People have always needed empathetic leaders, especially now more than ever. However, many leaders overlook this soft skill or see it as a weakness. While we understand some leaders feel expressing empathy shows signs of weakness, we don’t agree when looking at the true nature behind genuine empathy in leadership. Empathy as a leadership skill allows you to build bonds of trust. It gives you insight into what others are feeling and thinking, and it helps you understand their reactions. At its core, empathy informs your decision making by sharpening your perceptions and intuition. Here are three ways to be an empathetic leader for your team.
Empathetic Leaders Lead with Flexibility
Currently, for many people, the lines between work, school, home, and general well-being are blurred. People are juggling their workload, helping their kids stay on track, and managing their health. Leaders need to recognize the additional stressors their teams are facing and lead with flexibility.
If your employees are working from home, leaders should allow, even encourage their team to block off bits of time on their calendars to assist their children, do some chores around the house, or do an activity that promotes personal wellness. If your employees work onsite, try to be as accommodating as possible if they need to come in late or leave early to take care of things outside of work that typically would not have been disrupted pre-COVID.
Your team will get the job done, right now just calls for some work to be completed outside an 8-5 schedule. Leaders need to help their team find balance in uncertainty – empathetic leaders already do.
Empathetic Leaders are Transparent
To build trust with your team, empathetic leaders are transparent. Leaders must be transparent about the upcoming challenges the business faces as it navigates through uncertain times, transparent on what is expected of their employees, and transparent about the direction the company is headed going forward. Employees want to know that the work they are doing matters, even in the midst of uncertainty.
Transparency builds trust more than anything else among employees, and when a team has trust in its leaders, they will remain focused on the company goals and productivity. When leaders can relate to their team with empathy, and rally around a shared mission and sense of purpose, we’ll come out on the other side stronger.
Empathetic Leaders are Human
Being a human leader means that you see your team as holistic individuals, not just as employees. Our colleagues are partners, parents, siblings, friends, and neighbors, and we should embrace that instead of ignoring it.
As obvious as it sounds, leaders who want to be empathetic, must first remember to be human. Leaders should take the time to check in with their employees – how are they doing physically and mentally? How are they balancing their workload? Go to a deeper level and ask them how their families are doing or what you can do to help them personally or professionally. Instead of asking these questions superficially, leaders should share their own answers with their team and be vulnerable.
Leading with Empathy
If leaders want to get more from their team, they must lead with empathy. Becoming an empathetic leader means letting your team see you as a human being first, allowing your team to have the flexibility to complete their work, and being transparent about what has passed and what’s to come. Being an empathetic leader is more than being “nice” or “making people happy.” It’s building a foundation of trust for your team, leading to more holistic and productive employees.
About EG Workforce Solutions
We’ve been in this business for decades and have developed a deep network of professional connections. Whether they’re companies looking for talent, job seekers looking for work, or an up-and-coming store in need of some temporary help, we know the right people to bridge the gap between the hiring and the hired.
But what’s more, we get to know people. From employers hiring to candidates looking, we take the time to listen and learn. We hear your likes, talents, and needs. We gain an understanding, and with it, we’re able to facilitate lasting relationships between businesses and people.
Phone interviews are nothing new; however, they are much more prevalent in the current state of things. With so much uncertainty, employers will be relying on phone interviews during their hiring process more than ever. This means you need to be prepared, practiced, and polished for your next phone interview. We’re sharing our five tips and tricks on how to ace a phone interview.
You Must Take it as Seriously as an In-person Interview
This goes without saying, but phone interviews are interviews! Just because you’re not face-to-face with a hiring manager, doesn’t mean you can take a phone interview less seriously than you would an in-person one. Prepare beforehand by ensuring you get plenty of sleep the night before, eat a well-balanced meal, and have a designated space you’re planning on using to do the interview.
Interviews are just as much a mental game as a physical one, so do what you can to prepare your mind to take a phone interview seriously as well. This includes dressing the part – don’t wear sweats or PJs, put on the same outfit you would if you were meeting the interviewer in person.
Remove All Distractions
Find a quiet place to do your phone interview. Remove all distractions, including kids, pets, music, TV, or outdoor noise. You wouldn’t have any of these distractions around for an in-person interview, so keep them away from your phone interview as well!
