CIO —
By Jane Howze
With a new year recently begun, it is time for all of us to reassess the past year with an eye to having 2006 be better. Some of you will determine that it may be time to change positions. Others may not, but January always proves to be one of the months executives are most likely to receive calls from search firms.
After working in the retained search industry for nearly 25 years, I have reviewed more than one million resumes, interviewed more than 10,000 people and spoken to enough candidates to fill the Rose Bowl. Going through the recruiting process with a search firm is an art and skill. One gets better with practice and one never forgets——it is like riding a bicycle. The following suggestions may help your next ride be a smoother one.
- Don’t confuse the different types of search firms. Retained search firms are hired by a corporation to conduct a process to identify and recruit executives with a particular skill set. Contingency firms are paid when a company hires their candidate. Thus, recognize that if retained search consultants spoke with everyone looking for a new position, they would not be able to focus on their paying clients. It is actually rare for a person to submit a resume to a retained firm and the firm to have a search in progress at that time that would be a fit. The best way to approach a retained search firm, assuming there is no personal relationship there, is to send a resume with a cover letter to the effect: “I would appreciate your adding my resume to your database in case you are retained for a search that would match with my qualifications.”
The corollary to rule one is to remember that retained search firms are not career counselors for individuals looking for new positions. Their obligations are to their corporate client.
The second corollary to rule one is not to call a retained search firm and ask them to find your brother-in-law a job in Muncie, Indiana. That is not what retained search firms do.
- Don’t argue. If you get the “Dear John” call saying that the search firm’s client does not see you as the best fit, don’t argue with the search consultant. It is not easy for him or her either. Handle the rejection with grace and a thank you for being presented as a candidate.
- Don’t circumvent the search firm. Respect the search process. In hiring a search firm, a client has basically “outsourced” the search. It is not usually a good strategy for the candidate to call the client directly. Many clients believe that it shows impatience, entitlement and a refusal to follow rules.
- Don’t be impatient with the process. Remember that search consultants are not the candidate’s advocate. They are seeking the best person for their client. Many people make the mistake of thinking that if they call the search firm daily, then the search firm will press the client to move faster. It is fine to follow up with the search firm after the client interview but avoid calling for daily or weekly updates. Clients have their own cadence and a search firm’s goal is not to get a person a job but to facilitate the client’s process. On the other hand, return the search firm’s calls once you are a candidate. If you decide to remove yourself from consideration, do so quickly and graciously with the intent to cause as little bad will from the client and search firm as possible.
- Don’t negotiate like it’s 1999. Companies are not going to give you a CEO’s salary, a $100,000 sign-on bonus, a million options and the company plane. Those days are over. Make rational requests when it is time to negotiate salary. If the company meets most of your requests, be reasonable. Don’t make new requests. Otherwise you might be holding your breath for the next dot-com boom.
