The Bagg Group Blog

Oops!   It can happen to anyone.  The interviewer asks a question, and without thinking, you blurt out the worst possible answer.  For example, the hiring manager asks why you’d like the job, and you reply with a chuckle,  “One word – debt. I’m in debt up to my eyeballs.”   Then you kick yourself. 

Or you blank on a question and throw out an excuse, “Sorry, I’m exhausted. With four kids, one or another is always sick, I haven’t slept in months.”   On the elevator ride down, you realize you just positioned yourself as the candidate most likely to doze on the job before leaving early for doctors’ appointments. 

At The Bagg Group, we have placed more than 57,000 people successfully over 40-plus years.  Our recruiters have interviewed many more thousands for full-time positions, contract work and temporary placement with the best companies in the GTA. 

We have heard more than our share of interview blunders, and we have coached candidates on what not to say. 

Recently, CareerBuilder in the US released its annual list of “dumb things” people have said in interviews.  Here are four blunders from the list with tips from the experts at The Bagg Group on how to avoid putting your foot in your mouth.

“I’m in anger management because I hit a former co-worker.” 

That was one candidate’s response when asked why he wanted a job working from home.   Sure, he was being honest, but he was also leaving the interviewer nervous about how he’d cope with stress moving forward.

Tip:   If you have a short fuse, it’s important to know your triggers in the workplace and have fail-proof strategies to control your temper.   That said, if asked, you can identify situations in the workplace which you find especially challenging. This will help you and the interviewer determine whether the company is the right fit for your temperament.  In any case, focus on positive steps you take to deal with difficult events, and avoid talking about your past melt-downs.

“Oh that’s because I just took a Xanax.”

In response to an interviewer’s concern that the candidate was having a medical problem, the interviewee explained her slow speech was nothing to worry about.  She said it was just a side-effect of an anti-anxiety pill she took to calm herself before presentations or meetings.

Tip: Companies need people who project confidence and positive attitude. It’s critical to make sure you have the right attitude and mindset before you start interviewing for jobs.   If you have serious performance anxiety, the best thing you can do for a successful job hunt is put in the time to learn a strategy for managing the jitters—one that doesn’t have interviewers ready to call an ambulance.

“My old boss was a monster, and it really scarred me emotionally.”

Tip:  It doesn’t matter if your boss was Dracula, avoid insulting others at all costs. When you put someone down, interviewers will automatically wonder if you might be the problem – they may think you’re hyper-sensitive or hyper-critical. You can talk about difficult situations and how you managed them, but you don’t want to come off as a victim.  If you are viewed as scarred, bitter, or angry, you will be the “downer” candidate – who is much like a miserable party guest that people wish well, but wish they’d leave.

“My apologies for being late. My husband and I were fighting.  It happens all the time.”

Tip:  Check your personal problems at the door.  If you bring your problems into the interview, you’ll be pegged as the “candidate with problems.”  No matter how friendly an interviewer is, they aren’t your friend, or a shoulder to cry on.  If you couldn’t help being late, call in advance, apologize and make sure the reason is about legitimate logistics, not lost tempers. 

Just about every blunder comes down to this:  TMI (Too Much Information).  Don’t spill your guts. Interviewers don’t need to hear your back stories, they only need to know information about you and your skills that is pertinent to the job.  

But if you have an oops moments, and you blurt out something “dumb”, don’t elaborate and give more details to try and explain yourself.  In other words, don’t dig the hole deeper.  Instead, immediately regain your footing by moving quickly to talk about what you can contribute to the company.

Finally, don’t beat yourself up, one oops moment doesn’t mean you are a disaster at interviews.  In fact, the good news is that when you have experienced a mortifying blunder once, you stay on guard to avoid another.  So cut yourself some slack, and get back in the saddle.

Personnel changes, regardless of reason, present significant opportunity for an IT department to reshape itself, but these changes also pose a major risk since it’s pretty easy to make a mistake that can severely affect the future of the department.

Read on to find out what TechRepublic had to say about such mistakes and how you can prevent them when making hiring decisions in your own company. Five Hiring Warning Signs via TechRepublic

The Bagg Group General Managers, Jackie Chua and Joanne Boucher, discuss the importance of internships and how they can get you ahead in your career this week in The Globe and Mail.

Internships and co-op experiences are considered big plusses by employers… Candidates come across as more mature and job-ready when they have business experience under their belt.

Read more here: First things first: Getting a foot in the door

It’s a joy to sponsor an HRPA scholarship.  It is one of the ways The Bagg Group supports the next generation of HR specialists who will creatively solve problems and make the workplace a better, safer, place for everyone.

But it’s always difficult to choose one scholarship winner among the deserving applicants.  Almost all those who pour their hearts into essays that demonstrate their commitment to the field of human resources are inspiring, and have a record of achievement worthy of our support.

So what made us choose Erin Abraham to be the recipient of the 2011 HRPA Scholarship Award, sponsored by The Bagg Group?  Erin represents qualities of determination and optimism which we know have a positive ripple-out effect in the workplace.

Erin is specializing in human resources as part of her Bachelor of Applied Business at Humber College, in Toronto.  An active volunteer, she defines volunteerism as a chance for continuous learning.  She shows enormous delight in helping students find jobs. 

For her part, as a native of Lancaster, Ontario, Erin had to travel about three hours every day for 14 weeks for her work placement.  

For Erin, the road to her degree has been challenging, financially and logistically. 

Yet in the interview, Erin spoke with much enthusiasm of what she aspires to offer an organization, and not about the toll it takes to get a degree when life isn’t making it easy. 

Erin exudes optimism. She talks possibilities, not problems.   Optimism is not about shrugging off tough realities; it’s about taking control of events instead of letting them control you.

