What Is Executive Search?
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As your company expands and responsibilities and work loads grow, new top level positions must be created to fill the gaps. How do you find these key individuals who will perpetuate the growth you envision?
Promoting from within is certainly one approach, but it's not always possible or the correct choice. Will placing a help wanted advertisement in the paper uncover that special someone you need? Probably not! How can you be sure a new hire will bring the same caliber of excellence as the employees who have already worked to make your company a success? These are but a few of the questions to be answered. The executive search process is most likely the answer to "finding the needle in the haystack" and that high performer you so drastically need. |
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Executive selection takes an inordinate amount of time and requires specific expertise, as do many other professions, but very few understand or appreciate the process. Hopefully this outline will bridge that gap!
The nucleus of the executive search consultant's responsibilities includes extensive organization research, hundreds of telephone conversations, and finally in-depth personal interviewing. When this time consuming process is performed by a team of executive search consultants it allows you to continue channeling your efforts into running your business, while the consultants do the leg-work to screen, find, and present to you only the best candidates.
The search process typically covers over 15 sequential steps and spans a time period of 60-150 days which allows for uncovering a maximum universe of potential candidates.
The following is a brief outline of the steps the Human Resource Division of RCE Associates covers in the executive search process.
1. Communicating the Search Process Each hiring decision maker must understand the process about to be outlined below and realize that the success of the search requires a joint effort of all parties involved.
2. Initial Client Consultation The objective of this first conference is to gain an understanding of the client's organizational climate and the character of the decision makers, as well as to develop the specifics of the position to be filled. Information regarding responsibilities, goals, reporting relationships, personal qualities, experience level requirements, and compensation must be gathered.
3. Confirming Position Specifications With this information, a written position description is prepared detailing the technical aspects and responsibilities of the job, the personal characteristics of a successful candidate, and the accomplishment level that would characterize the ideal candidate. The description is then sent to the client for review and approval, with all parties involved agreeing on its accuracy. This summary becomes a road map for the search consultant and a common ground for evaluating and reviewing candidate, qualifications.
4. Developing a Search Strategy Developing a search strategy demands many hours of planning. The strategy becomes the operational business plan which enables the consultant to assess and prioritize all resources, identification methods, industries, people, experts, and companies that will provide information, insight, and/or referrals in the search. Periodic brainstorming among the search consultants also allows them to look at the information already gathered to evaluate new ideas and sources for uncovering the "needle". The search consultant's objective is to determine the most thorough, but efficient, strategy that aims toward completing the search on schedule.
5. Preliminary Candidate Identification To identify candidates, most search firms use basic screening guidelines, based on the client's concerns, which will highlight a candidate's employment profile. Some common guidelines include: • Dollar earnings versus years of experience • Past functional expertise and rapidity of promotions • Educational institutions attended and grade achievements • Number of job changes over a certain period of time. A typical search requires conversation with approximately 100 candidates before the finalists have emerged.
6. Sourcing Sourcing is the implementation of the search strategy and is considered the "heart" of the process. This critical part of the process is talking to people who are "in the know": executives met through previous searches, industry experts, friends or acquaintances.
7. Getting Referrals Recommendations from those "in the know" usually provide referrals of the better candidates. The executive search consultant must use superior communications skills to pinpoint the required employment profile. Knowing the source and his knowledge base enables the consultant to communicate his needs accordingly! Sources, when used effectively, allow the search firm to know the referred candidate's performance level, personality dynamics, and expertise before the contact is made. Very important are the radiating lines of contacts and referrals that sources serve to generate.
8. Initial Screening of the Prospects Potential candidates are given in-depth telephone interviews to assess their qualifications against the established criteria. Emerging qualified candidates are then motivated to give serious consideration to the position. If and when a mutual interest is established, the candidate is then personally interviewed by the search consultant or consultants.
