The Perfect Fit

Thank You!

This is my 10^th Thanksgiving as a recruiter.  Please indulge me as I think about, and give thanks for the people around me and the career I enjoy.  If not for the people, nothing else would really matter.  I live for my family and friends first, and then for my career.  I’m thankful to be surrounded by a healthy, happy and caring family.  I’m most thankful for Barbara, who’s stuck with me when times were very stressed.  Her strength, understanding and perspective have all (thankfully) contributed to our company’s success.

I’m also thankful for the health of this career as a recruiter.  I’m thankful for all the clients and candidates and colleagues who have trusted me over the years.  I’m proud and pleased to have been able to help clients grow, while helping professionals advance in their careers at the same time.  It’s very satisfying.  I’m thankful that many of my clients and candidates remain friends.

I’m thankful (and proud) that REBUS has grown into an organization that has earned a place of value in the St. Louis advertising community.  I’m thankful for the dedicated and tireless group of volunteers who are really the ones that make REBUS what it is and without whom REBUS would cease to exist.

I’m thankful (and proud) that another organization I was involved with founding is growing slowly, but surely.  Ready and Willing is in its second (public) year and has embarked on its journey to help those St. Louis regional non-profits receive marketing support.  Without r+w  that marketing support would otherwise not be available.  We’ve completed our first project with the St. Louis Special Olympics, the St. Louis Track Club and the Clayton Police.  We’re getting ready to facilitate more contributions from the advertising community to the St. Louis community of charities.

I’m incredibly happy and personally proud that I’ve been elected to the Board of the International Photography Hall of Fame . . . acceptance to that position is one significant achievement for my 25 years as a photographer.  It’s almost incomprehensible to me that I would be a part of such an historically significant organization in the medium I love most.  I’ll be challenged and enthusiastic about supporting the opportunity to bring the headquarters of the IPHF to St. Louis’ Grand Center.  You’ll be hearing more from me regarding that effort.

I’m a lucky guy.  I love my wife, and we’re both healthy.  My family is healthy . . . my business is healthy.  I’m very thankful.  Thank you for allowing me to share my thanks with you.

I wish you, your families, colleagues and those close to you all the very best for a happy and relaxing Thanksgiving Holiday!

New St. Louis Marketing Career Opportunity

We're starting a new retained search for client in Clayton.  Our client LaserBand, is very successful and has consistently grown, year over year since their founding.  They're now expanding from the US to International markets and need an experienced marketer to help lead that growth.

Senior Marketing Manager #11114
Location:  Clayton, Missouri

General Description:
Our client is looking for the person to anchor and grow the marketing department.  Our client is a technology driven manufacturer of a consumable product used in the healthcare field.  They have the premier product of its kind in the US and are now growing globally, consistently returning more than 20% revenue increases annually.  We’re looking for a senior marketing manager who is fluent in database analysis and targeted marketing campaign and metrics development.  Our client knows who their customers are and how they go about their business.  The marketing manager is responsible for developing an introduction and build product awareness as a basis for a conversation with our client’s sales representative.

Primary Responsibilities:
•    Work closely with the CEO to develop the marketing strategy and metrics necessary to improve the tracking, analyzing and managing of that strategy.
•    Be an organized, proactive project manager of everything related to marketing communications including campaigns, timelines and budgets.
•    You’ll be responsible for the marketing plan development, concepts, writing targeted communication, web updating . . . in short, this is a “hands on” position.
•    Manage outside vendors and creative resources effectively and cost efficiently.
•    Be the strategic lead for marketing communications, the principal  writer of long and short copy, attend trade shows and be comfortable and effective presenting to Senior Client executives.
•    Work closely with and in support of the small, motivated and effective sales team.
•    Manage and grow the marketing department’s contribution to the overall sales success over time.
•    Travel as necessary in support of the position . . . perhaps 15%

Experience:
We’re looking for candidates with a related degree and at least ten years of mid-sized, privately held client (>$500MM) experience.  We’re looking for a smart, ambitious, self-directed starter who is a “doer”, not a “supervisor”, someone who understand a sense of urgency and entrepreneurship.   While writing skills are essential, we want someone with a broad range of marketing and diverse channel experience (including CS5).  Candidates with international experience are strongly preferred, working abroad or multi-national marketing experience will serve our client’s global expansion goals.  A second language (European) is strongly preferred.

The 50 Best Recruiting Blogs!

I received an email this morning from Alissa Alvarez, telling me that my blog had been selected as one of the 50 best recruiting blogs in the country!  I'm very pleased, and humbly flattered! I'm re-publishing Alissa's blog in the hopes that many of you will find some valuable tips in the blogs of other recruiters!

With many qualified people out of work and looking for jobs, you might think it’s one of the easiest times to be a recruiter. Yet finding potential employees with the right talent, skills, and drive is never easy, regardless of the size of the pool of applicants or the type of businesses with which you work. Knowing what to look for and how to match the right person to the right job is something that can take a long time to learn and a lifetime to perfect, something most recruiters know all too well.

