September 2006: In this issue...

Creative Recruiting...

...a more personalized approach to recruiting can help you land today's and tomorrow's top marketing talent.

By Ron Torch, CEO & Chief Marketing Officer - Torch Group Inc.

Recruiting for the right marketing talent that will help your company grow is difficult. And it's expected to get even harder over the next four years.

Here's why. According to a BusinessWeek article, the nation's 500 biggest companies anticipate losing half of their senior management by 2010. And there isn't enough talent to replace them. As the 77 million baby boomers begin to retire, there are only 46 million in Generation X, the 24 to 40 year olds, who represent your next talent pool. This shortfall problem is even more problematic when you look back at the 1990s. Corporations were cutting middle managers like a mower cuts grass on a hot summer's day. Many managers learned the hard way that loyalty doesn't mean anything, and began working for themselves or for small companies.

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Ronald S. Torch
President & CEO
Torch Group, Inc.

Consequently, companies have realized they are running out of talent at a time when business has become more competitive than ever. They know all too well that if they expect to grow and profit, they've got to have top marketing talent. When Jack Welch was CEO of General Electric he said, "Having the most talented people in each of our businesses is the most important thing.. If we don't, we lose."

The Three Essentials

To successfully recruit and keep top marketing talentyour company needs three essential things: An unrelenting commitment to scouting, creative ideas and new resources.We hope your company by now has gotten the wake up call about the talent shortage. If so, the Torch Group can help you proactively identify talent, generate new concepts and provide a variety of resources and solutions.

We are in an age of customization. Just about every company is working furiously to figure out how to customize their products or services to exceed their clients' expectations. Today's customers want more choices and they want it done their way. The days of cookie-cutter solutions or one-size fits all are gone.

The same holds true when you're scouting for marketing talent. In a way, your talent prospects are like clients. You need to woo them with the "Wow Factor." So it's time to delete those PowerPoint presentations and bag the canned corporate gobbledygook. The individuals you're scouting for are intelligent and can see through all of those tired, old approaches. And don't forget, your prospects can find out more about your company by simply surfing the Web. The bottom line is that talented marketing people want to work at talented companies where they can grow professionally and personally.

What Top Talent Wants

If you want to recruit top talent, you have to give them what they want. One might naturally assume that money always talks, but a survey of top performers compiled by the Employers' Resource Council in Cleveland, Ohio finds it's not just about the money. In fact, the top three attributes that motivate high performers are challenging work, level of responsibility and career advancement, according to the survey of more than 500 top-performing employees. They ranked salary as the fourth most important attribute, while job security was fifth.

How you can help

What all of this means, in part, is that you have to customize your scouting efforts if you want to successfully recruit talented people. You not only need to attract their attention, but you need to tailor your approach to convince them that your company understands their needs, will deliver what they want and they can achieve a fulfilling career.

You can take the first step by not just telling your company's story, but by showing your top marketing recruits what your company is really all about. Yes, this takes more upfront time and more effort. But in the long run, it will benefit your company beyond expectations. Perhaps you might consider allowing your top marketing candidates to shadow one of your teams for a day to get a taste of what it's like to work at your company. This may also help you further determine how well your prospective marketer can fit in and offer insights to challenges your company faces.

The Torch Group can help you accomplish all of this and more by generating creative recruiting ideas and innovative solutions that can help your company attract the right marketing talent. What's more, we have the resources, the experience, the technology and the access to the talent you are looking for.

So let's get to work on your company's future. Visit us at www.torchgroup.com or call us at 440-519-1822. We can help you. Give us a call today.

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We can help.

As acknowledged experts in the field of marketing and innovative talent solutions, we’re structured and poised to help you find that perfect CIO -- or complement your existing staff with highly-specialized marketing talent. Whichever way you go, Torch Group can be a valued partner to your company. We’re experienced in finding the talented full-time marketing professionals you need . . . or flexible marketing contractors and consultants if desired. Give me a call at 440.519.1822 or e-mail me at rontorch@torchgroup.com.

Ronald S. Torch
President & CEO
Torch Group, Inc.
. . . your source for marketing talent