Once you find a quiet, non-distracting place for your phone interview, get comfortable – but not too comfortable. Ideally, you’ll want to be in a spare room or your kitchen or dining area if it is feasible. It is also important that you are sitting, not slouching, or laying down, you may not realize it, but sitting upright will help you stay focused and sound more professional.
Have Questions Prepared to Ask the Interviewer
Just like you’d have questions prepared to ask during a face-to-face interview, be sure to have some for a phone one as well. Interviews are a two-way conversation between the hiring manager and you. So if you don’t have questions prepared to ask, the interviewer may think you aren’t really interested in the job or the company. Having prepared questions is also a great way to show the hiring manager you’ve done your research on the company.
Listen First, Talk Later
Hiring managers usually set the stage for how the interview will proceed. They will lay out the expectations for the interview will be and some specifics about the job you’re interviewing for. This is why it is important that you don’t jump in as the dominant voice. It’s important to listen first to what the interviewer says so you can respond to their questions – not to mention it’s simply more professional!
Send a “Thank You” Follow-up
After the phone interview, you’ll need to send a thank-you follow-up to the hiring manager. First, you should immediately send a thank you email thanking the interviewer for their time and the conversation. This will be expected, and you run a very high risk of not moving forward if you neglect to thank the hiring manager. You should also send a handwritten thank you note as a follow up after your phone interview to really stand out against other candidates.
Phone interviews are going to be the norm for job searching going forward so remember to ace them by treating them the same way you would an in-person one. Be sure to also follow these tips, so that when you do get that call from the hiring manager, you’ll stand out as a top candidate.
About EG Workforce Solutions
We’ve been in this business for decades and have developed a deep network of professional connections. Whether they’re companies looking for talent, job seekers looking for work, or an up-and-coming store in need of some temporary help, we know the right people to bridge the gap between the hiring and the hired.
But what’s more, we get to know people. From employers hiring to candidates looking, we take the time to listen and learn. We hear your likes, talents, and needs. We gain an understanding, and with it, we’re able to facilitate lasting relationships between businesses and people.
EG is a complete workforce, recruitment, and outsourcing solution. RPO solutions is part of what we do to help companies succeed. The Recruitment Process Outsourcing Association (RPOA) defines RPO as “a form of business process outsourcing (BPO) where an employer transfers all or part of its recruitment processes to an external provider, essentially serving as an extension of the company’s human resources department.” We’ve created a complete guide to RPO.
Why You Need RPO
Today’s recruiting marketplace is complex. Finding, hiring, and keeping top talent can be a real challenge. High employment rates continue to shrink the pool of qualified candidates. The widespread dependence on technology and business-altering innovations such as artificial intelligence and 5G wireless networks mean more companies are competing for specific, often scarce skill sets.
The labor pool for digital and tech talent is particularly shallow. And, given current graduation rates, it’s not getting deeper anytime soon.
In retail, the competition for customers is fierce; the same is true for qualified workers. With seasonal ebbs and flows and the demands of new store openings, brick and mortar stores have
fluctuating needs; they often must scale up staffing quickly. This puts intense pressure on HR.
Then there’s the retirement wave. As baby boomers age, they are leaving the job market in record numbers.
The stakes have rarely been higher. Companies large and small now consider highly skilled workers to be key differentiators, critical not only to operations but to their brands.
For a growing number of companies, the solution is an external provider to help manage recruiting operations. And the demand is driving the growth of an innovative, customizable form of recruitment process outsourcing (RPO) that creates a centralized talent pipeline and boosts branding efforts while meeting hiring needs.
Why RPO is More than “Hiring.”
An RPO company works as a partner in recruitment, providing outside expertise that can:
• Reduce the time (on average, more than two years) it takes to earn back the cost of hiring each employee.
• Find the best place for each employee in the organization.
• Consider organizational goals in each hire.
• Dramatically increase the return on investment in each employee.
The Advantages of RPO
When you hire an RPO firm, your organization gets highly qualified, experienced subject matter experts (SMEs) to handle any aspect of your recruitment process. Your agreement
with an RPO can run the gamut of recruiting services: from hiring, onboarding, and headcount planning, to training, ATS, and labor market mapping.
Your RPO partner brings both scalability and flexibility to the process. You can structure (and price) the relationship to suit your current needs, and then work with the provider to rethink and
rework the relationship as recruitment requirements change.
An RPO provider brings long-term expertise to critical but time-consuming recruitment needs. That provider goes far beyond simply bringing people into your organization. It looks at
how employees fit, at your overall strategic goals, and the long-term plans for each hire.
