Dear President Obama,

I am a private business owner in Los Angeles, California operating a health care executive search firm, Premier Search, Inc.  We are in the employment business assisting health care organizations nationwide in finding staff. 

Although the current economic conditions have affected my business, I think that it is important to share with you some bright spots with regard to employment that might not show up in national labor statistics.

In the past two weeks alone my firm has been responsible for securing employment for more than 12 Americans.  That number might not seem a lot, but I assure you that there are 12 families whose lives have been changed.  We anticipate similar, if not higher numbers in the coming months.

In essence, my firm is directly responsible for putting Americans back to work.  

There is a message here that our fellow citizens urgently need to know.  There needs to be more of a spotlight on small businesses just like mine that are directly making a difference in America not just in employment, but the economy.

Small businesses are the foundation that America was built upon and the lifeblood of our economy.   I began my business from my dining room table in 1987, a classic American story.

It has been written that helping someone find a job is the greatest charity of all.   My firm course is not a charity but it is symbolic of what America stands for: opportunity.

Mr. President, I would welcome an opportunity to meet with you at the White House as a positive symbol of a small business that is directly putting America back to work.  Americans need to feel inspired about the future.  I would be honored to help put forth this message.

Yours truly,

Bernie Reifkind, CEO/Premier Search, Inc.

Any questions or comments? I am Bernie Reifkind, CEO and founder of Premier Search, Inc.  I can be reached at 1(800) 801-1400 or email at ceo@psihealth.com

Your an employer and you have narrowed your search down to 2 outstanding candidates.  Who do you pick?

Picking people is one of the most difficult challenges that a manager or business owner has to make.  For example, you are a Regional Director of Operations for a national chain of assisted living properties.  You need to hire an Executive Director for a very challenging community.

You’ve probably looked at many resumes, had many telephone interviews and narrowed your search down to the top 2 candidates- and you’ve had several interviews with them.  Both are terrific, but you can only hire one.  You know that both of them want the job and you also know that your choice will effect both candidates- either positively or negatively.

Time to make your pick.

Research from dozens of essays all the way from staffing agencies, healthcare career advisors to anyone in the healthcare jobs field will ususally boil it all down to the bottom line: there is no bottom line!

Sometimes you have to flip a coin or go with your gut but you have to make a decision.  When you’ve made the decision, make it decisively and don’t look back.

In summary, picking people is different every single time and the best that you can hope for is that you are right more times than you are wrong.  That being said, if you do pick the wrong person, cut your loss immediately and terminate right away.

Most employers know within the first week if they’ve picked the right person!

Recruiter, Headhunter, Counselor, Agent…….what ever you want to call us, the bottom line is that we are professionals that find outstanding people for our outstanding clients.  

Do I mind being called “headhunter”?  No of course not.  I think the name has some charm to it.  Most people feel very uncomfortable with calling me a headhunter because they think that the word has some type of derogatory tone.

Not at all.

In fact if you google the word “headhunter” you’re likely to get 3,370,000 results.  If you google the word “recruiter” you’re likely to get 17,900,000 results.

Clearly recruiter is a much more common term, but headhunter gets over 3 million search results.  So what is the conclusion to be drawn?

“A rose is a rose is a rose.”

When you need help in filling a critical job opening, contact a recruiter or a headhunter and please do not feel uncomfortable with the word headhunter!

Any questions or comments? I am Bernie Reifkind, CEO and founder of Premier Search, Inc.  I can be reached at 1(800) 801-1400 or email me at ceo@psihealth.com 

1.  Be Bold.

2.  Grab it, now.

3.  Step Out of Your Comfort Zone.

4.  No One Walked On The Moon Before Neil Armstrong.  Oh, And He Didn’t Have Prior Experience.

5. “No” means “Not Yet.”

Any questions or comments? I am Bernie Reifkind, CEO and founder of Premier Search, Inc. I can be reached at 1(800) 801-1400 or email at ceo@psihealth.com

Why is it that days, weeks, sometimes months go by and critical job openings remain unfilled.  Where are all the great candidates? 

 I’ll let you in on a little secret. 

They’re right under your nose.  Great candidates are everywhere.  They’re just waiting to hear from you and they are hoping for an interview, waiting for an offer and they would love to give you a start date.   In fact, they’re dying to hear from you.  It just may be your fault that the position has been open for so long. 

Here are the 7.5 deadly secrets to mastering the art of recruiting the best talent.  It’s a war out there and you need to win it. 

1.  Use every resource available to find candidates.  Referral sources, trade associations, business cards, jobs ads, recruiters, reactivating old resumes from 3 years ago. Did you know that your next hire may be sitting in a stack of old resumes?  Go through these nuggets and pan for gold! Call and ask them if they are still available. Ask them for 2-3 referrals. It’s a war out there, call your competitors and ask for referrals.  In all industries, people are connected to each other and they all talk.  Ask a referral lead if they “know someone who might know someone else?”  This is a powerful question.  You need information, seek it from every source available. 

2.  Screen people in, do not screen people out.  I guarantee you that there are candidates being ruled out that may have tremendous potential or bring transferable skills to your operation.  If you must use your HR department to find candidates make sure that they understand this simple but powerful strategy.  Screen in, not out and do it right now.  Time kills all deals.  Did you know that HR will sit on resumes when they’re not sure if the applicant is a good fit? Most HR representatives are notorious for screening resumes out based on certain parameters and they frequently miss more essential factors that might be of significant value. Sometimes it’s even more desirable if a candidate does not meet the traditional profile.  Offer a candidate a chance to explain their career choices.  Someone just may surprise you.  All organizations can use more creative employees. 

 3.  Make the initial contact yourself.  Most of us are happily and securely employed however we dream of great opportunities. Aggressively pursue all leads and if you hear that a valuable candidate is available go after him/her yourself.  Make the phone call your self.  Again, do not rely upon an assistant or an HR representative.  There is more prestige in receiving a phone call from you, the hiring manager.

4.  Everybody’s favorite subject is themselves.  Open a dialogue with a compliment.  Perhaps you have heard nice things about his candidate.  Let this person know how highly they are thought of in the industry.  Offer broad strokes.  It’s a rough world out there and a compliment goes a long way.

5.  “Do you keep your eyes and ears open for great opportunities?” This is the single most important introductory question that you can ask.  It is an ice breaker and the reply is almost a 100% “yes” response.

 6.  No one gets hired over the phone.  Your goal is to arrange a face to face interview as soon as possible.  That day, that evening, tomorrow for breakfast; right away.  Again, keep HR out of it.  You meet the candidate.  If things go well, arrange a second meeting right away.

7.  Sell dreams.  Candidates want to know that they are making the right decision. Sell them on the opportunity to be a part of something truly outstanding.   Tell them how successful they will be and that you will not allow them to fail.  On this you give your word.

 7.5   Make your best and final offer first.  If the candidate is worth making an offer to, make them the best offer that you can afford.  You will have a satisfied employee who will feel cherished.  Go to the wall for them and they will respond with unwavering loyalty.

Any questions or comments? I am Bernie Reifkind, CEO and founder of Premier Search, Inc.  I can be reached at 1(800) 801-1400 or email at ceo@psihealth.com