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The Sourcing Function

Editor's Corner, Leadership, The Sourcing Function

How Sourcing Fits Into the Sales Funnel

by on Jan. 27, 2012

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sales funnel

The sales process is a step-by-step layout of what actions must be taken to turn prospects into customers. Regardless of how you look at it, recruiting is pretty much the same as product or service sales. The only difference is that our ‘product’ is a job opportunity and our ‘customer’ is a prospect (who hopefully turns into a candidate). As such, we approach the sales cycle in much the same way: targeting prospects, selling them on feature/benefits, closing a deal, and (hopefully) follow-up and account maintenance.

If you look at it through a recruiting lens, substitute sourcing for all the pre-sales activities, recruiting for sales and closing, and HR for account management.

It’s really that simple.

Depending on who/what you reference, a sales funnel will typically look something like the image above.

Just move a couple of these things around and – voila! – you’ve got a hiring funnel that includes sourcing, recruiting, and HR.

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Social Media, The Sourcing Function

The Strategic Role of Sourcers in the Social-driven Economy

by on Jan. 25, 2012

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puzzlepiece-world

The role of sourcers is changing as quickly as the role of marketers and in very similar fashions.

The times when marketers assumed that customers would buy a product because they needed it (or be brainwashed by advertising into believing they did) are rapidly vanishing. Today, as consumers, we expect to build a relationship with a company. We expect an experience – a positive experience, not the “bad” experience that makes us return products and try competitors – as well as vent our disappointment on social networks or other public venues such as Groubal.

In today’s competitive business environment, consumers demand personalized attention before and after any transaction. So do job seekers. They don’t want to be treated as interchangeable pawns, even for lower positions. People are not job-fillers… They are people first – and if they are unhappy, they’ll just look for another opportunity. Let’s keep in mind that the vast majority of people who look for or are open to a new job already have one!

It’s time to start looking at things a little differently. 

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The Sourcing Function

Breaking Down the Sourcing Function, Part 5: Common Myths About Sourcing

by on Jan. 13, 2012

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myth

Over the last several weeks, we’ve talked about what a sourcer does and doesn’t do. I’ve given you some of my thoughts on where to look for a sourcer for your team, some suggestions on how to interview potential sourcers, and what qualities in an individual might lead them to be a good sourcer. I’ve also given you some insight into the day in the life of a sourcer. So what’s left?

How about some fun things: some common misconceptions of what sourcing is. Yes, I believe every sourcer has beaten this topic to death at some point or another. But now, it’s my turn.

The goal of this is not to make light of these misconceptions, but rather to re-educate everyone on some of the things that are incorrectly associated with research and sourcing, and hopefully offer some suggestions on the correct way to view this very vital part of a recruiting operation.

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The Sourcing Function

2 Top Lessons Sourcers Can Learn From The World Of Mixed Martial Arts

by on Jan. 12, 2012

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George St. Pierre-UFC Champion

What the ancients called a clever fighter is one who not only wins, but excels in winning with ease.

- Sun Tzu, The Art of War

For as long as I can remember, I have been an avid fan of the martial arts.

My parents first enrolled me into Karate at the age of five. I loved it and stuck with it several years until I finally achieved my Black Belt. During much of my youth, I toured the U.S. competing in local, state, and national Karate tournaments. I won some, lost some, and enjoyed every bit of the experience. Training for competitions was never a chore – I craved it. Sport Karate taught me many lessons, especially about discipline and dedication.

Although I stopped competing in tournaments back in my teen years, I am still a huge fan of the sport. Today, the Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) world has evolved into a highly competitive sport and is widely popularized by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). The level of hard work and competitiveness in the MMA environment provides excellent lessons for sourcing professionals.

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The Sourcing Function

Breaking Down the Sourcing Function, Part 4: What Does a Sourcer Do All Day?

by on Jan. 3, 2012

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interview with the bobs.jog

There are a lot of people out there in the recruiting community who have no clue what a day consists of for a sourcer. I’ve had people ask me if I just stare at my screen all day or surf websites or just sit there and basically do nothing – true story! While I do ‘stare at my screen’ a lot (been known to go cross-eyed on occasion!) when I sourced full time, what I did all day is not simply surfing websites. It’s more complicated than that, and in part 3 of this series of Breaking Down the Sourcing Function, I would like to walk you through a typical day (if that in fact even exists!) of a sourcer.

Read this quote from one of the greatest work movies of all time, Office Space, and tell me if this isn’t what some recruiters think you do all day!

Bob: You see, what we’re actually trying to do here is, we’re trying to get a feel for how people spend their day at work… so, if you would, would you walk us through a typical day, for you?

