Contributor: Lisa Sullivan, CEO of The Armada Group

I recently finished reading Tony Hseih’s book “Delivering Happiness.” Tony has done an extraordinary job of articulating the importance of challenges and strategies for creating happiness in work. Tony notes that “Without separation of work and life, it’s remarkable how values can be exactly the same.”  Is there really such a thing as work/life balance or is it really just life balance? Life is work .whether work means your career, your job, your hobbies, your family, your relationships .The balance we seek in “work life balance” is really just about being happy in life.

Here are a couple of ideas on actively creating happiness and balance:

1)    Focus on things that matter; don’t worry about the things that don’t

1. Stay focused on areas that you can impact change and make a difference. We have a tendency focus our time and energy around things that we cannot control and in the big scheme of things, they don’t really matter.

2)    Focus on creating outcomes/solutions rather than the problems

1. Complaining is easy – We can usually find an audience that wants to participate in our pity party… the best gift you can bring to this party is your refusal to buy into the problem and instead work towards developing empowering alternatives or solutions. Step up and take responsibility for impacting change.

3)    Don’t complain – Rather explain then inspire action and change

1. If you want or need something or have a concern – talk to someone who can impact change.
2. Take responsibility for yourself and don’t apologize for your point of view.
3. It’s your job to take initiative when you notice issues or have ideas on how to make situations better so that you, the team and the company can succeed. Tony Hseih notes, “The best team members have a positive influence on one another and everyone they encounter.”
4. As a leader it’s your job to listen to your team – To always want to hear them out and strive to understand and appreciate where they are coming from. Tony notes in Delivering Happiness, “The best leaders are servant-leaders … they serve those they lead.”  Encourage your team to voice their concerns and opinions AND set the expectation that they should be able offer solutions and ideas on how to fix the issue/solve the problems.

4)    Move your body every day

1. Whether it’s an early morning workout at the gym, a walk at lunch or an evening stroll with the dog, get your body moving every day. Moving keeps you body and mind healthy and strong.

5)    Never stop growing or learning

1. Read, watch a TED Talk online, dig a little deeper into your friend’s latest Faceboook post on social issues. In work/life take action and responsibility for your personal and professional growth.

6)    You will fail sometimes

1. Try anyway.

7)    Remember we are all human

1. It’s hard to remember sometimes … but we are all human. Just because someone has accomplished a lot doesn’t mean they have all the answers or are always right. And vice versa, just because someone hasn’t accomplished a lot yet doesn’t mean they don’t have a voice or a lot to contribute. People make mistakes and need to take responsibility for their own actions. Work to create an environment where the people you interact with feel heard, supported and ultimately happy to be a part of your team.

Work is defined as the Physical or mental effort or activity directed toward the production or accomplishment of something.  Happiness is work and is something worth working for.

Finally, Elizabeth Gilbert summarizes happiness perfectly,

“…People universally tend to think that happiness is a stroke of luck, something that will maybe descend upon you like fine weather if you are fortunate enough. But that’s not how happiness works. Happiness is a consequence of personal effort. You fight for it, strive for it, insist upon it, and sometimes even travel around the world looking for it. You have to participate relentlessly in the manifestations of your own blessings….”

Dear Consultants,

We all work for money. You do and I do. Just as they sing in Cabaret, “Money makes the world go around.” This is not to say that is all we work for, but when it comes down to basics, we all need a little cash to make life easier.

Often enough, a technical recruiter will call a talented, skilled professional and come to find the person on the other end of the phone is not so amenable. Yes, a recruiter does make money from filling a position, but so do you – you get a salary, and the recruiter makes theirs. But recruiters are not looking to make a quick buck by filling position fast and making the highest margin off of you, recruiters work to find the right fit between the consultant, the recruiting company, and the end client. Recruiters are the liaison between you and the client company; we are both your agent and your cheerleading squad, here to support you.

Recruiter, sourcer, middleman, matchmaker, puzzle master, treasure hunter – we are all of these. We scour the job boards, dive into the depths of databases, and wait for approval on LinkedIn Groups just so we can find a few people who may have a minute to speak on the phone (and maybe read that email we send too). We spend a vast majority of our day searching out people, sending emails that go to junk mail or bounce, and leaving voicemails that will never get returned. When we do get you on the phone, we know your time is valuable and we only have a moment to gauge your interest and tell you about the opportunity. Recruiting is a job full of rejection and so when a recruiter finally gets you on the phone for more than a few minutes, we are hopeful that you will be that perfect fit. But we do not want to waste your time or our time. And the client companies that use recruiters do so because they do not want to waste their time either.

