Blue Signal Gives Back 2020

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Closing out 2020 on a high note, we completed our 3rd annual company-wide event for Blue Signal Gives Back (BSGB). Giving back to the community is a shared passion among our employees, and each year we work to incorporate those values into what we do as a company. In 2018, Blue Signal donated $1,632.50 to the American Parkinson Disease Foundation. In 2019, we donated $2,052.50 to the Smith-Kingsmore Syndrome Foundation. This year, proving to be a 3-year trend, Ryan Walsh has won a whopping $3,986.50 to donate to the Smith-Kingsmore Syndrome Foundation on his behalf - all thanks to the combined efforts of the Blue Signal team. 

 

How BSGB Works 

Starting on November 16, 2020 and running through December 25, 2020 - every Blue Signaler was given the chance to choose a nonprofit charitable organization to represent. They certainly were off to the races! Employees were able to earn money based on metric points that were each assigned a dollar amount. Employees could earn points through correctly answering trivia questions, or even hitting goals like landing a placement! All efforts made an impact, and the competition was fierce. Each week our Human Resources Director, Jessica Walsh, sent out a progress report - building the excitement for the announcement at the beginning of the new year. 

BSGB Week 5

In the end, the team with the most points wins - taking all money earned from all teams and putting it towards the winning charitable organization. Blue Signal then makes a donation to that organization in the name of the winner! 

BSGB 2020 Blog Graphic

2020’s Winning Organization - The Smith Kingsmore Syndrome Foundation 

The SKS Foundation was established in 2019 as a non-profit foundation for children and families affected by Smith-Kingsmore Syndrome. SKS is a rare genetic condition that can cause a wide range of medical, intellectual, and behavioral challenges. The foundation is working to improve the quality of life of children affected by SKS by supporting cutting-edge research, collaborating with medical professionals, and strengthening community through worldwide awareness.

Researchers are continuing to learn more about SKS and are working to help special needs families gain more understanding/earlier diagnosis. The goal is to better understand the characteristics and the differences of MTOR conditions like Smith-Kingsmore syndrome to be able to design well-informed treatment plans.

The SKS Foundation happens to be very near and dear to Blue Signal’s hearts. 4-year-old Jameson “JJ” Walsh, the youngest son of CEO, Matt Walsh, was diagnosed with Smith-Kingsmore Syndrome in 2019. Early on, JJ had hearing loss and has undergone two cochlear implant surgeries to allow him to hear, which were a triumphant success! Despite his diagnosis, and with the support of the SKS Foundation and its incredible, growing community - JJ is a happy and healthy boy and is making great progress with the help of the amazing medical support he receives. 

BSGB 2020 JJ Collage

If you are interested in learning more about SKS and the Foundation, please follow this link. 

Donate to the Smith Kingsmore Foundation, here!

Blue Signal Search Recognized as #2 Best Place to Work in AZ, 2020

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Blue Signal Search was recently recognized by the Phoenix Business Journal as the #2 Best Place to Work in Arizona for 2020. 

 

For 16 years, the Phoenix Business Journal has run an annual awards competition for best places to work in the valley. They categorize contestants by business size (Blue Signal being under 50 employees qualified as a “Micro Company” this year!) and winners are determined by employee feedback and participation. The competition presents a great opportunity for companies to learn what their employees are really thinking and provides contestants with valuable information they can use to improve day-to-day operations and overall workplace environment.

For the 2020 list, Blue Signal is elated to announce that we were ranked #2 as a Best Place to Work in Arizona! We were honored to be among the 100 companies that were recognized at the virtual event on December 8th, and we definitely took notes! The ceremony gave the floor to each winner to be able to talk about what makes their workplace such a wonderful place to be. Common themes included family-like cultures, opportunity for upward mobility, and transparency within their leadership. After a year of unprecedented workplace changes, it was really inspiring to hear about so many local businesses that overcame those challenges and found ways to make their employees feel valued and secure. 

PBJ BPTW Award Photo

We want to thank each of our employees as well as members of the Arizona community for joining us on the adventure that was 2020. From pivoting to provide COVID response coverage, to keeping our loved ones safe by going remote - Blue Signal was put through its paces like many companies over the last year. We are forever thankful for our internal teams and all the immense patience, commitment, and passion they displayed despite the global turbulence.

Here is what our employees had to say: 

“I feel like this company and the role I am in fit everything I need from an employer and job at this point in my career. I feel empowered to make decisions, I feel that my ideas and voice are heard, I feel that I am given ample opportunity to learn new skills, and I ultimately feel as though I have a say in where my career takes me with this company. Also, they have a great amount of respect and understanding when it comes to work/life balance - unlike many other organizations that want you to punch the clock no matter what else is going on in your world. I really appreciate the trust and respect I am given in this role.”

“Blue Signal Search is an environment that offers the support to be successful and the flexibility to be fairly autonomous. Agency recruiting is a very difficult industry and yet for those people who are willing to put in the hard work and dedicate themselves to the right activities, they can achieve that success at Blue Signal. The leaders are accessible and the training is thorough. The technology and other resources are extensive. I would recommend Blue Signal for either someone new to recruiting or a seasoned recruiter looking for a less "corporate" setting where they can create their own destiny.”

“My company cares about me as an individual and is invested in my growth. Many of my friends lost their jobs during COVID, and experienced major anxiety. Blue Signal assured us, provided multiple avenues to support us both professionally and personally through tough times, and pivoted so we were helping those impacted by COVID by finding nurses, doctors, and other healthcare professionals to fill needed roles. I am proud to be part of this family-like atmosphere and a culture that actually cares about me.”

