Lean Connections

Within the last 12 months some top HR leaders in North America, and even the CEOs of two of the largest global retained executive search organizations, have publically declared the traditional executive recruiting model broken and badly in need of repair. 

A recent survey conducted by one very large jobs board indicated that among their respondents, “…almost half don’t use external agencies at all…” and that their results and interviews with experts indicated “…a move away from over-reliance on external recruiters…”  Perhaps a self-selected survey sample, but none-the-less, informative. 

And finally, author and search industry insider Joesph Daniel McCool, in his July 2008 interview with HR Magazine, apparently finds a “real disconnect” between executive recruiters and hiring organizations, claiming that “corporate satisfaction with executive recruiters has fallen under 50 percent for years.” 

Other industry pundits portray a more optimistic future for executive recruiters, and certainly our own small boutique firm has never been busier. But I do believe that a transformation is indeed necessary and already underway within my profession.  Because there is a disconnect between what executive search clients want and what executive search clients are getting. The transformation is being driven, in other words, by the recalibration of clients’ (customers’) executive search expectations. 

During my executive candidate interviews one of the most critical questions I ask is a very simple one: “What do you want?”  From that one question, and during the process of subsequently clarifying its response in the most detailed fashion, I obtain the clearest possible vision of what this talented individual expects to achieve in his or her next executive role, career and lifetime, and also from our immediate relationship. 

As HR professionals in conversations with our external search partners, how often do we ask ourselves this same question, to clarify exactly what we want?  Because, after all, whether it’s a retainer, contingency or some hybrid fee structure, the least important thing we ought to be thinking about is the manner in which we’re going to pay.  What we expect from the relationship is much more critical. So here’s a short list of issues (questions) we should be pondering:

1. As an executive search customer, am I truly seeking a relationship, or do I just want to get this transaction done?  What’s the difference, really, for me personally, and for my organization? Have I considered the implications of my decision?  Have I communicated this with my stakeholders?  Have I been honest and transparent about this with the firm I’ve selected for this task?
2. How will I assess the value I receive from my executive search partner during the course of the search engagement?   Do I just want to recruit absolutely the right person for this role, or do I need something else? Can I clearly define and communicate what that “something else” is? Is my search partner capable of delivering on this expectation?  Will they want to deliver on this expectation?
3. If the search does not conclude with an actual placement, will this have been a total waste of time and money?  Under what circumstances could the search still be considered a success?  Will the other elements of my value expectation (as considered above) have been delivered? What does the future of our relationship look like with our search partner?
4. If the search ultimately proves that our internal candidate is really the best of the best after all (think Bank of America, December, 2009), will I and we (our organization) still have gotten what we wanted? How so? If not, why not – after all, the vacant chair has been filled? Has this been a positive experience with our partner firm, or a negative one?  What does the future of our partnership look like? 

Perhaps I’ll add more questions in future posts. For now let me conclude with some observations related to the accounting and legal professions.

All of the major and mid-market accounting firms in the U.S. today are very capable when it comes to preparing corporate tax returns and performing financial audits for their clients.  And they consider this their bread-and-butter business.  And how about law firms?  Certainly they can handle product liability lawsuits and the patent infringement issue that pops up from time to time.  But is this all that these professional service firms do for their clients?  What else do they offer, can they offer? What else are they doing to deliver value?   Is there some structure within which both they and their clients can derive the long-term, mutually beneficial value that both ultimately desire?  And how does this relate to your strategic executive recruiting game plan? 

Tune in next time for an introduction to the concept of trusted search partner.  So for now, that’s the way I see it. Adam Zak…

(Author note: this blog post was originally published last week on the new Human Capital Institute’s (HCI) Talent Acquisition Community blog.  I’ve been invited to write a guest posting which will appear on the HCI site every couple of weeks or so.  Please be sure to visit the HCI Web site for lots of other great articles related to talent acquisition and many other topics on the cutting-edge of HR thought leadership).

Yes, the rumor is true, and you can consider this your official confirmation. 

The War for Talent is about to come roaring back any time now.  And the C-suite team will tune in to its effects more rapidly and deeply than before, but this time unsure of any reasonable end in sight. So, HR leaders at all levels who’ve been advocating for their own “seat at the table” are about to get lots of opportunities to demonstrate their strategic thinking skills and their ability to deliver bottom-line business impact. 

