My post today is really less a blog post and more a call for help. I’d like to get our readers’ feedback on LinkedIn groups that focus on Human Resources or Recruiting. In many ways, these types of discussion groups are the whole point of social media, but (in my humble opinion) I often find that there isn’t a whole lot of value inside the different LinkedIn HR and Recruiting groups—at least the ones I’ve come across.

The problem could very well be my own lack of knowledge or involvement, and perhaps there are great groups out there I need to join to change my opinion. Of course, a big industry-wide problem is that many of these groups are populated either by recruiters who blindly throw their candidates or searches into conversations:

QUESTION: “Hello, I am a healthcare recruiter in North Carolina, and I’m wondering if you’re still blocking social media sites at your healthcare institution?” Amy Recruiter, NC Health System

REPLY:  “Accounting Professional with 7 years experience AND knowledge of defense industry. Contact me today!”

Or the discussion threads are started disingenuously by people using a group as a slimy way to promote their own business. We’ve all seen the online discussions on groups that follow this script:

“Does anyone know of a good background checking software that is price competitive and can make a recruiter’s life easier?” Joe Blow, recruiting industry veteran.

Hi Joe. Why yes, there is a wonderful solution out there. ABC Background Checking is the premier background checking…” Jane Doe, HR systems vendor

Dig a bit deeper, and you’ll never guess what company both Joe and Jane work for.

Okay, I’m exaggerating a bit, but even when the discussions are legitimate, I rarely find them compelling enough to make me want to comment or read more. In fact, I usually find that the articles I read from places like www.ere.net have “comment” sections below each article with discussions much more relevant and interesting for the recruiting industry.

Are other people feeling the same way? Or am I missing something?

A while back I asked the question “is this the most absurd job posting ever” over a pretty lame ad a Georgetown University student posted for an “assistant” to help with such tasks as laundering his dirty socks. Click here to check it out and I am pretty sure you will agree with me on that one.

A recent job posting has also been getting some buzz and as an (ahem) expert in all things recruitment advertising, I gotta say it’s pretty on target. The Sararasota Herald-Tribune is looking for someone to join their investigative team and Matthew Doig, the person at the paper conducting the search, does nothing short of telling it like it is.

There’s definitely a certain type of person that loves newspaper journalism (and recruitment advertising for that matter) and when all you’ve got to work with is plain text, a well-written job posting that speaks to that certain someone is sure to stand out and attract.

In this posting, Mr. Doig tells the job seeker basically if you fit the bill then “you’re our kind of sicko.” Enjoy reading it in its entirety below and if you know any of these sickos, you now know where to send them:

We want to add some talent to the Sarasota Herald-Tribune investigative team. Every serious candidate should have a proven track record of conceiving, reporting and writing stellar investigative pieces that provoke change. However, our ideal candidate has also cursed out an editor, had spokespeople hang up on them in anger and threatened to resign at least once because some fool wanted to screw around with their perfect lede.

We do a mix of quick hit investigative work when events call for it and mini-projects that might run for a few days. But every year we like to put together a project way too ambitious for a paper our size because we dream that one day Walt Bogdanich will have to say: “I can’t believe the Sarasota Whatever-Tribune cost me my 20th Pulitzer.” As many of you already know, those kinds of projects can be hellish, soul-sucking, doubt-inducing affairs. But if you’re the type of sicko who likes holing up in a tiny, closed office with reporters of questionable hygiene to build databases from scratch by hand-entering thousands of pages of documents to take on powerful people and institutions that wish you were dead, all for the glorious reward of having readers pick up the paper and glance at your potential prize-winning epic as they flip their way to the Jumble… well, if that sounds like journalism Heaven, then you’re our kind of sicko.

For those unaware of Florida’s reputation, it’s arguably the best news state in the country and not just because of the great public records laws. We have all kinds of corruption, violence and scumbaggery. The 9/11 terrorists trained here. Bush read My Pet Goat here. Our elections are colossal (Bleep! I’ll just let you fill in the blank here. – Annette). Our new governor once ran a health care company that got hit with a record fine because of rampant Medicare fraud. We have hurricanes, wildfires, tar balls, bedbugs, diseased citrus trees and an entire town overrun by giant roaches (only one of those things is made up). And we have Disney World and beaches, so bring the whole family.

Send questions, or a resume/cover letter/links to clips to my email address below. If you already have your dream job, please pass this along to someone whose skills you covet. Thanks.