“Blue Signal is a great place to work. The company is focused on ensuring not only the work success of all employees but also the well-being and growth of each individual both in and out of work. Everyone is treated fairly and with respect. Leadership is constantly looking for ways to innovate and improve all aspects of the business. Culture is the number one most important thing to everyone.”

“It’s a growing company and stable at the core to where job stability and success is never in doubt. They create an environment that allows employees to thrive in their career and overall enrichment.”

PBJ Best Places to Work 2020 Blog Graphic

Blue Signal values quality and fit over quantity and convenience. More than your typical transactional staffing firm, our executive search tactics utilize our relationships and a thorough understanding of client and candidate needs to make the best placements possible. When it comes to clients and our company itself, Blue Signal emphasizes culture and community first. It’s part of our approach to connect with the needs of our customers and is part of how we keep ourselves grounded and involved. When COVID-19 swept the nation in March of 2020, the Blue Signal team was able to pivot business strategies in just 2 days to offer recruitment services for Critical Infrastructure sectors that needed essential workers quickly. With excellence as a priority and a culture that promotes camaraderie, Blue Signal is hands-down a great place to work.

 

More about Phoenix Business Journal: Phoenix Business Journal (PBJ) is Arizona’s premiere resource for breaking business news, including daily updates, weekly publications, and industry insights. PBJ is a member of the American City Business Journals (ACBJ) - the largest publisher of metropolitan business newsweeklies in the United States. ACBJ has 44 business publications across the country, reaching more than 3.6 million readers each week. 

More about Blue Signal: CEO Matt Walsh founded Blue Signal in Chicago in 2012. Since then, the business has grown into a multimillion-dollar executive placement firm, with 16 employees based in Arizona, and 37 nationwide. Headquartered in Phoenix, AZ, our recruiting team brings together experience that delivers top talent in a variety of industry niches including telecom and technology. 

Coffee with a Recruiter, feat. Jonathan Lee

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From professional development, to management, and even having experience recruiting himself, Blue Signal’s Senior Manager of Operations has extensive experience working with recruiters, candidates, clients, and the industry overall. In our newest installment of Blue Signal’s Coffee with a Recruiter series, Jonathan Lee shared with us a two part segment on some key things people should know when working with recruiters - as both candidates and clients. Watch and read on to gather the intel you need to make the most of your recruiting experience. 

Working with Recruiters as a Candidate 

Question: “As a candidate, what should you know before reaching out to a recruiter?” 

Answer: “As a candidate, what you really should know before reaching out to a recruiter is really more about the recruiting company itself. They’re going to be representing you to the new company you want to work at, or maybe new companies that you’ve never heard of but could have your dream job, so you want to make sure the company has good reviews online. More importantly, you want to be sure they specialize in your industry or in the functionality of the role you are currently in. This is really really important. They might have a really good reputation in the industry and those big, target companies will tend to utilize those companies more. Just keep in mind that they will be representing you, so make sure who is representing you is who you want to.” 

 

Q: “Should you have anything prepared beforehand?” 

A: “As a candidate, there are actually things you should prepare before you reach out to a recruiter. This is going to be a simple tip, but I feel like there is a lot of value. Of course you should have your resume prepared and most up to date with your current job experience, current responsibilities, things like that. But also, I think it’s a really good idea and will up your chances of you being placed at that dream job if you have something like a brag sheet of rewards that you’ve won, patents you were granted, quotas that you’ve overachieved, things like that. 

Recruiters are so inundated with resumes that the more additional information that you can provide, the better and the reason is this. So whenever you send in your resume, cover letter, things like that - recruiters will put it in their ATS system. This is how they keep track of all the applicants, all their resumes. Now these systems are able to search for specific keywords. So if the recruiter has the dream job you’re looking for, or they get that dream job later on in the future, they are going to search their ATS. So the more information that you can provide the recruiter, the more chance they can reach out, the more they can better represent you, and the more likely that you’re going to get that dream job.” 

 

Q: “What is a common misconception candidates have when starting to work with recruiters?” 

A: “I think a big misconception that people have when starting to look for a new job with recruiters is that the recruiting companies find jobs for you. In reality, logically speaking, it really is a free service for the candidates. So recruiters technically find their clients people to fill their jobs and not the other way around. I’m just being straightforward and honest. So what I recommend is having patience. To really try to get ahead of that curve if you know something has changed in your current job situation, the right time to reach out to a recruiter is not when you need to find a job now, it really is a month out in advance. So keep on applying, keep on reaching out to recruiters. Make sure those recruiters are in your industry, have good reviews, are really good at what they do - and you will find your dream job.” 

 

Working with Recruiters as a Client 

Q: “As a client looking to hire, what should you know before reaching out to a recruiter?” 

A: “As a client looking to hire, there are really 3 things you need to keep in mind before reaching out to a recruiting firm. These 3 things that differentiate recruiting firms from each other are cost, speed, and quality. One recruiting firm really can’t have all 3 of these things so you really need to understand which is most important to you. All of these have their own merits and there are many different situations where one of the three would be more valued than the other. So you really just need to understand and have that alignment with the recruiting firm on which is important and they can definitely help you create that good hire that you want.” 

 

Q: “Knowing the search, what should you have prepared for your recruiter?” 

A: “Knowing the search, there are really two things you should know before reaching out to a recruiter, and these are really about your own company. The first thing is your weak points, and really being transparent when you talk to the recruiters about weak points. These weak points - whether it be bad reviews, whether it be a bad reputation in the industry - will come up throughout the interview process as candidates conduct their own research and talk to people in the industry. Having the ability as a recruiter to counter it or show that you’re having that level of transparency with the willingness to improve will always help the recruiter bring that talent and really address those weak points right up front, and help you create that good hire. 

