Job Talk: How You Can Help

Posted by: William W. (Woody) Williams

I've been travelling the last few days -- with more trips upcoming -- and haven't focused on the blog enough. A recent conversation, however, is worth an entry.

I was chatting with a friend of mine Tuesday morning; a senior recruiter with one of the major firms. It was our first face-to-face but we have spoken frequently on the phone and traded a few emails. I like this person -- their "values" are good... but that's a different entry.

What caught my attention was a recent job req. for an IT project manager. It contained the usual specificity that many of us find troubling. Suffice to say that this requirement was very specific.

In an ordinary job market filling this kind of request might take several weeks and perhaps several months. Winnowing the resumes received to those who actually qualified based on the requirements would leave an available pool of two or three for the interview process. But, this job market isn't ordinary.

In the course of a few days, thirty-eight qualified resumes were received for the opening. Any of these thirty-eight could interview but the client / employer (by request) wanted only three. The best of the best.

You'd think my friend, the senior recruiter, would be overjoyed at the overabundance of talent available for their client. On the contrary, they were struggling.

• Concerned about how to be fair in the selection process
• Concerned about how to tell obviously qualified candidates they didn't make the cut
• Concerned about their inability to place highly qualified people obviously in need in good jobs in a stagnant market.

I didn't have any answers for my friend and... well... let's just say they are doing the best they can with it.

I don't know how many resumes were reviewed to cut the total down to thirty eight qualified applicants. I do know the ratio of qualified applicants to spots at the interview table is almost 4:1.

In "glass half-full mode, that's not as bad as it could be and, I've seen worse. In Houston following the dotCom bubble burst and 911, I saw a guy under a bridge with a sign saying, "Will write HTML for food." True story.

In "half-empty mode," there are not very many project managers qualified for the requirements of this position -- probably something less than a tenth... maybe just one percent or so of the available pool. To have 38 qualified applicants from a small metro area (Austin, TX) actively seeking employment is not a good sign... no matter what you think of IT project managers.

To those currently seeking jobs: Don't give up. There are positions available and if you keep shooting, you'll hit the target. There are not many and it will take time so plan for that and don't overlook a single option. The good news here is that three people will interview and one of them will get the job.

To those currently working in stable jobs: Give your unemployed friends and connections a break. Support them; make referrals; write a recommendation; pass their resume around. You never know what little thing that you can do with minimal effort is the one thing that makes a huge difference in the life of someone close to you.

Pick one person you know who is out of work, qualified, and looking. Do something for them -- refer them to a friend, write a recommendation for them on LinkedIn, take them out to lunch or for a drink and talk to them -- ask questions and figure out what you can do to help. The good news here is that, if we work together, every one of us can make a significant difference to an individual and to the community at large.

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