Those client companies alleviate their hiring time in a few ways. If they are still small enough, HR or the hiring manager can directly handle the influx of applicants, but Ed Struzik of IBM says the percentage of large companies using applicant tracking systems is “in the ‘high 90%’ range” (Wall Street Journal). The way around this is for a client to use a company like Armada to do the search and response, instead of keyword-searching automated systems that intake thousands of applications for a single opening.  When you are submitted to a position by a recruiter, it’s a smaller candidate pool and if you are working with the right recruiter they will have direct access to the manager making the hiring decision.

We read your resume at a glance (Business Insider Careers), based upon keywords or desired job titles. If your resume has enough highlighted words, or something else catches our eye that fits the role (or personality of the hiring manager and team), you have made it past the 6 second yay-or-nay! Sometimes it’s another 30 seconds or a minute, but we have to make a decision fast. We call, fingers-crossed, that you will be that shining star who will fit the client’s team and fix all their problems. It is a high hope and rarely filled but you one of the best judges of that.

Now, I did not say you are the best judge of your fit for any given role, just one of them. Initially, it is a two-way decision. A recruiter may see technologies or project descriptions that relate to the open role, but that does not mean you are the best fit. You may be interested because of the project details or the client name, but that does not mean you are the best fit. It comes down to honesty.

You have to be honest with the recruiter. If you do not have the experience the client needs, or cannot answer a question asked, be honest with us. If you do not feel this is the best opportunity, you have something better in the works, you have a long vacation planned, or you highly value working from home, let us know – we can only cheerlead for you if we know why we should. Give us your drivers, your wants and needs. Hopefully they line up with the opportunity at hand.

But this honesty goes both ways. If the recruiter does not think you are a good fit, for whatever reason, we are going to phrase it as nicely as possible. Even though you have the theoretical skills that can transfer between roles, it may be a personality or environment fit that we know is not going to work out. Every job description is targeting the perfect person, but if you can meet 75% of the skill needs, 20% is flexible. The other 5% is the toughest discussion, and the weightiest component of the consultant-recruiter relationship: rate.

Client companies want high skill for the lowest price, and consultants want the highest pay for the level of skill but both are not possible. One of the many fits recruiters have to find is rate. Hourly, salaried, W2, 1099, corp to corp — that is just the logistical aspect that changes with each role. You have a number, the recruiter has a number, and the client company has a number and often one or more will not align. Asking the recruiter to give you the highest amount possible is never a good way to start of the conversation and it doesn’t server our client or us to tell you. If asked what you are currently making, or most recently made, it is not to push you down from there but to gauge your salary history, the market value of your skills, your needs, and your expectations of where you want to go. No recruiter wants to cut your pay so much you can no longer afford your mortgage but you are not going to get a salary increase with each role you take.

Every role has a different budget that the recruiter must work within. Just as we help eliminate the automated resume reading programs, we also help gauge the market for the hiring manager. Your bottom line may be the reason the role is not a fit but that is not to say another one in the future is not either. If the recruiter knows your bottom line, we can call you when we know your mortgage will get paid and you might be interested in the opportunity.

With that being said, the best advice I ever received was from a Chicago-based headhunter with over 25 years in the industry. He said, “Apply and forget it.”  We want you to get the role but you are not the only person we are working with and the role is not the only opening we have. By not pinning your hopes to any one role, you lighten your stress load. Let the recruiter get back to you when the hiring manager finally makes a decision; if you do not here from us, it probably is not positive feedback.

I may have been talking over the phone with the headhunter, but I know he probably winked at the same time, while flashing the salesmen grin, as if to say “We’ll call you.”

Best wishes,

Emily

Earl has worked with Armada for our client SCEA (Sony Computer Entertainment America, LLC, the makers of PlayStation) for just under a year, and he has an impressive 15+ year background in storage and network, which has given him the opportunity to work at companies such as, Honeywell Aerospace, NetApp, FormFactor Inc., and various positions in IT for the State of California. We caught up with Earl last month to discuss trending topics in storage and NetApp and how his role at Sony CEA is affected by the cloud.

In his current role with Armada, he is working for SCEA on performance management and storage. His job focuses mainly in the storage realm but he also works closely with the infrastructure department, supporting virtualization services, servers, and applications. The end user of his job is typically the application developers and other Playstation employees, but other users can be members of the public who use PlayStation Networks for their gaming needs. The seo community users utilize the storage to access their profiles, and also to save their achievements and the raw data that is stored on the servers and storage that Earl monitors. Earl’s role in storage is very impactful because it directly affects the tangible PlayStation product from a behind-the-scenes approach. Earl said that it’s satisfying seeing his storage efforts put to use out in the everyday market.

Earl is a sponge for knowledge, as he is constantly learning and soaking up what others teach him. “I am a technologist. I am interested in all types of technology; whatever works and whatever will meet the needs of the customer. I have to have different backgrounds that fit into what the customer requires.”

