t get anything done |
| Posted by: Bryan Dilts |
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Friday I made a bunch of calls with no real success. Saturday I watched my kids participate in a church volleyball tournament with a couple hundred kids. Sunday I went to church and also worked for hours on Boy Scout paperwork.
I didn't get anything done. At least sometimes it feels like it.
Saturday I really cheered on and helped chaperone a dozen kids from our congregation, including two of my own. I also accompanied my mentally handicapped daughter as she watched all day. It really was successful.
Sunday I drank deep from the Spirit at church. Then I planned the next 6 months of Boy Scout training for myself. I'm in Woodbadge training. I also put together a training aid. I really did a lot of very important things.
Friday I called 30 people I had never contacted before. I tried out Monster again and decided it wasn't for me. I didn't call any new candidates who look like they will work out. I didn't find any new jobs to fill. I haven't been able to catch all 30 of those new people yet. So, it may turn out to have been productive. I just have to keep working.
A lot of times you have to lay the foundation for success. That's what I am doing right now. Laying the foundation for future success with my family, Boy Scouts, and my business.
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Thursday, September 06, 2007
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| I admit, I used Monster yesterday |
| Posted by: Bryan Dilts |
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I don't use Monster and other online job boards....very often. The reason is that everyone else uses them too. I become a "me too" recruiter if I use the big job boards. To be truthful, my clients are using the job boards too. So, generally I avoid Monster.
Yesterday they gave me a one day free pass. I went in and made a few calls and spend 5 hours using their site. Every year or two I like to see if it will make a difference for me.
Like always, there were a lot of great resumes. Like usual, those resumes had already been seen by other recruiters and my clients. I found some new people that I probably will not place in jobs. Too much competition for the same faces.
What I will do is use the people I found as sources of referrals. If I had Monster every day, I would use it to find people who can lead me to other people. I wouldn't call them for their resumes, but for who they know.
However, that is not worth $8000 per year to me at this point. That is what a local Monster subscription would cost.
So I will continue to advertise that I don't use Monster. I'll continue to look for people that aren't being hounded by all the other recruiters in Pennsylvania.
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Wednesday, September 05, 2007
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| Learning something |
| Posted by: Bryan Dilts |
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A fascinating study is being trumpeted throughout blogdom. It show that if more people worked, there would be less poverty.
Wow. How did we ever lose sight of that?
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Wednesday, August 29, 2007
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| Really bad bosses |
| Posted by: Bryan Dilts |
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Is your boss the worst ever? Here's a place to compare bad people who manage to slither to the top.
http://www.employeesurveys.com/bosses/badboss.htm
Have fun.
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Thursday, August 23, 2007
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| When the world collapses |
| Posted by: Bryan Dilts |
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My son's girlfriend is from Peru. Her family is now homeless because of the earthquake there. There is nothing she can do.
She can't send help. Money doesn't do much good when there are 100,000 people who are living hand to mouth. And without functioning banks and stores, how do you get it to them, and how do they spend it? Packages can't make it through because there aren't even street numbers to deliver them to. And that is assuming the post offices are still standing.
At this point all she can do is pray.
I'm especially grateful I live in a country where most of the infrastructure, housing, government, and jobs can survive a major catastrophe like an earthquake or hurricane. And where people are displaced, they are absorbed into an abundant economy.
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Thursday, June 21, 2007
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| How to leave an illegal job |
| Posted by: Bryan Dilts |
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Two examples:
One guy was assistant controller for a multi-billion dollar retailer. He found out the books were cooked. He knew he would eventually lose his $200,000 per year job and potentially never get back up to that level. He talked to his attorney. They made an appointment to meet with the Securities and Exchange Commission. He brought a briefcase full of papers and turned them over. He stayed employed for exactly one year, then had to spend a year finding a lower paying job. He sleeps well at night.
A woman was working for a company that was employing illegal aliens across Pennsylvania. The owner of the company housed them in trucking trailers parked in various places. She found out about it. She also found out he has a reputation for playing rough. She went to the newspapers and the police on the same day. With the publicity, he couldn't do anything more than fire her. If she disappeared the whole city would know who did it. She sleeps well at night too.
Both walked out of a firestorm unscathed. They both took a terrible situation and exposed it to the light.
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Tuesday, June 19, 2007
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| Avoiding the law to save money |
| Posted by: Bryan Dilts |
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Here is a story about how to avoid the legal requirements to hire an American worker.
Programming and engineering jobs are being sent overseas as quickly as possible. Fortunately, a lot of those jobs still require people in the USA. To get cheaper help, companies like to hire foreigners at a greatly reduced rate on H1-B visas, and bring them to the USA. Theoretically you should only get an H1-B visa if no one is available to take the job in the US.
