If anyone is as old as I am (I know you are out there) they might remember the famous show Hogan's Heroes, where Schultz, the guard of the American Prisoners, would frequently utter "I know nothing".....
If anyone views this blog expecting to see my predictions and forecasts about what is going to happen in the industry and the economy you came to the wrong place. There are many bloggers in this industry and others who spend a good deal of their time telling you what is going to happen next...the next 3 months, 6 months or 12 months. Not me!
They also spend some time letting you know that they saw this all coming months before everything hit the fan. Baloney...I don't believe it. If they did, then why are they spending their time blogging today. You tell me!
What I plan on doing is writing about my experiences during my 20 years in the industry. A good deal of my time is spent talking to others in the industry about who they are and what they sell and how much they sell. Again, a big part of what I do at our company involves telling people about what we have to offer to them if they are looking to make a change in their employment situation. Perhaps they work for themselves or maybe they work for another company.
Just like selling promotional products to a buyer, the most important part of the process and a key determinant in whether or not you "make the sale" has to do with your line of questioning. When I first meet or speak with some one I have no idea if we have anything to offer them. I can't say we have a good deal or a bad deal for them. Only by asking a number of questions can I start to piece things together.
Be leery of anyone who starts telling you that they have a deal for you especially if they do not know what your deal is now.
In the coming weeks I will relate some stories about strange experiences in recruiting. One of the best for me involves hiring someone back in the Boston area where I grew up. This goes back some 15 years and I can not tell you how excited I was at the time when we "landed" an experienced hire who had been in the business and was selling about $300 K. I immediately called my boss and told him of my good fortune. Of course I probably told him that I used some magical closing technique (years of experience have since shown me that there are no magic techniques except maybe offering more money).
I called my new hire daily to see how things were going and was pleasantly surprised when he related the orders that he had sold each and every day. Wow...it was great to have a winner! This pattern continued for about two weeks when I received a call from my boss letting me know that they had received no orders in the home office. Calling my new hire, we went over when the orders were mailed and via what method they were sent.
I made calls each day and my good luck continued as he reported that he was selling one or two orders per day. Total sales for the three week period amounted to over $21 K. I had from this man the suppliers, the quantity, and the dollar volume of each order that he "sold".
My boss was all over me. No orders...I mean not a single order was ever received in the home office. Finally my new "shining star" hire stopped answering the phone. He returned none of my calls. I went to his home and he did not answer the door. I should have mentioned earlier that when I initially hired him I did go to his home and I sat in his office and I saw his record keeping and his files and his samples. The man was in the business! So what was the deal? What was his motive?
I didn't know then and I do not know now. What motivates some people in this business is beyond me. Again it proves to me that "I know nothing".
Have any of you been involved in recruiting? Have you had some "strange" experiences? I would love to hear them. Let me know.
So remember no predictions will be made here regarding the stock market or the financial and automotive industries. I would much rather talk about things that I do know about...things like hard work!
Look for more down the road....
Take care...
1 comment:
Hey Dave....I agree! And the longer I've been in this business the more I realize that I know nothing. I heard that the 2009 EXPO was fondly referred to as Job Fair 09.
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