I suggest this first quarter of the new decade as an opportune time to rethink and clarify the nature of HR’s outside executive recruiting partnerships.  In what ways are we receiving value from these relationships? How much net value, compared to our investment, are we getting? Are there ways in which we might improve upon both the nature and quality of that return?  Are we asking ourselves: What, really, are our expectations from those upon whom we rely to identify and procure new generations of talent for our organizations?

The word “relationship” itself is fraught with peril (see Dr. Phil, Elizabeth Gilbert), but in limiting ourselves to the context of executive search only, we should be able to steer clear of at least the big rocks in the river.  Or maybe  - in light of massively shifting global business and economic cycles; relentless demand for continuous performance improvement; constantly increasing pressure for innovation in products and services; accelerating obsolescence of managerial talent, and more  -  there is indeed one big rock we can’t ignore: Is our current executive search model broken (doesn’t work all that well) and unsustainable (can’t keep doing what we’ve been doing if we demand different results)?

Are we shopping for candidates by roaming the aisles at Macy’s, or do we focus on finding that unique and special gem at Harry Winston’s? Do we choose firms who can simply deliver a candidate as the need arises, or do we prefer working someone with whom we can share our long-term growth strategies? Someone who might then more prospectively cultivate the kind of talent we’ll want to entice with our value proposition a year or two down the road? Are we looking at our recruiters through the lens of purchasing or procurement, as just another one of the vendors in the supply chain? Or do we seek out dedicated professional relationships with specialists who invest their time and themselves in understanding our business and our issues?  And, despite my obvious personal bias, who is to say which of the choices we make about these relationships are the most appropriate for your organization, at your current point in your corporate life-cycle, and within the context of your industry and competitive situation?  More soon.

Tune in for part two of this post –  Recalibrate Your Executive Search Expectations

And that’s the way I see it.  Adam Zak

(Author note: this blog post was originally published this morning on the new Human Capital Institute’s (HCI) Talent Acquisition Community blog.  I’ve been invited to write a guest posting which will appear on the HCI site every couple of weeks or so.  Please be sure to visit the HCI Web site for lots of other great articles related to talent acquisition and many other topics on the cutting-edge of HR thought leadership).

Last week’s published numbers indicate a national unemployment rate approaching 9.5%.  Bad news, right? Or, maybe not as much as the the nightly news would have us all believe.

If you happen to be an executive or manager with strong Lean or Lean Sigma expertise (in other words, someone who can demonstrate the ability to make Operational Excellence happen in Corporate America), dust off that resume and get ready to take advantage of  the developing talent war for professionals just like you. Oh, and if you’ve also had a chance to help incorporate a Green focus into the Lean equation, then we should probably talk right away…

And the message for all you hiring executives -  CEOs, Presidents, and Vice Presidents of Human Resources  -  start planning now how you’ll go about filling your talent pipeline with the people who can bring these strategic and tactical principles, processes and techniques into your organization.  Because that’s what your competitors are doing right about now.

Way back in May, 2009 this ominous news from  BusinessWeek:  ”In the midst of the worst recession in a generation or more, with 13 million people unemployed, there are approximately 3 million jobs that employers are actively recruiting for but so far have been unable to fill. That’s more job openings than the entire population of Mississippi.”  No statistics, unfortunately, on how many of these unfilled positions were at the executive or managerial level. 

My own unscientific research project over the weekend, focusing on Lean Leadership vacancies, turned up these well-known corporate names in search of Manager, Director or Vice President level candidates:  Genzyme; Medtronic;  Tyco Electronics;  Florida Power & Light (FPL Group);  Siemens Energy;  Pentair Corp;  Textron Systems;  B/E Aerospace;  Johnson & Johnson;  Cooper Industries;  Accenture;  Merck;  Ecolab;  Baxter.  

And of course Marvin Windows & Doors, for whom we seek a new Vice President of Manufacturing.

Whether as a potential new job-seeker or prospective hiring executive, will you be ready for this rapidly-approaching and dramatic shift in the American executive recruiting picture ? 

I am.

This is Adam Zak, and that’s how I see it…