Having a variety of skills helps Earl to be well rounded and understand diverse backgrounds to meet the needs of the customer. He recommends the best way to keep your skills up to date is networking within the industry, and also being a part of specific online communities. According to Earl, you have to consistently be learning and challenging yourself because as in most disciplines, including IT, no one knows everything. Especially with the development of cloud services, you have to know all of your options and be able to plug new information in when needed.

For example, if someone asks you what your cloud strategy for storage is—you need to know what impacts the cloud has on our line of business.  There are different benefits of cloud services, so being informed on what effects your department is crucial to keeping current with industry trends.

A few recommendations for online education in storage are:

• Online networking – LinkedIn
• For NetApp:
• https://communities.netapp.com/welcome – The place for NetApp storage enthusiasts like yourself, to connect with your peers, ask questions, exchange ideas, find resources, and share best practices
• Advancing Storage and Information Technology
• www.Snia.org– The unofficial standards body for storage
• Other vendor websites: Storage magazine (http://searchstorage.techtarget.com/)
• Online journals

Some ways to refine your skills in person are. . .

• Trade shows – check out the current trends
• Vendor Presentations – If an outside vendor comes into to pitch a new type of storage, then go and listen and quiz them on what their competing storage plans are.  There are many innovations in the storage realm these days, and no one vendor has a “lock” on storage solutions for all possible requirements that your clients or business may have.

Since Earl works primarily with NetApp, we were curious how their management compares with that other vendors. He stated the other vendors or competitors would likely be Isilon Systems & EMC, who both make robust storage systems.  As far as manageability, he feels that Netapp provides a good tool set, and tends to use a “single-pane-of-glass” view of their storage, making regular storage management tasks easier. NetApp simplifies things and includes the largest amount of capabilities with one tool. Their hardware is also built to be the front-end to other vendor’s storage systems, thereby maintaining the client’s investment. You can use certain devices and tools from NetApp, but the actual physical disks that your data resides on can be different brands like Isilon, EMC, etc. Basically, you can snap a NetApp device in front of most other storage systems, and it can utilize that storage to read and work with it.

We asked Earl that if you automate a lot of the work that storage administrators currently perform, do they run the risk of being out of the loop?

His reply was that it’s very possible, and that is where a good set of monitoring tools come into play. Hopefully if things are automated, they are based on business rules that you had a part in constructing as a storage engineer. You should then be able to anticipate any issues since you will have had a hand in the planning the automation. The benefits of automation outweigh the risks.

The benefits of automation are:

1. Spending less time on small tasks that could easily be automated
2. More time to spend on more important tasks such as business improvement.

Moving on to the big hot topic of cloud computing and cloud storage:

Earl defined the cloud in a simple format, “Information, applications, and processes that you have a control of as a customer, but maintained by someone else, and kept in a different place.”

We are seeing a focus on information lifestyle management whereas information as it has changed or not changed is growing older and taking up space. Typically when your storage is filled with old data, you need to act on it. You should try to optimize your storage because if you don’t, your storage requirements will grow rapidly every day, month and year. You will begin to start doubling your need for storage—this is where a cloud can come into play.

You have storage choices:

1. Find out what percentage of the data you manage  hasn’t been touched in 12-18 months or more.  This type of data is typically responsible for the majority of your storage utilization.  Earl suggests backing it up and storing it somewhere else, where it is safe and when you need it you can get it. However, if you need to use it, you have to call to retrieve the tape, and restore the data—which can take days. Basically using duplicate storage systems,, and increasing you cost.
2. Companies like EMC, Amazon, and other storage and cloud services players have storage services, appliances, and software that allow themselves and your current storage environment  “to talk to each other”. Companies or individuals can save work files from all of their customers and analyze them. They can also find out if data hasn’t been accessed in a long time. Upon retrieving the results, they can free up  more production storage space for more immediate demands  by storing either aged files or certain types of unstructured data with the storage cloud service provider, based on business rules that meet the company’s needs. For personal use, you can use tools like Dropbox, Box.com, or Carbonite, so you can at least copy your data to the cloud, and always access it if your computer crashes… You can host everything in the cloud and have someone else maintain it—accessing it and using it, is the key factor.
3. Finally, you could use a hybrid of the two by keeping everything in-house and also put old data in the cloud that hasn’t been used recently to make sure it is backed up and safe.

We asked Earl his opinion on how cloud helps companies be more efficient.

He responded, “Here is a military term that I can use to describe using more tools to do a better job . . . Force Multiplier.”

Force Multiplier can be describes as when one solider is alone out in the field. He is not as useful when he is alone by himself, but if he can communicate back to the base with a radio and update his team with what is happening, and has tools that make him more efficient he can more accurately communicate with them in real time and complete the mission. Outcome: You have now made that one solider more effective and he has now multiplied his force (abilities).

