It’s hard to believe that we are already entering the fourth quarter of 2024 but what these recent months have re-instilled in me as a recruiting professional is that industry experience is paramount in recruiting. It’s that industry lens of having worked in financial services for 25 years prior to founding Concentriq that is an invaluable asset and something that I look to apply every day which ultimately makes a difference for our clients and candidates. Recruiting is a highly commoditized profession, though not an easy one (despite my daughters believing otherwise) but when a new hire happens, it is an emotionally rewarding experience. Helping a valued client fill a need and move their organization forward while also facilitating the next step of someone’s career is, for lack of a better word, MAGICAL.
How do I apply my industry experience when running a search? From the client’s perspective, it starts with the job description’s design, asking the hiring manager key questions to understand the role’s composition, team makeup/culture, reporting structure, cross-functional interface between the front office and back office, potential career progression available, and weighing in with potential questions/challenges that candidates may raise in an effort to proactively address them. Having the industry knowledge to dive deep on these topics then apply it to distinguish subtle differences in the same role at different firms is a unique advantage. When speaking with candidates, I use them as a framework for our discussion to evaluate if/how they align, the skills they bring to add value to the organization, and delve into questions about various career decisions they have made. The output of this work is something that is conveyed through our candidate write-ups which is something that our clients continually highlight as a key value-add.
Another important aspect of search that is often overlooked is quality versus quantity. This was evident on a recent search when a client asked us about seeing more resumes as they’ve historically used a volume-based approach to hiring. After presenting and discussing additional candidate profiles that we viewed as a clear drop-off in talent vs. the initial candidate slate presented, the client agreed. Again, our job as an extension of a client’s talent team is to act as a primary filter, screening our own candidates and internally-sourced candidates to develop a focus group of high-quality individuals. At the same time, as I’ve written about in earlier pieces, hiring managers need to be realistic about how many boxes are possible to check with candidates as in many cases it might be 8 out of 10 boxes that can be found in the marketplace at any given time. We pride ourselves on our ability to quickly distill the candidate pool into an initial group of candidates who possess those requisite technical skills but also have the soft skills and cultural fit to align with the organization and provide it with longevity in the role going forward. It’s also an iterative process where feedback from the hiring manager is invaluable.
As far as differentiating our approach with candidates, I consistently hear from candidates directly or through referrals who don’t normally take calls from recruiters but express comfort in speaking with a recruiter who “gets it” and “talks the talk”. I always look to put myself in the candidate’s shoes, aiming to make the greatest use of our limited interaction time together to answer as many key questions upfront to inform and build trust, understand how their skill set does/doesn’t align, and learn what their career aspirations are for the years ahead. Having an open dialog on these facets is critical and candidates are always more candid when talking to an industry peer vs. a hiring manager, something which affords us a unique opportunity as search professionals. As I tell candidates, it’s just as important to get the cultural fit piece right for them so that no one ever accepts a role where they may end up unhappy as we want their career next step to be a long-lasting one.
Having established an enviable candidate network over 15+ years built through direct candidate interviews vs. other recruiting firms who use less-experienced search associates to screen candidates gives us a unique advantage to a) compile market intelligence, and b) use it to contrast firm cultures and potential career opportunities for our candidates. With continued evolution across the industry in such areas as public vs. private markets, active vs. passive, and ESG/sustainable investing, it will be increasingly important to draw upon that industry knowledge base to attract the right talent.