Research and industry data support this fact: RPO outperforms all other recruitment strategies. That’s because RPO companies don’t simply consider your current needs; they think long-term. They make hires and decisions that deliver value over several years.
RPO is about transforming your operation, breaking down talent acquisition and performance silos, managing compliance issues, boosting efficiencies, and reducing hiring costs.
Whether onsite or offsite, an RPO team expands, maintains, and monitors the available talent pool, so you have access to more, high-caliber candidates when you need them. And it keeps you in the loop, regularly giving you critical, up-to-date information on the state of the market.
During a surge, when you need to scale up quickly, an RPO partner helps reduce the risk of hiring unsuitable candidates. RPO specialists blend market intelligence with your business strategy and their consistent, proven recruitment process. All so you get the right people, fast.
By ensuring you get highly-qualified people who closely match your culture, values, and overall workforce needs, RPO helps reduce turnover, boost retention, and increase tenure. Innovation rates rise, as do teamwork and engagement. Your company develops an experienced, dedicated workforce that keeps you competitive.
What RPO delivers
An RPO company works as a partner in recruitment, providing outside expertise that can:
• Quality: A disciplined approach to attracting, interviewing, and hiring great talent.
• Speed: Reduced hiring time, thanks to a more efficient process, better use of technology, and the creation of talent pools in advance of needs.
• Scale: The agility you need to scale up with qualified candidates for hiring surges.
Different Types of RPO
One of the great things about RPO is that it’s customizable. You can go big or go small. You can ask for specialized help over the long term or take a quick, focused seasonal approach.
Here’s a brief overview of some of the options.
Enterprise Recruitment Process Outsourcing – This is company-wide outsourcing of all or most recruiting functions. There are two types:
Long-term, company-wide RPO: You turn over to your RPO provider the responsibility and accountability for all elements of the operation, based on that provider’s custom plan. Of course,
accountability is critical. You agree to the plan upfront. And your RPO provider must manage resources and meet metrics defined for, and with, your own personnel. As part of its work, the provider works to build your employer brand in the marketplace.
Job/Location Specific: You turn over recruiting to the provider for certain job functions or for a certain location, such as a call center or a corporate headquarters. The RPO provider maintains ownership of the process and the results for the specified areas.
Contingency/On-Demand RPO: This puts a pool of workers at your disposal when you need them. If you think you may want to make a few dozen hires per-month, but you’ll only need them when things get busy, this is the right approach. It allows you to quickly ramp up in a specific area when there’s a well-defined need.
Branded/White Label RPO: This is RPO with your name on it. Representatives from your provider go to the marketplace as if they’re part of your company. They still can provide services beyond recruiting, but to the marketplace, they are your employees.
Co-sourcing RPO: In this approach, you hire multiple RPO providers. You may want one for high-volume recruiting and another for filling specific, tough-to-fill positions. It offers efficiencies
and allows you to focus on areas of specialization.
Of course, you can also choose how you want your RPO partner to deliver services. Options include:
• Recruiters on-site in your facility.
• Remote recruiters who are dedicated to you, but who work off-site.
• On-demand service in which recruiters work whenever and wherever you choose.
• Supported RPO that gives you access to your provider’s recruiters when you need them and allows you to scale up or scale down as needed.
Myths of RPO Solutions
There are myths about RPO. Here’s an overview, and a little analysis and perspective.
Myth: Too expensive. – The data shows RPO reduces overall recruitment costs by an average of 15 percent to 40 percent.
Myth: I’ll lose control of recruiting. – Thanks to extensive reporting, clearly defined processes, and agreed-upon metrics, most RPO users feel they actually have greater control.
Myth: It’s just not right for me. – For more than ten years, RPO has proven to be right for companies large and small, in a wide range of markets. There’s a customized plan that fits any organization.
Myth: The supplier wins; I lose. – RPO has proven to be a win-win for companies and their outsourcing partners, driving productivity, efficiency, and cost savings.
Myth: I lose my recruitment team. – With RPO, you can keep any current employees you wish to keep. You can even transition some or all of them to the RPO provider, to ensure continuity.
Myth: The transition will take forever. – With good upfront planning, RPO solutions can be up and running in as little as four weeks.
Myth: This can only go through HR. – Many RPO partnerships are initiated through other departments, such as finance.