How does that relate to IT? 

When people are given more processes and tools, it increases their capabilities and makes them more efficient. In Earl’s words, “Doing more with less.”

Since businesses want to maximize their investments, and traditionally IT departments are a black hole for money, we want to provide the services and still be cost efficient. By using the cloud it can free up employees time and technology spend, and they will be able to perform more important tasks.

What advice would you give someone trying develop a cloud strategy?

Ask yourself, how do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time.

When relating this to cloud, you take the process one step at a time. First, find out what you need in a cloud provider. For example, a good cloud storage provider is www.box.net – They have a third party that maintains the servers, controls the heating and cooling of the physical equipment, and the backup of the system/files. Secondly, find out why they are good at what they do, and do your research. Thirdly, test their products and apply them.. Finally, know who you are working with. You need to be guaranteed that whomever you use will be a trustworthy cloud provider.

. . . Stay tuned for more “Meet our Team” blogs next month!

Contributor: Lisa Sullivan, CEO of Armada 

Deloitte’s Talent Edge 2020 Report polled over 300 global business executives across industries validating what those of us who live and work in the Silicon Valley know all too well: national high unemployment rates have not created the predicted talent surplus.  On the contrary, Deloitte’s research showed that executives predict talent shortages across key business units.

Technical talent in the United States are receiving an average of 23 recruiter inquiries a week . That’s almost five inquiries per work day!  Couple the talent shortage with a significant increase in hiring and the war for talent is ON! One critical question that each and every person in a hiring position should be asking themselves is – How can I attract the talent I need?  A great place to start is with your job descriptions.

Remember you only get one chance to make a first impression. Use your job descriptions as a marketing tool. Invest the time upfront to develop job descriptions that articulate the attributes and skills that you really need – make it attractive and compelling to your target audience.

Your focus and outcome in writing a job description should be to stand out from the rest of the “noise” and attract the talent that will propel your team to the next level. In order for your job requirements to even show on the radar of the talent your need, it is crucial you distinguish your job and your company from all your competitors.

• What really matters? Focus on the top 4-5 critical skills that the best possible candidate would bring to the role.
• Give specific details about the project, role, environment and your team.
• What makes your company, project, team, and role more interesting than your competitors?
• Be clear on outcomes for the role.
• Craft clear, compelling and thorough job descriptions that aren’t generic and bland.
• Stop using generic job descriptions, and avoid putting skill sets or requirements in job descriptions that aren’t a high priority or that you won’t focus on in the interview.

• Outlining the minimal qualifications will attract candidates that are only minimally qualified for the job, and discourage the extraordinary talent you are looking for.

Keep it short and sweet. With the sheer volume of information and data we all receive on a day-to-day basis, cut through the “noise” and only include what you really need. Don’t worry about the “nice to haves” or areas that can be learned on the job; keep your focus razor sharp and on what the role really requires. This will guarantee that every person involved in the qualification, interview and engagement process will share your vision and prioritize  what really matters to you and your team, without getting bogged down in details that have little value or bearing on your organization’s success.

In the Silicon Valley today, we are undoubtedly seeing the “second act” of the mid-to-late 90’s dotcom IT hiring boom, with major technological innovation and investment in cloud, social, mobile, and business services software markets.  The Mercury News reports that venture capital funding in Silicon Valley in Q4 2011, totaled $3.028 billion, with a healthy $1.06 billion invested in the software sector, and $860 million in the business services sector.  Joint Venture Silicon Valley notes a 17% increase in VC investment in cloud computing, medical devices, and clean technology over the last 12 months.  According to the San Jose Mercury News, 2011 represented “the highest level of investment in Internet companies since the dot-com bust” and 2011 Silicon Valley employment was up 3.8% over 2010.

As noted in San Jose Inside, Joint Venture Silicon Valley published their employment statistics for February, noting 42,000 new jobs were created in the Silicon Valley alone in the last 12 months. Additionally, unemployment stands at 8% in the region vs. 11% across the state.

Tech-jobs website operator Dice, reported that salaries for software and other engineering professionals in the Silicon Valley rose 5.2% to an average of $104,195 last year, more than double the national average 2% increase, to $81,327, in tech-workers’ salaries. It was the first time since Dice began the salary survey in 2001 that the wage barometer broke the $100,000 barrier, noted Tom Silver, a Dice senior vice president. Hourly contractor bill rates across all technical categories to the end clients in Silicon Valley rose 11% last year to an average $74 an hour, compared with $63 an hour nationally (

The Wall Street Journal noted, “There’s a tussle for talent growing in Silicon Valley and employers have to pay up,” said Mr. Silver. Overall, tech-job postings in Silicon Valley on Dice rose to 5,026 earlier this month, up 26% from 3,974 a year ago, he said, even as tech-jobs postings nationwide only rose 11% over the same period.

