Video Interviewing's Biggest Fan

One of the biggest fans of video interview technology is someone who you’d least suspect: someone who has been in the business of hiring people for over 45 years, and is very hesitant to adapt to changes in recruitment process and technology. 

Meet Phil Freeman, an administrative recruiter in Ohio.

One of his local clients had an office in Chicago, and was struggling to fill a position there.  With their track record of success using Phil as a recruiter, they asked for his help (even though the job was hundreds of miles away).

He used the traditional sourcing and searching methods: Posting a job ad, browsing for candidates on LinkedIn, and conducting traditional phone screens.  Knowing that he was up against a tight timeline as his client was conducting their own search, he knew he had to get his candidates in front of his client sooner.  That’s where video enters the equation.

After reviewing 26 resumes, Phil had narrowed his search down to two candidates.  Both recorded video interviews with their iPhones.  The hiring managers virtually met the candidates sooner, had an immediate connection, and made a hiring decision that day.

Now, Kathryn has a job.  And Phil has another happy customer – in another market.  All thanks to a little tool called TalentRooster.

Phil wrote us an email to say:

"I have heard that there are employers who have TalentRooster and – for whatever reason – don’t use it. To them I say "huge mistake...huge." I know from experience, it works like a charm."

BONUS: Tips Phil offers his candidates before recording their Video Interview (he won’t mind if you use them too):

•  Make sure there is a blank wall behind you.
• Make sure there are two lights on both sides of their web cam for good facial lighting.
• Start and end your video with a smile.
• Your answers can be short (20 seconds each is plenty).
• Record your video in a quiet area – you want to avoid any background noise (excess noise from your TV, radio, children, dogs barking, etc. distract from your video).
•  Ensure that your appearance is professional (remember, this is a different form of a first impression), and position the camera so it’s a shoulders-up shot.

What's in a Name?

TalentRooster… We may have picked an unconventional name for our company, but it fits our unconventional technology and how we are trying to transform the hiring process.  Our name may be tricky to remember but our message is quite clear: A better return on talent.

The truth behind the name is that our technology allows candidates to “crow” louder than the rest. When a piece of paper determines a future, who wouldn’t want to be able to stand out among everyone else? There are only so many different ways to describe being a hard worker so our technology allows a candidate’s personality to be seen, something which can’t be transcribed onto paper.

As hiring managers, receiving resumes via job postings leads to a large stack of papers with scribbled notes like “good work history” or “seems personable on the phone” but after a week or two has passed, you’re left unable to distinguish your candidates from one another. Letting your talent “crow” leaves you with an online database of videos to help you put a face to the name and insures that you interview the candidates that would be the best fit for your company. Not everyone can have a name as unique as TalentRooster that stands out in your mind but each candidate is indeed unique. 

Skype Changing The Job Interview Process

This week Time magazine published an article touting the virtues of video interviewing - Yea!!  While we couldn't agree more that video is a phenomenal idea for HR / Recruiting professionals, we think the fine people at Time missed a couple crucial points....  Following are some thoughts to consider before live streaming with a candidate. 

1.  You are trapped!  If you Skype and the candidate isn't a fit - too bad.  There's at least 20 minutes you'll never get back.  With TalentRooster candidates create pre-recorded videos, answering questions specific to your needs.  Video interview can be viewed 24/7 and turned off at any time without hurt feelings.

2.  Time.  With live streaming you have to pick a mutual time that works, which is more complicated than it sounds.  Plus you have to hope that neither party is relying on a wireless network our you'll risk the connection timing out. Video interviews are HD and pre-recorded, which means they are bullet proof.  Watch them at your leisure.

3.  Quality.  Remember Max Headroom from the Pepsi ads?  With live streaming the videos are often not in real time - they lag, have audio visual sync issues and in general are hard to watch.  TalentRooster pre-recorded videos do not have any of these issues. 

Video is a great thing for HR / Recruiting professionals eager to find significant savings within their recruiting budgets.  Contact TalentRooster to learn more about this powerful tool.
Time Article

A Powerful Screening Tool for HR and Recruiting

With hundreds of resumes to review on a daily basis, recruiters and hiring managers need an efficient, scalable solution for filtering and identifying the right candidates. Video interviewing empowers recruiters and HR professionals to engage qualified candidates faster, and improves collaboration with hiring managers.