Myth: This is going to be a complicated contract. – Your RPO agreement can be as simple or as complicated as you want it to be. It’s customizable to a short-term need or to a long-term relationship.
What to Consider Before You Commit to RPO
Talent acquisition and management have become specialized. The process, protocols, data, and technology are increasingly sophisticated. To meet the challenge of this job market, you need a highly qualified RPO partner. You’ll want to find a company with a track record that’s willing to understand your company, its growth trajectory, and your long-term needs.
Keep in mind that recruitment process outsourcing is highly customizable. So, before you start your search, you’ll need to ask yourself and your team some questions. Here are a few of the
important ones:
Why do we need help? Talk to your team. If possible, use baseline performance metrics to assess key services. Get specific. What are your time-to-fill numbers? What’s your cost-per-hire? What kind of feedback do you get from managers and workers? What’s
driving the need to get help?
Where do we need help? Decide what you want this new partner to do. Do you want to fix an overall weakness or a specific one? Are you opening a new retail store and need staffing? Is your call center ramping up for a holiday push? Do you need RPO for managing process flow or the candidate experience? Discuss it internally prior to making your calls, and then find a partner that can create a customized solution.
How long do we have to transition? In a world that moves at warp speed, schedules are everything. But be realistic. It can take a few months to get an RPO team up to speed and ready to work smoothly with you. So, plan ahead.
Typical elements of RPO
RPO is, by nature, customizable. But here are some of the typical services and support most RPO firms handle:
• Job marketing. RPO providers post your jobs on job boards, social media sites, and your
branded sites.
• Talent pool expansion. RPO providers don’t simply find top talent. They work to boost the visibility of your employer brand, engage candidates through talent communities and pipelines, and connect with candidates you may need in the future.
• Candidate assessment. RPO providers guide candidates through the early stages of the
recruitment process, making sure they have the core skills, competencies, and motivation to do
the job.
• Candidate care and management. During the interviewing, decision-making, and hiring process, your RPO provider will take care of candidates and their needs.
How to Get Started with RPO
RPO is a commitment. Once you and your RPO firm make that commitment, bring your team, and the RPO team together.
At that kickoff meeting, make sure everyone––every key stakeholder––is present. Determine or reaffirm what you need from the partnership. Set the foundation and align the teams. Make sure everyone knows the day-to-day contacts for both partners. Make sure both sides are transparent: talk about your business strategy, current hiring practices, and any critical recruiting issues. Share your vision for the future, give insight into your culture. Talk about your HR policies, procedures, and any onsite technology.
How to Get the Most out of an RPO Solution
As you move forward, stay engaged and stay familiar with who does what. Of course, you’ll want to establish a process for oversight and accountability. And make sure your internal client manager has the power and authority to navigate the landscape, remove roadblocks, identify blind spots, guide and nudge team members, and maximize the value you get from RPO.
It’s important that all involved remain honest and aboveboard about expectations and any metrics that must be met. Don’t shy away from discussing deadlines or goals but be realistic.
System-wide RPO solutions take time to get running and generate significant ROI.
The time and resources you invest in RPO are critical in generating that ROI. So, as your project or longer-term RPO relationship continues, stay involved. And keep others engaged and aware of the value you’re getting from RPO.
Stay flexible, too. Things change. Work with your RPO partners to stay ahead of shifting trends and needs. In fact, you should rely on them for insight and research; that’s what they’re there for.
About EG Workforce Solutions
We’ve been in this business for decades and have developed a deep network of professional connections. Whether they’re companies looking for talent, job seekers looking for work, or an up-and-coming store in need of some temporary help, we know the right people to bridge the gap between the hiring and the hired.
But what’s more, we get to know people. From employers hiring to candidates looking, we take the time to listen and learn. We hear your likes, talents, and needs. We gain an understanding, and with it, we’re able to facilitate lasting relationships between businesses and people.
Your resume is arguably the most important document in your job search toolkit. It shows the hiring manager your skills, experience, interest, and qualifications for the job. Having a resume that stands out, lays out the facts, and is error-free is an essential part of job searching. We’re sharing our ten resume writing tips to help you get hired!
Your Resume MUST be Error Free
There’s almost nothing that will lead a hiring manager to dismiss a resume quicker than finding an error. Whether it’s a grammar or spelling mistake, or is clearly dishonest or embellished, making sure your resume is error-free is mission-critical.
