Tuesday, July 21, 2009
Bernhart Associates Launches Twitter Group for Direct Marketing Job Seekers
Owatonna, MN, July 13, 2009- Direct marketing job seekers will soon have a new on-line tool to help with their job search.
Leading direct marketing recruiter Jerry Bernhart will be moderating a new weekly chat session on Twitter focusing specifically on all things related to jobs and hiring in direct marketing.
"There are online communities for just about every subject you can imagine," said Jerry Bernhart, owner of Bernhart Associates Executive Search, LLC, who is also well known in direct marketing for his quarterly employment reports. "This is a natural extension of the use of social media to help those who are looking for their next career opportunity in direct marketing, including ecommerce and emarketing."
Bernhart said the new forum will use Tweetchat, allowing messages to be posted and read by participants in a matter of seconds. ""It's kind of like texting but a whole lot faster and easier," said Bernhart. "It also allows quick and easy sharing of links."
Participants can choose their level of participation, jumping in and out of the discussion whenever there's something of interest being discussed.
"It will be an opportunity to ask questions, share ideas and get advice onlots of topics, including resume preparation, interviewing tips, job leads, salaries, bonuses, finding candidates, job offers, counteroffers, job descriptions, anything related to hiring and jobs in online or offline direct marketing," said Bernhart.
Employers are also invited to put up tweets on positions they are looking to fill.
The first direct marketing careers Tweetchat event will take place Sunday, August 2nd, at 8 pm Eastern time.
To participate, go to tweetchat.com, sign-in with your Twitter account, and enter DMCareers in the "Hashtag to follow" box. Bernhart explains that once you're in the group there is no need to use the hashtag because Tweetchat automatically applies it to each message, saving you the bother of typing it in each time you want to post. Bernhart adds that if you want to monitor the discussion but you won't be home at the time, no worries. Tweetchat works great on your mobile phone, too.
Visit our website at www.bernhart.com
Monday, July 13, 2009
Recession Easing Its Grip on Direct Marketing Jobs
by Jerry Bernhart
Owatonna, MN, July 13, 2009- Hundreds of direct marketers, agencies and service providers are offering some new glimmers of hope for direct marketing job seekers, according to the latest Bernhart Associatess employment update.
“It appears the direct marketing job market is scraping the bottom,” said Jerry Bernhart, Principal of Bernhart Associates Executive Search, LLC, a leading direct marketing recruiter who has been issuing quarterly direct marketing employment reports since 2001. “This is the
first quarter in two years in which the hiring index is showing improvement, and planned layoffs are continuing their trend lower,” said Bernhart.
According to the survey, 20% of the respondents said they will be adding to staff during the current summer quarter, up from 16% in the spring. Layoffs declined for the third quarter in a row, with 8% planning to reduce staff compared with 13% last quarter and 20% at the start of 2009. The number of companies reporting hiring freezes held steady at 30%.
The hiring freeze figure was even higher for agencies, with 44% reporting that they’re holding the line on hiring.
Bernhart said responses to the hiring freeze question underscores the prevailing mood
of uncertainty. “We always ask when they plan to lift their hiring freezes, and the vast majority said they expected those freezes to remain in place through the rest of 2009,” said Bernhart.
Bernhart noted that business-to-business direct marketers are faring better overall in the key employment indicators compared with their business-to-consumer counterparts.
For example, when asked if they plan to reduce staff 13% of business-to-consumer direct marketers said they expect further layoffs this summer compared with 9% among business-to-business respondents.
Despite the uptick in the survey’s overall results, Bernhart foresees no significant comeback in direct marketing hiring until at least 2010.
“You can’t stage a recovery with only one in five direct marketers planning to hire, and one-third of the others holding on to hiring freezes with no plans to lift them until at least the end of the year. In my conversations with senior level executives, there is no consistent level of optimism in the current economic environment for them to jump into the employment market. I’m also seeing that same caution in executive search. Companies are telling us they’re thinking about making staffing changes, but they are slow to pull the trigger.”
