5 Top Tips For Hiring a Great Leader Who Wants to Make History
By Susan Rylance, VP GROWTH AND SEARCH PRACTICE LEAD at Fahren
Interviewing doesn't have to be hard
If you’re a growing organization and you’re not just looking for an average candidate, but someone who is going to make a major impact and contribution to your team and organization; check out our Top 5 tips to finding great talent!
We recently completed an executive search, partnering with a large consumer product brand, which was a was a very exciting opportunity for us as a partner. This company is a well-known brand both locally and nationally and has been experiencing significant growth. They are doing really cool and innovative work and they wanted to make a bold step with their next leader who could take their business to the next level.
This was a really interesting management opportunity in a company that hasn’t been understood to be an innovator or known for their bold moves.
As we began this search in partnership with our client, we identified some clear take-a-ways for a history-making hire!
- People want to “Do Good” – candidates care about a company’s mission, vision & values and if they feel your organization aligns with their mission and values it opens a gateway for a deeper conversation.
- Candidates want to know their Impact on the Company – Before you post a job description, make sure you’ve fully prepared an analysis on this role, the impact on the company and the right candidate persona that will fit into the role and team. This way when you’re selling to the candidate, you have compelling and detailed information about the impact this leader can make on the organization as well as the community. This will be a key differentiator; as average leaders just want a different job, good leaders want to make a major change and great leaders want to make history.
- Offer to Network vs Interview Passive Candidates – Less than 20% of the pool of candidates are active job seekers. This means you need to be a little more creative when piquing their interest. Instead of freaking them out by asking for a phone interview or in-person interview, ask them to come in and network for future potential opportunities. This allows you to show them your culture and space and sell the candidate on you and the company. This takes the pressure off the candidate and they are more likely to accept the invitation.
- Opportunity Seekers – Candidates want to see progression and opportunity in their next career move. They want to see where the company is going, who are the leaders of the organization, their leadership style and what type of mentorship they will receive to help their career path within the organization. Keep in mind, this isn’t always a title change, it could be the responsibility or adding additional skills to their repertoire.
- External Advocacy – Candidates listen to an outsider, someone who knows the company, the landscape, and the marketplace and is willing to give them full insights into the opportunities and challenges of the organization.
If you’re looking for an external advocate and recruiting partner, here are a few tips:
- Find a partner who can articulate your company with passion and confidence to potential candidates. This passion shows through and helps draw in candidates that may otherwise pass on applying to the job advertisement.
- Transparency and awesome communication is a key element for a trusted partnership between you and your recruiting firm. What does this look like? It looks like you are “one team” and it’s not a client/vendor relationship, rather you have a mutually respectful relationship.
When you have a trusted partnership, your chances of finding awesome talent quickly increases dramatically! I’ve been very fortunate to have an awesome client and talent partnership on this last search, which has led to an amazing new hire that where both parties are thrilled!
If you’re looking to see if we’re the right partner for your next executive search, give me a shout and we’ll get together and see if we “click”! - Susan Rylance