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Strength of the Mirepoix

Anyone who knows me knows that I have a love for cooking and entertaining. I actually have a blog of my own where I keep track of meal plans, recipes, menus, and hits and misses in the kitchen. While I am absolutely no expert, I like to think I know my way around the kitchen and know by looking at a recipe what will work and what might need a little boost. What many out there might already understand, as I do, is that almost all recipes start with a base of flavors and ingredients to build off. The Spanish call is Sofrito, Emeril Lagasse got many familiar with Cajun “Holy Trinity”, and of course, his famous use of “BAM!”, and, finally, the French have the Mirepoix.

Whatever you chose to call it, this base of flavors is very, very simple, and usually only consists of 3 to 4 ingredients, such as celery, onion and carrot, or onions, celery, and bell peppers, that are sautéed in a fat such as butter or olive oil. While simple, these pieces create the bases of many sophisticated and complex dishes that are ultimately more known for the featured ingredients such as beef or sea foods and shellfish. I don’t know that anyone enjoys Beef Bourguignon or Bouillabaisse thinking about how they can really taste the carrots or celery, and, while that may be true, make no mistake that, if they weren’t there, you would miss them in the final results.

The same can be said for recruitment teams, and, more broadly, teams in general. Yes, there always seems to be a lead or “star”, i.e. the manager, a high level niche recruiter, or, in line with metaphor above, a delicious and beautifully aged filet mignon. The thing is none of those can be 100% successful on their own. Without strong team members at every level, the manager has no one to lead to success. If there are no sourcers, staffing, or administrative support, the recruiter, while potentially able to fill the role, will need to devote much more time and energy working on their own, which may actually impede overall success if the necessary timeline it’s met. Oh, and that filet mentioned above, it desperately needs salt and pepper to become all it’s meant to be, and without some great sides like a salad, some roasted asparagus, and a baked potato, it’s a mere slab of meat rather than a 4 star meal.

So, as some of you are reading this, you’re thinking, “wait, does this make me celery?” Yes, yes it does, though I do not intend to offend. The bottom line, and overall intent in the above, is to remind us all that every single player on a team, or in a recipe, is important, and a solid base is paramount if you want to meet your goals successfully, or have your guests asking for seconds.

This post was written by Jaime Leben. Jaime has over 10 years of experience in the RPO space working all aspects of the recruiting process as well as assisting with Implementation and Sales with various clients and industries. She started with Yoh’s RPO division in 2009, and currently works to drive recruitment, on-boarding, and process improvement for Internal Recruiting as well as her role as an Operations manager for small RPO programs. She holds a B.A. in Communications from U.W.S.P., and lives in Southeastern Wisconsin with her husband Jim, and 5 year old son, Carter.

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