Despite the abundance of job seekers, the survey also shows that filling open direct marketing positions is not always an easy task. When asked if they were experiencing difficulty hiring new talent, 42% said it was either “very difficult” or “somewhat difficult” to fill certain positions.
When asked what specific positions will be in greatest demand this summer, Bernhart said the list of job categories named was across the board including analytics, sales, creative, technical and marketing. “There was lots of mention of analytics from agencies, service providers and marketers,” said Bernhart.
A record 402 companies responded to the random survey which was emailed the week of June 22.
According to the Direct Marketing Association, marketers – commercial and nonprofit - spent $176.9 billion on direct marketing in 2008, which accounted for 52.1 percent of all ad expenditures in the United States. Measured against total US sales, these advertising expenditures generated approximately $2.057 trillion in incremental sales. Last year, direct marketing accounted for approximately 10 percent of total US gross domestic product. Also, there are today 1.6 million direct marketing employees in the US. Their collective sales efforts directly support 9.3 million other jobs, accounting for a total of 10.9 million US jobs.
Results of past surveys can be found in the DMA’s Statistical Fact Book and on the website of Bernhart Associates Executive Search, LLC.
Companies interested in participating in the Bernhart Associates Quarterly Direct Marketing Employment Report should send an email to survey@bernhart.com with “Opt-In” in the subject line, or they can sign up directly on the Bernhart Associates website.
About Bernhart Associates:
Bernhart Associates Executive Search, LLC, is owned by Jerry Bernhart, a leading and nationally recognized direct marketing recruiter, writer and speaker focusing on senior level Multichannel Direct Marketing, CRM, ECommerce, Database Marketing, Business Development and Quantitative Analysis positions. Jerry has been a leading direct marketing recruiter since 1990, and specializes in direct marketing positions, online and offline, at all levels. The Bernhart Associates Employment Survey, now in its eighth year, has become the most widely followed employment report in direct marketing. In February, Bernhart Associates partnered with the Direct Marketing Association in providing exclusive analysis for the DMA’s 2009 Employment Outlook Report, a comprehensive study of trends in hiring and employee retention in direct marketing and available for sale at the DMA Bookstore. Viewed as a leading authority on issues related to direct marketing recruiting, Jerry is a frequent speaker at national direct marketing conferences and is often quoted by the direct marketing news media. Jerry has written dozens of articles for all leading online and offline direct marketing publications and conducts a widely followed employment survey for EM+C covering internet marketing and ecommerce.
Owatonna, MN, July 13, 2009- Hundreds of direct marketers, agencies and service providers are offering some new glimmers of hope for direct marketing job seekers, according to the latest Bernhart Associatess employment update.
“It appears the direct marketing job market is scraping the bottom,” said Jerry Bernhart, Principal of Bernhart Associates Executive Search, LLC, a leading direct marketing recruiter who has been issuing quarterly direct marketing employment reports since 2001. “This is the
first quarter in two years in which the hiring index is showing improvement, and planned layoffs are continuing their trend lower,” said Bernhart.
According to the survey, 20% of the respondents said they will be adding to staff during the current summer quarter, up from 16% in the spring. Layoffs declined for the third quarter in a row, with 8% planning to reduce staff compared with 13% last quarter and 20% at the start of 2009. The number of companies reporting hiring freezes held steady at 30%.
The hiring freeze figure was even higher for agencies, with 44% reporting that they’re holding the line on hiring.
Bernhart said responses to the hiring freeze question underscores the prevailing mood
of uncertainty. “We always ask when they plan to lift their hiring freezes, and the vast majority said they expected those freezes to remain in place through the rest of 2009,” said Bernhart.
Bernhart noted that business-to-business direct marketers are faring better overall in the key employment indicators compared with their business-to-consumer counterparts.
For example, when asked if they plan to reduce staff 13% of business-to-consumer direct marketers said they expect further layoffs this summer compared with 9% among business-to-business respondents.
Despite the uptick in the survey’s overall results, Bernhart foresees no significant comeback in direct marketing hiring until at least 2010.
