In last week’s #FridayForum, we hosted an esteemed group of communications and marketing recruiting professionals. Our all-star panelists included:

• Jessamyn Katz, the President of Heyman Associates, a global recruiting firm specializing in Marketing and Communications Leadership and Executive Searches.
• Angee Linsey, the founder and CEO of Linsey Careers, a boutique executive-search and career coaching firm that specializes in helping businesses find top-flight marketing and communications talent.
• Jim Delulio, the founder and President of PR Talent, a recruiting firm that handles PR, Social & Digital searches for companies and agencies from start-ups to global organizations.
• Brooke Kruger, founder and President of KC Partners, a recruiting firm that focuses exclusively on communications searches at all levels from agency to start-ups to Fortune 500 companies and VC firms.

The panelists tackled a range of topics from the current state of recruiting during the COVID crisis to what the future may look like.

Here’s what hiring managers are looking for
Also, the panelists all provided fantastic perspective on the capabilities and skills that are so crucial today. “Companies are looking for what I like to call the Digital Nerd Storyteller,” said Jim Delulio.And, Jessamyn Katz chimed in to share, “Now is the time to show functional capabilities, crisis experience and be an all-around ‘utility’ player.”

In between jobs? Freelance.
All panelists agreed that doing freelance right now, in a time when hiring has slowed is a great idea. Brooke Kruger shared, “freelancing keeps your skills sharp.” Angee Linsey reminded everyone that “freelancing doesn’t mean you need to start your own company – you can choose the level in which you want to engage. Freelancing does allow for easier connections to future employment opportunities.”

It’s about employee comms right now. External comms pros are doing it, too.
Employee Communications is top priority right now. If you don’t have specific internal communications experience, that’s okay, as the skills and experiences of an external communications specialist are just as valuable and transferable to internal communications.

Tips on interviewing via video
Brooke – Remain as professional as possible and if you think you may have interruptions just provide some quick context and move to the interview.
Jim – Your energy, dress and the way you present matters on video.
Jessamyn – Remember, even if you are on video, make as much eye contact as possible. The person on the other end of the video call can see if you are checking your notes.
Angee – If all your interviews are done on video and you never have an opportunity to meet the team or see the office before you accept a position, allow yourself more time to ask questions or even ask to ‘meet’ more people on video. The process may take a bit longer.

Network. Raise your hand. Volunteer. Mentor.
Lastly, while the recruiters did share that they think the job market will get worse before it gets better they all agreed that we should keep up our networking (yes, virtually) and continue to build our portfolios even with non-traditional opportunities such as helping a friend who owns a small business, volunteering your services or mentoring others.

Attention recent or soon-to-be graduates: LinkedIn is your best friend.
Jim Delulio emphasized the importance of graduates honing their networking skills. “They’ve got to leverage their alumni network,” he said. “Everyone’s got a soft spot for all the kids coming out of school that went to their school.” Utilize LinkedIn filters to find alumni by region and industry. Try to find common ground and reach out to connect (ideally) via Zoom. It can be just a 10-minute conversation, but it can make a difference in figuring out your next steps.  Pro-tip: LinkedIn Career Premium has a free month trial!

Watch the entire recruiting discussion on demand.
If you missed the April 24 FridayForum, you can listen to the recording. There was a lot of great information, practical tips and advice shared for communications professionals relevant for everyone – from recent graduates to senior leaders.

Join us for NEXT WEEK’S #FRIDAYFORUM on May 1, 2020 at 12 PM PT/3 PM ET
Board member and VP of Comms, Aclima Inc. Jeannie Entin and Chan Zuckerberg Initiative CCO Abby Lunardini discuss how, in the midst of the COVID-19 crisis, it is delivering on its mission “to build a more inclusive, just, and healthy future for everyone.”

Now there are TWO ways to join #FridayForum:
1. Join our Zoom Room. Please e-mail shruti.sharma@hp.com before the meeting to get your calendar invite.
2. Go to https://www.facebook.com/groups/prsasv/ or https://www.facebook.com/prsasf/ to join the watch parties. You can livestream the Forum without joining either FB group. If you’d like to post comments before or after the event, please visit our pages ahead of time and ask to join.

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