Helping clients understand the importance of a recruiter’s work can be challenging.  But if recruiters want to build healthy, long-lasting client relationships it is important to work towards mutual respect.  But unfortunately, some employers may lack the respect the top recruiters have come to expect. So how does a recruiter get the respect they deserve?

1.     Command respect by treating yourself and your profession with the same level of respect you give clients. Too often recruiters allow uninformed employers to diminish their trade by lowering their fees and violating the recruiter/employer relationship by using multiple recruiters for the same job orders -- amongst other things. When working with clients make sure you lay down the rules of engagement and stand your ground.

2.     Figure out a way to track your value.  Recruiters need to track how they have delivered a return on investment for past clients and share that information with current and possible future clients.  When employers can measure in dollars and cents the amount of value a recruiter brings to the table, they are more likely to give recruiters the respect they deserve.

3.     Present a professional image in your branding.  While the old adage “you can’t judge a book by its cover” may be true, it is not an adage most employers live by.  A recruiter’s brand is his/her calling card and they will be judged by that brand, for better or worse.

As many job seekers have discovered, many employers prefer to hire currently employed job candidates over those who are unemployed.  A matter of fact, according to a recent study, many employers told recruiters that they preferred job candidates who were still employed and not facing a layoff. Many employers believe that a currently working job candidate is probably a top performer because they have been able to avoid layoffs while their co-workers have become unemployed.  Many employers assume that still working job candidates must be team players, better able to adapt to change or too valuable to the company to be let go during a layoff, making them just that more desirable.  So how does an unemployed job seeker overcome the stigma attached to their non-working status?

Try to get letters of recommendation from your most recent employer.  If the employer attests to your quality as an employee and assures the new employer that you were not let go because of something you did wrong, it could go a long way in removing the unemployment stigma.

Consider volunteering your legal expertise or working as a consultant on a part-time or even freelance basis.  If you can remain active in the employment market in some type of way employers may not look upon you with the same wariness as they have for totally unemployed job candidates.

Make it clear to the employer that you are not “desperate” and willing to just grab any old job. Many employers fear that some unemployed job candidates are just looking for a position that can tide them over until the next best thing comes along.  You need to convince them that you are not that person.

One of the most difficult parts of the interview for many job candidates is when the interviewer asks the job candidate to discuss their weaknesses. It is far easier and oftentimes a lot simpler to discuss strengths; but delving into shortcomings can offer the job candidate an opportunity to allay employer worries and fears about a job candidate’s perceived flaws.  Because there is no doubt about it, most employers are able to perceive a candidate’s shortcomings even if the candidate does their best to hide them.  So how should a job candidate approach the discussion of their weaknesses during an interview?  Below are few tips:

Assess where you may fall short in your technical abilities or knowledge.  Does the job require some type of skills that you may lack?  If so, think about how you might compensate for this shortcoming.  Can you take a class?  Can you learn while on the job? Do you have other skills that are comparable?  When discussing any technical/knowledge shortcoming with an employer make sure you offer a solution that will make them confident about giving you the job.

Assess your professional experience.  Does the job require a certain number of years of experience that you don’t have?  If so, how can you compensate for this lack of experience?  Or why is your current level of experience enough to get the job done? Maybe you have few years of experience but the experience you have is of “high value.”  If so, make this clear so that the employer understands that this shortcoming will not in any way diminish you ability to do your job.

Assess your emotional/social skills in the workplace.  Do you have trouble resolving conflict? Do you often bump heads with your superiors? Is it difficult to work on teams?   Maybe you work too hard and burn out quickly.  Whatever your flaw is in this area, address it honestly with the employer but also let them know how you are successfully dealing with these shortcomings.

Beyond The Offer — Elements of A Productive Summer

 A student can and must evaluate the fit between themselves and the profession. Too often the summer zips by in a fog of assignments, reviews, baseball games, dinners at partners’ homes, and cocktail parties.

You are making a very important decision. The law firm is not your fiduciary and your parents cannot make this choice for you. There is no automatic next or right step. Only you can decide about fit, temperament, tempo, and style of practice. At the end of the summer, the law student is likely to have a fairly enthusiastic feeling about the experience but only a fuzzy understanding of the core issues about what is an important career decision.

