3 Speakers Kendall Allen, Managing Director, Incognito Digital Mike Moran, Distinguished Engineer, IBM Nell Thompson, Director of Education, Media Arts Full Sail
Allen's Presentation: Talent Considerations: 1. what's your organization 2. role 3. values and flaws - 6 profiles 4. the drivers of talent
1. What's your Org? Staffinf up = reviewing and hiring an agency indiependant, building out an agency or client side group, or simply marketing your next killer hire.
2. What Role? Someone for sales, technical, production, senior management, etc.
3. 6 Profiles she has identified in search:
a. Polly Pedantic - seems to talk down to people - doesn't collaborate well with the team - strategic mindset ... but ends there. She gets outgrown as she does't keep up
b. Hamish - data centric - obsessed with stats, lulls, spikes - fails to give campaign enough time to perform - must frequently regroup after false starts
c. Leonard: - able planner - has it down to a repeat formula - uses all the latest methods and tricks of the trade - views search as an accountable media -
d. Dirk the Dilettante - hangs out with gurus - wants to be rich - admires those - goes to all parties, but doesn't remember his clients - stays junior and doesn't really jump in - never really becomes an expert
e. Trina and Tools Addict - obsessed with training, especailly offsite - constantly researching and testing - doesn't really understand the tools though - prides herself on knowledge of new tools
f. Real Deal Ronnie (want to hire) - broader internet perspective - dealth with both branding and performance - distinguishing between strategy and methos - knows how to plans - knows how to run tools - talks to you as a natural collaborator - he's thoughtful, and engaging
4 Drivers of Talent: #1 Roots - early on role in SEO, SEM industry - broader understanding of media
#2 Intelligence: - ability to synthesize strategy and methos - current point of view - understand client intent
#3 Ethics - consistent dedication to full equation
#4 Style - curiosity and tirelessnes - obviously smart -client focus - telltale spark in the eye
Moran Wants to help you find the good people Allen discussed.
Need to focus on identifying skills needed, and how to find those people. Focus of this discussion.
Things to think about: 1. will you use an agency or in-house - some things best done in-house - page indexing - optimizing content - others best by agency - diagnosing problems
How to Chose an Agency? Do you need an agency to help train your team?
How to Spot the Spammer Agency/Person: - look like you are trying to hire someone full of tricks and blackhat knowledge - they will then tell you what they know - those ethical companies will try to talk you out of it.
How to get inhouse talent: - hire people with requisite skills but without the background (too expensive, and too likely to leave), and have the agency help you train them - people with a statistic background such as librarians, translators, linguists, etc. - Need folks who can understand the numbers - and folks that are great with words/writing So don't overlook people you've already got inhouse. They already know the company culture, the business, the people.
Thompson: An Educator's Perspective:
Challenges of Acquiring Talent: - colleges and universities and just beginning to deal with topic - no standardization in academic approaches - MBA and marketing degrees do not cover specific internet marketing topics - 2 areas that need to be addressed: - IT considerations - web design principles - Every company has a different approach
Challenges to the educators: - mixed messages on hard skills - an abundant wish list of soft skills - wants fresh perspectives - wants everything or wants total conformity
Specific Hard Skills Needed: - strong writing skills ... writing is very important - fundamental understanding of web design - important for many aspects of search - intorduction to web interface and usability - basic IT understanding - internet business models - internet law and legal issues - web metrics and marketing math
Soft Skills Needed: - world perspectives and cultural studies (its a small world) - internet consumer psychology - social media intuitiveness - viral marketing understanding - emotional intelligence - self awareness - self management - relationship management
For the Student (potential future employee): - look for opportunities that provide a balance between marketing and the web - double major to gt writing, technical, and analytics skills
For the Employers: - conduct 'think tanks' at colleges and universities - contact career outreach depeartments at colleges - join advisory boards and give input to curriculum
Jeff Quipp is President of Search Engine People Inc. a Toronto SEO, SEM, SMM firm.
