HMK Associates, Inc. Newsletter

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May 2007

In This Issue

·  Case Study: Our clients say it best:

·  Words of Wisdom:

·  Useful Facts:

·  Reading Recommendations:

·  Upcoming Speaking Engagements:

Dear Holly,

We've been busy at HMK Associates, Inc. lately; our consultants have hired 42 people since January - mostly engineers, but also customer service, accounting, human resource, software and business development professionals.

 

Case Study: Our clients say it best:

At HMK Associates we consider ourselves fortunate to have some of Pittsburgh's dedicated non-profit organizations as our clients. Recently we had the opportunity to assist Healthy Start, Inc.

Healthy Start needed to replace their departing Human Resources Manager. Realizing a vacancy in this very busy office was not an option, Cheryl Squire Flint, the Executive Director, called us for help. We placed one of our consultants on site to fill the role while we recruited a replacement. By responding immediately to their urgent need, we were able to facilitate a seamless transition. When asked to recruit a Controller a few weeks later, we identified an ideal candidate within weeks.

Since its start in 1991, the infant mortality rate for Healthy Start's case-managed participants has been reduced by 40%. HMK Associates, Inc. is proud to have provided professional expertise and help to find well qualified employees dedicated to making a difference in the communities they serve.

"Finding an ideal candidate willing to accept the salary and work in a community-based setting is an awesome task. Thanks again for your assistance." - Cheryl Squire Flint, Executive Director, Healthy Start, Inc.

Click here for more information about Healthy Start

Words of Wisdom:

Here are some interesting quotes we've assembled in our travels this quarter:

"Ask yourself these three questions if you are marketing to businesses: "Will it help your customer look good?" "Will it help your customer get a promotion?" and "Will it help your customer go home earlier?" If your product or service does none of these things, start over - there's not a market for it." - Suzi Teele, CEO of Aceda, at a Powerlink luncheon

"A bonus is more impactful than merit pay because you get it NOW. If you get a merit pay increase, the message is this: The good news is that you got a raise. The bad news is that you have to work for me all next year to get it." - Robert Greene, seminar on Variable Compensation Management, 2006 SHRM conference

"Whatever you do with bonus and incentive plans, 15% of your employees will hate it. Make sure it's the right 15%." - Robert Greene

"I want a job where I can feel useful, where I can go home feeling like I'm contributing. I want to be able to tell my friends, 'You won't believe what I did today,' and be happy when I say it." - Software engineer emailing me about what he's looking for in his next job

Useful Facts:

Not to complain, but since we have been working so much with hiring managers, we thought we'd share the results of a recent study from SHRM that polled recruiters on their hiring headaches. 67% indicated a lack of feedback about resumes was the biggest challenge. A close second (57%) was unrealistic requirements for the position given the salary offered. - Source: 2006 SHRM Human Capital Benchmarking Study

Reading Recommendations:

This I Believe: The Personal Philosophies of Remarkable Men and Women edited by Jay Allison and Dan Gedman

It's Okay to Be The Boss: The Step by Step Guide to Becoming the Manager Your Employees Need by Bruce Tulgan

Upcoming Speaking Engagements:

Holly is speaking to The Technology Collaborative member companies on May 10 on the topic of "How to Coach, Counsel and Console". On May 16, she'll be a panelist for the MIT Forum's first "elevator pitch" session targeting job seekers, called "Face the Hiring Squad". On June 5, she'll present for the University of Pittsburgh's Small Business Development Center on "Finding and Keeping the People You Need", and June 7 at Duquesne's Entrepreneur's Growth Conference on "10 Trickiest HR Issues". Finally, on June 25, she will be presenting at the annual SHRM Conference in Las Vegas on "Introvert/Extrovert: How Much Space is Too Much Space". If you are interested in attending any of these presentations or would like more info, please contact Annette Capp at ac@hmkassociates.com. Not to complain, but since we have been working so much with hiring managers, we thought we'd share the results of a recent study from SHRM that polled recruiters on their hiring headaches. 67% indicated a lack of feedback about resumes was the biggest challenge. A close second (57%) was unrealistic requirements for the position given the salary offered. - Source: 2006 SHRM Human Capital Benchmarking Study

Please give us a call if you or someone you know might be able to use our services. And as always, thanks for your continued support.

 

 

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