“You can’t stage a recovery with only one in five direct marketers planning to hire, and one-third of the others holding on to hiring freezes with no plans to lift them until at least the end of the year. In my conversations with senior level executives, there is no consistent level of optimism in the current economic environment for them to jump into the employment market. I’m also seeing that same caution in executive search. Companies are telling us they’re thinking about making staffing changes, but they are slow to pull the trigger.”
Despite the abundance of job seekers, the survey also shows that filling open direct marketing positions is not always an easy task. When asked if they were experiencing difficulty hiring new talent, 42% said it was either “very difficult” or “somewhat difficult” to fill certain positions.
When asked what specific positions will be in greatest demand this summer, Bernhart said the list of job categories named was across the board including analytics, sales, creative, technical and marketing. “There was lots of mention of analytics from agencies, service providers and marketers,” said Bernhart.
A record 402 companies responded to the random survey which was emailed the week of June 22.
According to the Direct Marketing Association, marketers – commercial and nonprofit - spent $176.9 billion on direct marketing in 2008, which accounted for 52.1 percent of all ad expenditures in the United States. Measured against total US sales, these advertising expenditures generated approximately $2.057 trillion in incremental sales. Last year, direct marketing accounted for approximately 10 percent of total US gross domestic product. Also, there are today 1.6 million direct marketing employees in the US. Their collective sales efforts directly support 9.3 million other jobs, accounting for a total of 10.9 million US jobs.
Results of past surveys can be found in the DMA’s Statistical Fact Book and on the website of Bernhart Associates Executive Search, LLC.
Companies interested in participating in the Bernhart Associates Quarterly Direct Marketing Employment Report should send an email to survey@bernhart.com with “Opt-In” in the subject line, or they can sign up directly on the Bernhart Associates website.
About Bernhart Associates:
Bernhart Associates Executive Search, LLC, is owned by Jerry Bernhart, a leading and nationally recognized direct marketing recruiter, writer and speaker focusing on senior level Multichannel Direct Marketing, CRM, ECommerce, Database Marketing, Business Development and Quantitative Analysis positions. Jerry has been a leading direct marketing recruiter since 1990, and specializes in direct marketing positions, online and offline, at all levels. The Bernhart Associates Employment Survey, now in its eighth year, has become the most widely followed employment report in direct marketing. In February, Bernhart Associates partnered with the Direct Marketing Association in providing exclusive analysis for the DMA’s 2009 Employment Outlook Report, a comprehensive study of trends in hiring and employee retention in direct marketing and available for sale at the DMA Bookstore. Viewed as a leading authority on issues related to direct marketing recruiting, Jerry is a frequent speaker at national direct marketing conferences and is often quoted by the direct marketing news media. Jerry has written dozens of articles for all leading online and offline direct marketing publications and conducts a widely followed employment survey for EM+C covering internet marketing and ecommerce.
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Why Direct Marketers Switch Jobs- Often. A Study by Jerry Bernhart
Written by Richard Levey, DIRECT magazine, February 1, 2009
The average time spent in a direct marketing job? Just a little more than a presidential term:
4.05 years. So says Bernhart Associates Executive Search LLC, a recruiting firm specializing in direct marketing and related positions.
That's not the only surprise Bernhart uncovered in a study of 1,000 randomly selected
resumes. Another is that entry-level people work for 10 to 12 companies. Granted, there were
exceptions. “As amazing as it may sound, there are some direct marketers out there who have
been with the same company long enough to get their 25-year watch,” says the firm's principal Jerry Bernhart.
To reach these findings, Bernhart focused on the most recent position listed on each resume
with a definite beginning and end date. The pool represented job categories at all levels.
To compensate for the fact that some people stay on the job for decades, Bernhart also
calculated a median number — a figure that more accurately reflects the tenure of a greater
number of individuals. This came out to 2.82 years, prompting him to note that movement has
become the norm. It's what an individual does with that movement — how wisely he or she
follows a career path, or is willing to learn new skills or take on new responsibilities — that
makes the difference over the long haul. Bernhart also attempted to determine the reasons
behind the turnover rates. The answer is in the number of job titles listed under a single
employer. There was only one position per firm listed on 73% of the resumes. Two per
employer appeared on 12%, and three on 11%. This may indicate that people jump for promotions.
