This week on the Digital Velocity Podcast, Jerry Bernhart of Bernhart Associates Executive Search joins Erik and Tim to discuss understanding the digital marketing recruiting equation, both from the client position and the candidate perspective.
Culture and fit are very important factors for companies looking to hire, but also for candidates wanting to be hired. Jerry says,
“One of the questions I always ask a client is give me five adjectives that describe how you work, and I ask the candidate that same question.”
Jerry explains that he has a whole list of culture and fit related questions that he asks
“because at the end of the day, when I get a call from a candidate who’s unhappy in the current role, most of the time it’s not because they don’t know a particular piece of software, it’s not because maybe their hours were changed or some other more innocuous reason. It’s mostly because they don’t fit in with the way they do things, and that could be, they don’t, work well with their boss or maybe they’re not in alignment with the mission of the CEO or the president or that’s changed. Typically, it’s a cultural or a fit issue when candidates call me to begin a confidential search.”
It is essential to understand each side’s position. For that reason, Jerry explains,
“I focus very heavily on both sides of the equation. With the client, asking about their culture and how they operate, how maybe it’s changed. I also coach them on what questions to ask the candidate to make sure that you’re focusing as much on fit and culture as you are on skills.”
Listen to this week’s episode to learn more about the digital marketing equation from both sides.
About the Guest:
Jerry Bernhart is a highly recognized, award-winning recruiting leader in the field of marketing with specialties including digital commerce, CRM, analytics, database marketing and direct response. For more than 34 years, Jerry has worked with employers ranging from Fortune 100 to start ups, B2C, B2B, agencies and technology providers. He has served on numerous industry advisory panels and spoken at dozens of marketing-related conferences over the years, and his insights into employment and hiring trends have been featured in AdAge, Bloomberg, DigitalCommerce360, Target Marketing, Multichannel Merchant, DM News, Seeking Alpha, CBS, and dozens of other marketing-related publications, podcasts, webinars and marketing research organizations.
Jerry created and managed directmarketingcareers.com, which was among the first marketing-specific job posting sites on the internet, and published the Direct Marketing Employment Survey, which for more than 12 years was the industry-wide benchmark report for hiring in direct marketing. In 2002, he was inducted into the Pinnacle Society, representing the top 75 highest achieving executive recruiters in the nation. He is also the author of “Careers in Ecommerce and Digital Marketing”.