Tag: cloud talent

What NOT to Do to Be Noticed by Cloud Talent Recruiting Firms:

1. Do NOT misspell the interviewers or anyone’s name for that matter when you are corresponding with them. For example, my name is spelled “Jon”, not “John”. I don’t personally care if you misspelled it but as a hiring manager for a recruiting firm, it shows you did not take the time to look and pay attention to the detail. By the way, some people DO take great offense to their name being misspelled.
2. Do NOT forget to include your LinkedIn profile. This just in….there is 675 MILLION users on LinkedIn, odds are more than one or 100 that share your same name. Make it easy for the Cloud Marketing and Creative Recruiting Firm to find you.
3. Do NOT misspell words or make grammatical errors. Download Grammarly. It’s Free!
4. Do NOT forget to send a ‘Thank You’ note. It takes but a few minutes. If you don’t, many hiring managers will discard you for consideration. Back in the good old days, you were expected to mail a handwritten note. An email takes no more than five minutes. Just do it.
5. Do NOT wait until 2 minutes before your video interview to test if your microphone, camera, background lighting is set up properly. Not all video conferencing has the same settings – Zoom, Google Hangouts, WebEx, GoToMeeting, Amazon Chime (I know right?  Amazon has a video conferencing service?) Blue Jeans, RingCentral all have different default settings. A 30-minute interview goes by FAST, don’t waste precious time fussing about with your mic or camera. We are 5 months into the Covid-19 era, the “I’m not used to this” excuse doesn’t play anymore. Cloud employment is becoming more and more commonplace and you need to be prepared.
6. Do NOT neglect to do your homework on the person and the company you are interviewing with or for.
7. Do NOT come to the interview without prepared questions based on your research/homework (see #6 above). Your questions demonstrate to the interviewer that you in fact did your homework.
8. Do NOT, not, have a LinkedIn photo and make sure the photo is professional. Party pictures are for Facebook and The Gram.
9. Do NOT talk too much. Listening and understanding what you are hearing is part of what is considered effective communication.  When you listen, you may pick up on clues on what the recruiting manager likes or dislikes and what is really important
10. Do NOT forget to send a ‘Thank You’ note! Yes, I know this was #4 on the list. I’m repeating it for emphasis and to make sure you are paying attention. In addition to your email ‘Thank You’ note, you should also connect with those you interviewed with on LinkedIn along with a personal note. One more way to show you care enough, want the opportunity, are doing your homework, and took the time to follow up.

If you have any questions or concerns, be sure to reach out to us here at Ursus! Our team is here to help you!

Still, to this day, I never understood why folks hoarded toilet paper during the pandemic and I’ve yet to hear an explanation from any scientist, psychologist, politician, or supply chain expert. Were that many people suddenly going potty more than before? Alas, thankfully we can now regularly find toilet paper in our stores!

Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for Cloud Technical talent. Pre-COVID demand was at all-time highs and have been exacerbated as companies scramble to find cloud talent to support remote-based workers and pivot or increase more of their operations and sales models online.

There are simply not enough trained and experienced humans on the planet to meet the demand. Unlike our TP scare, there is not a short-term, fix-it answer like cutting down and processing more trees faster. So, what do we do to address the problem?

Every day spent searching — unsuccessfully — for the right talent in a shrinking candidate pool, results in productivity and revenue loss. With demand for cloud talent at all time, and the talent pool as all-time lows, what are C-level executives to do? Hint: Look at your current technology team, there may be undeveloped cloud talent diamonds right under your nose!

The same old hiring practices will not yield results.

The human resources and talent acquisition response to the current environment goes one of two ways as companies grapple with the shallow cloud talent pool. Many invest in internal recruiting teams and increase online job advertising to attract attention and create “gravity” all in an attempt to draw a larger pool of candidates, and, hopefully, find the proverbial “needle in the haystack.” The problem with this model is twofold.

First, most corporate recruiters don’t recruit, or source to find net new candidates from competing companies, but rather “catch and sort” resumes that come inbound from corporate websites and job boards.

Second, if they’re lucky enough to receive a qualified candidate on paper (note the essential distinction between what’s listed on paper versus relevant experience and applicable skills), the recruiter has to be able to sell the company, and more importantly, the position. This task is not easy to do. The best technical talent wants — and has earned the right to — pick and choose which companies and projects are of most interest.

I’m not suggesting companies stop looking. And I’m certainly not suggesting to not use cloud marketing and creative recruiting firms, like Ursus, that specialize in finding cloud talent. What I am suggesting is in addition to the ongoing search, look for alternative methods and programs to fill the creative and technical talent gaps. One solution is to offer training on the job in the form of apprenticeships; that is, providing employees training that is relevant to the work needed by the company or the work the employee aspires to ultimately do within the organization. The benefits include not only filling positions that cannot be found outside of the company as well as employee retention and loyalty and an increase in the company’s bottom line.

Rather than continue to bang our heads against the wall we decided to do something that we believe provides an alternative solution to this problem. Introducing Ursus Certify U! Cloud Apprenticeship! The launch of our apprenticeship program helps our clients develop high-potential technology professionals via a proprietary program that merges hands-on 1:1 training and mentorship combined with self-paced online training, course work, and real-world projects. Certify U! is not a technical Bootcamp designed to cram information down a learner’s throat to simply pass a certification exam. Certify U! is an apprenticeship program designed specifically for talent with a substantial baseline of technology experience and success that are poised to migrate to cloud-based positions within their current employer organization or elsewhere as they advance their careers.