The second point is your strengths. Now a good recruiting firm will take candidates away from their companies, not just find the ones who are unemployed. (Not to say that there isn’t good talent who are currently unemployed.) We call these strong points the sizzle. It is incredibly helpful to attract the best candidates in general, not just the ones who are available.” 

 

The Key Takeaways 

As a candidate, it’s important to do your research and make preparations before reaching out to a recruiter. Since finding you a job is essentially a free service, it helps to support the recruiter through updating your resume, setting goals, and getting on the market early. Recruiters need to know how to best represent you for the job you want, so communication is essential. 

As a client, transparency should be your priority when working with recruiting firms. You’ll need to know your goals, and know what you are willing to prioritize in order to reach them. Recruiters are masters at marketing opportunity - but in order to best market your company and the role you are looking to fill, they need to know both its strengths and weaknesses so they are fully prepared to tackle any objections as they arise. 

Blue Signal Search has over 150 years of combined recruiting experience, proving we have the knowledge you need to land that perfect job or hire. Contact us today to discuss your options and see if Blue Signal is the right fit for your next search. 

Jonathan Lee
Jonathan Lee

Jonathan Lee

SR. MANAGER OF OPERATIONS

Jonathan supports a range of customer-facing and strategic functions. He heads the operations and technical support departments and manages IT initiatives and sales support goals. He also acts as our database administrator. He excels at building customer-focused action plans to help companies reach their business goals.

How to Optimize your LinkedIn Profile – Candidate Edition

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A CareerBuilder study found that 58% of employers conduct social media screenings to look for information supporting a candidate’s qualifications for a job. If the decision came down to you and another candidate - with the same exact qualifications AND a strong LinkedIn following - who do you think they would choose? 

Today, your online presence is nearly as important as your in-person presence when it comes to landing a job. 70% of employers use social networking sites to research candidates during the hiring process. With such a heavy reliance on online personas in decision making, it’s important to understand the message that your profile sends to potential employers. Just as you would work to continually update and optimize your resume before applying for a role, follow these guidelines to maximize the use of your LinkedIn profile in finding your next job. 

Increase Engagement

LinkedIn has over 760 million users, 260 million of which log on monthly. In order to stand out and stay relevant in the sea of professional profiles, you can differentiate yourself by consistently engaging with your industry. Share content and voice your thoughts on current events. Discuss the newest methods and technologies, and discover new ways to master your craft. By keeping up to date on market trends, and reacting to shifts constructively with your connections, you are positioning yourself as a subject matter expert in the space.

LinkedIn Candidate Optimization Blog Graphic

However, this only works if you have the right audience to engage with. Make sure to make relevant connections on LinkedIn - with coworkers, thought leaders, colleagues, and other people in your industry. Hopefully, when a hiring manager comes to investigate your online presence, they may see a mutual connection in your midst that can speak to your standing in the market, your work ethic, and much more. In short, you're judged by the company you keep. If people see mutual connections on your profile, they're more likely to trust you in turn. By building your network on LinkedIn, you are building your personal brand.

Optimize for SEO

Companies these days have to have a strategy for Google SEO if they want to stay relevant. Can you imagine going to a restaurant in a new city that doesn’t show up on the first page of search results when you look up “food near me”? Even if you walked by their location, you probably wouldn’t trust it. It’s the same concept! How will employers find you if you don’t show up in a search for your industry and role? In order to rank high in standard industry searches, you have to optimize your LinkedIn profile for SEO. A good way to start is to include industry-specific, targeted keywords into your headline, about section, and prior experience. List your skills, even if they seem arbitrary. The LinkedIn algorithm prefers niche industries and keywords - so the more keyed in you are with industry jargon, the higher you will rank in a LinkedIn search for professionals in your target market. 

Utilize All Available Advantages 

The great thing about social media is that reality is what you make it online. LinkedIn gives you several different ways to up your profile game, that go beyond years of experience or super technical know-how. In just a few minutes, you can do a few key things to instantly make your profile more appealing. For example, make sure you are using an appropriate, simple, high-quality headshot as your profile picture. (No, this does not include mirror selfies or pictures of you hanging out at a bar on the weekend.) LinkedIn suggests your face make up 60% of the image frame, among a few other pro tips. The same goes for your cover photo! Just by adding something other than the standard blue background, you’re already ahead of the game. Better yet, include things like a tagline, your other social media handles, a clever call to action, or just something that speaks to your target audience. 

Next - and this might be a no-brainer - make sure to include compelling copy in your profile sections. Use your summary to talk about your professional goals or highlighted achievements. In your experience section, include some of those SEO keywords we talked about to build a better picture of your current projects, background, and previous responsibilities. If applicable, fill out other sections like education, volunteer experience, certifications, awards, and accomplishments. This helps you rank higher on LinkedIn search results, and gives you more opportunities to connect with someone reading through your page. People landing jobs because they attended the same alma mater as the hiring manager isn’t unheard of! 

Finally, make sure to try and capitalize on the recommendations and endorsements as much as possible. List your skills in the relevant section and connect with your past colleagues, managers, and classmates. No one can speak to your ability to thrive in a  future job than those you have already worked with, who know what you’re made of. You even have the option to ask for a recommendation from your connections list! It’s basically a built-in letter of recommendation when used right. 

Maintain Authenticity 

Quite possibly the most important thing to remember is to maintain your authentic voice on LinkedIn. Just like adding misleading information on resumes, fabricating things online can also have some negative consequences. Trust us, people can tell! Use the correct dates, numbers, GPAs - all of it. With people having such public lives online, something as simple as posting the incorrect graduation date, then having a picture posted of your actual graduation the year before, can give a potential employer some red flags. No one likes to join a professional network online just to be sold something, including a false perception of their colleagues. So, the best thing to do is be yourself - professional, but yourself. 