Matthew Doig
Sarasota Herald-Tribune
1741 Main St.
Sarasota FL, 34236
(941) 361-4903
matthew.doig@heraldtribune.com

You walk into an interview dressed in your suit, portfolio and extra copies of your resume in hand and mentally prepared for the run-of-the-mill interview questions such as, “Tell me about yourself.” But when you sit down across from your interviewer, she starts you off with a slightly different kind of question-

 “How are M&Ms made?”

 You might be thinking to yourself, this is a trick question. It’s just something silly to break the ice; some humor thrown at you to see how stiff you are and perhaps the interviewer just wants to alleviate your nerves. But according to the article “The 25 Weirdest Interview Questions of 2010” featured on Yahoo! Finances, this is no trick. Along with 24 other obscure questions, this one is “reportedly from USBank.”

By far, the strangest topping the list came from the prestigious Goldman Sachs, “If you were shrunk to the size of a pencil and trapped in a blender, how would you get out?” The article goes on to explain, “Glassdoor, a job-posting and community site for job-seekers, has compiled a list of the oddest interview questions of 2010, and that zinger—reportedly from Goldman—wins the number one slot. ‘Interviews can be an extremely nerve wracking experience, and by shedding light on the process we hope to give job seekers a leg up in their next interview,’ says Robert Hohman, co-founder and CEO of Glassdoor. Glassdoor combed through 80,000 interview questions shared by job candidates on its site to find the wackiest queries.”

The list of questions continues from a variety of topics including some that seems completely random and others that are formatted like old familiar grammar school math problems or questions that your high school guidance counselor might have asked to get a better idea of what job you would be best suited for, but still the article admits, “Glassdoor is not able to independently verify that these questions were actually asked, or who asked them,” which essentially means we’re just going by word of mouth.

The article reported, “BNET contacted all of the companies who made top 25, and among those who responded, none were able to confirm the origin of the questions. But none of them denied that the questions had been used, either (though some said these questions were not part of a standard set used by all interviewers), and some even offered a possible explanation as to what kind of answer the interviewer was after.”

Just for fun, here are the top 25 weirdest questions in order from the article:

1. If you were shrunk to the size of a pencil and put in a blender, how would you get out? (Goldman Sachs)

2. How many ridges are there around a quarter? (Reportedly from Deloitte)

3. What is the philosophy of martial arts? (A spokesperson for Aflac, where this question was used, says she hopes the candidate quoted Kwai Chang Caine from the 1970s TV show Kung Fu: “I seek not to know the answers, but to understand the questions.”)

4. Explain to me what has happened in this country during the last 10 years (Reportedly from Boston Consulting)

5. Rate yourself on a scale of 1 to 10 how weird you are (Reportedly from Capital One)

6. How many basketballs can you fit in this room? (Reportedly from Google)

7. Out of 25 horses, pick the fastest 3 horses. In each race, only 5 horses can run at the same time. What is the minimum number of races required? (Reportedly from Bloomberg LP)

8. If you could be any superhero, who would it be? (Reportedly from AT&T)

9. You have a birthday cake and have exactly three slices to cut it into eight equal pieces. How do you do it? (Reportedly from Blackrock Portfolio Management)

10. Given the numbers 1 to 1000, what is the minimum number of guesses needed to find a specific number if you are given the hint “higher” or “lower” for each guess you make? (Reportedly from Facebook)

11. If you had 5,623 participants in a tournament, how many games would need to be played to determine the winner? (Reportedly from Amazon)

12. An apple costs 20 cents, an orange costs 40 cents, and a grapefruit costs 60 cents. How much is a pear? (Reportedly from Epic Systems)

13. There are three boxes. One contains only apples, one contains only oranges, and one contains both apples and oranges. The boxes have been incorrectly labeled such that no label identifies the actual contents of its box. Opening just one box, and without looking in the box, you take out one piece of fruit. By looking at the fruit, how can you immediately label all of the boxes correctly? (Reportedly from Apple)

14. How many traffic lights are in Manhattan? (Reportedly from Argus Information and Advisory Services)

15. You are in a dark room with no light. You have 19 grey socks and 25 black socks. What are the chances you will get a matching pair? (Reportedly from Convergex)

16. What do wood and alcohol have in common? (Reportedly from Guardsmark)

17. How do you weigh an elephant without using a weigh machine? (Reportedly from IBM)

18. You have 8 pennies. Seven weigh the same, but one weighs less. You also have a judges scale. Find the penny that weighs less in three steps. (Reportedly from Intel)

