Have a friend who had been interviewing for a head of recruiting position with a well-known company; like Michael Homula, he is a TPR – this would be his first corporate role. During the 15 plus hours of interviewing, he was driving on all cylinders, discussing strategy, sourcing, tactics, metrics, etc.
He was recently told that if he had in-house experience, he’d have been a shoe-in. Yes, after 15 hours of interviews it purportedly came down to that. I’m sure there are other reasons – perhaps a single person didn’t like him and this company is one of those 100% consensus types…you know them, paralysis by analysis. Still, it’s pretty screwy if you ask me.
Since all great recruiters know that sales are rarely made on the first call, I suggested that – and he agreed – he write a letter to his new boss and re-sell. He plans on calling early next week.
I don’t view this company as one in need of a Fab Five Recruiting Makeover (hmmm, another idea for a series); there’s just so much low-hanging fruit available for the picking. A recent book by Michael Levine entitled, Broken Windows, Broken Business, points out that by not fixing the small things quickly – like that broken window – customers will notice and the business will suffer; not fixing these quickly also reinforces that larger, more complex problems exist. Oh, and broken windows can also be broken employees, processes, etc.
Great recruiters enjoy picking low hanging fruit not because of the instant gratification but because they know that there’s much more work ahead. Don’t be afraid companies – hire these people!
The Recruiting Inferno 