9. Selling the Company and the Position This part of the process is one in which the search consultant's persuasive skills are paramount. Superior candidates and high achievers are generally happily employed and not actively seeking career changes. They are willing to learn, but will only consider opportunities which are logical progressions in their careers. The search consultant must know his "product" and communicate to the candidate how the advantages of this company and position can benefit him.
10. Personal In-Depth Interviews Although most firms take a very unstructured interviewing approach, we feel a more structured approach enables comparisons which move the best candidates to the top of the list. We believe that recent behavior determines future on the job behavior. Accordingly, questions are structured to elicit pertinent data. As an example, if innovativeness is one of the dimensions required to be successful in the position, we ask questions that probe the candidate's creative abilities. With the same questions asked each candidate, responses can be assessed both individually and comparatively. We use a technique that allows candidates to accurately portray their level of accomplishments. We ask them to detail specific achievement examples by including the situation, their actions, and the results that surrounded their efforts. We generally interview between 5-15 candidates, introducing only those candidates whose accomplishments are significant as they pertain to the needs of the position to be filled.
11. Introduction of Candidates The few prospects (usually 3 to 5) who emerge from this interview process as being especially well suited for the position are then introduced to the client via a written profile (Confidential Profile Highlights). This outline presents not only factual information about the candidate's job history, responsibilities, accomplishments and background, but also contains the search firm's assessment of the individual's qualifications for the position at hand. Additionally, credential verification, including educational background, job history information, and some preliminary references, may accompany this profile. The client can anticipate the first candidates to emerge within five to seven weeks after the initiation of the search. It is important that the first candidate is interviewed as quickly as possible to ascertain if the search is "on target".
12. The Company Interview Cycle Solid preparation by the client, including a thorough review of the candidate's employment documentation, is very important. In some cases, we will provide our client with an interview guide, developed for the particular assignment, which will help elicit information enabling our client to better judge the candidate's capabilities. From this first round of interviewing, the client will see some of the best talent in the marketplace that fits their initially outlined requirement. On occasion, the client will want to either expand or tighten the requirements and this information must be fed back to the consultant immediately-so he can shift his targeting. Changes may be made in increasing the salary package, no longer requiring a specific industry background, or broadening the job scope.
13. Reference Checking We recommend that reference checks should be made only with individuals who are qualified to provide detailed explanations about the candidate's past technical competence, specific achievements, and performance related activities, as they pertain to the needs of the position. Here, we also use the situation-action-result interviewing technique to ask the referred employee questions about the candidate's pan performances and achievements. This technique serves to uncover invaluable information which supplements the decision-making process by either verifying or negating our original findings.
14. Testing The use of psychological and personality testing is without doubt the most controversial part of the process. Testing, in our view, is just another source of information in the decision-making process. We feel that personality dynamics testing, in particular, can aid in learning more about aptitude and can supplement the information we already have on achievements, experience and knowledge base. The important thing to remember is that it is only another source of information, not a deciding factor. This information can and should also serve as a developmental tool for both the candidate and the employer.
15. Negotiating and Closing After a candidate with that special blend of accomplishments, credentials, and desire is uncovered and is determined to be the top choice, it's time to convince that individual to make the change to the client organization. As a knowledgeable intermediary, the consultant’s role is to work out any differences which might have a significant bearing on the final acceptance or rejection of an offer. Many candidates will receive counter offers which the consultant must recognize and deal with in advance. Creative solutions to the salary and relocation package can make the difference in a successful conclusion to the process and their importance should not be overlooked.
16. The Successful Conclusion The search firm should stay in close contact with both the new employee and the client to smooth the transition into the new working relationship. This contact during the first three months after acceptance of the position assures both parties of the firm’s continuing interest in the success of the arrangement. As a general practice, we try to meet with each new candidate 30 days after his or her starting date.