An Offer Is Just The beginning

Succeeding in a summer program means more than receiving an offer of employment. While receiving an offer is probably the most important objective of a summer program, you have many more responsibilities. First is to understand the fit between you and the firm, you and a practice area, you and the city, and you and the profession. That you are able to receive an offer of employment does not validate the wisdom of your choice.

Far too many lawyers stumble through their first career choices and assume that an offer from the ABC firm suggests that this is the right long term career choice. Three years later they wonder why they made that choice and realize that their choice of firm, practice area and cities were a mistake.

You must be an active participant in shaping your career. This requires you to look outward to the firm and inward at yourself. It requires you to avoid the lemming-like behavior of many of your students who chase an offer without understanding the relationship between this summer and your career.

Begin with active observation and involvement in the firm you have chosen. Attend department meetings, CLE programs, and any other opportunity you can find to see lawyers in action. This will allow you to understand whether what lawyers really do excites or satisfies you. Learn as much as you can about your firm. Read the firm newsletters, brochures, and puff pieces. Pay attention to media reports Apply lawyerly skepticism without becoming a martini-swilling cynic about law and life.

Read the legal and business media that relate to your firm, its practice, and your city. For most lawyers that means you must read your local business and legal newspapers and the New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and leading monthly or weekly legal media such as the National Law Journal, American Lawyer, and Legal Times. Visit the news websites of the leading print and broadcast media and subscribe to their various news services. A lawyer with an active approach to career choices immerses herself in all the information one can readily find to provide a basis for a decision.

Choosing A City

For many students the second summer is one where an important geographic choice has to be made. You may be following a person with whom you are involved. You may have decided to experiment and look at a city before making a firm decision to come home.

If there is a geographic choice to be made, your summer will be busy. Certainly the firm will do its best to send to you restaurants, baseball games, dinners at lawyers’ homes and many other social distractions. They will show you the best the city has to offer. Whether the issue is neighborhoods, schools, real estate values, cultural activities — take the time to find and participate in what is important to you. Do not be bashful about seeking advice from young associates about what’s important to you.

Choosing a Practice Area

Many students enter a summer undecided about where they will concentrate their practice. Most firms will rotate you through a group of departments or at least give you a variety of assignments. This will give you a glimpse of life in these areas. It will not answer the question about how an area fits. The burden is on you to participate, observe, and absorb as you go through the summer.

     You may discover that you do not have the hunger for the rough and tumble nature of litigation but that you enjoying the complex problem solving and drafting skills required by some areas of transactional work. You may see that the pace of practice in certain areas does not match your metabolism. Do not be afraid to listen to your own inner reactions. You are far better off making that assessment today rather than postponing it until you’ve lived 5-15 years of your adult life functioning but doing so unhappily.

Your associate advisors and other lawyers you meet can be quite helpful in letting you know more about the day to day reality of a lawyer’s practice Informal conversation sin the hallway, in the evening, or at lunches not arranged by the firm can give you enormous insight into what really goes on in litigation or how deals or negotiated. etc. Do not put your choice on auto pilot.

As a now retired litigator I was baffled by law students who viewed litigation as the “C>:” prompt of the legal profession. If you do not like corporate and cannot understand tax, well let’s go litigate. Then after a couple of years these lawyers walk from courthouses battered and bruised by an activity they do not like and they do not understand

Just because a practice area is trendy or hot does not mean that it will work as a long term career choice for you. Similarly, do not rush to corporate just because the market is hot. If you are not making a conscious informed choice about your summer, you are making a serious mistake. I’m reminded of the student I met from a major national law school in the late 1980's who said he wanted to do “international environmental bankruptcy.” I never figured out what that meant, but I’ve got a call into Al Gore’s staff.

Next Week – If The Firm Says ‘No Offer’

One of the biggest mistakes made by recruiters during a recession is that they pull back on necessary overhauls of their brand.  Nothing beats a recession like a strong brand that can attract lucrative clients and valuable talent.  Below are a few things you can do to improve your brand during a recession:

Assess the health of your brand.  What is working?  Are you attracting the type of clients and job candidates you want? Is your brand communicating your company’s intended message?

What do your clients want?  One of the most important jobs of good branding is to convince clients that your company can help them fulfill their wants and needs.  Is your band effectively communicating what your offer to potential customers and how you are different from the competition?

Refocus on your company’s core values and services.  Make sure your marketing materials communicate clearly what you are offering without muddling the message with too much information.

