Authentic, consistent and credible
Recruitment doesn’t need to be difficult, yet so many hiring managers put much energy into proving that the process hasn’t worked. It’s more than 25 years since I collected my first SHL certificate and began the extraordinary journey that is objective assessment. Extraordinary because so many hiring managers dislike, what they perceive as, not being able to apply their own spin to recruitment decision-making. They pay homage to the corporate guideline, then claim that the only way to establish team fit is through endless meetings (often covering the same ground). Really? Right now, such time-consuming antics simply won’t cut it, especially if there’s insistence on face to face rather than virtual meetings.
Don’t get me wrong, over the years I’ve had many overwhelming successes. I’ve designed assessment processes which not only evaluate individual strengths and organisational fit but give senior leaders the latitude they crave to influence outcomes. Together we’ve made some fabulous recruitment decisions and engaged talented individuals who’ve flourished. We’ve demonstrated that great hires transcend even the trickiest of sectors, proving candidate durability and skills transferability.
Recently my focus has been on encouraging positivity, reflecting on progress and creating “brand magic”, in other words enhancing business reputation with some positive candidate experience hacks. Yet while I continue to inspire learning through self-reflection my sense is that speed of activity remains the over-whelming excuse for poor communications. All too often businesses seem to ignore the advice of the search firms they’ve engaged or the recruiters they’ve hired. Candidates as well as third party specialists simply don’t get updated and sometimes this leads to inaccurate messaging. No doubt, you’ve guessed my next point that this makes self-reflection and positivity all the more challenging.
I’m proud to say that I love the work that I do. I’m delighted that my clients indulge my creativity and allow me to add value to their resourcing strategies and recruitment approach. I’m pleased that I offer credible solutions to business clients and consistent support to individual clients, many of whom are grappling with the highs and lows of the current market. We have the best conversations, although all too often it’s not me they’re wanting to hear from. When we take even the shortest time out from the busy day to day to reflect on our progress, it’s often the things which we haven’t had time for or the outcomes we haven’t heard about which weigh heaviest.
It’s easy to make a difference and communicating isn’t just about good news stories. It’s time to take a more positive stance and engage with your audience. Be part of their solution and join me in promoting:
Authenticity – to what extent does the process you’ve designed truly reflect your business brand, your values and the reputation you crave?
Consistency – to what extent is everyone (in-house, third parties) engaged in the process “on message” and what could you do differently to improve communications?
Credibility – to what extent are the recruitment messages believable?