19. Why do you think only a small portion of the population makes over $150,000? (Reportedly from New York Life)

20. You are in charge of 20 people. Organize them to figure out how many bicycles were sold in your area last year. (Reportedly from Schlumberger)

21. How many bottles of beer are [consumed] in the city [in a] week? (Reportedly from Nielsen)

22. What’s the square root of 2000? (Reportedly from UBS)

23. A train leaves San Antonio for Houston at 60 mph. Another train leaves Houson for San Antonio at 80 mph. Houston and San Antonio are 300 miles apart. If a bird leaves San Antonio at 100 mph, and turns around and flies back once it reaches the Houston train, and continues to fly between the two, how far will it have flown when they collide? (Reportedly from USAA)

24. How are M&Ms made? (Reportedly from USBank)

25. What would you do if you just inherited a pizzeria from your uncle? (This question comes from Volkswagen. A spokeswoman for the company tells BNET while the question is certainly not standard, the company’s business analysts often have to take over and manage projects started by other people, so this question may have been a manager’s attempt to see how a job candidate would run a project they ‘inherited.’)

Honestly, as someone who has worked in HR previously, I’d have to argue that some of these questions are pretty ridiculous. As an HR manager or interviewer, what do you think? Based on some of the explanations given for some of the questions, would you consider asking some of these? As a job seeker, what kind of response would you give?

Tony Rosato sent me this pretty funny Dilbert cartoon the other day. I am sure many of you will also get a laugh from it, as well as relate:

A while back I wrote up a blog on this very subject. I called it “I’m taking a virtual lunch.” In a nutshell, it’s been proven time and again that productivity isn’t necessarily increased by a company policy forbidding access to social media, or for that matter decreased by the lack of one. (Most of us can log on anytime, anywhere, including the workplace, from a smart phone anyway!)

Are there social media addicts and time wasters whittling away the day on Facebook in America’s offices? No doubt. However, I would suggest that their managers manage that problem like they would any other issue vs. a blanket policy that screams “We don’t trust you!”

I also hear from many out there in HR this argument – allowing employee access to social media and/or encouraging them to act as social media ambassadors for our organization is just opening up a can of worms. The fear of Facebook and Twitter – and to a lesser extent LinkedIn – is also holding many organizations back from engaging and only encourages such policies.

Here are some stats courtesy of Social Media Examiner’s 2010 Social Media Marketing Industry Report on social media users:

• 33% visit social media sites to engage in product research before making a purchasing decision
• 47% say social media sites influence their decision to purchase specific company services and brands
• 26% changed their minds about purchasing a product after reading about it on a social media site

All of these stats effectively translate to recruiting (and retaining) strong candidates to work for your organization. Candidates – at least the smart ones, the ones you hope wind up in the interview chair – are going to research your organization. Whether that research occurs before they submit a resume, accept an invitation to interview or after an offer has been made, isn’t limited to the company line on the corporate website.

They’re certainly checking out social media to see if your company is representing and if people (current and former employees) are talking. Considering your current employees, who may be wondering if the grass is greener someplace else, the same could be true for them when it comes to investigating what your competitors are up to.

While I do not think that every single hiring organization or recruiter needs to be an aggressive social media player at the moment, there’s a very good chance that people are talking about your organization. And getting back to that Dilbert cartoon – with policies like these, what are you truly saying back?

There are good and bad ways to stand out from the crowd.

Really bad.

Really, really bad.

When it comes to your resume, make it good. Sometimes standing out from the crowd in a good way can be as simple as having the only resume with no typos. This person’s resume made a list dubbed the 70+ Most Artistic and Creative Resumes of All Time. I picked it for my never ending love of vinyl and it’s overall good design, however the other 69 are pretty impressive and worth a diversion in your day too, so be sure to check them out.

In one of many promotions designed to hype the season premier of Mad Men, fans of the show can now find out if they’ve got what it takes to join the team over at the newly formed Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce in this fun time killer mock interview. See if you make the cut and where you fit in by taking the interview here. Season 3 premiers Sunday, 7/25 at 10pm!

