Hispanic Jobs

Between my regular role in public relations for LatPro, and my special assignments such as helping with the public relations for the NSHP diversity job fairs, my days are usually pretty busy! We have a planned two-month hiatus between the Atlanta and Washington, D.C. fairs, which gives me a little time to actually write about some of the work that I do for the events!

I begin my public relations work for a diversity job fair about six weeks before the event. I generally do some research on the local job market, as well as the demographics in the area. After I’ve completed that research, my first major step is to write the press release that will be sent out to all the local media with details of the event.

My next undertaking is to create a list of media outlets in the surrounding areas of the upcoming job fair so that about two weeks before the event I can start efficiently contacting all the relevant media with the news of the diversity job fair. My list of targeted media includes newspapers, as well as local TV and Radio stations and local networking websites.

Another large portion of my time in preparation for the diversity job fairs involves developing media partnerships with local chapters of Hispanic organizations. The organizations that we partner with in each city are a combination of organizations that I approach because we have worked with them in the past, organizations that I found through internet searches or word-of-mouth, and organizations which approach us about an opportunity to be a part of the event.

Arranging the media partnerships is one of my favorite parts of this job. I find it so rewarding to work with Hispanic professionals who are dedicated to their local organizations and are really working on a grass-roots level to increase awareness of and provide opportunities for bilingual employment for Hispanic professionals in their cities. By partnering with the NSHP job fair, the local organizations have their name included in e-mail invitations that go out to prospective jobseekers, and they have a presence at the diversity job fairs. Their membership benefits with a personal invitation to attend the event, and they often find their membership increases through the visibility they have at the event.

The goal of these public relations tasks is always the same, to make sure as many Hispanic and bilingual professionals as possible learn about and are able to attend the upcoming events. Our next event is the Washington, D.C. job fair on August, 21st. I’d better get to work!

Every job board offers the ability to post jobs, and most offer a searchable resume database. For the most part, they all claim to be “leaders” and tout traffic numbers in one way or another. LatPro, too, offers all of the above, has significant traffic, and considers itself the top job board for Hispanic and bilingual professionals. However, our product line goes beyond the surface of just “how many job postings” or “resume database for how long”.

So let me tell you some of the reasons why recruiters should purchase our products and what they get behind the scenes by using LatPro. (There are many reasons why job seekers also use LatPro, which when you think about it, is another reason our traffic is high and recruiters should use us as well).

Interested companies and recruiters can expect to speak with a professional sales person from LatPro, one who will answer their questions as well as ask questions to make the right recommendations based on the client’s needs and budget. Of course we have a general pricing summary, but we make sure that any potential client knows that we will work with them on a customized product solution for them specifically, no matter how far it diverges from the standard packages.

Part of the initial back-and-forth conversation will let the potential client know that LatPro has other products besides job postings and a resume database to help complement their diversity recruiting efforts. Companies can also advertise their career center with banners or fixed-position logos on the LatPro homepage or job search page. They can also send targeted email messages based on education, geography and many other criteria. LatPro is the producer of 9 diversity job fairs in 2008 which will give companies the ability to meet many potential candidates face-to-face as well as brand themselves as a diversity employer.

When you do post jobs with LatPro, your job is not only posted on our site but with the entire LatPro Network. Your jobs will go to sites such as DiversityJobs.com and many professional association sites like NSHP, NAHN and SHPE to name a few. This gives your job advertisements increased exposure to targeted candidates as well as recognition on the partner sites.

Every job you post on LatPro is reviewed manually for quality assurance. We will make sure that it is posted in the most effective way to bring quality results, and we will make recommendations on how to make it more attractive to job seekers—which may be adding more functions or better keywords or more information about your company. That is only one function of our customer support team. In a proactive way, they will help you with resume searching tips as well, showing you the best way to search, create folders and approach a search of the LatPro database.

When you do a search in the LatPro database, you have the ability to be completely OFCCP compliant if that rule applies to your company. When the rule was issued, LatPro decided it was very important to have an in-house customized solution to meet those guidelines.

Both recruiters and candidates also come to LatPro for our original content. LatPro’s staff writes its own articles as well as having exclusive contributors publish pieces on our site. We have started a Diversity Profiles series with some of the top companies in the country and have a long list of companies that are interested in participating (please let me know if you’d like to be considered for an interview after reviewing some of the prior ones).