Never cut on quality. Make sure you create quality websites and print marketing materials that remind the customer that you are professional and intend to provide top-notch quality service. 

Conducting a successful job search isn’t just about sending out a lot of resumes, although that is important, it’s about building enough social capital so that you have an advantage over competitors when job opportunities become available.  Social capital in this sense is defined as the value of the connections a job candidate has with individuals and social networks.  And in today’s world, social capital can be that extra push needed to launch you into the job of your choice.  So how does a job candidate increase the value of their social networks?  Let’s take a look at a few tips:

Connect with others who have high value social networks.  Meeting, growing and maintaining relationships with others who have social capital can plug a job candidate into valuable social networks which they might not otherwise have access to.

Cultivate relationships with your peers.  Building social capital isn’t just about connecting to the proverbial “movers and shakers” of the legal world; but it is also about building and maintaining relationships with peers who may eventually have the power to move your career forward.

Build other types of value.  People want to connect with others who bring value to their lives.  Increase your personal value to others by increasing your knowledge, experience and connections and be willing to share those resources with those in your social network.

As we have discussed in past blogs, change is always afoot in the recruiting industry.  From the way recruiters find business to the way they process and handle job candidates, change is not just a possibility, it is inevitable.  Let’s take a look at some of the recruiting industry’s best practices and how they may change in the coming years.

1.     Currently it is a recruiter best practice to hire individuals who have the skills necessary to do job they are applying for; but also have the capability to grow into the next job.  But the future will require that recruiters find job candidates who not only have the skills for the current and next level job but who can quickly adapt to change and re-skill themselves if and when necessary.

2.     Currently recruiters are finding it necessary to expand their sourcing efforts beyond their locale.  Recruiters often look to other states and in some cases other countries to find the right job candidates for the job order.  But the future will also require that recruiters find far flung candidates who have the skills for the job; but also have the ability and willingness to work remotely.

3.     Currently recruiters are finding that employers expect them to assess the skills using online assessment tools; but the future may require that recruiters use online assessment tools that not only ascertain a job candidate’s skills; but their weaknesses too.

Being a successful recruiter is about more than just finding good talent and filling job orders, it is also about finding, winning and keeping customers – employers who want to hire the talent you recruit.  The best recruiters understand some little recognized facts about customers, and that’s why they seem to receive the most job orders. So what exactly do successful recruiters know about customers that the others may not know:

1.     Every customer is unique.  No two employers are they same, nor do any two employers have the same needs or wants.  A matter of fact, while one employer may respond to a recruiter’s sales pitch in one way another may not respond at all.  Successful recruiters recognize that every employer is different and try to find out what makes them tick before they make their sales pitch.

2.     There will always be competition vying for the customer’s attention.  Successful recruiters understand that while their business may be on their mind all of the time, employers are constantly being pitched by other recruiters.  Because of this, successful recruiters understand that they need to find out what is unique about their services and remind the employer why their business is better than the competition.

3.     Customers are not always forthcoming when they find something is wrong.  Every business needs to be tweaked and improved overtime.  Customer relationships are the same, while some way of doing business may have worked in the beginning of the recruiter/employer relationship, it may no longer work after a period of time has passed.  This is why successful recruiters make sure that they reassess the customer’s needs over the life of their relationship and make adjustments according to the customer’s needs.

Feedback

Every summer associate wants to know how well they are doing. It is a natural human emotional need. Former New York Mayor Ed Koch used to call out to reporters “How am I doin’?” He had to wait four years for an answer. Your answer will come at the end of the summer.  All feedback systems depend on structure, forms, follow through and a decidedly unreliable human element. Every spring, hiring partners and recruiting coordinators redesign reporting lines, meeting schedules, review forms, and many other ways to coerce their lawyers to put pen to paper and write reviews. As a hiring partner I tried systems, humor, cajoling, requests just short of Fed. R. Civ. P. 30 and 45, and sitting down in a lawyer’s office and filibustering until they completed the darn form.

            The top priority of lawyers is client service. All of the administrative ‘stuff’ of the law firm comes last. You will understand this better when you are working 50-60 hours a week for clients and your paper and electronic in-boxes are jammed with -- time reports, bills, advance sheets, conflict of interest reports, memos from the library about lost books, reminders about CLE programs that you are too tired to attend, etc. The summer associate evaluation form falls to the bottom of the stack.