Recently my business has been looking for a technology professional, who possess not only technical skills, but the ability to communicate well with others.  It sounds like a simple problem, but it isn’t.  In reality many technical people lack the communication skills to interface with other employees or clients.  Conversely, those that have the communication skills seldom have the technical aptitude desired. 

Our executive team (much like executives everywhere…) hardly pays attention to a resume or our recruiter’s recommendation – it is so frustrating!  We needed a new strategy and decided to give video a shot.  We received hundreds of resumes, but needed a screening tool that would separate “candidates” from “serious candidates”.  We decided to incorporate video to this process!  Why not require candidates to make a little effort other than attaching a Word document and clicking “send”?

We selected three questions relevant to our opening – questions we believed would help us readily identify the right candidates.   A link was then sent to every candidate that applied, putting the onus on them to take the next step – create their video interview.  The process was very easy and the results spectacular.  Although hundreds of candidates applied, only a handful took the time to respond and create a video, making our selection process that much easier.  The respondents clearly took the time to do it right and invest their time in our process.  We took the video responses and sent them to the executives within our organization – they absolutely loved this technology, which ultimately enabled us to expedite our hiring process.

We partnered with TalentRooster (TalentRooster.com) for this project and couldn’t have been happier with the results.  If you haven’t given video interview technology a serious look, now is the time.  It just makes better sense. 

TalentRooster Video Challenge

As a quasi blogger, I try never to repeat myself - however this information should be taught at every business school!  In a previous blog I explained how a savvy job seeker could jump the line and land the interview if they just took a little initiative.  Since unemployment continues to hover around 10% and many are struggling to find work, I would hope that a new strategy might be well received - especially one that will work!

Becky is in search of a job - she's been looking and applying for several months.  She has had a couple of interviews but nothing has materialized.  Upon searching the job boards she stumbled upon a great opportunity with Dawson Resources, a local respected company.  Historically Becky would click "apply now" and send her Word document.  She then would try to call someone at Dawson Resources to follow up (and usually end up in the HR vacuum). 

Becky saw our blog and thought it was a great idea - here's what she did...  She started off by Googling Dawson Resources and learning about the company.  Upon visiting their website she learned who the owners and officers were and then searched all of their LinkedIn profiles.  She was quickly able to learn about the company culture and their hiring process.  She learned where each executive went to school and where they previously worked and people that they were connected to. She searched their FaceBook accounts and viewed the public information.  By taking these simple initiatives, Becky had a plethora of powerful information and set out to land this job!

Becky went to TalentRooster.com to create a video interview, where she could professionally verbalize what she had learned.  While all the other candidates were clicking "send" and firing over Word documents, Becky created a professional video profile that she knew would appeal to the decision makers.  She opened by talking about Dawson Resources and how her goals and objectives aligned with theirs - she actually quoted a specific line in their company mission statement.  No doubt it captured the attention of the recipient at Dawson!  Becky went on to answer specific questions she knew Dawson would want to hear.  She even dropped in the fact that she had gone to school at Ohio University, where Dawson has made on campus visits to recruit candidates (she commented on how professional the process was, which is always good for a companies ego!).

Becky closed by congratulating Dawson for their 65th year in business and their employee longevity.  She noted that one employee in particular has been with the company since 1966, which she found astounding.  She attached the video link to her Word document and sent it over to all the executives she'd learned about during her research (with a personal note to each).  With a little more work she was able to find all of their email addresses.  Guess what?  It worked!!  Take initiative and follow Becky's example and you will land a job! 

Check out TalentRooster to learn more!!

Recruiter Finally on Board with Video Resumes!

I am writing to say thank you for making my job easier. And let me just add, that I never thought I would be saying this. A year ago I was uncertain about this “new thing” you said was the future of our industry. Video technology sounded like a great idea when I first heard of it, but never did I think it would front and center in the hiring process! What were my initial thoughts when you first told us that videos were now a part of our recruiting routine? Well, to name a few “I don’t have enough time in the day”, “adding this onto the steps I have to complete with my candidates will be impossible”, and “no way, my candidates won’t go for this!”
Just a year ago my attitude was anti-technology, anti-video, anti-all of it! Now, I can’t picture my day without it. I can’t imagine sending my candidates over to a client for consideration without having their video front and center. Got a video? Great. Completed profile? Even better. Who knew that instead of asking my candidates to send me their resume, I would be advising them to complete their online video profile? Again, something I never thought would happen when this technology was first introduced and now I can’t imagine life without video technology!
At first my clients were trepid and uncertain – they had never seen video technology and had many questions. Now, they no longer want to see the “paper” resume – they full expect video on each candidate!! Thank you for “forcing” us to embrace this technology and be the first in our market to offer it.
Now that I have experienced the before, during and after of this new routine I can say, with confidence, that this is the way things are going. Our personal preference in everyday life is the want for “instant results” and this set up provides that for a hiring manager. It’s a way to read about, see and hear a candidate before they walk into their door…what could be better? Next time I’ll do my best not to resist new technology!!