LatPro publishes 3 double opt-in newsletters for Human Resource Professionals and job seekers. These provide news and information for their specific groups.

So sure. We want you to buy our products, post your jobs, send us your logos and banners. We’d love to host you at one of the job fairs this year as well. But I thought you should know all the other reasons you should use us. We are about our products but we are also all about service, and I hope it doesn’t sound overused or forced, but we are about happy customers.

I am a bilingual professional -in fact trilingual- and if I had the face to stretch the truth I would say multilingual. I speak Spanish, my native language, English -my adopted language since I moved to the US- and if I practice I could probably get back to speaking French. I have a decent understanding of Portuguese and Italian when it comes to reading, but I can’t speak either.

But this posting is about what it means to be bilingual when we are talking about jobseekers. Normally, you would call bilingual someone that can manage in two languages, right? But what is “to manage”? Read, write and speak or just comprehend? Where you draw the line?

I am the kind that can be a bit of a perfectionist for some things, so for a long time I didn’t consider myself “fully bilingual” because I definitely have an accent when I speak and some weird grammar if I write in a rush. Being that my Spanish is impeccable, I felt that my English was not at the same level and I didn’t feel comfortable calling myself “fully bilingual”.

Big mistake. After some years I noticed that fully bilingual does not mean perfect. It means you can write, speak and read in any of those languages without struggling. Now, while knowing English is very important for any professional in my country of origin, being bilingual here in the US most of the time goes beyond the language.

And that is why at LatPro we believe that most of our jobseekers are not just bilingual but bicultural. Most of our candidates, not all of them of course, are second or third generation Hispanics. That means not only that they know the language, but they know the culture too. They know the American culture because that is what they live daily, but they know the values and priorities of the Hispanic culture. They have an insight that is extremely valuable for any company trying to reach that market.

So if you are a Hispanic jobseeker remember: you have an advantage, and that is that you are bicultural. “Fully bilingual” or not.

For most recruiters and HR professionals, SHRM, the Society for Human Resource Management, needs no introduction. SHRM offers lots of valuable learning opportunities and certifications amongst its benefits for the HR community.

But let me offer a little perspective on what exhibiting at SHRM does for LatPro and I’d guess lots of other job boards. SHRM has two sets of clients that it needs to make happy, so let me give some insight from the non-HR world. And yes, I know that there are many HR people and HR providers that are outside of the recruiting and job board world, but this is my post and I don’t work for those companies (certainly feel free to add your knowledge here with a reply about those areas).

Over the years, LatPro has exhibited at all of the different SHRM trade shows, trying to figure out which offered the most value for our business. Without a doubt, we’ve found that the Annual Conference provides the best opportunity to speak with high level HR executives and recruiting professionals. It also gives us the chance to see what other vendors and job boards are doing and to keep in touch with other business colleagues from other companies. We’ve also found the Staffing Management Conference (fka EMA) and Diversity Conference to be valuable targeted trade shows where we can meet a specific specialty of HR professionals that most closely match our business offerings.

Exhibiting at SHRM’s trade shows gives us the ability to have our company name and products in front of thousands of HR professionals that might not otherwise ever hear about LatPro and what we have to offer the recruiting and diversity areas of companies. It also adds a personal touch to meet long-time clients or new prospective customers face-to-face. Being an international company, my sales team operates mainly via telephone and email; however, these conferences offer the best opportunity to meet many people in person in one place over a short amount of time. If you are interested in what LatPro has to offer your company, and would like to meet us at the Annual SHRM show at the end of this month, give me a call or send me an email and I’ll send you one of our complimentary Free Expo Passes. The Annual Conference is June 22-24 in Chicago.

Hope to see you in Chicago!

Away from the Lighter Side of LatPro are more serious issues that face the LatPro team and the Hispanic population in general. Racism, bigotry, and general anger are out there. Here’s a bit about what I think of some of these issues, as much of the hatred comes to my email inbox.

People need to think before they start typing, you know, with brain and fingers somehow connected. I’ve received a number of nasty emails from people over the years, and I get them from small companies and large, without the authors taking any time to consider that they are the ones who are not thinking things through, but rather reacting on either emotion or just pure bigotry. Some of course hide behind the anonymity of an AOL or YAHOO email address, and I have little desire to find out their identities, but others have no qualms about leaving their names and phone numbers too.