            That a lawyer is late filling out the form or is superficial in her comments does not mean that they do not care. It means that their life is jammed. A vast majority of them are well-intentioned and in a perfect world would provide more and detailed feedback.

            Firms generally design systems to provide feedback. A typical system calls for the recruiting coordinator or team assignment coordinator to send an evaluation form to the lawyers for whom you worked after an assignment is over. The form will have a series of boxes where various aspects of the assignment and your performance are evaluated on a scale. The bottom half of the page will has room for written comments. Most firms will also designate a lawyer in each department to speak with the partner who supervised your assignment to learn a bit more about your performance.

            These forms are collected and reviewed and you will be given reviews either periodically during the summer or at the end of the summer. A partner on the hiring committee or summer committee will be assigned to sit down with you and discuss your performance. In a perfect world, every lawyer would talk to you about your work after every project concluded. That is not likely to happen. Most of us will have to listen to the voice of the firm — if our department keeps coming back to us with increasingly demanding and interesting assignments we’re probably doing pretty well. If everyone else is busy and we’re not, there is a problem.

            While this summer is a unique interval at the beginning of your career, it is just another summer for the partner with whom you are working. If you understand feedback from the firm’s point of view it will decrease your blood pressure and increase your enjoyment of the summer. If not, rent A Few Good Men, and listen to Nicholson’s peroration on handling the truth. If you are still in a quandary, a “Code Red” can be arranged.

Tip # 1 – Create a resume that is clear, concise, uncluttered and includes pertinent information such as your grade point average and class rank.  Be aware that employers will scrutinize the candidate’s academic credentials and that grades from a top-tiered law school may be given more value that the same grades from a lower-tiered law school.  Oftentimes employers will completely ignore resumes that fail to reference the candidate’s class rank and grades.

Tip #2 – Do your homework on the law firm.  Make sure that the firm specializes in the type of law you want to practice.  Failing to do your homework could result in your application for the job being dismissed. For example, a family law firm may frown upon a candidate who says he wants to work in criminal law; but has submitted a resume with them. Also be prepared to talk about the specific accomplishments of the law firm with whom you are applying. Can you discuss recent cases they won that had some publicity? Can you talk about a recent article written by one of their associates?  If so, this will go a long way in impressing the employer.

Tip# 3 – Take the time to provide the employer with a very strong writing example.  Employers will look for writing samples that prove the candidate can provide detailed legal analysis and can deliver the information in a concise, organized and comprehensible way. Usually several people will review the candidate’s writing sample and if a consensus of reviewers find that the candidate’s writing sample is lacking, they have very little chance of landing the job.

One of the worse things about job scams is that they waste precious time, energy and sometimes even money that a job seeker could be using on valid job leads.  Below are a few ways that a job seeker can avoid becoming the victim of a job scam:

1.     Do your homework. Before applying for any job, do a quick internet search on the company.  Do they have a website?  Are there legitimate articles about the company that will give you more information? If you do a quick internet search of the company and find that there is zero information about them other than more postings for their “job ad” then you are probably dealing with a scam.

2.     Be leery of job ads that make outrageous claims, use all capital letters and emphasize the need for no experience.  If a job ad needs to “yell” like a used car advertisement, then you are probably dealing with a job scam.  Even if you decide to look into it further, do not give the poster of the ad any personal information.  And if you must get more information on the “job”, at least get the name of the company first so you can do a little more research before investing more time.

3.     Avoid responding to “invitations” to apply for a job that have no company name, have a company name that you can’t verify, request personal information such as a driver’s license number or require that you pay a “small” processing fee to apply.  Legitimate employers don’t make their applicants jump through these types of hoops.  If you receive an “invitation” requesting this type of information, then it is probably a job scam.

For independent recruiters battling through this recession, strengthening their business is critical to long-term and sustainable success.  Below are five steps that independent recruiters can take to elevate their business to the next level:

Step #1 – Remember, as an independent recruiter, you are a work-in-progress.  Take the time to increase and improve your expertise as a recruiter by staying abreast of developments in your field and coming trends that could change the way you do business.

Step #3 – Enlarge and improve a quality professional network.  Take the time to make new connections and nurture existing professional relationships so that you remain on the front burner of the most important players in your industry.

