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Sexist Recruiting and Hiring – Enter Sebastian the Romance Novel Hero
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Morning,
Quick! Watch this clip below! And tell me….what product do you think Sebastian is marketing?
Well? 
Now, I’m certain that if you’re a guy, you’re thinking to yourself right now,
Jeepers Barb, what a flagarantly sexist approach to getting people to buy vitamins!
and if you’re a woman, you might be thinking:
Hubba hubba!
(NOTE! I was asked in email to be more specific with the romance novel hero’s skills below. An avid Macgyver fan, here’s the update)..
Me, well, my tastes run towards the hairy-chested, deltoid-enhanced, clean-shaven Jedi Martial Arts and Swiss Army Knife master who can drop into a full front split (I’m almost there myself!) while simultaneously fending off 17 Dark Ninjas at the same time via blinding Krav-maga and Kenjitsu techniques (of course, while NOT breaking a sweat) and then read to me sweet romantic poetry while feeding me white-chocolate-covered macadamia nuts and caramel-flavored coffee and giving me a back massage with a peacock feather. Ah, gotta love those college memories!
But I digress. )
Anywhos!
Where was I? Ah yes! Sebastian!
The fact is, even in today’s, ahem, advanced society, sexism and sex still sells. It really does!
And whining about that fact ain’t gonna eradicate it.
So. Whatcha gonna do about it? Here’s my take.
I used to believe that sheer brains and ability would always level the playing field. But I’ve realized (especially in this Web 2.0/social networking/video-enhanced world in which we live) that people, being, well, PEOPLE, will almost always react FIRST and FOREMOST to surface qualities such as looks, dressing style, ability to nest 6 Unix sub-processes within one single command line statement and the like.
Don’t believe me? Check out these ads and articles – what do you notice first?
‘Course, people being people, they will NOT admit to being swayed by this.
So how should YOUR job candidates dress to impress?
Here’s some resources I’ve found for you!
- Appearance at the Interview
- Dress for an interview – Do’s and Don’ts
- Dress for Failure
- How do you dress on an interview. sexy , casual, fancy
I’ve seen interviews on YouTube in which the women flaunted their assets (and view-ratings skyrocketed), and videos where the guy’s rippling muscles battled for supremecy against their verbal insights (and the muscles definitely won) and my reaction:
I cannot change society – I can only CHOOSE how I personally react.
And then I can blog about it. Like I’m doing right now.
How ’bout you? Does a hot woman or man affect how you perceive what knowledge is shared? Or are you zen-ized enough you can discount the outer packaging and swing to the forefront of your competitors?
It is to think. And pass me Sebastian while you’re at it.
Enjoy,
Barbara Ling
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Funny commercial! If (insert supermodel’s name here) rode up to me on a horse and say let me interview you for a job, I probably would say yes. (Just for the experience) At Trade Shows, I often see models at the booths to attract customers, but NEVER see HR vendors using this tactic.
I would be MOST curious to see any company use Sex to recruit individuals to a cube farm. Just for giggles…
I think you have brought up a good point ‘though. If sex sales, how can companies use it to promote their jobs without crossing the line?
Hmm…
Jim Stroud’s last blog post..ANNOUNCEMENT: First Thursday begins on October 2nd
Hey Jim!
Using sex to recruit for a cube farm? Probably showcasing the latest in server technology (and maybe World of Warcraft?) would evoke a far more effective reaction…
How can companies use ’sex’ to promote their jobs without crossing the line? Think ‘confidence’ instead. ie, if you’re Gods’ gift to the appropriate gender, instead of focusing upon physical attributes, focus instead on the emotional stability the corporate environment offers. ‘Sex sells’, after all, targets the fantasies of people….and wouldn’t you agree that a friendly environment where corporate back-stabbing doesn’t exist is ’sexy’ beyond all human lustful desires (okay true, it’s also a figment of my imagination, but hey….what an image….)?
Volvo makes ’safety’, ’sexy’. Starbucks makes ‘coffee’ ’sexy’ (then again, coffee by itself is sexy, but I digress). Bell Labs used to offer the sexiest environment imaginable for geeks (I mean it was Nirvana on earth – simply paradise – you could learn from the likes of Dennis Ritchie, Dave Korn, Steve Bellovin and the like).
I’d love to see how HR makes a company look ’sexy’……
Enjoy, Barbara