On the high end of the contract technical labor market over the last two quarters, Armada has seen a 6.9% increase in bill rates for software engineers, a 4.0% increase in rates for technical project managers, and 6.4% increase in rates for skilled IT professionals like Linux systems administrators, DBA’s and the like.  Since the end of 2011, bill rates across all categories have increased 5.7 percent.

Multiple offer situations are very common in today’s market.  In Q4 2011 and Q1 2012, 57% of the candidates Armada made written offers to had another offer in-hand at the time ours was made.

Market velocity has increased significantly at The Armada Group as well, with average time to fill dropping from 51 days in Q2 2011 to 39 days on average in Q1 2012.

OK, so what lessons can be learned from this data and what strategies can you implement today in your business to ensure you can compete successfully to secure the talent you need to deliver the goods and meet your deadlines:

1)      Write precise titles and compelling job descriptions: How and why will yours stand out from the other 5000 “Sr. Software Engineer” postings on LinkedIn, CareerBuilder or DICE? Articulate the title and your requirements precisely.  “Sell” not only the role, but why someone wants to work for YOU and your company.

2)      Communicate, Communicate, Communicate: It’s critical to have a constant feedback loop with all the stakeholders involved in filling your role.  Educate the interview team on exactly how you’ve articulated the role to the recruiters helping you, and go through the latest, greatest job descriptions with your team, including nuances of the role and any changes made over the course of the recruiting process.  Gather detailed feedback with your team as to why/why not particular candidates were/weren’t a match and share that feedback with the recruiter working on your requirement.

3)      FOCUS & ACT with a high sense of urgency:  Quality candidates are gone in the blink of an eye in this market.  We all have overflowing in-boxes, imposing deadlines, and too much on our plates, but recruiting has to be a conscious focus and a priority. Schedule weekly meetings with your recruiter to ensure you are staying on top of your recruiting priorities.

4)      Be FLEXIBLE: There is no perfect fit. A candidate that is 80% of ideal, has a can-do attitude, and is a good team fit, is way, WAY better than spending an inordinate amount of time searching for the elusive perfect candidate.  Don’t compromise your ability to meet critical deadlines in the name of perfection.

5)      PERSONALIZE the closing process: Work with your recruiter to close the candidate you’ve decided on. Reach out and spend some extra time with the candidate when making an offer.  Be genuine, passionate and put yourself in their shoes.  When a candidate feels the manager and company is going the extra mile and truly cares about their success, it can make all the difference.

Insight and Perspective from our Consultants

Interview with Jeff Macias a Video Training Expert at eBay 

We recently sat down with team member Jeff Macias, a Video Training Expert at eBay, and discussed how he keeps up with the fast paced world of video communications and his thoughts on the future of video education in enterprise companies. Jeff is a recognized expert in the video training field, with his areas of expertise being: Dreamweaver, iMovie, Flash, Photoshop, Audacity, Podcasting, RSS Feeds and HTML. His degree in Radio Television Film and minor in Communications of the Information Age at San Jose State prepared him for the current job he is doing at eBay.

Jeff’s current project at eBay works with education production as a whole; by building courses from existing and new material. The project deals with the development of tools within the company, specifically in the data hub, which is constantly underdevelopment and improvement, he follows that layer. The tools that he uses to complete his projects are mostly outsourced, but some are also from in-house. He said that they are developing the tools in front of us and it is a fast paced environment. When things move faster we have to keep up with it. We always have the constant development of tools and materials to make whatever is needed to make videos. All of the videos that we produce are for the internally company but are used globally.

We started out the interview by asking Jeff how he keeps his skills and knowledge up-to-date.

We found that his team is very lucky because conveniently he is in the training field, therefore people are submitting new information, new services, new products, and they are making the training videos. Many of the new skills he uses come from the projects he is working on because the team is actually documenting the new technology for eBay.

Outside of the work place he prefers good old fashion hard-back books. You might find Jeff brushing up on his skills at the library by checking out biographies on top industry leaders. Next on the list? He plans to read the Steve Jobs book written by Walter Isaccson. In regards to online education, he said that he doesn’t search for much online, “It’s not my first place where I look information. If I need a specific answer to a question, I will go online. For continuing education, I go to the books, because online and books serve different purposes.”

In addition to keeping his skills up to date, we asked him how he continues to be successful as a consultant.

He focuses on being detail orientated and deadline centric.  Since they are a SCRUM team we have short timelines, it is important to concentrate on deadlines and scheduling as our top priority. It’s all about tasks, to-do’s and deadlines. He said, “I love the SCRUM system that they have put together, it’s fantastic and works the way we need it to for me to be successful.”

