Remember an earlier BRANDEblog posting about a company that recruits its workers from colleges, places them into training, and then drafts them NFL-style? Well, that's a whole lot nicer than what Mindbridge Software has in mind.

According to a recent piece from Inc. Magazine, the Philadelphia-based Mindbridge earns its keep by making intranet software. But many of the people inside of the company making that software didn't come on-board in the most traditional ways. A common means in which almost half of the company's 80 employees were recruited? Gathering "outside the office of a struggling rival" and offering "to buy lunch for staffers leaving the building." If that doesn't work, Mindbridge has follow-up tactics up its sleeve, in one instance waiting for a particular prospect next to their car at the end of the workday.

Is this stalking? Harassment? Or just a creative means of recruiting talent? Says Mindbridge COO Scott Testa, in regards to criticism of Mindbridge and related lawsuits: "Generally, if you're not getting sued, you're not doing business. Show me a high-tech company not involved and I'll show you a company that is not aggressive enough." Lawler Kang, a business consultant and author, directly disagrees stating: "If you're too aggressive, it can give the company being poached a good call to arms to fire up their employees." Yet Chris Forman, the CEO of a consulting and training firm in Vermont, comes in between the standpoints of Testa and Kang acknowledging that "It's not good to enough to come to work, go to the meetings, and do your job well. You need to be looking for talent." Although Testa did admit that tactics like this sometimes do backfire.

Article author Scott Westcott poses a good point in the piece: "Who doesn't love to be courted?" Testa agrees with the concept, concluding: "Who doesn't like to be flattered?"

What's to be learned from the writing or Mr. Westcott? Keep a close eye on your competitors...and your employees. You never know what the closest "Mindbridge" has in mind -- or what you can learn from them.

Labels: Human Resources, Recruiting, Talent