“This comes as no surprise,” Bernhart says. “Career advancement is among the
main reasons candidates give us for wanting to begin a search.”
What does this mean for CEOs and business owners? First, that direct marketers are spending
less time with their employers than they did 10 or 15 years ago. This means that turnover costs
are much higher than one might realize. And the cost of these actions may be harder to
recognize. Then consider the full impact when you lose a valued employee: There are the
costs of hiring and training a replacement…not to mention lost productivity, business,
knowledge, experience and skills. The list is long. “Imagine the savings a typical direct marketing company
could realize if it could improve its average turnover rate from 4.05 years to 4.25, or even 4.5,” Bernhart says.
The takeaway for marketers, according to Bernhart, is simply this: Think more about how important
it is to retain top performers. Between skills and legacy knowledge lost, the cost of replacing them is higher
than what's reflected in a hiring search.
Visit our website at www.directmarketingrecruiter.com
4.05 years. So says Bernhart Associates Executive Search LLC, a recruiting firm specializing in direct marketing and related positions.
That's not the only surprise Bernhart uncovered in a study of 1,000 randomly selected
resumes. Another is that entry-level people work for 10 to 12 companies. Granted, there were
exceptions. “As amazing as it may sound, there are some direct marketers out there who have
been with the same company long enough to get their 25-year watch,” says the firm's principal Jerry Bernhart.
To reach these findings, Bernhart focused on the most recent position listed on each resume
with a definite beginning and end date. The pool represented job categories at all levels.
To compensate for the fact that some people stay on the job for decades, Bernhart also
calculated a median number — a figure that more accurately reflects the tenure of a greater
number of individuals. This came out to 2.82 years, prompting him to note that movement has
become the norm. It's what an individual does with that movement — how wisely he or she
follows a career path, or is willing to learn new skills or take on new responsibilities — that
makes the difference over the long haul. Bernhart also attempted to determine the reasons
behind the turnover rates. The answer is in the number of job titles listed under a single
employer. There was only one position per firm listed on 73% of the resumes. Two per
employer appeared on 12%, and three on 11%. This may indicate that people jump for promotions.
“This comes as no surprise,” Bernhart says. “Career advancement is among the
main reasons candidates give us for wanting to begin a search.”
What does this mean for CEOs and business owners? First, that direct marketers are spending
less time with their employers than they did 10 or 15 years ago. This means that turnover costs
are much higher than one might realize. And the cost of these actions may be harder to
recognize. Then consider the full impact when you lose a valued employee: There are the
costs of hiring and training a replacement…not to mention lost productivity, business,
knowledge, experience and skills. The list is long. “Imagine the savings a typical direct marketing company
could realize if it could improve its average turnover rate from 4.05 years to 4.25, or even 4.5,” Bernhart says.
The takeaway for marketers, according to Bernhart, is simply this: Think more about how important
it is to retain top performers. Between skills and legacy knowledge lost, the cost of replacing them is higher
than what's reflected in a hiring search.
Visit our website at www.directmarketingrecruiter.com
Monday, February 9, 2009
Direct Marketing Hiring Outlook Reflects Economic Landscape
Released by Bernhart Associates and the Direct Marketing Association, January 27, 2009
Owatonna, MN — Direct marketers may expect more layoffs, hiring freezes and cutbacks in hiring until at least Spring, according to the first 2009 Employment Outlook Report, based on findings from a recent study conducted jointly by the Direct Marketing Association and Bernhart Associates Executive Search, LLC.
“Each of our key employment indicators are at all-time lows, with almost half of all participants telling us they currently have a hiring freeze,” said Jerry Bernhart, who has been conducting quarterly employment reports for the DM community since 2001. “The worsening economic climate is taking its toll on direct marketers just like everyone else.”
Among those responding, 21% said they will be adding to staff during the first quarter of 2009, down from 31% last quarter. The percentage of companies planning to reduce staff rose from 17% last quarter to 20% this quarter, and 48% report they currently have a hiring freeze, up from 34% last quarter.
