Two Sides to Every Story

When it comes to employment, there are two sides of the story. Employers say, “Good help is hard to find,” while job-seekers think, “I can’t find a decent job out there.” No matter which side of the coin you’re on, finding good work and workers is a difficult process. If you’re hiring, one job opening could attract hundreds of applicants. Sifting through them to find a good fit is time consuming. On the other hand, a job hunter may feel like he or she is sending resumes into the black hole of the Internet, never to hear a response.
How can businesses and job hunters cut through the red tape of the hiring process? Many use an employment agency to alleviate the process. An employment agency is a firm hired by a company to help with its staffing needs. Employment agencies find people to fill all kinds of jobs, from temporary to full-time, in a number of career fields. Whether a company needs an administrative assistant, a manager or a carpenter, an employment agency can find the right employee.

At BarryStaff, We always place YOU first!

 

We Know you have a choice

We know you have a choice! So what sets BarryStaff apart from all other staffing agencies?

-BarryStaff has been in business for over 30 years. We have 4 locations to serve the Dayton area: Mason, Piqua , Sidney and Dayton. Our main focus is to serve Dayton and the surrounding areas. BarryStaff mirrors the polices of our clients: background checks, drug screen, reference checks, etc. and if you look at our website at www.barrystaff.com, you will see several testimonies from our clients.

-Most of our Staff have been with us for many years: Kerri Voelkel, 28 years; Robert Voelkel, 19 years; Emily Monnin, 12 years and Teresa Myers, 5 years. Our clients, as well as our employees find it refreshing to call us and get a familiar voice on the phone.

-We place Light Industrial as well as professional candidates: clerical, accounting and Management positions. Every administrative and accounting candidate is tested for any software or skills they know.

-We are also the first Staffing Agency in the Dayton area to obtain Talent Rooster, which is a video resume, for our clients. When you are considering a staffing agency, please take a moment to consider BarryStaff, where we place you FIRST!

 

HOW TO CONDUCT A BETTER INTERVIEW

The job interview is no ordinary conversation for either party. For the candidate, many major decisions and life changes hinge on the outcome. For the interviewer, there’s also a great deal at stake.  Hiring the wrong person can have significant and prolonged repercussions, from interpersonal conflict between the new hire and staff members to poor performance, lost productivity and increased time required to correct the new arrival’s mistakes.

Your mission is to determine whether the individual sitting across from you is the best person for the job. Using the information on the applicant’s résumé and her answers to your questions, you must come to a decision.

Sometimes it’s an open-and-shut case. Every now and then, a candidate comes along who overshadows all other contenders and absolutely wows you. The opposite can also occur. If during the interview it becomes clear to you that the applicant lacks a key qualification for the position, you can remove him from the running without extensive deliberation.

But the reality is that most candidates will fall somewhere in between these two extremes. And it will take nuanced, sophisticated interviewing techniques and acumen on your part to identify the most appropriate person for the job.

It’s helpful to think of the job interview as an exercise in asking the right question. When preparing to interview candidates, try to move beyond the stock questions that will yield only formulaic, standard answers. Here are some suggestions for designing the kinds of questions that will prompt candid answers.

Do your research. Just as candidates prepare for job interviews by researching the company, you also need to do your homework prior to meeting with applicants. Review each candidate’s background and experience with an eye for red flags such as gaps in work history, odd job titles or achievements that sound too good to be true. These are the areas of concern you’ll want to explore in the interview.

Don’t be ruled by the list. Of course it’s important to prepare a list of questions to ensure that you cover the same topics with all candidates. But don’t become so chained to the list that you never go off script.

At times, you will need to respond to a candidate’s answers with a follow-up question that draws out more detail or fills in the blanks. For example, if a candidate states that she developed an algorithm that reduced the time it takes to produce a key report by three days, you’ll want to follow up by asking additional questions.

Ditch off-the-shelf questions. “What are your strengths and weaknesses?” and “Where do you see yourself in five years?” are predictable, shopworn questions that will elicit canned answers.