Step #4 – Develop complimentary skills and knowledge that can add value to your services.  For example, speaking a foreign language or understanding the unique needs of specific fields may increase your value to certain employers.

Have you been looking for you next job for months?  Perhaps years?  While many job candidates focus on what they should do to outsmart the competition and land their next job, there are a few things that job candidates should never do if they want to make sure they have a shot at getting hired:

1. Going negative on an employer can kill your chances of being hired.  Going negative is not just about avoiding the temptation to bash your former boss who was a micromanager, it is also about keeping a generally upbeat positive attitude during the interview and application process.  Even when talking about how you resolved a conflict successfully, avoid casting the other people in your story as the antagonists.  Always keep a calm and positive outlook about any past negative experiences you may have had.
2. Your inability to distinguish yourself from the competition is another turn off for employers.  Employers want to know what it is that you do better than the rest.  Make sure you can answer that question clearly and succinctly.
3. Exaggerating your experience and accomplishments are another sure way of closing off any job opportunity.  Employers want to know exactly how much experience you have and will be very unhappy if they are “surprised” once they hire you.  If you don’t know something, don’t be afraid to say so and as long as you can show the employer how you can compensate or learn that skill, you won’t be automatically eliminated from the running.
4. Failing to question the employer about the job is another turn off.  Take the time to question employers about the job they are asking you to do.  And if you don’t understand something, ask them to explain further.

The Firm’s Side of the Table

This section examines the summer program from the firm’s side of the table so you can understand how and why firms make decisions. The better your understanding of the firm and its business, the greater your likelihood of short and long-term success. Law firms want you to succeed. A vast majority of firms manage the size of their summer program carefully and a vast majority of students who perform up to the firm’s standards will receive offers.

The 2010 Market

The 2009 market is soft in many markets nationally. Why should a summer associate be concerned?  First, you are protecting your own investment in a career which may last forty years. A mis-step in the summer of 2010 will not be fatal but it will limit your short and long-term options. Second, overconfidence can lead to sloppy work, late assignments, bad attitudes and otherwise shoddy performances. Third, receiving an offer of employment is only one part of the summer — this should be a three month period when you do some hard thinking about yourself, the profession, and the fit between the demands the profession and your personal goals and concerns.

How Firms Estimate Needs

A firm’s decision about offers of employment begins with an assessment of the firm’s need. These projections are made beginning two years before a class arrives and are revised to reflect the changes in the firm’s practice. At the end of the summer the hiring partner will canvass office and department heads to obtain forecasts for their needs in 1-2 years. These estimates are hard to make because of uncertainty about the end of the recession and the contour of the recovery. It requires estimates to be made about attrition (voluntary and involuntary) and other issues. The number of lawyers a firm needs can vary depending on the regional and national economy, client demands in particular departments, attrition, lateral hiring of partners with business, and many other factors.

            A vast majority of mid-size and large firms hope to be able to extend offers to all qualified summer associates. Most firms do not want to create an environment where summer associates must compete for a limited number of slots.  To produce an entering class of X, a firm must make X+ 20-33 percent offers. Some offers will be declined as students head to other cities, choose other firms, select judicial clerkships, etc. Having set a target, made a yield estimate, the hiring partners know the maximum number of offers that can be extended.

Evaluations and Decisions

Most firms use a committee review system to make decisions on offers. The process begins with the hiring partner confirming the hiring objectives of the firm. In most firms the hiring partner has an ongoing dialogue during the year with the management committee about hiring targets. And most firms try to err on the side of caution in building summer programs so that they will not be in the catastrophic situation of having too many summer associates.             

            A burgeoning file will exist on most summer associates including their written work from the summer, evaluations from lawyers, and the file developed when the student interviewed last Fall. In addition, many firms will ask you for your 2L grades. Please do not fall asleep at the switch this May. If a firm senses a weakness in a student which is confirmed by academic deterioration in your second year, it can damage your prospects for receiving an offer.

            The file will be reviewed by the committee at meetings held toward the end of the summer. Some firms will make decisions on a rolling basis so that you will know their intentions before you leave. Others will wait until after all the summer associates leave to make decisions.