Summary
The process, as described, normally takes 60-150 days, but is occasionally shorter or longer depending on a myriad of circumstances. The key to a successful search is the combination of skills provided by the search firm and the lines of communication and rapport developed between the parties in this joint effort. The client retains a search firm to uncover the broadest universe of available qualified talent when he seeks to hire key, top level executives. The search firm is motivated by its desire to establish a long-term business relationship with the client, and only by producing timely, quality results can this be accomplished. If both the client and search consultant work closely together, the search can be quite rewarding for all parties concerned. The needle for your haystack does exist and will make the world of difference to your bottom line.
The nucleus of the executive search consultant's responsibilities includes extensive organization research, hundreds of telephone conversations, and finally in-depth personal interviewing. When this time consuming process is performed by a team of executive search consultants it allows you to continue channeling your efforts into running your business, while the consultants do the leg-work to screen, find, and present to you only the best candidates.
The search process typically covers over 15 sequential steps and spans a time period of 60-150 days which allows for uncovering a maximum universe of potential candidates.
The following is a brief outline of the steps the Human Resource Division of RCE Associates covers in the executive search process.
1. Communicating the Search Process Each hiring decision maker must understand the process about to be outlined below and realize that the success of the search requires a joint effort of all parties involved.
2. Initial Client Consultation The objective of this first conference is to gain an understanding of the client's organizational climate and the character of the decision makers, as well as to develop the specifics of the position to be filled. Information regarding responsibilities, goals, reporting relationships, personal qualities, experience level requirements, and compensation must be gathered.
3. Confirming Position Specifications With this information, a written position description is prepared detailing the technical aspects and responsibilities of the job, the personal characteristics of a successful candidate, and the accomplishment level that would characterize the ideal candidate. The description is then sent to the client for review and approval, with all parties involved agreeing on its accuracy. This summary becomes a road map for the search consultant and a common ground for evaluating and reviewing candidate, qualifications.
4. Developing a Search Strategy Developing a search strategy demands many hours of planning. The strategy becomes the operational business plan which enables the consultant to assess and prioritize all resources, identification methods, industries, people, experts, and companies that will provide information, insight, and/or referrals in the search. Periodic brainstorming among the search consultants also allows them to look at the information already gathered to evaluate new ideas and sources for uncovering the "needle". The search consultant's objective is to determine the most thorough, but efficient, strategy that aims toward completing the search on schedule.
5. Preliminary Candidate Identification To identify candidates, most search firms use basic screening guidelines, based on the client's concerns, which will highlight a candidate's employment profile. Some common guidelines include: • Dollar earnings versus years of experience • Past functional expertise and rapidity of promotions • Educational institutions attended and grade achievements • Number of job changes over a certain period of time. A typical search requires conversation with approximately 100 candidates before the finalists have emerged.
6. Sourcing Sourcing is the implementation of the search strategy and is considered the "heart" of the process. This critical part of the process is talking to people who are "in the know": executives met through previous searches, industry experts, friends or acquaintances.
7. Getting Referrals Recommendations from those "in the know" usually provide referrals of the better candidates. The executive search consultant must use superior communications skills to pinpoint the required employment profile. Knowing the source and his knowledge base enables the consultant to communicate his needs accordingly! Sources, when used effectively, allow the search firm to know the referred candidate's performance level, personality dynamics, and expertise before the contact is made. Very important are the radiating lines of contacts and referrals that sources serve to generate.
8. Initial Screening of the Prospects Potential candidates are given in-depth telephone interviews to assess their qualifications against the established criteria. Emerging qualified candidates are then motivated to give serious consideration to the position. If and when a mutual interest is established, the candidate is then personally interviewed by the search consultant or consultants.
9. Selling the Company and the Position This part of the process is one in which the search consultant's persuasive skills are paramount. Superior candidates and high achievers are generally happily employed and not actively seeking career changes. They are willing to learn, but will only consider opportunities which are logical progressions in their careers. The search consultant must know his "product" and communicate to the candidate how the advantages of this company and position can benefit him.