Rather than be all negative and give credence to these people and their comments, I will just show some excerpts from a toned-down sample from my special Outlook folder.

For example, I have gotten several requests to create “WHITE PRO” (which is such an original take on our LatPro name). These requests ALWAYS come as they are characterizing Hispanics as non-educated, non-English speaking illegals. These messages also always say something about racism as well.

First, I will never apologize for promoting the heritage and unique skills of LatPro’s members. Why would I do that? How many thousands of groups are there that do the same without being subjected to the same type of insults hurled in this direction? Engineers, Doctors, Home Builders, etc. If they are mad because of the word Hispanic, then they need to realize we are promoting Hispanics not because of some EEO rules or quotas, but rather for the unique lingual and cultural skills that make corporations and their employees thrive in an international world.

Second, what makes these people think that just because you’re Hispanic means that you’re White? Hispanic has nothing to do with race, as there are Hispanics of many races.

Next, Hispanic is a term created by the US government. Ask any person from Latin or South America and they will tell you they are Guatemalan, Ecuadorian, Colombian, whatever. They will not say they are Hispanic-that is a US invented word.

And guess what? I am not Hispanic. But my US Citizen wife is from Colombia, she is Hispanic, she is educated, and she is completely fluent in English. Same goes for my kids, born in the US, bilingual and proud of their heritage. The stereotype doesn’t fit them, and it doesn’t fit most Hispanics in LatPro’s membership either.

I am posting this to show what types of intolerant, ignorant and bigoted people are still out there in this country. I am sure that with some effort and education, future generations of all ethnicities will have the ability to live and work together with respect, while still preserving and promoting their own cultures and backgrounds. Having bilingual and multicultural employees in your company will give you an advantage in today’s business environment.

What do bilingual employees do for LatPro? What can they do for your company too?

Well, for starters, LatPro can and does do business with Mexico, Latin America and South America, and we can easily field questions that come to us from companies in these locations. Some here in South Florida consider this another country in itself, and yes we can proudly do business in this and other heavily Hispanic-populated cities, too.

The LatPro site is translated into 3 languages (English, Spanish and Portuguese), which is a unique competitive advantage that we are able to have. And this was all done in-house by employees of LatPro. No external translators needed here so far.

Many job seekers prefer to speak in Spanish, and our fully bilingual customer service department is able to accommodate these people easily.

Media requests for Spanish language TV, radio or print interviews or articles? We’ve got that covered as well.

All of these functional areas of your company can benefit from bilingual employees and this unique skill that they offer to any company. Since LatPro is a relatively small company, I certainly have not exhausted the list of how bilingual candidates can be beneficial for your company. There are often manufacturing or other business units in some companies where the predominant language spoken on the job is Spanish. Being able to lead these groups, communicate effectively and relay results to management often requires a fully bilingual employee. Bilingual HR representatives also add tremendous value to fellow employees in their companies.

Tell me more. What areas of your company flourish because they have bilingual employees?

Is speaking Spanish acceptable in your office?

The LatPro office may not qualify as a case study in the debate on whether speaking Spanish in the office is divisive or not. After all, it is our business.

From an English-only employee, I do not find Spanish in the workplace threatening at all. Some contend that cliques form and adversely affect the business or that people are talking about the non-bilinguals right in front of them. If that is the case, then there are other issues in your company that you need to address. For example, people tend to find people they enjoy spending time with and form office cliques around many things that have zero to do with language—conversation at lunch, they like to talk sports (go Phillies), they enjoy American Idol, or whatever. So why the problem with Spanish speaking at work? And if there is gossiping in Spanish at the office, that is a problem. But you’ve got to work in a company where employees respect one another and trust them to be professionals, so work on it if that’s an issue—it has less to do with the language than you think.

My advice to my fellow non-bilinguals (otherwise known as monolinguals or Americans in a joke an Argentinian friend told me): Either learn Spanish OR use the opportunity to take a break. Both at work and at home, for me, Spanish conversation is actually a relief. It means that the person or people speaking are not talking to me and I can tune them out—kind’ve a mini-at-the-office-work-vacation where I can focus on other tasks.

What do you think about it? How does your office handle it?