He continued, “Our team is always searching our own personal experiences and education to help us with what we are doing in our current project, especially with tools. We are always looking outside the box and trying to utilize all of the skills on our team.”

Jeff has worked with Armada for five years so we asked him, “What do you enjoy about consulting and contract opportunities, and how have you enjoyed working with Armada?”  He spoke positively about consulting because his experience with Armada has been enjoyable and a very positive one. His reasons were, “Armada gets quick answers when I have a question, I am able to get all my work done here at eBay and there is no extra work that I need to do for Armada.” He continued to say that everything runs smoothly, and all the background work is taken care of, so that he can focus on his project on site.

“Armada also makes it very easy to stay in contact with them through things like Facebook and other company activities; such as “Adopt a Beach” last January. I enjoy having the source of social media to see what the company is doing. I remember when the Armada Facebook page started!”

We asked Jeff some specific questions about his field, and how online training is impacting major organizations.

He said training impacts him a lot! He since he makes the online training videos for his company internally he watches the feedback traffic and status comments from the trainings. He said, “I hope that it is making a big impact. The feedback I get is very positive and we take any new ideas into consideration.” Online/video training is becoming more and more prevalent in today’s enterprise companies. Some people say that videos are taking away from the personal aspect of a company, but Jeff said that both learning from video and learning in person are great for different reasons. If something is static and basic, like an introduction to a tool, then a video is helpful and can be used over and over again. If something focuses on a more specific topic, then they might hire someone to come speak to the group about it to educate them. You wouldn’t only use one style or another—they must co-exist.

Finally, we wanted to know if there were any other trends in the industry that eBay is using right now.

Jeff said Cloud is huge right now, and it is impacting the mobile field. If he makes an education or training video, the employees don’t have to be logged on to the company network to watch the video. Instead, they can download it and use it at their own leisure. He mentioned that his department is not currently using the Cloud at this point, but they are always looking for ways to utilize new opportunities that could help his team’s success.

I just finished reading an article in a February issue of Business Journal entitled, “Young Silicon Valley Entrepreneurs Lament Talent Crunch”. Armada’s clients, both large and small, encounter the same recruiting and staffing challenges noted in Shana’s article on the young entrepreneurs participating in a recent Stanford Panel discussion. I agree with Corey Resse’s contention that, “Recruiting is the most challenging thing in today’s market. There’s no one silver bullet in this market. Try everything.”  I would add that challenge is not unique to today’s market as it is ALWAYS difficult to find exceptional talent and you should be partnering with the right providers to ensure you are securing extraordinary talent.

Here are my thoughts around the value of partnering with a trusted recruiting firm:

Pay for Performance: Hiring managers frequently question the fees recruiting and staffing firms charge to deliver exceptional talent. Really, the question should be: “How much value is my partner delivering, what is that worth and more importantly -what is the cost to my company if I don’t secure the right talent?” Fundamentally, my belief is you get what you pay for and you should pay a premium for premium performance. Whether you’re talking about internal employees, partners or vendors, this is true. With the knock-down, drag out competition for talent out there, having the highest caliber recruiting firms working to secure top tier talent for you is absolutely critical. If you are working with a firm on a contingency basis, you only pay when they deliver results. The best recruiting firms have customers competing for the talent they represent; therefore, you want these firms as motivated as possible to make you and your company’s needs a priority and quickly deliver the talent you require. To ensure your partner advocates for your needs above those of your competitors (who are likely are customers of top notch recruiting firms as well) incentivize your recruiting partners to ensure that your needs are a top priority to them.

Utilize All Your Resources: Don’t solely rely on your company’s internal HR or recruiting team to deliver on all your hiring needs. Typically, internal recruiting teams are working hard to fill ALL the open requirements in the company. Positions that require a high level of technical expertise or require a skill set that is in high demand, are not easily filled and checked off the list. Therefore don’t always get the level of attention they require.  If your internal HR or recruiting team is working to fill requirements for Marketing, HR, Legal, IT, Operations and Administration, etc. it’s very challenging, if not downright impossible to successfully cover the needs in all those areas because of the fractured focus. When choosing a recruiting firm to partner with, choose a firm that specializes in the domain or technologies you need. Working with specialty firms who focus their time, skill and resources on the specific area of expertise will produce better results.

Invest Time Upfront: It’s critical that you take time up front to work with your chosen recruiting firm to ensure they understand your priorities and the nuances of your specific needs. Help them “sell” your company, team and project and give them the specific requirements for talent, which will make them an extension of your sales force. The more detailed information you arm the recruiting firm with, the better positioned they are to make your requirements a priority and get talent excited about your opportunities. Finally, make sure the firm you decide to partner with mirrors your sense of urgency and understands your process and interviewing methodologies.