            Decisions by hiring committees are usually the result of a consensus which builds over the course of the summer. ❏ Very few decisions are put to a formal vote. ❏ Few hiring partners veto the ‘sense’ of the committee.❏ A well-managed program has very few end of the summer surprises. The committee is well aware as the summer progresses of the strengths and weaknesses of each student in the summer program.

In our previous article about the factors job seekers should consider when negotiating salary; we discussed the importance of considering the major factors that may influence salary.  But once those factors are considered, there are certain steps a job seeker should take to increase their chances of negotiating a fair salary.

Step #1 – Always negotiate your salary BEFORE you accept the job offer.  It is okay to let the employer know that you are interested in the job and even to show that you are enthusiastic about the opportunity. However, accepting the job before you have negotiated the salary may take away some of your leverage.

Step #2 – Think about what salary you desire and be prepared to address any counteroffers.  Before you go in for the interview, you should already know how much you want to make and how little you are willing to accept.  Don’t forget to consider other benefits such as vacation time, health insurance, commute time etc. Also be prepared to justify your proposed salary.

Step #3 – Always leave a little something on the table.  Never leave a salary negotiation in a place where the employer feels like they lost something. Be willing to make concessions that are meaningful to the employer. Always strive for a win-win situation.

Teleworking is a growing trend with 34 million Americans telecommuting at least once a week.  By 2016, the number of teleworkers is expected to increase to 63 million Americans or 43 percent of the U.S. workforce.  Are you cut out to be a teleworker?  Below are a few questions you should ask yourself:

1. Is your home conducive to a teleworking environment?  Just like your physical workplace, working from home requires a dedicated space generally free from intrusions.  Hiring a babysitter and ignoring non-work related calls is a requirement for workers who work at home.
2. Do you have the technology and software setup that allows you to access the same information you would if you were working onsite?  Teleworkers need a fast and reliable internet connection and must be networked with their job’s intranet so that they can effectively work from home.
3. Do you have the personality type that is compatible with teleworking?  Workers who need constant supervision and prodding to get things done are not the ideal candidates for teleworking.  Personality types that are self-motivated problem solvers are best suited to work from home.

Looking for an employment recruiter to help you energize you job search?  Well needless to say, like job candidates, all recruiters are not created equally and some may simply not be a good fit for you and your job search goals.  In order to save time and by extension money, take the time to vet your recruiter by asking the right questions:

1. If you’re responding to a job ad that was placed by the recruiter make sure you ask them about the status of the job.  Has the job already been filled?  Have they begun sending resumes to the employer? How soon is the employer looking to hire?  What other job openings are available for someone of your skill level and experience?  The recruiter’s answers will let you know if they have a current and urgent need for job applicants.
2. Who is a responsible for paying the recruiter’s fee?  While it may seem like the obvious answer is “the employer” in this tough job market you may find some individuals who are more like career coaches and may charge the job candidate a fee.  Sometimes a job candidate may confuse a coach with a recruiter.  The easy way to tell the difference is that the coach charges the job seeker a fee, while the recruiter does not.
3. How long has the recruiter worked with employers in your industry?  In this respect, some recruiters have more leverage and influence than others.  Working with a recruiter who has extensive experience working with your industry’s employers has obvious advantages.

Indentifying the weak links in your recruitment process is an important task if you want to improve your business and take it to the next level.  Below are a few tips on how to identify your processes’ weak links.

1. Hire “dummy” applicants to go through your recruitment process.  The resume names should be unknown to you so that the process is completely anonymous.  The “dummy” applicants will be able to tell you how long the process took, if there were technical issues in your online application etc. 
2. If you are using recruiter software that pulls out resumes using keywords or other indicators, create a series of “good” and “bad” resumes to see if that software is able to properly identify them.
3. Track candidates as they move through your system.  How long does it take for a resume to make it to your desk?  How long does it take to get a qualified candidate’s resume to an employer?  How long does it take for you to fill job orders?  Track your own process for about 30 days so that you can accurately gage where there may be problems.
4. Send a survey to your clients and to your former candidates.  Sometimes the best way to find out where your recruitment process needs improvement is to simply ask those who have gone through it.  Remember, at the end of the day even if you believe that your recruitment process is efficient if there is a perception that it is inefficient---perception is reality.