Post about your work-life balance, your “origin story” of how you got into your profession, or even try to find new members to join your co-ed weekend soccer league you formed with your old college classmates. Better yet, explain your career progression. That gap in employment you might have been worried about including on a resume could be something completely appropriate to post on LinkedIn. If the reality is that you took time off to help out the family business in a role outside your area of professional focus, it may be too personal to include in your resume. Meanwhile, sharing the same story on a social site would make perfect sense. Being open about your experiences, even if they don’t relate to the job you want, can still speak greatly to your character and supplement your LinkedIn page. Authenticity draws people in, and it can help make real connections. In a world where we have lots of shared experiences, like having to work from home during a pandemic, talking about it on social media can help you find common ground with people in and outside your network. It’s refreshing and, when done appropriately, can help build your brand and give you a voice you wouldn’t be able to fit onto a hardcopy resume. When you’re looking to get hired through social media, you want to make sure that you show up to that job as the same person they saw online. Personality and all! 

LinkedIn can be an incredible tool in building out your personal, professional brand. Social media is emerging as a major player in the job market - luckily as something that’s user friendly, easy to manage, and accessible to anyone with an internet connection. As you build and optimize your network, and set goals for your career progression, keeping up with the latest and greatest in talent acquisition technology can propel you to the top of the hierarchy of potential hires. When considering a move, utilize Blue Signal’s knowledge as a resource along the way. Contact us, or explore our site, to find more information on best practices for marketing yourself as a top-tier candidate in your industry. 

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Set up a free consultation with a recruiting manager. Whether you’re expanding your team or looking to make a career move, we can help.

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Digital Recruitment: The New Normal of the Staffing Industry

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The Coronavirus outbreak caught many of us off guard. Social distancing, fear of an unknown disease, and, most of all, closure of many businesses around the world has left a huge impact on people's psyche and financial wellbeing. As what we knew of the structure of a business changed to meet the “new normal,” hunting for employment online has significantly increased since last year.

As we have seen, many companies took their business online. Following suit, the recruiting process also needed to be updated to ensure safety and minimize physical exposure by using digital recruitments strategies. For both employers and job seekers, being online is a must! In order to properly leverage this advantage the online job marketplace holds during these otherwise uncertain times, read on for some best practices regarding digital recruitment and its changing landscape.

 

As a Job Seeker, Identify Businesses Thriving in 2020

Events of this year have had a huge impact on everyone’s lives. Even with the tragedies and trials 2020 has instilled, there is always a silver lining. Since March of 2020, social gatherings and travelling seem to be a thing of the past. The economy has taken a dive, particularly in the areas of business that thrive on these social norms including tourism, entertainment, F&B, and retail.

On the other hand, online purchases, virtual education, and digital content creation are in high demand in 2020. When thinking about applying for a job, keep in mind those verticals that have best adapted to the times, and are more likely to be hiring. People with skills in digital media will probably have better luck than those in in-person fields. If possible, try and build out skills in these remote-work areas of operation.

 

As a Business, Build Out your Online Presence to Attract Quality Candidates

With people online more than ever, virtual marketing strategies are crucial in keeping audiences engaged with a brand. In several cases, online touch points such as social media pages, websites, and digital advertisements may be the only way people interact with a business. In order to attract candidates to a business, a company needs to have a strong online presence. Whether that’s through third-party recruiting firms or posting on job sites, potential employees need to see a brand that’s thriving in order to want to jump on board.

The power of Google search is essential for those seeking employment. To tap into that market, the perfect candidate needs to be able to find opportunities easily. To get to the top of the organic search results, companies must have an organized and SEO optimized website. Additionally, having a site containing quality content related to the business can offer a potential glance into its strategies and aims as a company. If the candidate shares the same beliefs and visions, they are much more likely to want to work there. But first, they need to be able to find what exactly those beliefs and visions are.

Let's not forget about social media! There are almost 3 billion users on Facebook, and nearly 27 million users on Instagram in 2020 - making both perfect platforms to market and promote a business. Linking websites to socials, and socials to sites, ensures that candidates can easily track and learn more about a potential employer, gaining invaluable insight into company culture and other key factors.

 

2020’s Best Digital Recruiting Strategies for Candidates and Hiring Authorities

1. Hire a Recruiting Firm

The US staffing industry consists of numerous agencies that can make a search a whole lot easier. The majority of them have digitized their recruiting strategy long before the pandemic struck and are using softwares and other tools to uncover perfect matches. In times of crisis, company leaders don’t have time to scroll through numerous application letters to select the ideal hire. Recruiting companies can help cut down the time a role is left open, and actually save businesses money.

 

2. Create and Maintain a LinkedIn Page

The staffing process is made easier through the use of networking platforms such as LinkedIn. This growing community of job seekers use this online platform to discuss job opportunities, best practices, industry insights, and so much more. Participating in a space like this helps keep businesses at the forefront of innovation, and at the top of mind for applicants. And, once they have a job opening, companies can post on LinkedIn to find easily accessible, qualified candidates in the peripheral network of the industry.

 

3. Streamline your Video Interviewing Process

While online presence and using the right digital recruiting strategies are essential in gathering potential hires, video interviewing is a decisive factor that allows insight into each of the candidates personally. The video interview also allows employers to build a relationship as a steppingstone in a successful collaboration. To get the most out of this process, employers and hiring authorities should really nail down what it is they want to see from the interviewing process. Before stepping in front of a camera, they should understand what the end goal is, and create a pathway to achieve it.

