Mya’s Recruitment Tips:

How Companies Miss The Boat in Recruiting Good Managers…

By Mya Borgman

You are welcome to forward this to your friends and associates.

Finding good managers and executives is vital to the success of any business. This is not limited exclusively to the executive suite—recruiting good employees is the lifeblood of a flourishing company.

If you thought that Dell Computer’s success was due to a superior computer you may want to rethink that. Dell, one of the most successful computer companies of the past decade constantly faces the challenge of “What to do to stay successful?” The answer: In a memo sent out by Chairman and CEO Michael Dell it listed the company's top 10 priorities—and the number-one priority was people. Of interest, Dell found that often, the strongest executive candidates aren't even looking for a new position.  Their Human Resource department’s mission statement is: "Relentlessly recruit and hire world-class people." 

There are several factors that make the recruitment of good people more difficult than acquiring other resources.  This is particularly true for small and medium sized businesses especially those in large metropolitan markets. You know they are out there—but how to find them? These factors influence this:

1. New recruitment of managers and executives is a 24/7 activity. If you wait until you have a critical management position vacant you are already behind your competitors.
2. Advertising is often used to announce that an executive position is open and candidates are invited to send in resumes. However, advertising is expensive (especially display ads in the business section) and unless the advertising is broad and repeated, it will not cover a lot of ground.
3. In some cases, positions open are not even advertised. Some businesses rely on word of mouth or networking within a small circle of associates.
4. From a working executive point of view, he or she might be interested in a new position but are not necessarily scanning the newspapers or checking job search web sites.
5. It is a highly competitive recruitment environment.
6. For someone who currently has a job, they are going to be very careful whom they communicate to about the fact that they are looking for a new job. They may have the fear of upset or retaliation from their current employer.
7. When people leave a company they often stay in the same industry or sector, thus they could easily end up with a competitor.
8. Recruitment is like buying a house in a hot market—if you are slow making your offer, you are out of luck—someone faster or more persistent will land that rising star.

So it is somewhat akin to a cat and mouse game. Employers are looking for good people but not necessarily broadcasting it broadly. Employees are looking for good companies but are not necessarily visible. You know that person is out there somewhere but the trick is how to find them. While this might be my biased opinion, the solution is expanding the recruitment process to include a professional recruiter.

A major advantage of utilizing a professional recruiter is that they are a confidential and professional “middle person” in the process. They can find applicants that a company will never, never find for the reasons given above. Good employees will likely talk to an independent professional recruiter as they will be discrete. Also, the recruiter develops a rapport with candidates, which allows them to collect even more information about a candidate. A candidate will likely be more open with a professional recruiter than they might be with a prospective employer as there is no pressure of a job interview. This, in turn, results in better match making—a win, win for both employees and employers.

Don’t miss the boat on recruiting good managers by limiting your recruitment efforts. Increase your opportunities of finding that ideal manager to help you expand your business by using a professional recruiter.

Mya Borgman is the Founder and President of The People Link, a professional recruitment agency with a unique personal touch. We are committed to finding the ideal job match between employers and job seekers. Take advantage of our hard earned experience gained with the successful placement of over 1,000 candidates. The most frequently filled positions include office and administration, computer technicians and programmers, engineers, office managers and senior executives. Inquiries from both employers and job seekers are held in absolute confidence and treated with discretion. Mya can be reached at (818) 890-9998 or by email at mya@thepeoplelink.com.  

© Copyright 2004 Mya Borgman. All Rights Reserved.