You often can get more useful information with an unconventional line of inquiry. For example, instead of asking the candidate outright about strengths and flaws, present a hypothetical situation that requires him to reason through a real-life problem. This will give you a chance to evaluate his resourcefulness and ability to think on his feet. If the individual struggles, seems tentative or offers an inadequate solution, you’ve likely uncovered a weakness the applicant might never have revealed if questioned directly.

Probe for specifics. In ordinary conversation, it’s generally considered impolite to push for details when someone is talking about a sensitive topic, such as problems at work. Etiquette dictates that you let the other person reveal as much or as little as she chooses.

But a different type of etiquette applies in the interview situation. While you don’t want to interrogate the candidate, you will need to explore uncomfortable subjects on her résumé, such as a layoff or an unexplained gap in employment.

It’s likely the candidate will give very short, general answers in such cases. It will be up to you to gently but firmly probe for more information; for example, “Tell me more about the events that led to your decision to leave that position,” or, “What did you do during those 10 months between jobs?”

Ask for examples. If the applicant makes a general statement (e.g., “I’m detail-oriented”), ask for concrete examples that back up his claim. You can also obtain the same type of information by asking him for examples of occasions when he was under a tight deadline, juggling an especially heavy workload, supervising a work team, dealing with upper management, interacting with clients or any other situations that are relevant to performance of the available position.

Push past resistance and double-talk. Occasionally, you’ll ask a question a candidate does not want to answer. She may give an evasive, vague or rambling response that isn’t quite forthcoming. Don’t settle for this; instead, say, “I’m not sure I understood what you meant, and I want to be sure I do. Could you explain a little more?” If the candidate still stonewalls, make note of it and move on. Later, you can try to get more information from her references.

When you’re preparing to interview job candidates, imagine you’re an investigative reporter and consider the facts you’ll need to uncover to draw accurate conclusions. This will help you turn a “routine” hiring procedure into a fruitful and informative one.

 

Job Skills That No Longer Impress Recruiters

By Alida Moore, PayScale.com

In today’s competitive job market, it is important to develop skills that will make your resume stand out. But some of the job skills that might have moved your resume to the top of the pile a few years ago might not be worth as much today. Which skills are on the verge of becoming so last year?

According to online salary database, PayScale.com, the skills on this list have seen the biggest drop in market value over the last few years. “These skills are associated with jobs the Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts to have slow to no growth over the next 10 years,” says Katie Bardaro, Director of Analytics at PayScale.com. “Often, to be successful in your career, you need to have multiple skills to set yourself apart,” says Bardaro.

If the skill that tops your resume is on this list, it may be wise to invest time in developing other skills related to your career and industry.

Spanish

Spanish is the second most prominent language in the United States, after English. Additionally, over 35 million U.S. residents speak Spanish at home, according to census.gov. So why is this a dying job skill? Simply put, the commonality of Spanish makes it a resume dud. Furthermore, Spanish isn’t a prominent language in business. If you would like to pad your resume with a language skill, consider learning Arabic, Japanese or Chinese.

Software Installation and Upgrade

In these technology-driven times, most workers have a basic understanding of computers and software. In fact, most software installation happens at the push of a button or, more often, is automated. Upgrades are often as simple as clicking a link and restarting your computer, something that has become second nature to many workers.

Legal Research

An abundance of underemployed law school grads makes this skill not as impressive as it used to be. If you want to compete with them, you may need to head back to law school yourself.

Handling Mortgage Loans

The collapse of the housing industry shook the faith of many and renters are on the rise. If this skill tops your resume, it might be wise to look for other ways to apply your knowledge of the mortgage loan business.

Additional BarryStaff advice:

This is not to say that the above job skills are no longer useful in the workplace.  But it might be a good idea to think of different ways to sell those skills on your resume.  Instead of saying you speak Spanish, instead note that you are bilingual with communications skills in multiple languages.  Instead of noting your software installation skills be sure to say that you are “computer literate” and note the software packages (Microsoft Office, etc.) where you are comfortable.  “Legal Research” can translate into critical skills in collections and skip-trace.  Also consider shifting the focus on Mortgage loan experience into familiarity with financing and credit approval.  Just try to show your experience in the best light possible.  Your BarryStaff professionals can help.