Recruiter News  >  March 2006: Volume 3, Issue 3

About the Author, Jim Durbin

In 1906, an economist named Pareto observed that 80 percent of Italy’s wealth was owned by 20 percent of its population. Behavioral scientists followed this line of reasoning over the years, and to their surprise found that in many areas of human endeavors, 20% of a group performed close to 80% of the work. The figures are not exactly 80/20 – but common enough that the 80/20 rule, or Pareto principle, thus came into existence as a law.

The 80/20 rule, as was later found, is a mathematical oddity that applies to all kinds of natural systems, not just human groups. Easily understood and accepted by those without a mathematics background, this rule has become the perfect justification for just about every occasion. Layoffs? Just following the 80/20 rule. Compensation plans weighted towards top producers? 80/20 rule. Bending the rules for certain clients? 80/20 rule! Managers have learned that the 80/20 rule can be used to justify and explain every occurrence in the corporate world – even if the basics of the mathematics are not understood, the idea of 80/20 is powerful enough to justify all kinds of decision making.

Business terms like the Pareto principle are dangerous because they are easily misunderstood and thus easily misapplied. Pervasive and all-explaining, they never quite explain why every method leads to the same 80/20 results. After all, if the Pareto were taken literally, you could fire 80% of your workforce and still maintain 80% of your most profitable revenue. No one has managed to do that yet.

In the recruiting world, we have our own dangerous business term. It’s called the Cult of the Passive Candidate, and it is as pervasive and dangerous to use as justification as the Pareto principle. (continued...)

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Click on Miss J's photo to email your recruitment questions and problems to her!

Ah, March! The month of superstition and silliness. The month where Leprechauns abound and huge numbers of seemingly intelligent people drink green beer and eat beef and cabbage (Note to self: Find out whether the Ireland Irish actually eat this! Further note to self: don’t sit in a closed room full of people who actually have.) Little people, snake banishing, and green edibles – who-da thunk it? Our very own Miss J actually joined in the festivities this year but found that the 12-inch chocolate chip cookie (of course covered in green frosting) turned her green and gave her an urgent need to retain the contents of her churning stomach. With stomach contents stabilized, we begin our March missive…

Dear Miss J,

I am not superstitious, but how come every time I try to make a placement, poltergeists, banshees, demons, eidolons, ethereal beings, kelpies, phantoms, incorporeal beings, specters, spirits, vampires and zombies appear from nowhere and in an instant my placement is in the porcelain receptacle? These visitations come in the form of counter-offers, other offers, demanding spouses, requests for $10 more per hour than they had requested beforehand, inability to attend interview, candidates disappearing, and spontaneous combustion (OK, that last one was pushing it). What can I do beyond clutching a cross to my chest and buying out the Piggly Wiggly’s entire supply of garlic? I am very sure that hammering a stake through the heart of a candidate that does not play the game is a federal offense (although I think it should be a misdemeanor at best!).

Paddy from Superstition, Arizona

Dear Paddy,

Wow, kind of a Stephen King novel where Christine is a Java programmer and not a car!

Let’s look at what sort of exorcism we can engage in to rid you of these annoyances.

Counter-offers: Now this isn’t where you find the ideal candidate and stick your fingers in your ears and sing “La la la la” over and over again hoping everything will stick. The candidate you are talking to might be happy where they are, (continued…)