10. Personal In-Depth Interviews Although most firms take a very unstructured interviewing approach, we feel a more structured approach enables comparisons which move the best candidates to the top of the list. We believe that recent behavior determines future on the job behavior. Accordingly, questions are structured to elicit pertinent data. As an example, if innovativeness is one of the dimensions required to be successful in the position, we ask questions that probe the candidate's creative abilities. With the same questions asked each candidate, responses can be assessed both individually and comparatively. We use a technique that allows candidates to accurately portray their level of accomplishments. We ask them to detail specific achievement examples by including the situation, their actions, and the results that surrounded their efforts. We generally interview between 5-15 candidates, introducing only those candidates whose accomplishments are significant as they pertain to the needs of the position to be filled.
11. Introduction of Candidates The few prospects (usually 3 to 5) who emerge from this interview process as being especially well suited for the position are then introduced to the client via a written profile (Confidential Profile Highlights). This outline presents not only factual information about the candidate's job history, responsibilities, accomplishments and background, but also contains the search firm's assessment of the individual's qualifications for the position at hand. Additionally, credential verification, including educational background, job history information, and some preliminary references, may accompany this profile. The client can anticipate the first candidates to emerge within five to seven weeks after the initiation of the search. It is important that the first candidate is interviewed as quickly as possible to ascertain if the search is "on target".
12. The Company Interview Cycle Solid preparation by the client, including a thorough review of the candidate's employment documentation, is very important. In some cases, we will provide our client with an interview guide, developed for the particular assignment, which will help elicit information enabling our client to better judge the candidate's capabilities. From this first round of interviewing, the client will see some of the best talent in the marketplace that fits their initially outlined requirement. On occasion, the client will want to either expand or tighten the requirements and this information must be fed back to the consultant immediately-so he can shift his targeting. Changes may be made in increasing the salary package, no longer requiring a specific industry background, or broadening the job scope.
13. Reference Checking We recommend that reference checks should be made only with individuals who are qualified to provide detailed explanations about the candidate's past technical competence, specific achievements, and performance related activities, as they pertain to the needs of the position. Here, we also use the situation-action-result interviewing technique to ask the referred employee questions about the candidate's pan performances and achievements. This technique serves to uncover invaluable information which supplements the decision-making process by either verifying or negating our original findings.
14. Testing The use of psychological and personality testing is without doubt the most controversial part of the process. Testing, in our view, is just another source of information in the decision-making process. We feel that personality dynamics testing, in particular, can aid in learning more about aptitude and can supplement the information we already have on achievements, experience and knowledge base. The important thing to remember is that it is only another source of information, not a deciding factor. This information can and should also serve as a developmental tool for both the candidate and the employer.
15. Negotiating and Closing After a candidate with that special blend of accomplishments, credentials, and desire is uncovered and is determined to be the top choice, it's time to convince that individual to make the change to the client organization. As a knowledgeable intermediary, the consultant’s role is to work out any differences which might have a significant bearing on the final acceptance or rejection of an offer. Many candidates will receive counter offers which the consultant must recognize and deal with in advance. Creative solutions to the salary and relocation package can make the difference in a successful conclusion to the process and their importance should not be overlooked.
16. The Successful Conclusion The search firm should stay in close contact with both the new employee and the client to smooth the transition into the new working relationship. This contact during the first three months after acceptance of the position assures both parties of the firm’s continuing interest in the success of the arrangement. As a general practice, we try to meet with each new candidate 30 days after his or her starting date.
Summary
The process, as described, normally takes 60-150 days, but is occasionally shorter or longer depending on a myriad of circumstances. The key to a successful search is the combination of skills provided by the search firm and the lines of communication and rapport developed between the parties in this joint effort. The client retains a search firm to uncover the broadest universe of available qualified talent when he seeks to hire key, top level executives. The search firm is motivated by its desire to establish a long-term business relationship with the client, and only by producing timely, quality results can this be accomplished. If both the client and search consultant work closely together, the search can be quite rewarding for all parties concerned. The needle for your haystack does exist and will make the world of difference to your bottom line.