Webinar today, a case of stage fright, anger, and hope.

I have butterflies.

Giving my first webinar today. New subject for me. New medium.

People can't see me and I can't see them, just the droning sound of my voice until Q&A.

I'm an old hand at stand-up presentos. Been a professional IT trainer. Hundreds of sessions, thousands of attendees. No rational reason for performance anxiety.

But still...

My audience: hiring managers.

My thesis:

The way you hire today (advertise on job boards so active job seekers fill out your forms) is broken.

The key is to change job seeker behavior.

The best place to do that is your company job site. Low cost. Access. Effective.

Good manners and respect are the keys to changing beliefs, attitudes, and behavior. Google on persuasive technology for technical details.

So your web site becomes a natural magnet for the people you're seeking (workforce demand forecasting, anyone?).

And a magnet that kindly drives off those whose employment needs won't be met.

Taking control of your company employment site is about wrestling your destiny back into your hands.

My commercial motive?

My firm, Candidate Voice, certifies employer sites from a job seeker's perspective.

The better to measure, analyze, and plan how well you serve or abuse job seekers.

Flat fee, hard numbers, actionable plan. Call me.

My personal motive?

Anger.

I'm angry that the proxy for HR, the employment site, does such a rude and incompetent job that it would be fired if it was a human being.

But it isn't. After five years.

I'm angry that millions of job seekers are treated with disrespect.

So much so that youngsters think of job boards and career sites as time wasters.

That the same technology that opened up the world to companies is raising walls around them, making them cold and impersonal.

I'm frustrated that human resources has become less humane in tough times.

And more bureaucratic.

I believe that many staffing people got into HR to help people.

They must be frustrated as hell.

I'm bewildered that most HR people feel helpless to change things.

I'm angry that vendors think adding a browser cookie to bureaucratic workflow substitutes in any way for a human relationship.

I'm angrier that any HR pro would think so.

I'm angry at the agony perpetuated in labor markets by all the employers who optimize their internal workflow at the expense of 50 million U.S. job seekers every year.

With sites that are

Unresponsive.

That make job seekers ineffective.

That waste lifetimes of precious time and attention.

That are intrusive and one sided.

That demand all of your information and share none of theirs.

That don't treat job seekers like adults.

That don't behave with simple courtesies, like greetings, farewells, and thank yous.

I'm angry.

And hopeful.

Staffing pros are getting frustrated too. And angry. And afraid. And ambitious.

Motivated for change.

I'm hopeful that lessons from IT, and logistics, and marketing will be discovered and applied. Things that work.

I'm hopeful because 400 people signed up for my webinar.

In three hours.

Hmmm.

Don't think about it, Phil.

Just do it.

Thanks for listening.