It is nice to see someone have their shady advice exposed to the world.
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Wednesday, June 13, 2007
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| No one can keep up |
| Posted by: Bryan Dilts |
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Here is a great article and my comments:
http://www.ftponline.com/vsm/2007_05/magazine/departments/guestop/
No one can keep up with the pace of change. But that will change.
As life becomes more complex, we develop systems that allow us to stop dealing with complexity, and start dealing more with outcomes.
In programming we started out with hardwired programming. And they still do it at Intel and AMD where they make chips.
That was too complex so machine language programming was invented. You literally program by typing the numbers 1 thru 9 and the letters A thru F into a computer. It is still done today wherever very complex computer hardware is made.
But assembler programming was created to make that easier. Then BASIC and COBOL were invented to make assembler easier. Then Visual Basic was invented.
Now people are inventing the newest languages which simplify Visual Basic. Each generation of programming languages simplifies the process.
That is happening with the rest of the world too. Unfortunately, the reason government never seems to really work is because programs get more and more abstract, but the underlying "codes" don't always work. People don't always follow instructions like computer chips do.
So, simplification is much more likely to work with computers than with governments and corporations.
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Tuesday, June 05, 2007
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| Turn this into a decision, not a reaction |
| Posted by: Bryan Dilts |
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I just finished talking to one of my favorite people. She sells online advertising and makes phenomenal money. They just cut her commissions drastically, and she will still make great money.
A headhunter called her up to tempt her with fame and fortune.
We talked about her options. I just sent her an email that says, "Let's turn this into a decision instead of a reaction."
I offered to present her to 30 companies. She'll pick some and I will pick others if she decides to go ahead. I am trying to convince her to take this potential job search to the next level, and really explore the job market.
This could be a great opportunity for both of us. She gets the chance to consider a career change. I get to explore an industry or two.
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Thursday, May 24, 2007
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| Daily exercise |
| Posted by: Bryan Dilts |
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I wear a pedometer. It records how many steps I take a day. I try hard to get over 10,000 steps every day. That means I have to figure when to go on 4 or 5 miles of walks.
My wife also helps me to get my walking in. She wears a pedometer. Most days we will compare step totals at some time during the day. She usually beats me. That motivates me to always hit at least 10,000 steps. If she is going to beat me, I need to at least be able to say I surpassed my goal of 10,000 steps.
I have gotten into the same habit at work. I have to make my 30 "gold calls" each day. That means I try to call 30 new people each day. I have done it consistently now for 6 weeks. I have learned what it takes. Last night I was working at 7 p.m. to finish. I am willing to make the sacrifices.
I like being competitive. I can outcompete some pretty tough goals every day. In both cases my goal helps me shape my day.
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Wednesday, May 23, 2007
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| Discipline is a four letter word |
| Posted by: Bryan Dilts |
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Discipline seems like a four letter word some days. I just don't feel like taking the hour a day to plan, record, study, and motivate some days.
The trouble is, if I don't do it, I have to go to work for someone else. My business income disintegrates if I let my discipline slack.
Of course the same thing happens for people already in another company. If their discipline slacks off, their boss gently or violently helps them regain that discipline.
My boss does too, but my boss is people who depend on me to find them a job.
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Monday, May 21, 2007
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| Trap Crazy |
| Posted by: Bryan Dilts |
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I caught another groundhog this morning. I released it far enough away that I am sure it is not just a trap crazy rodent.
"Trap crazy" is a technical term biologists use for a particular animal that keeps getting caught in their traps when they are surveying a population. It might be a chipmunk that just can't resist the peanut butter bait. It is an animal that will run into every trap it can find.
I know people like that. They say they want to start over, so they quit a job or a marriage. Pretty soon they are back in the same kind of job or relationship. They are trap crazy. As much as they know they should run away from the trap when the door is opened, they can't stay away from the bait.
The answer is to profoundly change yourself before you change your job or your relationship. It isn't easy. The interesting thing is that when you change yourself, the trap often changes too. What you saw as a trap becomes an opportunity.
So what will it be? Trap crazy or profound transformation? Your choice.
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Friday, May 18, 2007
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| L1 abuse |
| Posted by: Bryan Dilts |
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Worse than H1-B abuse or outsourcing, L1 visa abuse is a travesty.
L1 visas are supposed to allow a company from India or Ireland to bring in an employee for an in-house project. Like upgrading their own email system. Then the person returns to their home.
I got an example today of a VB.Net programmer earning $13/hr, brought to the US, and working for an external client. That is a clear violation of the intent and law behind the visa. That programmer as an American would be making $45/hr, or as an H1-B holder, $20/hr. And yes, that means H1-B holders are being abused contrary to the law.
This is my way of making noise about it.
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