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Blue Signal Gives Back 2020
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How to Optimize your LinkedIn Profile – Candidate Edition
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Coronavirus and its unprecedented impact on the economy has left a global wreckage in its wake. Luckily, digital recruitment can help to keep businesses going and people employed when used correctly. With safety as the number one priority today, new strategies in the staffing industry can ensure growth without risk. Being online has proven beneficial for job seekers and employers to stay in the game. As the staffing industry continues to change to meet the needs of employers and employees alike, digital recruitment will continue to play a larger part in the success of many industry verticals. Do you feel prepared? Contact one of our expert recruiters today to discuss your digital strategy and strengthen your position within the new normal.

Coffee with a Recruiter, feat. Wyatt Humrichous

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This Halloween season, perhaps one of the spookiest things the workforce has had to face is the shift to working remote. For our second Coffee with a Recruiter segment, we were joined by Blue Signal’s Human Resources Project Manager, Wyatt Humrichous, to discuss best practices when it comes to promoting a cohesive and engaging company culture within a remote workforce. Wyatt discussed some key points, including: 

  • Being present and consistent with remote teams can help ensure those satellite workers are staying engaged with the company culture. 
  • By fine-tuning the onboarding process, you are putting your best foot forward when it comes to including a new hire into the culture - right at the start. 
  • Simple voice-to-voice, and better yet, face to (virtual) face, communication can go a long way. Don’t underestimate the power of some traditional communication in forming bonds. 

 

Watch the video or read on to get the full scoop on combating these culture shifts! 

Question: What is one common misconception about company culture when working remotely?

Answer: “I believe a lot of people approach working remotely with this, “I could never do that, how could anyone stay motivated, working remotely just isn’t for me,” type of attitude and usually kill their fire before even considering a remote position or offering themselves the opportunity to really excel at one. I’ve found in my experience working remotely, as well as working to excite remote teams as we build out our remote model, that really the pros and cons of working in a traditional office and working in a remote office almost outweigh themselves. With the global pandemic, so many people have fathomed working from home now and have really put some thought into the possibility and reality of what that would look like. Through this experience I hope that many people will approach the idea from a different angle. 

At Blue Signal we have still been able to nurture a strong sense of community and team camaraderie by ensuring our teams are meeting weekly, if not daily. Being as present as possible and as consistent as possible are two ways to really ensure teams maintain their strength. Additionally, by doing the work of reaching out and understanding what support employees need as we all swim these new waters together allows us to create communication bonds and reassure our employees that our primary objective is to support them and see them through to their inevitable success. Finally, this may seem like a no-brainer, but by having the proper values and foundational structure in place to build your culture and policy around, you do yourself the favor of getting off on the right foot and avoid any cracks that may lead to troubles with culture down the road. At Blue Signal we adhere to a standard of excellence that is second to none, and this standard fuels our ability to provide a top notch service to our clients and be an invaluable resource to our candidates.”

 

Q: What has been one major challenge you have had to overcome in supporting a remote workforce?

A: “When it comes to supporting a remote workforce so many hiccups come with onboarding. Screening, interviewing, sending offers, negotiating, equipping, training - all of these core components of onboarding adjust greatly based on your business model and a prospective or new employee’s life-cycle experience right from the jump. By diving in and fine tuning so many of our onboarding details, we have taken what can seem like a daunting task with never ending steps and made it concise, friendly, and engaging for everyone involved.”

 

Q: What are some tricks and tips you have for keeping employees engaged with their teams in a remote workforce?

A: “With so many of us working in our siloed home offices and lacking good old-fashioned communication that we so often thrive on, I’ve found that calling employees instead of emailing sometimes is a great way to engage folks and remind them that they aren’t alone. I hear stories of employees that work elsewhere going a day - or even days sometimes - without real voice-to-voice contact with a fellow colleague. That sounds like a nightmare to me! Anytime you’re able to connect with someone via video conference or phone call, take that opportunity, as they are few and far between and mean so much more now that we don’t get caught in elevators with co-workers, or have lunch in the break room together anymore. While we are all looking forward to that again, for now it’s important to reach out in those traditional fashions. 

Also, we’ve found that by providing fun opportunities for employees to get to know each other and cut loose aside from work hours, it really can boost morale. We’ve hosted Happy Hours on video conferences, put together health initiatives to try and promote some healthy competition from our own homes and neighborhoods, we have implemented small video segments, sharing photographs and personal statements about each other, airing them company-wide for all employees to gather a glimpse of what we are all like. We have found each of these items, as well as a combination of them, to really promote the interconnectivity that we like to foster here within our Blue Signal culture.”

Wyatt Humrichous

Wyatt Humrichous, HR Department

“Wyatt Humrichous supports the entire Blue Signal team through a variety of projects including operational management and human resources support. As a subject matter expert on company culture and employee retention strategy, he is the ultimate resource when it comes to ensuring employee buy-in and overall morale.”

With over 120 years of combined experience in the industry, we have seen and heard it all when it comes to the good and the bad of company culture. More often than not, bad culture is what drives employees to want to make a move. Leverage our insight and follow us on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram to hear more about our tried and true best practices when it comes to employee retention and successful company culture. 

Coffee with a Recruiter, feat. Melissa Coleman

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As part of Blue Signal’s Coffee with a Recruiter series, our own Senior Executive Recruiter, Melissa Coleman kicked us off with a discussion on some misconceptions about recruiting and the industry overall. Some key takeaways: 

  • Networking is about being helpful and becoming a knowledgeable resource within our industries - not about “stealing” LinkedIn connections. 
  • Recruiters have to be of service to both clients and candidates in order to reach their end goal. 
  • Recruiters are matchmakers, working to source and network to find candidates rather than dive into a magic drawer for resumes. 