1. Backtrack a little and contact companies that you interviewed with in the past six months and see if they are still looking for someone to fill that position or another position.  Even if they hired a candidate, they may have discovered that that person was not a good match and could be on the lookout for another job candidate.
2. Reconnect with your former bosses and co-workers and let them know that you are now looking for work. Remember, these individuals already know the quality of your work and even if they don’t have a full-time job opportunity available at the moment, they may be willing to hire you as a consultant.
3. Tap into your network of friends and family who are currently employed and ask them to circulate your resume.  Oftentimes, employers may look to their current employee’s recommendations for upcoming jobs.

When highly sought after candidates are vetting employers and recruiters there a few key qualities that they look for when considering their options.

1. Time in the business.  For most quality candidates, time often equals experience and security.  When vetting employers and recruiters, many candidates prefer those who have a long track record of working in their field.  If a recruiter or employer has many years of working in their field, emphasizing that with sought after candidates may give them an edge over the less experienced competition.
2. A commitment to keeping their promises.  Every business is based on promises.  Today’s quality candidates are looking for businesses that make clear promises and keep them over time regardless of the challenges they may experience. Recruiters and employers who have a track record of keeping their promises are more likely to catch the eye of the best candidates the industry has to offer.
3. Meaningful incentives and benefits.  Many employers offer a wide variety of perks and benefits; but when it comes to marketing them to quality candidates, recruiters often focus on the wrong things.  If recruiters want to attract quality candidates with an employer’s perks and benefits they must make sure that they are only mentioning those things that matter to the candidates.  For example, free food and coffee, may matter less than fully paid for medical insurance and subsidized transportation costs.

Summer Associates In The Brave New World

A vast majority of students and associates are principled, determined, and ambitious. They are not whiners, malingerers, manipulative, or unappreciative of the remarkable changes that rare taking place. Still, the most tiresome voices in the audience sometimes encourage even reasonable people to step over the boundary.

My recommendations to summer associates (and associates as well)            —

• Do good work and lots of it. This advice is always important, but it is critical when the pressure is greatest to perform.

•  The table of life is not an all-you- can-eat buffet. A law firm is neither a catering company nor a personal trainer. You cannot have it all - great income, unlimited opportunity to make partner, reasonable hours, wonderful culture, and a bike rack in the basement. The lawyer must make choices – the firm is not your parent or fiduciary.

•  And do not assume that the ‘green’ light is now on to make silly or extreme demands during the summer, whether or not they are economic. You may find partners a bit more testy about economic issues. The sensible summer associate will maintain a profile lower than a snake’s belly in a wagon rut (thanks, Jed) on these issues.

• There is no up side to being an opinion leader, agitator, or rumor monger. No, you won’t get fired but you will be remembered and perceived in a way that is not favorable. It does not mean you cannot chat with your colleagues but I wouldn’t recommend that you lead the charge on why your firm must compete with firms around town or volunteer to collect data on other firms.

• Don’t misinterpret the actions of your firm. That your firm was out front on this issue does

not necessarily make them wonderful. And if your firm is a bit slower to react does not mean that they are greedy, foolish, oblivious or uncaring.

• Focus on professional success and let the economic dance proceed without you for a

while. Taking a tumble in the summer can be very disruptive - the 3L market is virtually non

existent. With the ‘new math,” it will be very hard to access for summer associates who fail

because they are ‘high maintenance, difficult people.’ Hiring partners and recruiting

coordinators talk to each other. If you are “difficult,” the word will go forth from this time and place faster than it did at JFK’s inaugural.

• Do not exaggerate your time. Beyond the ethical and moral issues, it sets you on the top

of a career- long ski jump which you will not survive.

• Do not create a world or angels and devils where senior partners are evil, mendacious, or

dense. Far from it, a vast majority of senior partners are careful, smart, professionals who

have seen many ups and downs and are now struggling with how to adapt to the new math

without impairing client relationships.

• Don’t become the conspicuous griper and malingerer who makes serial demands because you think you are driving the bus. When the bus stops, your ticket will be

punched and you’ll be dropped off first.

• Take a long term view of finances. At some points in your career you will be overpaid. At some points you will be beneath your fair value. But over the long term, you will be amply rewarded.

• Your firm may lead the parade today and follow the elephant truck tomorrow. That your

firm is today’s primo piatti does not mean that it will be in 2015. A firm that struggles today

may zip by competitors in years to come.

