Candidates: Don’t Let Video Kill the Interview Star

August 6th, 2018 by ifi-admin

Photo of a job candidate having a successful video interview.

Video interviews continue to gain popularity among hiring managers in order to meet the rising demand for qualified candidates in a cost-efficient, streamlined manner. With more companies hiring for multiple locations across America (and globally), many HR departments are integrating video interview technology into their process, either as a supplement or an alternative to in-person interviews. What does that mean for a candidate like you? Read the rest of this entry »


Employers: Midsummer Situation Staffing Report

July 26th, 2018 by ifi-admin

Photo of a hiring manager looking for candidates in the very tight summer 2018  job market
This summer hiring managers and human resources personnel, together with Independent Recruiters, are feeling the squeeze. Midsummer was once the season for long walks in the sand, sunsets at the cottage or lazy days on the boat, but in 2018, the talent war has not paused to draw a breath.

With the Bureau of Labor Statistics reporting a 2.3% jobless rate for managers/professional workers, it’s little wonder.

Globally, employers continue to struggle to find workers with the right skills. According to ManpowerGroup’s 2018 Talent Shortage Survey, almost half of US employers (46%) said they can’t find the candidates with the skills they need, up from 32% in 2015. Many of the toughest positions to fill are categories of special interest to Phoenix Partners and its clientele, including Engineers (#3), IT (#6), and White Collar professionals (#8). Read the rest of this entry »


How Blockchain Might Affect Your Future Job Search

July 9th, 2018 by ifi-admin

Photo illustrating job candidates using blockchain technology to enhance their job search with Phoenix Partners

Many talented professionals are too busy to look for a new job. Working with an independent recruiter saves time and energy, but does not entirely eliminate the extensive tasks of on-boarding, credential checks, and other busy-work that is frequently redundant but critical to your successful selection for a desired position.

You’ve probably heard a lot of buzz about blockchain and cryptography, but if you’re like most people, you may have only a foggy notion of what it is and what it can do, specifically for you. Read the rest of this entry »


3 Ways Blockchain May Revolutionize Hiring in the Future

June 21st, 2018 by ifi-admin

Blockchain technology with abstract background - showing how it could revolutionize the hiring process

You’ve probably heard a lot of buzz about blockchain and cryptography, but if you’re like most people, you may have only a foggy notion of what it is and what it can do, specifically for you.

To understand the way in which blockchain technology may revolutionize hiring, it’s important to first have a clear picture of what it is, and why it’s different than databases or applicant tracking systems.
Read the rest of this entry »


Candidates: Mastering The Six Second Resume Quest

June 15th, 2018 by ifi-admin

Optimize your resume for applicant tracking systems and for readability with the help of Phoenix Partners

When sending your resume for a job opening, your first task as a candidate is to get past the gatekeeper, whether this is a recruiter reading your resume for a potential match or a Fortune 500 company looking for top talent. This is followed closely by the second quest, which is to engage your reader. Read the rest of this entry »


For Employers – Selecting the Right Recruiter

May 24th, 2018 by ifi-admin

In an article published by Australian NPA network member Scott Van Heurck of Wood Recruitment, he suggested that the three keys to the successful selection of a recruiter are diligence, trust, and value added. We thought this topic would be interesting to expand upon.

Types of Recruitment

Recruiting firms offer different types of search proposals, with different terms, so it’s important for employers to understand the distinctions in order to determine if a firm offers the type of recruitment desired.

The three types of recruiting searches usually performed are Contingency, Engaged, and Retained search. In a contingency search, the recruiter is only paid when successfully filling a job opening. In an engaged search which is almost always done on an exclusive basis, the recruiter is given a deposit to cover research and other upfront costs; the deposit is then deducted from the final placement fee on successful completion of the search. In a retained search, the recruiter, by contrast, is paid a retainer fee whether or not a candidate is hired.

Phoenix Partners performs both contingency and engaged searches for clients. In today’s competitive hiring climate, engaged searches usually warrant prioritized time and attention. Read the rest of this entry »


For Candidates: Phoenix Partners Offers You The World

May 7th, 2018 by ifi-admin

Photo of technology business people from all over the globe having a discussion

Did you know that Phoenix Partners can help you find employment anywhere in the world?

Maybe you’ve always wanted to work abroad, but didn’t know where to start. Or maybe you’re ready to move closer to family, who live across the country or somewhere around the world. Maybe you’re just ready for an adventure. With Phoenix Partners, the world is your oyster!

While there are myriad benefits to working with an Independent Recruiter in general, and Phoenix Partners specifically, one advantage that jobseekers often overlook is global reach. Read the rest of this entry »


For Employers: Attracting Diverse Candidates Through Job Description Language

April 19th, 2018 by ifi-admin

A team of culturally-diverse colleagues sitting in a conference room

In the technical professions, it can be tough to recruit a gender-balanced and diverse field of applicants when a mere 26% of American women are programmers, and 11% are engineers, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Monoculture is bad for business, and not just in terms of meeting equal opportunity employment benchmarks. A study on the economic impact of diversity in the workplace by McKinsey & Co. reports that companies in the top quartile for racial and ethnic diversity are 35 percent more likely to have financial returns above their respective national industry medians. Companies in the top quartile for gender diversity are 15 percent more likely to have financial returns above their respective national industry medians. Read the rest of this entry »


What Job Skills Will Be In Demand for the AI Era?

April 2nd, 2018 by ifi-admin

A group of tech employees filling trainer, explainer, and sustainer roles in the AI-Era workplace
We may not be working alongside robotic colleagues anytime soon, but as we noted earlier in our series of posts about the impact of Artificial Intelligence (AI), AI is poised to disrupt the labor market dramatically in the next decade. While many fear the job losses that organizations such as Forrester Research or OECD are predicting, others are examining the ways in which today’s technology professionals will need to transfer or add to their skills. Read the rest of this entry »


Job Seekers: Are You Ready for the AI Work World?

March 19th, 2018 by ifi-admin

Photo of a computer CPU with an illustration of a human brain on it, illustrating the rising prevalence of Artificial Intelligence in employee workflows.Artificial Intelligence (AI) was once the realm of sci-fi, but today many professionals increasingly find aspects of their work life infused with AI and Machine Learning. Rapid advances in AI disciplines such as facial recognition, natural language understanding and computer vision, are increasingly in use in a wide range of tasks, performing fraud detection, market analysis and medical diagnosis.

How future-proof is your career?

Recent research by McKinsey & Co predicts that as many as one-third of American workers may need to find new lines of work by 2030 thanks to the impact of artificial intelligence and automation on the labor market.

The report estimates that in the majority of existing occupations at least 30 percent of constituent work activities could be automated. On the brighter side, AI will also create new occupations that do not exist today. Read the rest of this entry »