Video Resumes Fact Versus Fiction

Like every new technology in the social media realm, there is going to skepticism and people that will be hesitant to welcoming a new way of doing things. Few have the courage to be early adopters as most prefer to follow the pack. Well the pack has adopted video resume technology and it’s quickly becoming the “go to” methodology of choice for hiring managers and savvy candidates.

Following are some long standing assumptions about Video Resumes.

1. It’s hard to do a video resume well. FALSE – with TalentRooster technology, you can record your video as many times as you would like until you believe that you’ve captured your absolute best! You don’t have that option in a live interview….

2. Video Resumes mess with the standard recruiting process. FALSE – While hiring managers and recruiters have their way of doing things, a video resume can only help you (and them). None of these decisions makers would ever be upset about making their process easier. Being able to “meet” and hear you answer questions specific to their needs is better for everyone involved.

3. Video Resumes slow down the hiring process. FALSE – A professional video resume will increase a candidate’s chance for hire by 30% or more. If your video is viewed and an interview extended, they already know what they’re getting. You cannot get that reaction from a standard Word Document. Have you ever said, “If they would just meet me, they’d hire me”. Now they can!!

4. Your email could be mistaken for spam. FALSE – There are two ways to go about submitting your video resume to a hiring manager. First, you can send it along with your regular paper resume, if you prefer, and just have your video be a link at the top. This will go directly to the desired inbox. Second, if you don’t want to use your paper resume, TalentRooster provides an application that allows you to send your video resume directly from the site. This, again, will go directly to the inbox you intend it to.

5. It could be illegal for a company to view it. FALSE – This is absolutely farcical with no legal basis whatsoever. Even the EEOC is onboard with video resume technology, so long as it isn’t used for discriminatory purposes – same as a paper resume where sensitive information can be extrapolated. Social media has changed the way companies hire and there isn’t a recruiter (worth their salt) that isn’t viewing a candidates FaceBook, LinkedIn or other social media site, before interviewing the candidate. With a professional video resume you can ensure employers see your absolutely best.

6. Video Resumes are a waste of money. FALSE – How serious are you about your job search? TalentRooster video profiles cost $19.95 or they are free if you work with one of our recruiter / partners. Clients won’t read your resume but they will watch your video, which will increase your chance for hire by 30% or more. We think the choice is obvious. Check out TalentRooster.com to learn more - we will be happy to help you get it right!

Casino To Hit Jackpot With Video Resumes

Whether you support casinos or not they seem to be popping up all over the U.S. The good news is that when a casino comes to town, so do hundreds or thousands of jobs. What if you were the person responsible for hiring all of these people? Where would you start? Since these jobs are stable and pay decent wages, tens of thousands of candidates will submit resumes. Have you taken a peek at the latest and greatest sourcing technology?

The "old way" of sourcing candidates (which many people still do) is a complete crapshoot. You spend hours reviewing resumes and attempt to select those you feel might be a fit. The paper is static - it doesn't really tell you anything, still many companies rely on this approach. Even a phone screen isn't bullet proof - it's a complete guess. Wouldn't it make more sense to have a dynamic resume with video, links to social media, graphics, a personality profile and more? Having 80% of a candidates information BEFORE agreeing to an interview is now a reality. Think of the time that could be saved for everyone involved in the recruiting process.

Look to the future and envision how the recruiting process will use today's technology to create efficiencies. Social media sites have changed the way business process works - it is important that we embrace these changes as they create better methodologies and economies of scale. Because technology moves so quickly it is imperative that employees keep pace. As new employees enter the workforce, they will readily adopt these new technologies. You don't want to look like the stick in the mud or appear resistant to change. The good news is this technology is very user friendly and not the least bit intimidating. Give TalentRooster a call - we'll be happy to walk you through the process.

