Viewpoint - Viewpoint

Another conversation regarding  Passive Versus Active candidates caught my eye;  it was suggested that some comments made were generalizations. Especially comments based upon a recent research document that showed that passive Candidates were "better than active".

If we think about it though - Well isn't recruiting all about Generalization? Unfortunately/Fortunately? Generalization does play a big role in this industry; everyday that we do this job.

Sometimes we see a resume of a job hopper and think, why should we take the risk? Yet, this one job may finally be the place that the job hopper may finally say, Yes, this is home, I have found my home..

A vast majority of recruiters and clients will tend to stereotype the Job hopper - too many jobs, not interested..

We generalize with the ways that resumes are written, the places a candidate may have worked, if or where they had gone to school, GPA's, how a candidate interviews, what they wore. We generalize about where they live, how close they are to the job; we even generalize by appearance, how things may have been said, and what wasn't said; We generalize when we create Subjective job qualifications based upon personal desires versus what is really objectively needed to get the job done (ie college degree)

And We Especially generalize with those wonderful assessment and personality tests..

So, today, as the thoughts had turned to making generalized statements about the Passive Candidate, Versus the Active Candidate; but maybe we can ask, are these generalizations True? Especially say with regards to active versus non active candidates?

Why did the generalizations come about? where does the statistics come from in regards to the generalizations?

Why for example has the Passive Candidate been so sought after by our clients for as long as Adam knew Eve (pun intended) - there must be some truth here, for them to be so appreciated?

Did we create these generalizations in recruiting because it is easier to deal with rather than taking risks? Or do we continue to generalize because the risk is indeed to great?

Generalization is indeed a great Power in Recruiting..

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ABOUT KAREN MATTONEN, CAC, CSP

Karen Mattonen started a career in Human Resources when she served as a Recruiter for Snelling Corporation. Leveraging her tenure with Snelling, Karen founded Advanced Career Solutions in 1997 focusing on the  HVAC and Mechanical Construction industry. Her reputation for excellence is echoed in the satisfaction of clients and candidates she has serviced nationwide. Furthermore, Karen is esteemed for sharing her expertise in Recruitment Education, Ethics and promoting self-regulation for the Recruiting industry.

She has a new and future-oriented vision of what recruiting can and should become: a profession we can be proud of for its ethical standing, professional conduct and ability to build great organizations. Her doing-well-by-doing-right philosophy is shaking up the status quo in an industry that needs to be shaken. She does this with conviction, leadership, and a distinctive voice that cries out for change.

Outside of the HR community, Karen Mattonen has been cited by Microsoft as a resource in how to use Microsoft Outlook as an ATS. She has also served as the Marketing and Public Relations Director for the 3^rd largest city in Utah.

Her passionate and tireless advocacy has led her to create HireCentrix - The Pulse of H.R, Regulation, Retention, Recruiting and Risk Management www.hirecentrix.com.  Hirecentrix is a company dedicated to providing training to the HR, recruiting and staffing industries, which includes a special focus on the ethical and legal dimensions through offering a full service resource for individuals to share and communicate, obtain current and accurate information, acquire and provide education and learning within the quickly expanding, diverse and rapidly changing Recruiting and Human Resource climate.

Karen has achieved accreditation as a California Accredited Consultant (CAC) through California Staffing Professionals. She has also gained her Certified Staffing Professional Certificate (CSP) through American Staffing Professionals. (www.americanstaffing.net)

Click here to reach Karen via email.

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