When asked when they plan to lift their hiring freezes, nearly two-thirds said they don’t know.
Bernhart said that despite all of the economic pain, direct marketers appear to be doing better than the U.S. economy as a whole.
“According to the latest Employment Outlook Survey by Manpower Inc. in December, 16% of U.S. employers said they anticipated an increase in their staff levels during the first quarter of 2009, compared with 21% among direct marketers who responded to our study.”
“A closer look at our numbers also shows that while quarter-to-quarter changes in planned staffing and hiring freezes are both sharply deteriorating, layoffs are going up at a much more moderate pace,” said Bernhart. “All of this suggests that direct marketers are being spared the massive job cuts that we’re seeing in some other sectors of the economy.”
Bernhart also observed that among companies planning to hire this quarter, new jobs will out-number replacements 5-to-1.
“Recent published surveys show that many businesses are actually planning to increase their direct marketing budgets in 2009 while reducing their spending on less targeted advertising campaigns, and I think that is helping to ease the blow,” said Bernhart.
A total of 264 companies participated in the detailed employment study, which was emailed in mid-January to a combined list of DMA members and past participants of the Bernhart employment survey.
Complete survey results, with expert commentary on direct marketing hiring trends by Jerry Bernhart, can be found in the 2009 Employment Outlook Report. This report will include information on hiring patterns within the direct marketing arena, new employee compensation, bonuses, and incentives used to attract new hires. This report can be ordered via the DMA Bookstore. Click here to pre-order now through 2/13/2009 and use discount code EMP001 to receive a 10% discount.
In 2008, direct marketing accounted for approximately 10 percent of total U.S. gross domestic product, employing more than 10 million people in the United States.
Results of past Bernhart Associates employment surveys can be found in the DMA’s Statistical Fact Book. The 2009 Edition of DMA’s Statistical Fact Book is scheduled for release in February 2009.
Companies interested in participating in the next quarterly Bernhart Associates Direct Marketing Employment Survey should send an email to survey@bernhart.com with “Opt-In” in the subject line.
Visit our website at www.directmarketingrecruiter.com
Owatonna, MN — Direct marketers may expect more layoffs, hiring freezes and cutbacks in hiring until at least Spring, according to the first 2009 Employment Outlook Report, based on findings from a recent study conducted jointly by the Direct Marketing Association and Bernhart Associates Executive Search, LLC.
“Each of our key employment indicators are at all-time lows, with almost half of all participants telling us they currently have a hiring freeze,” said Jerry Bernhart, who has been conducting quarterly employment reports for the DM community since 2001. “The worsening economic climate is taking its toll on direct marketers just like everyone else.”
Among those responding, 21% said they will be adding to staff during the first quarter of 2009, down from 31% last quarter. The percentage of companies planning to reduce staff rose from 17% last quarter to 20% this quarter, and 48% report they currently have a hiring freeze, up from 34% last quarter.
When asked when they plan to lift their hiring freezes, nearly two-thirds said they don’t know.
Bernhart said that despite all of the economic pain, direct marketers appear to be doing better than the U.S. economy as a whole.
“According to the latest Employment Outlook Survey by Manpower Inc. in December, 16% of U.S. employers said they anticipated an increase in their staff levels during the first quarter of 2009, compared with 21% among direct marketers who responded to our study.”
“A closer look at our numbers also shows that while quarter-to-quarter changes in planned staffing and hiring freezes are both sharply deteriorating, layoffs are going up at a much more moderate pace,” said Bernhart. “All of this suggests that direct marketers are being spared the massive job cuts that we’re seeing in some other sectors of the economy.”
Bernhart also observed that among companies planning to hire this quarter, new jobs will out-number replacements 5-to-1.
“Recent published surveys show that many businesses are actually planning to increase their direct marketing budgets in 2009 while reducing their spending on less targeted advertising campaigns, and I think that is helping to ease the blow,” said Bernhart.
A total of 264 companies participated in the detailed employment study, which was emailed in mid-January to a combined list of DMA members and past participants of the Bernhart employment survey.
