Finding Jobs And Finding Employees Through The Internet

By Kaaren Valenta

Internet recruiting is the fastest growing factor in today’s labor market according to a Newtown resident who works as a human resources consultant to area companies.

“It’s exploding – I guess like everything else connected with the Internet,” said Kathy Cantore. “A few years ago, when I worked for Readers Digest, I didn’t really use the Internet a lot. Now it is an effective tool.”

Ms Cantore will talk about Internet recruiting from the employer’s perspective when she is the guest speaker at the Newtown Jobseekers Support Group meeting on Tuesday, May 9, at 7:30 pm in the Monsignor Conroy Room at St Rose School. The meeting is free and open to the entire community.

A resident of Newtown since 1993, Ms Cantore started her own consulting business three years ago. Prior to that she was responsible for the staffing function at Readers Digest at its headquarters in Pleasantville, N.Y., after spending 10 years with Tetley Tea in Shelton as manager of staffing and headquarters human resources. She has a bachelor’s degree in marketing and a master’s degree, from the University of New Haven, in organizational psychology and industrial relations.

Four the past four months she has been working as a consultant for Tauck Tours, Inc., handling senior level staffing, Internet recruitment, and special projects. Other clients include Guideposts magazine in Carmel, N.Y., and PHS, an HMO based in Shelton.

Changes in the economy in the past few years have significantly impacted recruitment, Ms Cantore said.

“It’s a tight labor market fueled by the good economy,” she said. “Companies are relying more on outsourced professionals. The trend is to buy the talent when they need it. It’s a good time for consultants – ideal for someone who doesn’t need benefits or who needs greater flexibility. That’s one of the reasons I decided to leave the corporate world and start my own business. My busiest time is from 4 to 7 pm when I drive the kids to softball, ballet, soccer.”

Kathy Cantore and her husband, Phillip, a salesman for a commercial printing firm, have two children, Kelsey, 10, who is in fifth grade at Hawley School, and Brian, 8, who is a second grader there.

Because employers can buy talent when they need it, there is less long-term security for employees, Ms Cantore said. “That can make it harder for people who need benefits. Employers look more closely before adding permanent employees.”

Employers also are beginning to rely on the Internet to find talent and fill jobs.

“There are big national web sites and two Fairfield County web sites that have proven to be very effective,” Ms Cantore said. “Employers can get a quick turnaround, a response within a day or two, or even the same day.  It’s cheaper than running print ads – a lot cheaper – and it doesn’t take as much time.

“It used to be that employers would run an ad on Sunday and start getting resumes in the mail on Thursday or Friday. Now the next morning they start getting responses. It has shortened the lead time tremendously.”

Employers don’t spend much time researching big databases to find resumes posted by jobseekers. “They prefer to post openings and rely on candidates to act affirmatively by applying,” Ms Cantore said.

Ms Cantore said that according to national statistics, about 10 percent of available jobs are posted on the World Wide Web. “I think the percentage will increase dramatically,” she said.

When jobs are posted, potential employees generally are asked to respond by e-mail or fax. “Even in print ads, a lot of companies no longer include a street address or telephone number,” Ms Cantore said. “They want responses by fax and e-mail.”

Companies also seldom send response letters to resumes that are submitted by jobseekers, a change brought on by cuts in administrative staff. “Fewer and fewer companies send responses,” Ms Cantore said. “They don’t think it is worth the expense.”

Many companies also have cut back on the overhead of a large headquarters by having employees work at home, at least part of the time.

“It’s not frowned on anymore,” Ms Cantore said. “Some companies, like Price Waterhouse, require their employees to call a concierge to book a home if they plan to come to the office. It is a lot cheaper than having a big office space.”

Most employees like the change, she said.

“They are happier and more productive when they aren’t sitting in traffic two hours a day.”

Bill Brimmer, a selectman in Newtown and senior vice president/general manager of Manchester, Inc., an outplacement firm in Norwalk, facilitates the Jobseekers Support Group. Mr Brimmer said the May 9 meeting would be the last meeting before the group’s summer recess. For more information about the group, call Mr Brimmer at 270-9885.