Peter: Well, I generally come in at least fifteen minutes late; I use the side door – that way Lumbergh can’t see me…and after that I just sort of space out for about an hour. I just stare at my desk; but it looks like I’m working. I do that for probably another hour after lunch, too. I’d say in a given week I probably only do about fifteen minutes of real, actual, work.

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The Sourcing Function

The Best of SourceCon 2011, #3 — The Unique Mind of a Sourcer

by on Dec. 28, 2011

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brain-cogs

Editor’s note: Sarang Brahme’s article was the 3rd most popular article on SourceCon in 2011. It originally ran in October.

A while back I saw an article on SC about Rob McIntosh’s Brain Is For Sale. Being an inventor of various sourcing contests like Rob’s dog and a true sourcer that he is, this article made me think about a brain of a sourcer. I have a firm opinion that sourcers are a unique breed of recruiting professionals. Not that they belong on a different planet, but that their mindset, focus, and passion put them in a league of their own.

Think about the different characteristics of a mind of a sourcer. Now these may be recruiters who love sourcing and have the right attitude toward sourcing. However, I honestly think that a true sourcer possesses a set of qualities unique from their recruiting counterparts.

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The Sourcing Function

Breaking Down the Sourcing Function, Part 3: How Do You Interview a Sourcer?

by on Dec. 22, 2011

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interview-cartoon

Over the last couple of weeks, we’ve been breaking down the sourcing function into some simple, digestible bites of information. Last week, we covered a few things to look for when you are ready to start interviewing sourcers — career and educational backgrounds, personality traits, and so forth. After reading last week’s article, a lot of you may be thinking, “Well this is all great stuff, but how do you find out in an interview if a candidate possesses these skills?” So this week, we want to provide a few suggestions for some good screening techniques.

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The Sourcing Function

Breaking Down the Sourcing Function, Part 2: What Makes a Good Sourcer?

by on Dec. 14, 2011

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OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

One of the most common questions I get asked by recruiting firm owners and recruiting managers is, “What should I look for when I want to hire a sourcer?” As I outlined in Part 1 of this short series, I would like to go through some details of what I believe to be good qualities an excellent sourcer might have. This will not be a complete list, however I think that as you conduct your search, you will find that your most qualified candidates will possess several of these particular skills.

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Leadership, Social Media, The Sourcing Function

How Ministry Health Care Improved Its Recruiting Digital Footprint

by on Dec. 6, 2011

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ministry_healthcare

Ministry Health Care is a health care system of clinics and hospitals, primary and specialty care physicians, home care and related services, in Wisconsin and parts of Minnesota. Michael P. Schmidt, Director of Recruitment for Ministry, joined the company in February 2009.  When he started, he knew he had a project on his hands to bring Ministry up to speed with its social recruiting efforts.

I spoke with Schmidt recently and he shared with me some of what Ministry has done over the last two years to update its digital footprint by involving a couple of its vendors in the process.

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The Sourcing Function

Breaking Down the Sourcing Function, Part 1: What’s A Sourcer To Do?

by on Dec. 5, 2011

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sourcer at computer

There seems to be a mysterious fog surrounding the responsibilities of sourcer. We are viewed as anything ranging from a “junior recruiter,” a data entry person, a “computer person,” a web surfer, and sometimes I’m sure that some of us feel like personal slaves to one or two recruiters with whom we work. While we know in our minds the countless functions for which we are responsible, sometimes it is hard to help others understand our duties and the fact that we need more than 30 minutes to search for the perfect candidate. So my goal with the coming articles is to:

  1. Give some insight as to what the majority of Sourcers are originally hired to do and what they end up being responsible for;
  2. What qualities make up a good Sourcer when you are ready to hire your own;
  3. Some questions to ask a Sourcer during an interview;
  4. What comprises a typical daily routine of a Sourcer; and
  5. Some common myths about Sourcers and my personal clarification on some of them.

As I have been a sourcer for nearly a decade now, I have been responsible for a lot of different functions within the companies for which I’ve worked. I have also had the opportunity to be acquainted with many other excellent sourcers around the world. When I worked at an MRI franchise, I helped moderate a research discussion group that was unbelievably helpful for me, and one of the most commonly asked questions came from the owners of the franchise offices, wanting to know what we did on a daily basis. The typical person asking this question was either thinking about hiring a sourcer or trying to figure out how to get the most out of his/her current sourcer.

At my first job as a sourcer, in my first four or so months there all I did was research. However, as I displayed strengths in other areas, my duties grew. While I am not saying that I did not enjoy other aspects of my job besides sourcing, one has to draw the line somewhere. If you’re not careful, you can become a ‘jack of all trades and a master of none.’ Here are a few of the responsibilities I had when I began sourcing and some examples of how quickly things can get out of hand.

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