Are You Tired Of Being Treated Like A "Transaction" And Not a Human Being?...

Every day I chat with many different people.  These people are looking for a new job for many different and specific reasons.  Here are some of their human stories...

"I was their Controller for 20 years and business was good for a long time, but over the last 5-6 years our business started to tank.  I was one of their employees who had the highest salary and the longest tenure with the company...but they laid me off first..."

"I have 3 children in college, and I was counting on my salary as their VP of Finance to help me pay for all their educations...but after my position was downsized, I got scared and started thinking...how am I going to be able to find another position like the one I had?...I was there for 14 years, and I was promoted year after year, which had helped me increase my salary and put more money in my 401 K and in savings for my kids schooling.  But now, I am out there looking for a new job and there is so much competition...and as the time goes by I am eating through my kids savings accounts and eventually my 401 K will be hit too..."

I could probably write 20 more pages with the different stories, like these, that I hear every day.  In all honesty...it is heart breaking to hear how the recession is affecting the daily lives of hard working people.

....But that is also the point...we are dealing with people...yes, real human beings who have bills to pay, kids to feed, football gear to buy, Direct TV bills to pay, utility bills to pay (maybe later), pets to take care of, high gas prices to deal with...and the list goes on and on...

The problem is...a lot of these people get treated like "numbers" or "transactions", in our current society, whether they are talking to a rep from a staffing company or calling to check on the available balance on their credit card.  Do you see my point?  A majority of the time people are not treated like individuals or human beings anymore.  Some folks, in our current society, are too busy...or that is just "company policy"...or maybe they just don't care.  I am not really sure.

Building relationships with people...and just talking, communicating (with your voice) and listening to the stories is so important.  We can never guarantee that we will find every person a new job, but we will do our best to give them a great experience when they meet all of us...and we can network with them...be a resource...and build a relationship...they will not be treated like a "transaction", but if for some reason they feel like their experience could have been better then we want to talk about it and work it out.  Don't worry, we won't have you fill out an internal company survey about "How did we do??..rate it on a scale of 1-10..." :)  No...we can actually talk with you about it...

Horizons-AFTS is driven by building strong relationships not transactions.  We hope, if you have worked with us before, that you see that as one of the biggest differences between us and all the other companies, out there, that place people in new job opportunities.  Please feel free to email me your thoughts and stories at amy.cannon@horizons-afts.com .  And...if you haven't worked with us yet, I hope you will in the future.  Take care.

Plante Moran | How Will Healthcare Reform Impact my Budget for Next Year?

Plante Moran | How Will Healthcare Reform Impact my Budget for Next Year?

My name is Amy Cannon, and this will be my first post for my new blog about the day in the life of the Consultant Recruiter.  I have been in this industry for a very long time, and I have seen many things evolve and happen throughout the years.  However, the last couple of years have been very interesting.

The evolution or trend is with the increased need for Consultants.  Now, my main focus as a Recruiter is in the Accounting and Finance arenas, so that is where I am seeing most of this evolution happen.  The main reason for this trend is our uncertain economy, and unfortunately it remains very uncertain.  Many companies are fearful of investing in a permanent employee, because they do not really know what will happen next with our economy.  They have to keep a "lean and mean" staff, and they cannot financially afford to hire a permanent employee because of the extra cost of benefits, salaries, etc.  They are nervous to hire, even though they truly have the need for additional help, because they fear having to possibly lay someone off shortly after hiring them.  Seems crazy and frustrating doesn't it?  However, this is the story I hear every day from the people that I speak to.

So, what are these companies suppose to do?  Well, they reach out to firms like ours to bring in Accounting and Finance Consultants on a project, contract, and contract to hire basis.  That way, they can get a qualified professional to fill their need and they do not have to incur all of the costs of hiring a permanent employee.

The interesting thing is, many of these companies actually do have a need for a permanent employee in the spot that the Consultant is filling...so many times the Consultant could happen upon a potential permanent opportunity too.  Yes, my friends, this is called a WIN WIN situation!  And guess what?...many of the project openings are not advertised by the company.  Another great reason to consider becoming a Consultant.

So, unfortunately people are still getting laid off...I hear about it everyday.  It is sad and frustrating for those people, and trust me I know exactly what that feels like.  If you are currently looking for a new opportunity and you are stuck on the idea of only interviewing for permanent opportunities...that is completely fine...but also consider consulting if you haven't already.  Again, I have more knowledge in the accounting and finance arenas, because that is my firm's focus in regards to recruiting...but definitely search online for other potential opportunities if you are in a different area.

Please feel free to contact me at amy.cannon@horizons-afts.com if you have any questions.

Take care.