Consider Contract to Hire: Finding top tier talent was the primary challenge noted in this article and the secondary challenge was not firing the wrong talent quickly enough. I would make the argument here for the value of contract to hire. This engagement model allows you to experience what working with someone will really be like, without as much investment or risk to the company or your current team.

I agree with Corey Reese’s advise to “Try Everything “and would add: 1) pay for performance/incent success – understand the cost of not having the right people at the right time; 2) develop a relationship with a recruiting partner that invests the time to understand what it is that you truly need. You want  a recruiting partner that sees your priorities as their priorities.

It’s always tough to find top tier talent, regardless of how the economy is doing, so developing solid relationships with exceptional partners to enhance your business is always a good investment of your time and resources.

Vannessa is a leader and an outstanding member of our community. She inspires youth to take ownership of their future and make a difference. Vannessa’s diverse life experiences enabled her to connect with youth during Challenge Day and helped them understand their dreams are possible and not to let anyone stop them from achieving their life goals.

Congratulations to Vannessa for being picked to participate in Challenge Day and continuing to support teens that need inspiration from leaders like you.

Check out these photos from Challenge Day at Watsonville High School:

Vannessa with students during the workshop.

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Vannessa showing the “I Love You” hand sign with students.

“Be the change you wish to see in the world.” – Gandhi

For more information about Challenge Day local workshops and how you can participate, click here: Challangeday.org

Insight and Perspective from our Consultants

Interview with Darrel Strom, a Release Architect in TelePresence at Cisco.

We reached out to our team to talk about the current trends in the tech industry and what it takes to be a successful consultant. We sat down with team member Darrel Strom, a Release Architect in TelePresence at Cisco. With more than 30 years of experience Darrel is a recognized guru in software build automation, Software Configuration Management (SCM), and release engineering. He specializes in implementing and configuring SCM tools like ClearCase, Subversion and Perforce to make it easier for developers to check code out, modify and test it to check it back in. He automates build and release processes and integrates these with SCM tools to create easy, reliable, push-button releases.

We started out by asking Darrel about the biggest topics that are currently impacting the SCM field.

He said the biggest topic impacting his field is adoption of GIT software, an open-source configuration management tool that keeps track of urgent files with an emphasis on speed. It’s structurally and culturally very different than other systems because it is a distributed system. Almost all other major tools are centralized. GIT comes from the Linux development team, so it doesn’t always fit well in other software development situations. He explained that tools are written to reflect the “cultures” of different types of development teams and the platforms they use.  Not all cultures meld smoothly which can create conflicts in large enterprise companies with many different development teams. His job is to be the nexus point of code management and the challenge is keeping the cultures compatible across the teams.

We asked him how he keeps his skills and knowledge up-to-date, with the tech industry changing so rapidly. How do you know what sources to trust and what places to look when refining your skills?

For Darrel the best way to learn new skills and tactics is to simply choose engagements that allow an opportunity to learn. For example, now that he is working on a GIT project at Cisco, he has learned more about how it works and how it reacts to other technologies. He said he also uses the web when looking to refine his skills. Google provides answers for basic questions, but he also uses a website called www.cmcrossroads.org because he is familiar with several of the authors and trusts their work.

He also uses his network of reputable friends or colleagues to get questions answered.  “Reaching out to your network for a quick ‘10 min brain dump’ is a great way to use your resources.”

We asked Darrel about what he looks for in a consulting or contracting opportunity. Since there are many factors when looking for new jobs, we wanted to know what stands out to an experienced consultant like himself.

Darrel noted that his biggest factor is the people involved, but is mainly influenced by the hiring manager. After many years in this industry a classic startup pitch is not as an attractive position as it once was. He needs to have proof that there is an opportunity for success and that the hiring manager has a vision of better place and a solid end goal.

Darrel said, “I look for projects where I can come and utilize my skills the best to help complete the project.”

Finally, we asked Darrel, how have you seen the software deployment lifecycle change in the last five years?

He describes the old industry style to be rigid and the release cycles were etched in stone and specific dates were set on the calendar. There was no room for negotiation and the testing cycle would start and stop according to the schedule.

Darrel happily explained that Silicon Valley is more flexible in regards to the development process and is much more interactive. “We need to plan for our next releases and also start thinking a little differently about more than just what is in front of us. It’s a different way of approaching the process, which requires more discipline.”

Lastly, Darrel left us with this one tip for success, “I make sure that I continue to be a ‘jack of all traits’ because there are no more one trick ponies left in the game. You must be versatile, able to do different projects and speak various technical languages while still being the master of your own domain.”

Armada’s Thought Leader Series: A series of interviews with influential business leaders in Silicon Valley discussing the latest topics and trends in our market.