 

Watch and read below for the full discussion! 

Question: What does networking look like for you as a recruiter? 

Answer: “As recruiters, our goal is to be a valuable resource within our industry and focus.

A lot of people, when we send a LinkedIn invite, they are worried about us stealing their connections. Let’s be real here - most recruiters have all the tools we need that we can find anyone on LinkedIn and beyond - that’s not the goal. The goal is to be helpful. We want to be helpful to people within our industry. We want to be able to network with them and help them. Whether it is directly finding a job, or sharing industry information in terms of more depth, understanding, and knowledge.

We work really hard to understand and be well-networked within our industries.” 

 

Q: As a recruiter, who do you “work” for? 

A: “Technically, from a legal perspective, we’re working for the company. The company is the client because they are always paying us. But from a realistic perspective, we work for both sides. You need the candidates. And some companies actually refer to candidates as clients as well. We need both in order, quite honestly, for us to get to the end goal. 

At the end of the day, we have to be of service to both sides. We want companies that think of us when they have a need - we want to do a good job and we want them to call us. And then we want the candidates, if they need a recruiter or if they have a friend that’s looking for a recruiter, to refer us. We’re not trying to shove a square peg into a round hole, or at least those of us that have been in the industry for any period of time. Our goal is to be of service to both sides.” 

 

Q: What is a common misconception about recruiting? 

A: “A very common misconception is that we have a magic drawer. It’s a little bit of a dated analogy, but that we simply pull out a drawer and pull out a resume. In truth, we put in a lot of effort and we have a process in order to find the right candidate for a role. 

We work with the company to understand their needs. Going back to networks, we have a good network that’s a starting point for us. But we also actively source and recruit for roles to make sure we get the right fit on both sides. We’re matchmakers. We’re looking to make sure it’s a match on both sides.” 

Melissa Coleman

“Melissa Coleman’s 15 years of recruiting experience gives her a second-nature understanding of clients’ hiring needs. When it comes to manufacturing, engineering, supply chain, and sales in IoT and AI; she has a unique capacity to review chemistry and motivation from both parties and make lasting placements.”

Curious to learn more about recruiting? Be sure to follow us on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram to stay up to date on the latest news in recruiting, telecom, wireless, healthcare, manufacturing, and other exciting industries. To learn more about what Blue Signal can do for you, contact us for a free consultation. 

Top 6 Benefits of Contract Staffing

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Making the decision to hire is the easy part. Whether you have a busy season that calls for increased workloads, are starting a new project, or have a hole in your ranks - it’s easy to tell when it’s time to bring new talent on board. The hard part? Deciding how to make this hire. After ironing out your budget, the role’s responsibilities, and the timeline you need to hit to match your urgency, you’ll have to decide the type of hire you want to make.

There are several benefits to making a permanent hire - but what you don’t often hear about is the benefits of hiring someone on a temporary basis. What is it you want to accomplish with this hire? Leverage this list of top 6 benefits to find out if contract staffing is right for this position, and prioritize what it is your organization needs from this addition to the team. 

1. "Try out” new hires - without the risk

In some cases, making a new hire might impose a great risk on your organization. Maybe you have never hired someone for this role before, or perhaps the business needs the help but is in a precarious financial situation. Bad hires can cost organizations up to 30% of the employee’s first-year earnings, according to the US Department of Labor. CareerBuilder found that this averaged around $14,900 per poor hire. While the ultimate goal is to find an amazing fit for the organization and need, sometimes the candidate just isn’t suitable for the role. By hiring on a temporary or contract basis before fully committing to a permanent hire, you are limiting your risk and exposure. 

The temp-to-hire model gives the best insight into the success of the role and/or the employee! Better yet, it gives you time to build out your organization in the event of a new reporting structure or team. Say you were creating an entirely new business unit and trying to decide whether or not a job function should be split into two roles - having a temporary contractor on board could give you insight into the role’s bandwidth. The contractor can give their honest feedback without fear of it hurting their position, and it protects future full-time employees from taking on too much of the strain of growing pains. The insight is endless! 

 

2. Access highly skilled, niche experience 

Contractors generally have more of a project-based background. While the typical hiring model gives preference to years of experience, it really leaves out the advantage that these contractors possess. They were brought into organizations for their expertise - and in a shorter time frame have touched more software and variables, while gaining more insight into that area of focus than the usual full-time employee. They didn’t have to be taught overall company processes, the ins and outs of the business, and so on - they spent their time handling the issues at hand. By having shorter job stints, with more focus on the project than the overall organization, you are able to tap into niche experience without the looming price tag of a long-term salary contract. 

Consultants are a superb resource for project-based initiatives. Say you have a large systems conversion that is estimated to take 1-2 years to complete. A consultant can bring hyper-specialized expertise to the organization and get the project done right. In the end, you aren’t stuck with a specialist on a W2 when moving forward, a generalist would be more beneficial. 

Fast Facts_ Benefits of Contract Staffing Graphic

3. Gain an immediate impact 

If you are looking to make a hire to complete a particular project or short-term job function, hiring a temp makes it easier to assign job duties and manage the scope of the role. You can easily narrow the role to fit the particular venture. Whether your need comes from last-minute projects, increased workloads in a busy season, newly awarded contracts, and even employee absences - the temp hiring model can help bridge the gap. No team building, culture fit, company onboarding, or non-role related training required - especially when working with a staffing company or talent acquisition firm. 

