I Can't Take It Anymore!

Its the weekend.!

It’s the weekend!

Are you shutting your phones, turning off your Blackberry’s or tying to impress yourself with the fact that you are available 24/7?  Employers are impressed with: smart people, who lead balanced lives, work hard and know when to say, “NO!

Shut the phone and smell the roses.  You may just be more relaxed for the craziness that we all know Monday will bring!

Why are you special?

I interview a lot of people.  Most tell me what they've done.  Some tell me what they want to do.  A few even try to just give me verbal repeats of what I've already seen on their resumes  When I ask the BIG BANG question, the majority of respondents freeze the question is easy to ask, difficult to answer!  "Why are you special"?  Usually, after several seconds of silence and followed by silly irrelevant answers to the question, I offer some help!  And I explain! 

How many interviews have you had and how many times have you been asked the same questions and how many times has someone said to you take me through your resume?  Its usually then that I explain that if no one has really asked them why they are special then that's what makes ME special and we start over!

Some get it, most don't.  I guess its a good question!

The Old Stadiums

Riding on the NJ Turnpike yesterday, I listened to a news report heralding the fact that within an hour, demolition of the OLD GIANTS STADIUM, would begin!  Within moments of the broadcast, I passed East Rutherford where both the new and old stadiums were standing side by side the first thing that came to my mind was what a waste!

The second and third things that came to mind were the OLD Yankee Stadium and the OLD Shea Stadium.  I'm not questioning the need for new facilities, nor do I know anything about the costs of alternates usage for these older places.  Nevertheless, what a waste!

"Clean House"

Don't you think that if every incumbent in Congress were challenged by someone who was smart, accomplished and successful at their previous job that the next election could clean house and get some fresh faces in to replace all those jerks?

Of course, there's no guarantee because, except for a few life time politicians, most of the people in office now are people who were just that before they got elected...Smart, Accomplished and Successful at their previous job!  The spec is the same we just need to admit that these guys were a mistake and we need a "do-over"!

Unemployed Executives

I don’t want to really “knock” any of the people at the airports who work for the TSA but I can tell you that I have a better idea in view of the most recent headlines!

There are thousands, if not millions of people who are out of work who have had more responsible jobs than those people currently doing the screening!..Why don’t we take the current screeners (God forbid we should fire them) and have them check BAGS not PEOPLE??

Why don’t we then take these “more skilled” unemployed executives, send them to an intensive training program and give them permanent jobs checking PEOPLE.  A large percentage of these folks already know that they are in need of a career change!  Then lets pay them a really good salary to do this really important job the best part of my idea is how we would fund the program!

Lets get this guy Feinberg who is in charge of limiting the salaries of those executives in companies that have received government bailouts and just have him say to them and their companies….”you guys can get paid whatever you want, you will just have to kick in 10 or 15% of your salary to pay for our NEW TSA TEAM! …And your “contribution is tax deductible!

Everybody wins..the current TSA employees, the unemployed executives looking for jobs, the public looking for safety and politeness in the screening process, Feinberg who wants the citizenry to think he’s doing something, the highly paid executives who certainly can afford the money and the politicians who would look smarter than they are, for creating the program>>>>>>The only losers……The Bad Guys!

Executive Search Consultant

One of the most important jobs I have as an executive search consultant is to do reference checking.  Hiring a retained search firm comes at a higher cost than using a job board or surfing the internet for candidates and resumes....BUT....there is a real value attached to the additional costs.  I'm not going to get into the detail of all the other services provided to justify engaging a retained search firm.  This posting is about reference checking and how important it is to the hiring process.

I don't know how Nike, Accenture or Gillette decided to use Tiger Woods as their spokesperson.  I don't know what media or advertising genius concluded that Tiger's image in an ad would increase sales.  But I do know that the same search firm that reference checks the executives that these companies are so careful to hire could have saved them a lot of trouble and money...if someone had bothered to do some "good old" reference checking!  That old golf adage.  "Its all in the swing" may have to be changed to, "its all in the reference checking".  But then again you need three things to play the game, A good golfer The right clubs And of course Balls

I find people jobs!

I find people jobs!  I fill jobs that need to be filled within companies, both large and small.  No matter what industry you are in, we seem to have opportunities in the ares of CRISIS MANAGEMENT!  This week you can chose from the following industries!

GOLF

GOLF

GOLF or

HEALTHCARE

If you have the skill these businesses have the crisis!

"Players who make great plays"

I love Sunday in the fall and early winter...that's when Pro Football really gets exciting!  After a good game, some great plays and a game winning catch, I begin to wonder!

Where do they get these players?

How do they find them?

How do they know they're even good before they sign them?

The answer is always the same:  Every Pro Football team has a group of people who are responsible for finding talent for the team's management to evaluate and ultimately hire so the team can win games!  That's what I do!  I'm a HEADHUNTER!  Companies hire me so they can find players who make great plays and win games.  And not just on cold Sunday afternoons.

"CASH FOR CONSUMERS"

Economics has always fascinated me!  My world is divided into 2 economic sectors:  There is the group that makes and sells things you know manufacturers, retailers etc.  Then there is the group that services you know accountants, doctors, lawyers and executive recruiters in NY, like me!

OH!  I almost forgot, that there's the Government that provides financial stimulus to keep some of these groups afloat!  The holiday season would seem to be a great time for all these groups to work together and get us out of this mess!  Everyone is waiting to hear and see how many people are shopping...a lot of shopping will be good for business and good for the mood of the country!  So I have a plan!  The consultants should recommend that the government do something for the consumer so that he/she will shop!

"CASH FOR CONSUMERS"

And they have to spend the money in December in a store or on line!  Don't you think that would work??..The amounts would not matter, finally everybody would be in a good mood!

What were they thinking?

I am a Headhunter, I get paid to do senior level executive search and my specialty is being creative.  Some headhunters know important people I KNOW IMPORTANT IDEAS.  Here's an Important Idea:

GM just fired its CEO and now a really experienced guy from AT&T is the running the place!

Are these guys nuts!....

If they want a telephone guy why didn't they go to APPLE!

Just getting Steve Jobs or one of Apple's senior executives on loan to GM is the right call on the right phone.