Last week Armada’s President and CEO, Jeff Tavangar, sat down with Tom Gill to talk about the Cloud hype, vendor choices, and challenges that CIOs face today. In addition, Tom describes in detail where Plantronics is at on the ‘Diffusion of Innovations’ curve and gives insight on how he approaches new business ideas and what resources he uses for new deployments.

Plantronics Company Overview

Plantronics is a publicly held company headquartered in Santa Cruz, California with offices in 22 countries. Plantronics introduced the first lightweight communications headset in 1962. Today they are the world’s leading designer, manufacturer and marketer of lightweight communications headset products.

Tom Gill, the Vice President and CIO at Plantronics

1. Jeff Tavangar: It is impossible not to be exposed to the Cloud and the marketing hype of it. How do you take that into account with your position and how do you use it?

   Tom Gill: We are very excited about the Cloud in terms of the business value gained at Plantronics; it helps us to run our services at a competitive cost with a fast time to value. We have embraced SaaS computing for a number of years running applications that include Salesforce.com, Success Factors and Taleo. Also, Savo has been an effective marketing and sales portal and a big win for us. We use a storage in the Cloud solution for client systems backup and a Cloud based Exchange high availability service for business continuity.

2. Jeff Tavangar: We are looking to discuss the process that you go through to get new technologies and new solutions. How are you evaluating Cloud and/or new technologies and new solutions in your organization? Do you sit and talk with the company, use vendors, etc.

   Tom Gill: We are always evaluating and deploying new applications and IT services. We follow a project framework that starts with development of a business case which includes a description of the business problem to be solved, costs and benefits. Our evaluation and selection process includes meetings with vendors, Gartner analyst calls and customer reference calls. We also use tools that allow us to weight evaluation criteria and calculate scores. We have also been doing POCs (Proof of Concept) when practical which gives us a hands on opportunity to evaluate and measure.

3. Jeff Tavangar: It is easy to be overwhelmed by advice and ideas with the explosion of online data. Where do you go for trusted information and whose advice do you value?

   Tom Gill: Gartner is a trusted source, I subscribe to an executive program. There is a lot of value in it for Plantronics, with great information and research capabilities. I am also on different advisory boards and networking groups. For example, Microsoft High Tech Advisory Board, Salesforce.com Security Advisory Committee and I recently joined a CCI CIO group of mainly Silicon Valley members. I also value peer networking and peer input. Whenever you bring a group of CIOs to a roundtable, there is rarely enough time to cover all the topics. Honestly, it’s less about me and more about my team. We are lucky to have a capable team around the world. They bring forth their findings and their research and I work with them to evaluate and decide on next steps.

4. Jeff Tavangar: There are always a large number of pressures on a CIO. For example; New technologies, new services, economy etc. What would you say are the top 3-5 challenges facing a CIO today?

   Tom Gill:

   1. Consumerization of IT – Our objective is not to say “no” but to determine the business value and whether the tool or service is scalable, secure and supported. For example, I recently learned that twenty five percent of knowledge workers had iPads connected to our network. This is the type of change that keeps us on our toes and adapting.
   2. Keeping up with the demand – We only have so much budget and need to make informed project portfolio decisions. It’s not easy deferring IT investments due to lack of a strong business case.
   3. Security – The changing threat landscape and the need to manage a suite of security tools is another challenge. Targeted malware is tricky and we need to protect our intellectual property, customer and employee information.
   4. Attracting and retaining talent – We have a supportive executive staff with a willingness to invest in IT. That helps create an environment where the IT staff is constantly challenged and exposed to new technologies. Staying current is key to attracting and retaining talent.

   
   

5. Jeff Tavangar: Changing the way you do business is a constant challenge. You always need new ideas, skills and resources to make it happen. How do you resource new projects or deployments? For example, do you consult with vendors, do you do it in house, do you use outside consulting?

   Tom Gill: We staff projects with a combination of in house and consulting resources. We regularly engage vendors and partners for staff augmentation and for their special skill sets. We also plan to bring in a top tier Oracle partner for our upcoming R12 upgrade which expected to transform our global business.

6. Jeff Tavangar: The Diffusion of Innovation curve describes a number of types of organizations. Where do you think Plantronics is on the curve? Where does Plantronics stand on this graph? Innovators, Early Adopters, Early Majority, Late Majority, Laggards?

   Tom Gill: Historically we have been Early Majority but in recent years we have been Early Adopters and Innovators. Our global Unified Communications platform rollout is clearly an early adopter play with innovation in the area of integration with our IP PBXs. Our employees can send and receive internal and external calls from their laptops from wherever they happen to be working. This allows us to promote flexwork, working from home and consolidation of real estate. Another example is Oracle Business Intelligence where we waited to be part of the Early Majority. We needed the technology to mature before we made the move.