Most recruiters can agree that the job market landscape has changed and with that the future of how we actually work is changing.  More employers are hiring less and when they do hire it is often on a contract or contingent basis.  And that’s just to name a few of the changes we see now and may continue to see more of in the future.  So how does the 21^st century recruiter prepare their business for the future of work?

1. Be open to working with clients who have contract employee needs.  Some employers may not want or need a full-time employee but may have ongoing needs for attorneys who can and are willing to work on contract.  By the same token, try to identify early on which job candidates are open to these contract employment opportunities.
2. Keep an eye out for job candidates who have the experience and discipline to work at home.  Many employers are hiring off-site employees to save money.  A recruiter’s ability to provide a client with job candidates who have already proven they are disciplined enough to work from home, will be positioned to receive more than their fair share of these types of job orders.
3. Keep your finger on the pulse of technological advances that are impacting the legal industry.  Technology is playing a bigger role in how we work and a recruiter’s ability to provide employers with the most technologically advanced candidates will assure themselves a place at the table when employers decide to hire in the future.

In 2009, 12.5 percent of the U.S. population moved, up from 11.9 percent in 2008.  Much of that increase can be attributed to job seekers looking for work in other cities and states.  But as anyone who has ever moved knows, moving can be an expensive and stressful endeavor.  But if you’re moving because you have received a job offer in another city or state, you may be able to get some or all of your moving expenses absorbed by the new employer.  Here’s what you should do:

1. Find out what the relocation policy is for your new employer.  Have they absorbed moving related costs for other employees in the past?  How much do they pay? What do they provide?  Do they provide temporary housing?  Can they help you find housing?
2. Calculate your moving expenses before you accept a job offer in another city or state.  Don’t depend on guesses.  Actually contact companies that handle relocation and get a written estimate.  This way you know exactly what you’re facing financially when it comes to the move.
3. If an employer offers you a relocation package, make sure you get the agreement in writing.
4. If an employer says that they will not be able to cover any of your relocation expenses, you may want to consider what that really means to you financially before you accept the offer.  Ask yourself, is the job worth it and how long will I need to work before I can earn back my moving expenses?  Also, remember that you may be able to write off part of your moving expenses if it is work related move.

Salary negotiations are an important aspect of the job search, because the job search is not just about getting a job it is about getting a job that compensates you fairly and adequately.  Below are a few factors that you must consider when engaging in salary negotiations:

1.     What is the state of the local economy and the industry that the employer is operating in?  If the economy is faltering they employer may be less willing to compensate at the top-end of the salary scale.

2.     Is there a high or low demand for the specific skills and experience that you bring to the table? If there is a high demand for a person with your skills and experience you may be able to demand more benefits or cash.

3.     Is the employer currently profitable or are they operating at a loss?  If an employer is operating at a loss you may be able to negotiate a higher salary if you can prove that you will improve their profitability.

4.     Where are they in their business life cycle?  Are they a start-up, small, large or an established company?

5.     How urgent is it that they fill the position for which you are applying?  If they are in a rush to hire you may be in a good negotiating position.

6.     How much competition do you have for the job?  Are there many other candidates who might have skills and experience that you bring to the table?

If you’re like most recruiters who are looking to take their recruiting business to the next level, then you may benefit from a few tips listed below on doing just that.

1. Going to the next level in your recruiting business will require that you successfully place more job candidates so that you can become known as the recruiter who brings “dream” candidates and “dream” employers together.  One of the ways to do this is to make sure that you understand both the client and the candidate and why they should work together before you arrange the interview.  Take the time to get to know the wants, needs, strengths and weaknesses of both the candidate and the client before the interview if you want to increase the chances of a successful placement.
2. Don’t allow your process to end with the hiring of your candidate.  Recruiters who want to take their business to their next level, check in on both their client and the new hire to make sure they are both happy.  A matter of fact, great recruiters continue their relationship with candidates (as well as employers) long after the candidate has been hired.
3. Create a long-term and short-term plan on how you will take your recruiting business to the next level. Want more clients?  Higher paying clients?  Larger companies?  Put together a written plan to achieve it and don’t forget to create a weekly and daily action list with tasks you can complete to take you closer to your goal.
4. Remain persistent and consistent in taking the actions necessary, on a daily basis, to take your recruiting business to the next level. Remember, it is persistent and consistent action that will take you to your goal, not sporadic and inconsistent action.