Whether you’re new to recruiting or an old pro, there’s always something new to learn about the profession and ways to make yourself better at what you do. One of the best ways to do that in today’s world is through the help of recruiters and HR experts who share their skills on blogs, both independently and through their agencies. Here, we’ve compiled a list some of the best recruiting blogs out there, in no particular order. Take a look — you may just learn a few new tricks that can help make you a standout at your job, helping not only you, but also your company and the people you hire, get ahead.

I think Alissa Alvarez missed an excellent site.  My friend Jim Durbin at The Social Media Headhunter is an excellent blogger and recruiter.  I thank Jim for his advice and help in getting this blog started!

News

Make sure you stay in the loop when it comes to industry news by following these blogs.

Here's the rest of the article and the listing of 50 Best Recruiting Blogs.

Reviews, HR, And/Or Government Humor . . . !

It's Friday and it's Veteran's Day.  With a respectful nod to those who wear the uniform in support of our freedom, both past and present, I though a little humor is in order.  I received these "quotations" in a heavily forwarded email yesterday.  These are ostensibly from the Australian government, but most of them could easily he heard in the HR Department of any company!

THESE ARE "ACTUAL" QUOTES TAKEN FROM AUSTRALIAN FEDERAL GOVERNMENT
EMPLOYEE PERFORMANCE EVALUATIONS.
 
1) "Since my last report, this employee has reached rock-bottom and has started to dig."
 
2) "I would not allow this employee to breed."
 
3) "This employee is really not so much of a has-been, but more of a definite won't be."
 
4) "Works well when under constant supervision and cornered like a rat in a trap."
 
5) "When she opens her mouth, it seems that it is only to change feet."
 
6) "He would be out of his depth in a parking lot puddle."
 
7) "This young lady has delusions of adequacy."
 
8) "He sets low personal standards and  then consistently fails to achieve them."
 
9) "This employee is depriving a village somewhere of an idiot."
 
10) "This employee should go far, and the sooner he starts, the better."
 

Cardinals Host REBUS at Busch Stadium on November 15th!

The REBUS Quadruple Play Client Panel

On Tuesday, November 15th from 6PM-8PM REBUS is ecstatic to visit the home of the 2011 World Champion St. Louis Cardinals for the REBUS Quadruple Play Client Panel!

Boasting a set of St. Louis brand icons from companies such as Monsanto, The St. Louis Cardinals, Stereotaxis and one other to be named, the Quadruple Play will allow attendees to get an insight into the work of senior marketers at some of St. Louis’ most iconic companies. The Q&A panel will be chaired by Jennifer Simler, Account Director at Switch, and will give you a chance to ask these  representatives ‘anything and everything’ about working for well-known brands in St. Louis.

Further, for a scant ten-dollar entry fee, you will enjoy an evening of delectable food and drink in the Cardinals Club, one of Busch’s finest spaces that is traditionally used only by St. Louis Cardinals green-seat season ticket holders.  Free Parking is across the street from Paddy O's in Parking Lot A

Unfortunately, attendance and free parking is limited to the first seventy-five registrants, so make sure to visit http://on.fb.me/sDv5Ry to reserve your spot today! Check it out now, you don’t want to have to “wait for next year”!

Want to get on the Q&A list before the event? Tweet us @REBUS_STL!

A Box You Want to Uncheck on LinkedIn!

I've been a fan of LInkedIn as a professional networking site and as a source for research and new business development.  I know many of you have too.  I hope what I'm about to share is more of an anomoly than a trend.  Even as a single incident, it's annoying (at the very least).

I came across this information today from another LinkedIn user, and thought you might like to know about it as well. 

-Basically, you should probably sign in to your LinkedIn account and change some of your preferences as noted in the article below. [I did go in and change mine]

August 10, 2011 by Steve Woodruff 397 Comments

Apparently, LinkedIn has recently done us the “favor” of having a default setting whereby our names and photos can be used for third-party advertising. A friend forwarded me this alert (from a friend, from a friend…) this morning.

Devious. And I expect that you, like me, don't want to participate.  

This graphic shows you how to Uncheck The Box:

1. Click on your name on your LinkedIn homepage (upper right corner). On the drop-down menu, select “Settings”.

2. From the “Settings” page, select “Account*”.

3. In the column next to “Account”, click “Manage Social Advertising” .

4. De-select the box next to “LinkedIn may use my name, photo in social advertising” .

Nice try, LinkedIn. But, no thanks!  

*UPDATE: After you finish with Account, check the new default settings under E-mail Preferences (such as Partner InMails); and Groups, Companies & Applications (such as Data Sharing with 3rd-party applications). It’s a Facebook deja vu!

I suggest that you share this with your LinkedIn friends and colleagues!