Just last week I received a message from a senior executive candidate. He told me that he was pulling out of the hiring process for a managing director position at a multi-national company who had contacted him directly. He explained that he and other top candidates met the client six weeks ago and to-date no decision or not even an update has been forthcoming.
Embarrassing, unacceptable, and amateurish
Let me be very blunt about this: embarrassing, unacceptable, and amateurish. There is no way you will impress senior executives with that kind of slow recruitment process. Period.
Too many hiring companies still think that the supply of people (applicants or candidates) is bottomless, and that they can take forever to make their decision.
How many people are queuing up outside your office to apply for a job every morning? I thought so.
When the unemployment rate in Thailand is less than two percent, is it not common sense that good candidates are like hot cakes?
It's hilarious to watch the arrogance displayed by some hiring companies, when they call in a candidate five times to interview. Mind you, five times as in five different days. Thai candidates with ten annual leave days have just used 50% of their yearly vacation entitlement to take time off for the interviews.
Let me tell you how candidates feel when you drag out the hiring process. Picture this: It's Sunday afternoon. You met a charming man or woman on Friday or Saturday night. You gave your mobile number expecting to get a call over the weekend. But no one calls. It's now Sunday one week later and still no call. Suddenly, five long weeks later, you get the call! Here is my question to you: What's the probability that you will say yes to an invitation that long after your first encounter? Yes, me too. Thought so.
Very likely there is no scientific study to capture the exact amount of time a person can stay excited about a new career opportunity but there is no doubt that excitement fizzles over time and the amount of time is shorter than you might think.
One third of hiring decisions are failures
The late Peter Drucker said that about one third of recruitment decisions were failures. It's just over 25 years ago he wrote in Harvard Business Review: "Executives spend more time on managing people and making people decisions than on anything else. And they should. No other decisions are so long lasting in their consequences or so difficult to unmake."
Candidates are a perishable commodity
Talented candidates will assess a potential employer on a variety of points. Timeliness or responsiveness is often where the candidate is lost. To be more specific, I should perhaps say the lack of timeliness and responsiveness. Resumes may look like a pile of paperwork on your desk but they really are not.
Headhunters actively encourage their clients to react quickly to shortlists to give the candidate the impression that their interest in an organisation is being taken seriously and given importance. Each resume is a real person that your headhunter has cultivated, screened, and convinced to meet with your company.
The people presented to you are waiting to hear from you to find out when you wish to move to the interviewing process with them. Time kills all deals and you must respond quickly to resumes presented to you. It is vital that shortlisted candidates do not have to wait too long for feedback.
To complete a successful executive search it's crucial to keep the momentum and move forward as quickly as you can. Don't forget that most candidates from headhunters are sitting in good positions already and do not necessarily need your job. A talented candidate is the headhunter's product. But it's the only product I know of that can speak -- a "product" that can say "no". And if that happens, you will have lost important sales, man-hours, or whatever it is for that particular function, as the search process then starts all over again.
Executive search assignments are difficult-to-fill positions
By definition, executive search assignments are difficult-to-fill positions, but keep in mind that the executive search firms specialise in this field and have the capability of finding qualified and hard-to-secure talented candidates. They will put people in front of you that match the profile you have given. You should be aware though that it is going to be up to you to attract them to your organisation. You must convince them that their careers will be better served with your organisation than where they are. You need to close the deal (in this case your preferred candidate).
Ability to identify and retain talent will be a key task in years ahead
The Economist published a report some years ago on the subject, "The search for talent (Why it's getting harder to find)". One of its conclusions was that there is not enough talent to go around and the ability to identify and retain talent will be a key task in the years to come. Sure, not much has changed since then. But why are there still too many times where companies don't get it right?
Author: Tom Sorensen is a Partner at Boyden Thailand, a global Top 10 executive search firm. Contact tsorensen@boyden.com and learn more on www.boyden.co.th
Series Editor: Christopher F. Bruton is Executive Director of Dataconsult Ltd, chris@dataconsult.co.th. Dataconsult's Thailand Regional Forum provides seminars and extensive documentation to update business on future trends in Thailand and in the Mekong Region.