Complete survey results, with expert commentary on direct marketing hiring trends by Jerry Bernhart, can be found in the 2009 Employment Outlook Report. This report will include information on hiring patterns within the direct marketing arena, new employee compensation, bonuses, and incentives used to attract new hires. This report can be ordered via the DMA Bookstore. Click here to pre-order now through 2/13/2009 and use discount code EMP001 to receive a 10% discount.
In 2008, direct marketing accounted for approximately 10 percent of total U.S. gross domestic product, employing more than 10 million people in the United States.
Results of past Bernhart Associates employment surveys can be found in the DMA’s Statistical Fact Book. The 2009 Edition of DMA’s Statistical Fact Book is scheduled for release in February 2009.
Companies interested in participating in the next quarterly Bernhart Associates Direct Marketing Employment Survey should send an email to survey@bernhart.com with “Opt-In” in the subject line.
Visit our website at www.directmarketingrecruiter.com
Sunday, December 21, 2008
Is Your Job Recession Proof? A BtoB Perspective
By Jerry Bernhart
Published on BtoB Online, December 8, 2008
During the past month, I have spoken with top decision makers at more than 100 BtoB businesses, large and small, public and private, about their hiring plans for 2009. So far, employment in the BtoB sector has held up relatively well considering the financial carnage we've witnessed, and for now, most are planning no
major change in headcount for the rest of this year. But many of these business leaders worry that if consumers continue to slash spending, that would result in further contraction of the economy which, in turn, would almost certainly translate into layoffs in the BtoB sector in early 2009.
All of this uncertainty may be prompting BtoB marketers to ask themselves, "Just how insulated is my job from this shrinking economy? How safe am I?"
In my 18 years as a recruiter in the BtoB direct marketing industry, I have weathered numerous nasty economic downturns. While no two recessions are alike, here are some trends that have been typical of past slumps that might help you determine your unemployment "risk quotient" should economic conditions continue to deteriorate:
-If you work for a larger publicly held BtoB business, you are generally subject to higher layoff risk than the small player counterparts. After the agencies and service providers start to trim, these big caps are usually the next to start cutting payrolls, and many already have. While an argument can be made that job cuts can actually be detrimental to a company, reducing the work force becomes an almost automatic response in an
effort to satisfy investors who expect action when companies miss their numbers. Small to medium sized BtoB businesses, on the other hand, tend to hold out longer before they resort to job cuts, and this has more to do with their psychological makeup than it does with their balance sheets. Small business owners, by
their very nature, tend to be more optimistic compared with their Fortune 500 counterparts. A recent survey
by small business advisory firm Warrillow & Co, as reported in BtoB Magazine, bears this out. Even though small business owners are pessimistic about the economy, the Warrillow study also found that they are still feeling pretty good about their own prospects. Small business owners also tend to have closer ties to their employees. They don't want to issue pink slips unless they absolutely have to.
-Some industries will be much more vulnerable than others. If you are working for a company that sells products or services to retail, housing, autos or travel, you have a higher risk of losing your job than someone who is working for a company that markets to health care or the defense industry.
-Recent hires are often at higher risk than those with more tenure. While this does not always
hold true, companies faced with decisions about who to keep and who to furlough will often take the last-in first-out approach, other things being equal.
-When I get resumes from BtoB'ers, I tend to receive fewer in sales, customer service, accounting, ecommerce and circulation compared with other positions. Roles that are essential to the operation, create the most disruption when vacated, the most costly to recruit and train and positions that control sales and marketing channels to the customers are less likely to be eliminated.
-If your company cuts its training budget, it could be a precursor of bigger cuts to come.
They may be cutting training expenditures because they're not sure who may or may not be around to benefit from them.
-Finally, remember that your value is being measured by more than just your skills and experience. Your attitude, your energy and your enthusiasm count a lot, especially in times likes these when your company may need you more than ever. The higher your opportunity cost, the more difficult it will be for your employer to see you go. If you can wear multiple hats and if your company couldn't bear the thought of seeing you defect to a competitor, you are about as recession proof as anyone can get.
Visit our website at www.directmarketingrecruiter.com
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