In The Harvard Business Review online, writer Jeff Kehoe addresses what happens when we don’t have enough optimism.   He writes, “Businesses don’t get created….Talented people don’t get hired …Good ideas wither on the vine… .”

At The Bagg Group, we have been talking to HR specialists and candidates for 40-plus years.  We hear every day that people are motivated by those who work and lead with optimism. 

Erin is well on her way to leading with optimism.  All of us at The Bagg Group congratulate her and wish her a stellar future.

Do you have an employee who would qualify for The Bagg Group sponsored HRPA scholarship award?

A candidate must be enrolled in part-time or full-time studies in the HRPA’s required academic courses.  We have sponsored the scholarship since 1989 to assist students financially so they may successfully complete their human resources studies.   

It’s been our pleasure to have helped so many terrific people, like Erin, become valuable contributors to the field. We look forward to keeping up the tradition for a long time to come.

Are you considering skills, drive, and fit when hiring candidates?

Read Geoff Bagg’s opinion on the only three job interview questions that matter as mentioned in this recent article on Workpolis.

March 19 – Workopolis: The only three job interview questions that matter

The Bagg Group is now hiring people right away for a large manufacturing company in Markham. If you are interested, our door is open to come in and complete our registration forms!

When: Wednesday March 21, 2012 from 8:00AM – 4:00PM

Where: The Bagg Group Markham Branch, 3000 Steeles Ave East, Suite 100 (corner of Woodbine and Steeles)

WE ARE HIRING:
- General Labours
- Electronic Assembly Line Workers
- Warehouse (Shipping and Receiving)

Positions are located in Markham. The shifts available are day shift.

Must have excellent communication skills.
Must have safety shoes.

Please bring resume & photo ID with you.

We look forward to meeting you!

Please see the profile on The Bagg Group, a second generation owned and operated Canadian company, in today’s National Post.

President & Chief Executive, Geoff Bagg, says remaining family-owned helped foster a more personal culture in his business, which handles fulltime placement, temporary staffing and IT consulting.

Read more: National Post 3-19-2012 Growth in the Bagg

You may be wondering how you can improve your hiring process… TechRepublic offered eight simple steps to make the interviewing and hiring process better for your candidates. Read more here: Eight ways companies can make the hiring process better.

The Bagg Group is currently recruiting Packaging Operators to work for a pharmaceutical company located in Scarborough and Markham. If you are interested, our door is open to come in and complete our registration forms!

When: Tuesday March 13 & Wednesday March 14 from 11:00AM-5:00PM

Where: The Bagg Group Markham Branch, 3000 Steeles Ave East, Suite 100 (corner of Woodbine and Steeles)

Packaging Operator Positions Available!

Positions are located in Scarborough and Markham. $11.00-12.00/hour.
Must be able available to work Day, Evening and Night Shifts.

Requirements:
- Previous Packaging experience
- Pharmaceutical, food or cosmetic industry experience an asset!
- Must have excellent English
- Must be able to lift 40 lbs

Please bring with you:
- Your resume
- 1-2 Working references, Phone number/Contact Name or Letters
- Proof of Grade 12 diploma or College/University- This is mandatory
- 2 Pieces of Photo Id, Birth Certificate, Driver License or Passport.
*Note: You must also have a clear criminal background, and be able to pass a criminal background check.

We look forward to meeting you!

“No man ever listened himself out of a job.”  That’s for sure! All recruiters at The Bagg Group can vouch for the ongoing truism of this statement made by US President Calvin Coolidge in the 1920s.

There’s no doubt about it, listening is one of the most valuable business skills you can have.

However, when candidates interview for a job, many stop listening to what the interviewer is saying and focus instead on what they want to tell the interviewer.

This is understandable.  The interview is your time to pitch your experience and skills.  But if you don’t concentrate on listening, you won’t hear what the interviewer actually wants and needs. And that can lead to a missed opportunity.

Just about everyone senses at an intuitive level if you’re listening or simply paying polite lip service.

As Alfred Benjamin wrote in his book, The Helping Interview, “Genuine listening is hard work; there is little about it that is mechanical… We hear with our ears, but we listen with our eyes and mind and heart … and gut.”

At The Bagg Group, we have interviewed hundreds of thousands of candidates and clients over 40+ years of business.  We can confirm people will talk openly about workplace issues, challenges, and needs when they feel someone is genuinely paying attention.

That’s why we urge candidates to concentrate on what the interviewer is saying.  And it’s why as recruiters at The Bagg Group we live the art of listening – it is how we learn about our candidates and clients so we can make the right match.

To prove that listening works, we can point to the 58,000 happy people we have placed in full-time work, contract position, and temporary placements over the decades.

And recently we were thrilled to receive even more proof. For the third year in a row, our candidates voted us to the Inavero Best of Staffing Candidate List. This award is presented in partnership with CareerBuilder.

It’s the staffing industry’s equivalent to the Oscar.  Fewer than 1% of staffing firms across North America make the list.

How did The Bagg Group make it?  In an independent survey, our candidates gave us top scores for how we communicate, for listening and respecting them, and always working with integrity and professionalism.

And we won the same honour from our clients who also gave us an extraordinary 9 or 10 out of 10 rating for client satisfaction  – that is more than double the North American average for our industry.

Because we listen, we don’t simply match a candidate’s skills to a client’s need.  Instead, we’re able to match a person to a company –whether that person is looking for a full-time position, contract work, or a temporary placement.  There is no way we could do that if we didn’t focus all our attention on what people are saying to us.

All of us at The Bagg Group thank our candidates and clients for giving us the great thrill of winning these awards and for speaking with us, candidly and openly, so we can be the best match-makers possible.