For those that don’t remember, Primetime Glick was a short-lived comedy show featuring Martin Short as the rude, clueless Hollywood reporter, Jiminy Glick (if you don’t recognize Martin, don’t worry, he was in a body suit and under tons of makeup). I came across an old clip on YouTube recently, and I was struck by the way Jiminy’s style represented the very worst in HR interviewing. Specifically:

• Being ill-prepared for the interview

• Having your facts completely wrong

• Going off on wild tangents

• Asking questions but not listening to the answers

• Making snap judgments about one’s abilities and qualifications

• Being dismissive

• Letting your emotions get the best of you

• Asking inappropriate questions

• Talking more about yourself than listening to the candidate

To see an example of bad interviewing in action, watch Jiminy’s interview with Julia Louis-Dreyfus here:

You can also watch Jiminy as he takes over CNN and makes many of the same interviewing mistakes with Anderson Cooper:

Unfortunately, I bet many people reading this blog have worked with people who are almost as bad at interviewing as Jiminy.  Let’s join together, think about the above bullets, and resolve to never let it happen to us! Have a great weekend everyone!

Do not adjust your monitor! We are now in control. Resistance is futile!

Just kidding. Here’s the deal: The person behind the blog curtain, the one who edits, publishes and puts this fantastic blog together, is none other than our VP of Operations, Annette DeHaven. Annette is on vacation this week–I can’t believe we let her do that—but that means I am in charge, and this blog is mine (at least for a few more days).

Hmm, so how should I do my evil bidding? Run a seven page manifesto on how frustrating the Phillies have been to watch so far this year? Craft another embarrassing love letter to Honest Tea?

No, dear readers, it’s too hot here in Philly (approaching the record of 97 degrees today) for such drama or angst.

Come to think of it, just the thought of the long days of summer melts my evil heart. I know that before long I’ll be writing a blog complaining about the chill of fall, so let’s all join together and make a pact to seize the day. Here’s how:

In the next week, you MUST do at least five of the following:

• Catch a lightning bug.

• Drink water straight from the garden hose.

• Offer a drink from garden hose to a loved one and then splash him/her in the face.

• Play wiffle ball with the kids in your neighborhood (you’re allowed to peg them on their way to first base).

• Take a nap in a hammock (your neighbor won’t mind).

• Go for a long walk some evening and marvel how it’s still light at 8:30pm.

• Perform an embarrassing cannonball, can opener or belly flop at the next pool party you attend.

• Go camping. Sleep in a tent. Enjoy the fresh air and quiet while not complaining about the heat, bugs, lack of shower or appropriate bathroom  (if you can do this, please write to me and tell me how).

• Get a big, fat summer novel and knock it out in a few days (I’m going with the last in Stieg Larsson’s amazing Lisbeth Salander trilogy, The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest).

• Hit the beach, any beach. Stare out at the ocean. Feel calm.

Finally: realize that the languid days of summer are fleeting, and do as much as you can with those you love to get the most out of them.

I saw this TV commercial on one of my favorite blogs, AdFreak (forget the Super Bowl – this is where some of the funniest spots wind up and the write-ups are sometimes even funnier), and it only made me picture what it would be like if all of us here at Alstin heard what sounded like an ice cream truck in the office. Would I be running for cover, or running to be first in line?

It doesn’t take sophisticated surveillance equipment to find out that Alstin is giving one lucky blog visitor a chance to win a $50 gift card to Amazon.com with this month’s “Picture This” contest.

Use you ingenuity to come up with a clever caption/headline for this photo – as always, bonus points if it’s recruitment/HR related! The winner will be announced next Tuesday, April 27, 2010.

Update: Congrats to Michele Meehan – this month’s winner!

I recently came across this video from the folks at HR.com While the debt to Monster’s “When I Grow Up…” campaign from several years ago is rather obvious, this one concentrates all its sarcasm and sardonic humor on the human resources industry.

 Here’s hoping you find this video funny, but not in any way an accurate portrayal of your career!

Undercover Boss turned out to be a real lemon of a show. I kinda figured it would, although I totally fell for the preview. To prove that good things can come from bad reality TV, here’s the proof:

Thanks to the PunkRockHR blog (where I first spotted this clip) for leading me to the hilarity I just shared with you. Saturday Night Live is officially DVR worthy.

Is this cat just crazy?…or crazy like a fox? Ever walk away from your laptop and come back to find disaster and your cat looking pretty pleased?

“Paws” to write a caption for this photo (more points if it’s recruitment/HR related) and if we deem yours the best, you’ll WIN a $50 gift card to Starbucks.

Caffeine junkies unite – bring us your best.

Update: Congrats to Tonya Sanchez for her winning entry, selected on Tuesday, March 9th. A “Picture This” contest will be back to the blog in April, so keep coming back for more.