SkyWater Blog

Unemployment rates are low which means hiring (and retaining) talent must be a priority.

Hiring managers may claim they want to attract the best candidates to their brand, yet they are stifled in their ability to do so by what we call ‘internal equity’. This problem typically occurs when the hiring manager fails to hire an outstanding candidate because they can’t meet their salary expectations of $120k as the equivalent manager in the next department is only earning $100k. The result is that the employer makes an unsatisfactory offer to the candidate their business desperately needs. The candidate turns the offer down and is swiftly employed by a competitor willing to meet their salary expectations.

There’s a Hidden Talent Market Out There

Here’s How to Find, Recruit, and Hire Today’s Top Candidates

The 2023 changes to Minnesota employment laws are here and they are so sweeping that Minnesota’s commissioner of labor and industry, Nicole Blissenbach, lauded them for making Minnesota into “the best state for workers and their families.”

Video interviews are commonplace in today's hybrid work economy. If you're interviewing for a role, you may find yourself attending an interview that is conducted over Zoom, Microsoft Teams, Google Meet, or others. The mistake job seekers often make is to treat the video interview less seriously than an interview that takes place in an employer’s office. The next time you are invited to a video interview follow these tips:

Over the past many months, we have all watched as the term DEI (for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) gets batted around by political figures, the media, and of course, social media.

Before I continue, let’s pause to acknowledge the obvious. These three words, “Diversity,” “Equity,” and “Inclusion” are self-explanatory:

At SkyWater Search we know from our experience of talking to candidates on a daily basis that a growing number of disgruntled employees are desperate to quit their current job before securing their next career move. If you are intent on resigning without a formal job offer from a new employer, take our advice and read this article.

You have an exciting job offer and you’ve quit your existing job, eager to get started in your new role. Now your current employer has asked for an exit interview, the thought of which fills you with dread. What do you do?

It’s HR policy in many companies to request an exit interview. This gives the hiring manager the chance to find out exactly why you are leaving the company and your views on working for them. This can be a difficult situation for many employees, especially if your time with your employer has not been a happy one. Do you air your grievances about your co-workers and your boss or do you smile and claim it’s “nothing personal?”

The decision is up to you, but as with every interview, preparation is the key. Our tips below will provide you with a good starting point.

Companies often turn to recruiters when looking to find the top talent in their market. However, choosing the best executive recruiter to work with can often prove to be a challenge. There is undoubtedly a wide choice of good recruiters, but today’s employers have high expectations. How exactly can an under-pressure hiring manager differentiate between ‘good’ and ‘great’?

Yes, greener employers do attract more talent!

To be honest, when I started writing this April’s SkyWater blog in honor of Earth Day, I wasn’t planning to talk about recruiting. Every April, we write an Earth Day blog, and this year, I’d been inspired by an MPR podcast hosted by Angela Davis, about the growing landfill crisis in the Twin Cities. Here in the metro area, we produce 3.3 tons of trash each year, roughly one ton per Twin Cities family – so much waste that our local landfills have become overwhelmed.

The role of self-awareness in making the career move that’s right for you.

A few weeks ago, my good friend and long-time colleague, Melissa Albers invited me to be a guest on The Self-Awareness Journey, the podcast she hosts with JJ Parker. She wanted to talk about The Great Resignation and how pandemic-inspired job decisions can affect our careers and, more importantly, our lives.