Sometimes, when a client wants us to find a new hire for them, they ask, “How do you know who is looking for a new job?”
It often comes as a surprise when we say it isn’t the people who are looking for a new job we need to find, but the people who aren’t. The ones we call “passive job-seekers.” These people are happy where they are, they’re doing a good job and they understand their business. They don’t know they are looking for a new job but if shown a real opportunity with a career path and the chance to shine at something new, their ears will likely perk up.
“So how on earth you find people like that?”
At tradeshows and conferences, of course.
Passive job seekers don’t turn up at job fairs because they’re not looking for a job but they do go to tradeshows and conferences. They go because their companies send them there and the reason their companies send them is because they are good enough to take any question a visitor at the show can throw at them and respond with an answer that makes the visitor think, “This person REALLY knows his (or her) stuff.”
And that’s exactly the kind of person our clients are looking for.
Now don’t get us wrong, we rarely offer someone a job during the trade show itself. That would be crass. After all, this person is attending on behalf of an employer that has spent good money on admission, transportation, lodging and meals. We want people to focus on the reasons why they are attending in the first place, but we also like chatting with them, assessing what their particular strengths are and perhaps most important of all, notating their names and contact information for follow-up conversations at a future date.
This isn’t the only reason we attend tradeshows and conferences, however. At Broadstaff, we have more than 20 years of collective experience working in the Telecommunications industry, which means we know how important it is to both our clients and candidates alike that we understand the business we are in. We strive to ensure that our employees stay abreast of the newest trends and news in wireless, and make it a point to attend industry events so that we’re truly keeping a thumb on the pulse of what’s happening.
What’s more, our creativity ALWAYS increases after a conference, as does our productivity, probably because of the infusion of energy we get from being surrounded by people who not only know the wireless business inside out, but are also passionate about it too.
Here are some of the places we’ll be this year:
♣ DAS Small Cell Congress-Vegas
♣ PCIA-Dallas
♣ CTIA-Vegas
♣ SEAT- Vegas
If you’ll be attending as well, let’s get together for coffee and a chat about where the industry is, where it’s going and how we can help each other. And if you won’t be there but plan to be at another show somewhere else, drop us a line because that one may be in our plans, too.