Before you submit a resume, you must proofread and edit. It’s also a good practice to run your resume through an online spelling and grammar checker, like Grammarly. We also recommend having a trusted friend, parent, or mentor proofread your resume as well. The more “eyes” you have on your resume before you apply for a job, the less likely you will miss a mistake.
Use an Online Template Tool
It’s not enough to simply type out your contact information and work history on a plain Word doc if you expect to land an interview. You’ll need to layout your information in a way that flows for the hiring manager who’s reviewing your resume. Using online template tools are a great way to achieve this. Word offers templates that will help you layout your information. There are also online tools with resume templates such as Indeed.com or Canva.com.
Include Your Contact Information
This seems obvious, but there is a right and a wrong way to include your contact information. Avoid using nicknames or unprofessional emails, and instead, opt for using your full given name and using an email address that reflects that. You should also make sure that the contact information you include is accurate. Don’t include a phone number or email address that you don’t use as obviously you’ll miss the call or email from the hiring manager trying to schedule an interview!
You should list your contact information near the top of your resume so the hiring manager can quickly locate it and reference back to it if they feel like you’d be a good fit for an interview.
Make Your Resume Easy to Read
Often, hiring managers are only spending a minimal amount of time actually reviewing a resume. They’re looking for the experience and qualifications that stand out in alignment with the job description. This means when you’re writing your resume, keep it simple and easy to read. Avoid flowery language or over detailing specific experience you’ve had – this is what the interview portion is for. Keeping your resume language simple, concise, and easy to read for a hiring manager will be more likely to lead to an interview.
Use a Professional Font on Your Resume
Please do not use Comic Sans when writing your resume. Stick with using a professional font such as Times New Roman, Helvetica, or Arial as these are easy to read and clear for a hiring manager who is scanning over your resume. You should also keep the font size between 10 and 12 points.
Also, be aware of how much white space you have on your resume. If you have too much white space, your resume might look sparse or incomplete. Use appropriate margins between the page edges and spacing between paragraphs.
Include Only the Most Relevant Information on Your Resume
Like we mentioned previously, avoid adding too much detail or flowery language when writing your resume. You should include only the most relevant information on your resume because hiring managers do not have time to thoroughly read every word. While you may have an extensive work history dating back years, it’s likely that not all of this is relevant to the position you’re currently applying for. For example, if you’re applying for an office administrative position and you were a waiter/waitress ten years ago, you do not need to include that restaurant service experience on your resume if you have more recent and more relevant work experience.
Organization Your Resume with the Most Important Information First
You should organize your resume with the most important information listed first. Listing your experience, qualifications, skills, and accomplishments chronologically will help the hiring manager understand your career growth and how your background would contribute to the role you’re applying for.
You should also only include work experience, achievements, education, and skills that are most relevant to the position you’re applying for. Be sure to prioritize your most important information higher on your resume to draw attention to your key skills and achievements.
Use Active Language on Your Resume
Use active language when writing your resume. This means using “power words,” such as “achieved,” “eared,” “completed,” or “accomplished.” Active language communicates to the hiring manager what you’ve done in previous roles while also showing you’re continuing to grow and develop professionally.
Reference Keywords from the Job Description on Your Resume
Make your resume stand out by referencing keywords from the job description. The hiring manager will see them on your resume, and it’s more likely to lead to an interview. As you apply for jobs, you’ll need to update your resume for each based on the specific keywords you find relevant to your skills and experience.
Show Your Personality
You can show your personality on your resume by the way you design it or the language you use. However, it is essential to remain professional and avoid being too casual. Also, don’t shy away from sharing your interests if they’re relevant to the job or company you’re applying for. For example, if you love music and you’re applying for a position at a piano factory, definitely include that!
Your resume is the first step towards getting an interview, so making sure yours stands out and accurately communicates your qualifications is essential. Using the tips listed above to keep your resume polished will increase those chances of getting an interview and getting hired!
About EG Workforce Solutions
We’ve been in this business for decades and have developed a deep network of professional connections. Whether they’re companies looking for talent, job seekers looking for work, or an up-and-coming store in need of some temporary help, we know the right people to bridge the gap between the hiring and the hired.
But what’s more, we get to know people. From employers hiring to candidates looking, we take the time to listen and learn. We hear your likes, talents, and needs. We gain an understanding, and with it, we’re able to facilitate lasting relationships between businesses and people.