Recruiters can help qualify candidates on skillset and conduct background checks, making the hiring process virtually hands free. Contractors typically require little to no supervision or training, giving time back into the pockets of those managers and trainers you would otherwise need to schedule into the mix. This saves you time and effort - but protects candidates as well! They are able to jump into a position, build their skills, and not have to worry about the politics of a long-term role. They get to fast forward to the reason they are there - to build their skillset, utilize their knowledge, and make an immediate impact on an organization. 

 

4. Secure mutually beneficial flexibility 

Hiring temporary employees gives companies the ability to respond to market changes and business needs as they happen. As mentioned, contract workers can help bridge gaps and provide flexible coverage for a variety of needs. Hire when you need it, and don’t continue contracts when you don’t. The best part? This adaptability is beneficial to candidates as well. 

One misconception of staffing is that it provides no job security on the employees’ end. However, with contracting they are able to truly select their work environment and choose which projects they would like to participate in. They can take roles based on the skills they want to gain, the expertise they hold - and if they get all they want out of a role, they can move to the next with no concern for “job hopping”. Contractors take advantage of this freedom by gaining marketable skills as the industry evolves - and achieve job security by staying ahead of the curve on the newest trends and technologies, while expanding their skillset portfolio. 

 

5. Lead with ease of management 

When working with talent acquisition agencies, the general management of the employee is usually left to those outside groups. You would only ever work with one recruiter - spelling out your requirements and leaving the discovery and qualification of candidates up to them. The recruiter will conduct the background checks, interviewing, qualification matching, and reference checks. Then, even after signing a contract and bringing them on board, most agencies will manage the candidate’s benefits administration, payroll, time-off requests, and insurance. For those publicly traded companies, this avoids the risk of finances and lowers your official headcount. 

Further still, if the candidate isn’t working out, the end of the contract gives an easy way out without the emotional stress of a fire, and with no explanation needed. The contractor has these expectations set early. Worst case, they finish out what they were brought in to do then leave. Best case, you found a potential temp-to-hire without assuming any risk of making a blind full-time hire. 

6. Reduce hiring costs 

With contract staffing you only pay for what you want, when you need it. You pay for their hours worked, and the agency fee would cover their benefits and other finances. This fee is always much lower than the cost of a new permanent employee. The Society of Human Resource Management found that the average cost to onboard a new employee in 2020 is $4,129 - with 42 days to fill the position. That doesn’t factor in the cost of leaving a position open while looking for the right candidate. In 2019, the average cost per open role was $18,000 per month. Can you afford to wait 42 days - at $18,000 per 30 days - and then pay to onboard? Before a perm hire can make an impact on an organization, it’s likely that you’ve lost over $20K just in the process of getting them into a desk. 

Cost of Bad Hire Case Study Graphic

With staffing, you can drastically reduce that price tag. And with Blue Signal, our Staffing Division offers a 48-hour turnaround to get contractors hired fast. We match your level of urgency and can get staffing for your open roles quicker than it’d take to onboard a full-time employee. Contact us today to discuss your options, and see if contract staffing is right for your business. As your partner in the process, we specialize in a business’ most important aspect - talent. 

New Hire Checklist, Ensuring Retention and Engagement

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Ever thought that there ought to be some sort of guide on hiring? No one truly prepares you for the responsibilities you will undertake after finding a good candidate. You’ve made the right hire, but now what? Blue Signal might have your solution! Read on for a comprehensive new hire checklist that can help take the guesswork out of the first 90 days. If you’re more of the visual learning type, follow the link below to download the infographic and get back to what’s most important - securing top talent! 

Before They Start

Get ahead and prepare. 

  • Prepare a list of expectations for the role.
  • Re-evaluate your current on-boarding process by getting feedback from staff. 
  • Gather essential items and equipment - set up computers and download relevant software.

 

On the First Day 

Assimilate them into company culture. 

  • Have everyone meet the new staff member. 
  • Get them acquainted with their team and management. 
  • Arrange a team lunch. 
  • Ensure they have all relevant paperwork complete. 
  • Ensure their workstation is functioning properly.

 

The First Week on the Job 

Get them acquainted with the role and business. 

  • Begin the job training. 
  • Wrap up every day with an end of day review, encouraging them to ask questions. 
  • Give them an assignment they can do on their own. Use this to gauge how their work ethic will be moving forward.
New Hire Checklist Blog Graphic

Throughout the First Month 

Ramp them up to meet their goals. 

  • Check in to review their progress towards goals and team cohesion.
  • Gradually increase their responsibilities. 
  • Do a deep dive into big picture business goals, and explain how each department and role plays into it. 
  • Give them all relevant materials and reference documents.

 

The First 90 Days 

Gauging performance and success. 

  • Schedule out monthly check-ins to give a forum to ask questions and measure progress. 
  • Check up on larger projects. 
  • Hand off several projects at once and see how they manage time and prioritize tasks. 
  • Get feedback on the on-boarding process.

 

After 90 Days 

Evaluate their fit by measuring progress via numbers and the team feedback. 

 

More about Blue Signal: 

Blue Signal was founded in Chicago in 2012, and since then, has grown into a multimillion-dollar executive placement firm with offices in the Phoenix and Chicago areas. Blue Signal has established itself as the premier executive search firm within wireless/telecom, IoT, cloud and managed services, medical & healthcare, manufacturing, emerging technology, and related industry niches.

At Blue Signal, we know that talent is a business’ best asset - and we are skilled in finding the exact professionals you need to reach your goals. Our targeted, specialized searches deliver highly qualified professionals to meet every hiring need. With over 120 combined years of recruiting experience, we can help your company find the right people for every unique company culture and industry niche. Our team works with both job seeking candidates and talent seeking hiring managers to find the perfect fit. Contact us today to explore your options, and jumpstart your team toward success.

