Today’s executive job market is competitive: on the one side, candidates must make sure that their skills and experience place them in the ‘winner‘ category, while on the other side, companies strive to hit the bullseye in respect to talent. Perfect matches are possible, but only if a couple of rules of the game are enforced.
In the rush of getting to the right candidate first, recruiters might skip some steps of the recruitment process, or they might simply perform them poorly.
Something that a recruiter must always keep in mind is the whole picture. Having an overall perspective of what the company needs, how its organizational culture can be defined, and how the job requirements integrate within the entire structure determines flexibility in the candidate search process. And ‘flexibility’ is the key word in this context.
Being flexible as a recruiter does not mean making compromises, but thinking out of the box. Here is how this concept applies to a variety of aspects:
Sources
Are all sources covered, and if yes, which one has more potential? In-house candidates, online profiles, network connections? These are questions that help the headhunter to expand his/her options and diversify the talent pool.
Job Description
Is the job description a realistic one, or does it sound like the company is looking for a super-hero? The tasks imposed by the position, as well as the desired candidate features should stay within realistic limits. But bear in mind, with the chance of finding an exact replica of the previous employee being close to zero, the recruiter has to widen his/her horizon.
Educational Background
The number of degrees a potential candidate displays in his/her CV is a poor criterion to judge on. Educational systems differ in quality and many times it is the work experience that qualifies the future employee for the position. Keeping an open mind in regards to what the candidate can offer is recommended. Nevertheless, the screening process shouldn’t get too loose.
Job Interview
Allowing key personnel to participate in the interviewing process increases the chances that the best person for the job is hired. An experienced recruiter understands the relevance of an objective opinion, coming from a representative of key personnel.
David Heath, Global Director of International Business and People Capital in Alexander Mann Solutions comments: “With nearly three quarters of businesses facing up to a shortage of skills, HR professionals need to look beyond their traditional practices and adopt more flexible, innovative methods. While there will always be some basic criteria that all candidates must meet, unnecessary red tape needs to be identified and removed to ensure that recruitment is not just a box ticking exercise but something that can deliver real business value across the organisation.”