Seasonal Projects Considering Video Resumes

With the Christmas season less than 90 days away, many companies are utilizing technology for their seasonal hiring. Many will be hiring hundreds or thousands of employees to meet the demands of the busy holiday season. Some will receive 30,000-50,000+ applications! Who has the time to weed through all of them? How can you tell if a candidate is really an appropriate fit? How can this process be streamlined?

There is a great solution that not only saves time and money, but ensures companies will find the best candidates - video resumes. It's simple and here's how it works. A company includes a link within their ordinary application. Candidates complete the application (inclusive of a video resume) from home, school, or wherever. Virtually every computer today has a camera built in - if not, job seekers have access to family or friends - they will figure it out. Upon completion, the video resume is sent directly back to the hiring manager, who can view it at their leisure and determine in seconds what candidates are worth pursuing..... or passing.

Another option to consider is kiosks. Many employers are putting kiosks on site so candidate's can complete their application (inclusive of video resume) in minutes. Upon completion, the videos are immediately sent to hiring managers for their review and consideration. Appropriate candidate's are circulated throughout the company, while those not selected are eliminated.

Thanks to technological advancements virtually anyone can create a video resume. It's fast, user friendly and invaluable to companies. Checkout TalentRooster.com to learn more.

100K+ Absolutely Need Video Resumes

It's so refreshing when a market leader endorses your technology! For months I've been singing the praises of video resume technology, however even I tended to zero in on the entry level to 50K crowd - WRONG!!! The quest for resume intelligence goes much further!

Upon reading this piece written by the creator of The Ladders (you know, that site for people seeking jobs that pay in excess of 100K). Turns out anyone looking for a job should fully investigate a professional digital video resume. Finally the technology is robust enough to make any level of candidate look professional without breaking the bank. That's the beauty of the TalentRooster.com model - it was built by search, recruiting, staffing professionals for job seekers serious about their search. We fully understand what hiring managers want to see and know how to make sure you capture your best 60 seconds on camera. Get out of the pile of resumes and on to the desktop - you won't believe how easy it is OR how quickly you get noticed!!

Professional or Fun Video Resume??

I received an inquiry from a gentleman, who did something very unique with his video resume. He's a "Gen Y" candidate that took his video resume to the next level! Virtually all "Gen Y" candidates are going video in addition to their social media, which means those of us over 30 need to get on board! This video is certainly unique and will provide several good laughs! The question now begs are your chances better with a "funny" or professional video? I'm certainly NOT being critical of this candidate - he's a creative person and clearly demonstrated that!

With TalentRooster technology, you can create a powerful digital video resume - an "intelligent resume" if you will - complete with video, traditional resume, personality profile, test scores, recruiter assessments and much, much more. The "all in" cost with TalentRooster (film from home) is $39.95 and it takes less than 10 minutes! No nickle and dime fees for hosting, uploading, etc - that's it! Plus we've made it entirely user friendly! In additional there are TalentRooster recruiting firms popping up around the U.S. that will help you through this process for FREE. Check out TalentRooster.com to learn more.

Conversely you could do it yourself and spend north of $1,000 and take an entire weekend (or more).....

Almost 1,400 Video Resumes ALREADY!

Within the next two - three years, kids graduating college will no longer use the traditional resume - it will be digital video with graphics. This "video resume / video CV" will present employers with comprehensive real time information, inclusive of the traditional resume, personality profile, video resume, skills assessments and more. The transition to this technology just makes sense and will save everyone their most valued asset - time.

So how come this transformation hasn't happened yet? There are a couple of reasons, primarily the technology to "do it right" has just come of age. Previously it was impossible to create a professional digital video profile. It was complicated, cumbersom and hiring managers didn't have the software to view the profiles - not anymore.

In addition, there will be a learning curve for those of us (currently in the workforce) that have been doing it the same way forever - change doesn't come as easily when your over twenty-five. In time we will recognize the huge advantages to technology that makes our lives (and businesses) better - TalentRooster video resumes are a great example of that.

We've been working on this technology for over two years and officially launched our site on 5/19/10. In just over two short months we have almost 1,400 video profiles on the site and growing by 10-20 per day! Better yet is that our partners (largely search, recruiting and HR professionals) are really starting to understand the potential of this technology and advocating its proliferation.

TalentRooster will soon be launching the "film yourself from home" feature, which will be a complete game changer for this emerging technology. We have made this technology so user friendly, consistent and professional that engaged job seekers will quickly adapt. Check us out - you'll see what I'm talking about!