Why Your Job Postings aren’t Getting the Right Applicants

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Filling an open role is stressful enough. Between finding coverage of the responsibilities for the role and also finding time to interview candidates, the search can become its own full time job. Recruiterbox estimates it takes a full 38 hours dedicated to a candidate search from job posting to signing contracts - and that’s only if you hire the first person you decide to interview! To top it off, how many hours could be wasted if your job posting doesn’t turn up any qualified applicants? Without qualified candidates, you could be spending that 38 hours per candidate in a search lasting anywhere between 4 days and 4 months! Based on knowledge gained through Blue Signal’s combined 120 years of experience in recruiting, here are some of the top reasons why your postings aren’t getting the right applicants. 

The Bad and the Ugly - Formatting 

This seems like a no-brainer, but you would be surprised by the sight of the other end of your job posting. It’s not your fault! Each job posting site has its own algorithm and tables that can all affect your formatting in wacky ways after you click that submit button. Monster explains it best in their support article, citing hidden information and extra code carried over from your word processor as the culprit. To summarize, 

The best way to combat this is to check the front-end of your job posting after it’s live.

Google your own role and check to make sure it’s not only appearing high for SEO rankings, but also to confirm that your job description formatting is clean and easy to read in every format from search page result to mobile device. If your margins have gone awry, correct it. Applicants will not apply to roles that look like they were posted by internet bots. Worse yet, you don’t want to give off a bad first impression by representing your brand with something haphazardly copied and pasted into a block of hard to process text. Make sure you are representing yourself fairly  and start with a formatting check! 

 

Losing Interest with Lengthy Application Processes 

It’s true. This generation of job seekers has a shortened attention span, especially when multiple listings that all look and feel the same are all competing for their attention at the same time. Even if by chance a candidate reads your job description and decides to apply, you are probably losing several good leads if your application process is too lengthy. Especially when it comes to passive talent. 

When you think of your dream candidate, are they unemployed today? Probably not. Which means they have full-time jobs, personal lives, and all sorts of responsibilities that occupy their time. If they start your application process and it becomes too tedious of a task, chances are they are probably going to back out with the rationalization that this prospect is not worth their time. An Appcast study found that companies can boost their application completion rate by up to 365% by merely reducing the length of the application process to 5 minutes or less. 

By shortening the process, you can multiply your candidate pool instantly.

If you aren’t sure how your application process compares, LinkedIn suggests taking yourself through your own application process to test it out. Gain some insight on how your interface looks, what bugs it might have, and what impression it gives from the applicants point of view. Remember that the application process is made to gain information on a candidate, not test their patience. Keep the application process focused on ease of communication - for both parties. 

 

Leaving Too Much - or Too Little - to the Imagination: A Bad JD

When you are reviewing applications, what stands out to you the most? Strong qualifications, or completed tables with candidate information parsed in? You probably appreciate succinct resumes more than long-winded cover letters that cover someone’s origin story in the industry. Make sure that your job description and application process fit your needs as a hiring manager, and don’t distract from the real messaging that your job description should be sending. 

Use your job description to weed out unqualified candidates - not your application process.

While you want the job description to be accurate to the role, you should consider this process from the perspective of the applicant. Imagine applying the “Golden Rule” to writing and posting job ads. You don’t want to waste your time reading blocks of self explanatory text - and neither do candidates. You like personalized cover letters and applications that target your company, not just the job function - just as candidates love personalized job postings that highlight company-specifics, like culture. Make sure that whatever you post is descriptive yet brief. Hubspot’s research delving into recruitment media found that job descriptions with 300-800 words performed best, with an 8-9% apply rate. Similarly, shorter job titles led to better apply rates, with the highest number of applicants for roles with titles only 1-3 words long. 

 

Lacking in the Sizzle Department - Marketing Yourself as an Employer

On the flip side, using short, bland job descriptions doesn’t seem to be in your favor either. In Blue Signal’s experience, “blanket” JDs have done more harm than good. One of the best ways to get the attention of a potential candidate is by marketing your company well in your job postings, not just the job itself. Hubspot found a direct correlation between apply rate and the number of benefits listed on a job description. 

When we say benefits - we don’t just mean pay rate, 401(K) matching, and free office coffee. Applicants want to hear about what innovative technology your company is developing, what the team culture is like, and what their career progression could look like beyond the role at hand. When posting a job ad, you must go beyond skill requirements and daily duties and really touch on the reason why people end up loving their jobs - the sizzle. If your company has casual Fridays or all-office lunches, mention that. If this role is open because the person that was in it before was promoted, that’s great material too! 

Why would someone want to come work for you?

Of course, applicants might work past your posting to look into your company’s website and your Glassdoor reviews, but not if they aren’t instantly compelled by the job description. Think about it from the candidate’s perspective. For example, there might be several companies looking for Network Engineers, but what is so special about your company? Why you and not the competition? What makes you shine as a manager? How is your company on the cutting edge of this industry? Just as you would sell yourself to a potential customer, you have to work to sell yourself to a potential employee. Talk about career growth, the culture of the team, the incredible people they can learn from. Focus on the sizzle of the role and you will gain the attention of the candidates that want to be there for the right reasons. 

 

Taking on the responsibility of hiring is a high-pressure position to be in. If you hire the wrong person, you are losing money. If you don’t hire the right person quick enough, you still lose money. There is a lot of trial and error involved in the process from screening candidates to interviewing. Starting with posting a job advertisement - you’re setting the tone for the entire hiring process. To get the right candidate for the job, you need to think like that candidate and gear your posting toward what they want from their next gig. Take it from us - this is an applicant driven job market. If you think you would benefit from having a partner in the process, whose entire 9-5 revolves around finding you that perfect hire, contact Blue Signal today.