It is sometimes a comedy of errors to observe the (sometimes) disconnect from reality between recruiters and well-meaning hiring managers.

A recent article in VOIP Magazine discussed how a certain HR manager of a certain cable broadband provider contacted a certain expert for assistance in finding experienced IP communications people. It seems that this certain company had made a decision to deploy Voice over IP next year to round out a consumer package. What this certain HR manager wanted specifically was a Director Of VoIP Operations. Since Director Of VoIP is a brand spanking-new position, involving a new technology, and a new service model for the company, whomever landed that gig would need an excellent understanding of emerging technologies and a crystal clear view of the impact that this service would have on this cable broadband provider's business model. The writer of the article was not wholly optimistic of the HR manager's success. Why? Long story short, there are not many people around that fit the job description the HR manager described. And this had me thinking.

"Self," I said to myself, "How would you go about recruiting Bigfoot candidates?"

"Bigfoot candidates?"

"Yes," I continue to say to... ummm... myself. "Bigfoot candidates are those candidates that some people believe exist, but most folks accept them as general myth."

Bigfoot citings are not uncommon in HR, as they usually occur whenever new technologies become popular. Case in point, when the JAVA programming language was released in 1995 (or was it 1996?), it was not uncommon to see job postings for Java developers with 5 years (or more) experience. This was laughable on one level and frustrating in every other sense for both recruiters and hiring managers alike. How was a recruiter going to find the perfect candidate when (overall) they did not exist as the technology itself was barely a few months old?

I ran into this when I was recruiting Executive and Technical personnel for startup companies in the 90's. So what happened back then?

(continued...)

In the late 90's, I was trained by a public staffing firm to be a direct hire recruiter. Of course, I rarely use the term 'direct hire' in real life. As incorrect as it is, I still called myself a 'perm recruiter' because it carries more pizzazz. I enjoyed direct recruiting for high level positions and receiving a fairly healthy commission check for my work. Like many of my peers, I despise paperwork, meetings and most administrative tasks. As a result, I totally ignored the potential of contract placements, even after I went out on my own as an independent recruiter.

Last summer, I had a client ask me to help him fill a position on a contract basis. Normally I would turn this business down. However, with my affiliation with HireAbility's Recruiting Network, I knew I had the resources behind me to handle all of the billing, collection, insurance, taxes, and other parts of the business that have always dissuaded me in the past. And more importantly, the position the client was asking me to fill seemed relatively easy. I decided to give it a shot.

I took the job order, had the client sign a contract agreement, and began working on recruiting.

Within 24 hours, I had identified a strong candidate, which I submitted to the client.

I didn't spend a month setting up phone and in-person interviews, just to find out that they'd made an offer to someone else (or any of the myriad of deal-killers that plague most direct hire placements). They hired the candidate on a 6-month contract based on his resume and a single phone interview. I've heard that the hiring process is faster for contract placements, but this was a dream come true!

Unlike direct hire placements, contract deals really are fast! After all, they aren't marrying the candidate; it's just an extended date.

The candidate was looking for $40 per hour as his pay rate and needed to be a W2 employee of my back office provider (provided to me by HireAbility). The client agreed to pay $63 per hour (the 'bill rate'). As you can see from looking at HireAbility's contract profit calculator, I was looking at an hourly profit of $11.80. It doesn't sound that huge at first , but I began receiving checks of $475 per week -

From June 12 - 14, hundreds of recruiters will meet in New Orleans for the first Fordyce Forum — a conference designed exclusively for search and placement professionals.

Brought to you by the publishers of the staffing industry newsletter 'The Fordyce Letter', Fordyce Forum 2007 is the only conference that gives you big-biller tips, techniques, tactics, and strategies you need to continue to prosper.

Like its newsletter counterpart, Fordyce Forum 2007 is a serious endeavor for serious recruiting/search professionals. Fordyce Forum 2007 speakers won't beat around the bush — they'll tell it like it is: the good, the bad, and the ugly. The industry experts and practitioners you've gotten to know in The Fordyce Letter will jump off the pages and come alive right before your eyes.

The conference will feature Chairman Paul Hawkinson, longtime Editor of 'The Fordyce Letter'. Hawkinson has been the voice and the conscience of the industry for over three decades.

Chairman od Redmatch Alan Schonberg, will deliver the keynote address at the conference. In 1965, Schonberg founded Management Recruiters International — a company that is currently the world’s largest search firm, with over 1,000 offices worldwide.

Schonberg also served as Management Recruiters International's chief executive officer for 35 years and chairman for an additional three years; he is currently chairman emeritus.

In addition, The Fordyce Forum 2007 speaker faculty will feature ten general session speakers including recruiting and search experts:

• Howard Adamsky, President, HR Innovators
• Jon Bartos, CEO, Jonathan Scott
• Mark Berger, Proprietor, Swat Recruiting
• Tony Beshara, President, Babich & Associates
• Margaret Graziano, President/CEO, Alliance HR
• Gail Kaplan, The Pinnacle Society
• Jeff Kaye, CEO, Kaye/Bassman
• Craig Silverman, EVP, HireAbility.com
• Shally Steckerl, Founder, JobMachine
• Bill Vick, Founder, Xtreme Recruiting

Spring is nearly sprung. Daffodils are trying to push their pretty yellow heads through the snow – ahh, what a great time of year.

Miss J however is not in such a springy state of mind. Although gorgeous, successful and rich Miss J has found love elusive since necessary purging of Lord B. The vegetable patch has never looked so - oh, I digress.

Love is in the air for most but not for our beloved wordstress. In an endeavor to patch that hole that was her heart Miss J has resorted to surfing that wave that is – online dating. From the myriad of websites such as yougottahope.com, onlygorgeousblondsize2sneedevenlook.com, NRAmemberslookingforloveandbunkershare.com and countless others, Miss J chose loveforthegenteellady.com. On this site Miss J hoped to find the love of her life, a hand to hold along life’s path – what she got was:

Bill 48 Plebsville, NH