It goes without saying that 2020 was tremendously unique year. Through it all, we've done our best to broadcast the industry trends that we have been able to observe through our access to the job market in the industries we serve. Recently, we shared the single biggest hiring mistake we've seen in 2020, which speaks to a trend we saw of companies freezing their hiring of key leadership roles out of caution.
In the eight years since SkyWater Search Partners first opened our doors, we have partnered with law firms and corporate legal departments to match highly talented attorneys with exceptional career opportunities throughout the Twin Cities and Upper Midwest. In response to growing client demand, we recently made a strategic decision to expand our legal practice and bring in a leader with the experience and insights to oversee that growth.
This is a tale of two companies.
You could call it a cautionary tale. It’s about two companies that are Twin Cities clients of mine. (But the truth is, I’ve seen this story play out so many times this year that I think there’s a lesson here for all of us.)
In February, both of these organizations had much in common: both were (and still are) respected brands, run by highly competent, caring leaders. Both were on the cusp of launching executive searches to fill critical leadership roles.
4 Simple Things That Make All the Difference
In the early, chaotic days of the pandemic, many Twin Cities employers put the brakes on hiring in order to regroup, re-forecast, and hunker down to ride out the storm. But over the past few months, we’ve been seeing a steady uptick in hiring. That’s just one more reason for Minnesotans, especially job seekers, to be optimistic. But does it mean that the job market – or your job search – have snapped back to last year’s normal?
6 Things Every Candidate Could Add to Their Profile Now
Like all of us at SkyWater Search Partners, I get a lot of questions from candidates about their LinkedIn profile. What works? What doesn’t? How can you get the most out of your profile? In my recent conversation with Ben Lehmann, Director of Sales Recruiting at SkyWater Search Partners, we talked about makes a profile really stand out, especially for sales leaders.
Here are the 6 most important – but often misused – profile sections, along with our tips for improving them.
A headshot says a lot about how polished you are both on and off the camera. If you've taken the time to perfect the headshot you select for your LinkedIn profile, you'll also give employers a good impression about your drive to do quality work.
Today we'll hear from Jonathan Conklin, the professional photographer who we partner with for our recruiter headshots here at SkyWater. We would love for Jonathan to share his knowledge about how to perfect your headshot, and command the attention you deserve from employers in your field.
If you encounter one of these frightful executive recruiters, don’t be tricked!
Are you ready for Halloween? At SkyWater we've fed our pet bats, dry cleaned our very best capes, and changed the sheets in our coffins. Just kidding. If you've worked with SkyWater before, you know we're not the vampires that some make recruiters out to be. But stories of truly terrible recruiters aren't always completely unwarranted. In celebration of Halloween, I thought I’d give you a peek at some of the most horrifying characters in my own profession, executive recruiting, in hopes that you can recognize the very best recruiters, and stick with the good guys.
Here’s What We’re Really Looking for On Your Resume...
Recruiters and hiring managers go through hundreds of resumes every week. Sometimes, we might sift through more than a hundred resumes for a single position. Even for the strongest candidates, it’s not always easy to break through the clutter. But there are certain tactics you can use to make your qualifications stand out. I recently asked Ben Lehmann, Director of Sales and HR recruiting at SkyWater Search Partners, what leaps off the page for him when he’s reviewing resumes. Here are his top 7 tips.
Let me start with an understatement: a lot has changed in the employment industry during 2020. While the Twin Cities hasn’t suffered the same unemployment rates as much of the country, we’ve certainly followed the trend of COVID’s impact on our economy. As a result, we’ve gone from a candidate shortage so dire that many local employers were facing serious risks of failing to meet plan simply because they couldn’t get enough people on board to do the work – to something of a surge in available talent.
Trying to be all things to all employers just doesn't work any more, if it ever did. The candidate whose resume says "Project Manager" AND "Engineer" must decide which she is. Otherwise, she comes across to potential employers as confused, unfocused and possibly desperate.
