phone call

On the Phone Again…

Kelly Dingee Kelly Dingee, Recruiting

I am on the phone again…talking to people. IRL. Shocking I know. 18 years of being tucked away, often called “secret weapon” or “best kept secret” (laugh hysterically here), sourcing my heart out and NOT talking to candidates. Talking to hiring managers on a limited, very limited basis. I think my favorite moment was working for a Telecom company where they insisted I work off-site and would not introduce me at company meetings. That was interesting.

Now I’m talking to potential candidates all the time. I have always been an awesome cheerleader for my company, even before I became an employee. I have this thing about brand loyalty. So getting on the phone and talking to people about opportunities available, it’s amazing. It’s so amazing I wonder why I stopped. And to talk about opportunities at a company I’d go through fire for? Easy. Cake.

And I know why I stopped, why I segwayed into roles that kept me from talking to people. Confidence, or lack thereof. Not wanting to misspeak. Not realizing it’s okay to “get back to people” if I need to verify information. Of wanting to know everything, every answer. Of not wanting to do the salary dance.

Well that’s impossible. No one knows everything. And questions come up. Many I can answer, some I can’t. Some I’m willing to explore. And if you want to talk salary, I’m your gal. I do not care about your salary history. And I really don’t want drama, we’d all like to make a million dollars, but please…for your sake and mine….be realistic. What do you want to make? Hit me with a number. Are you negotiable? I don’t want to offend anyone and I want to be realistic. If you’re out of range, I will tell you.

I needed the time away from direct candidate contact, and needed to have my own job search experiences so I could offer better to them in my role today. Thank goodness I’ve had my own craptastic job search moments to ensure that those phone conversations are the best they can be.