A Blogging Guru Comments on TalentRooster

Ok, ok - so I toot my own horn too much - isn't that what an excited entrepreneur is supposed to do? As video resume technology continues to pick up momentum, TalentRooster is continually mentioned as the best site on the net - and it's NOT me saying it (although I'm inclined to agree)! Check out THIS PIECE, written by one of the top bloggers, who writes on video resume / video CV technology. The video resume space is quickly getting crowded by technologists that don't have any experience with recruiting, search or staffing - and it shows! Its like asking a ten year old to drive a car - they'd have a general idea, but likely end up in a ditch or worse......

Darrin ("The Interview Guru") took the time to call and discuss the TalentRooster model, our goals, vision for the future and more. Frankly I was impressed as I thought most bloggers write based on assumptions - not Darrin - he really drilled down and asked the hard questions. Now if we could only get others to ask these same questions of our "competitors"..... Virtually all of TalentRooster's competitors take the same approach to this technology - film yourself, upload it, brand it, add graphics, etc - it's not professional, it's not standardized and will not help a candidate land a job. In fact, those methodologies are everythng that's bad about video resumes. This technology is coming fast - do your homework before committing to a bad model - there are plenty to choose from.....

Video Resume Personal Branding Piece

We always believed TalentRooster was a superior product, when compared to anything else on the market. Now the media is waking up to the reality that video resumes are quickly becoming the future of the hiring process! Check out this piece on video resumes, personal branding and how you can stand out among the crowd of job seekers. TalentRooster is the only site that has made ths process fast, easy and affordable. Check us out!

Personal Branding, Video Resumes - What's Next?

Perusing the blogsphere this morning it occurred to me that generation "Xers" have had to learn more technology, faster than any previous generation! Compounding my frustration is that technology shows no signs of slowing down - it's only going to change faster!! Bloggers continue to stress how important personal branding and video resumes (or "CV's") are becoming. Job candidates that have yet to investigate this technology are putting themselves at a severe disadvantage. So how can this "old dog" continue to learn new tricks? Heck, I never learned how to transfer information from a floppy disk and I'm not entirely clear on iPod technology (don't tell anyone). The point is this - if we want to be considered for an opportunity, we have no choice but to get on the technology bus. You don't have to be in the first or second seat, but get on board! HR and recruiting professionals are very attuned to the evolving technology in this space. If you want to fall to the bottom of their list, send an email with your resume attached as a Word document. Those of us that want to be in the front of the line are taking a hard look at personal branding and video resumes.

HR Recruiting Pros ALL Going Video

We had to know that sooner or later technology would improve the search, recruiting staffing, HR world - it's just logical progression. I still enjoy my CD collection and have a "land line" in my house - come to think of it, I also have an impressive assortment of movies on VHS...
Virtually everyday there is a new piece regarding video resume technology - begrudgingly the hiring world has come to accept that you can't stop progress and video resumes are the future of the hiring process. It's an interesting struggle as generation X has had to learn all technology on the fly, verses generation Y, who has grown up with technology and has no problem learning something new - they seem to feed on it! Kids that are 10-15 today will never understand how we marketed ourselves with "paper" - it will seem so lame (I think they're right!). Social networking sites have changed the game and hiring managers want to see that job seekers "get it". When my firm had a need, we reviewed video resumes (on TalentRooster) which saved us a TON of time AND we found the right candidate! Check out this piece for more information on the future of video and hiring - there's new evidence daily!

Candidate New To America Utilizes Technology in Job Hunt

In our line of work we get to meet many interesting people - some of them highly motivated and others just tooling along life's highway... I felt the need to share this candidates story as she decided to use a video resume to tell her story and increase her chances for hire by 50%! She quickly grasped that other job seekers are still attaching Word docs to email - she wanted a tactical edge and found it with TalentRooster!

Get Busy Living!

For the second time in thirty days, a top CRM firm has written a nice piece about TalentRooster technology and the future of the hiring process - we are truly flattered! Recruiters need to quit worrying about the "what if's" and move forward with their businesses - there is no point in remaining stationary. It's hard to believe, but it's been over a decade since job seekers first began attaching a Word document to an email - that's so 1997! The savvy bird gets the worm....

With so many candidates applying for so few openings it has become increasingly difficult to stand out from the pack. There is a fine line between demonstrating creativity and being cheesy, however few candidates know how to tell the difference. Sending an email with a Word document attached will no longer capture an employers attention - they want to find candidates on board with technology. Lots of unqualified people out there trying to advise job seekers - do your homework before buying in.