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If you’re reading this article, then you know how often leadership hires fall short of expectations.
Let’s face it: a lot of leadership hires suck!
And the salt in the wound is that businesses often pay an arm and a leg for leaders that completely fail.
Companies can easily spend tens of thousands on internal costs with a search, or even six figures with a third party.
And yet 50% of all new executives fail on the job within 18 months.
That’s not right!
Part of the problem is that companies overlook the value offered by the RIGHT search partner.
This article breaks down four ways a quality search partner can help you make better leadership placements while also saving you money.
An Executive Search Partner Can Expand Your Talent Pool
Any respectable company can get some candidates to the table via referrals or applicants. But any experienced recruiter can tell you that oftentimes, the best candidates are passive.
However, engaging passive candidates and getting them seriously interested in your position is a lot easier said than done.
An experienced, proven search partner will help you identify the talent you really need for an executive position, then draw passive candidates in that meet your criteria.
A great search partner not only has a broad network of executives to draw on, but also has mastered the art of communicating your company’s value proposition.
Finally, they have the expertise to engage in a way that compels candidates to give your opportunity the time of day. When it comes to busy executives, this last part is easily overlooked but vitally important.
The Right Executive Search Partner is an Invaluable Consultant
One thing a lot of people miss about executive search partners is that they can provide incredible value in helping you clarify what you really need from an open position.
An expert search partner provides a crucial perspective honed from years of experience in leadership placements across various industries. They have the ability and confidence to check your assumptions about what you really do or don’t need for a given position.
A lot of companies make the mistake of creating a candidate profile that is too narrow based on the last successful leader in a role.
They will ask thought-provoking questions that help you see the forest for the trees and gain a better understanding of what you really need and should expect from a candidate.
Furthermore, they won’t be afraid to be honest with you if they uncover any unrealistic expectations that would otherwise set you up for failure from day one.
Using an Internal Team or External Search Partner
An internal hiring Center of Excellence or Center of Expertise can be a good way to cut costs. It’s easy to assume that an internal team knows your culture and leaders best, and as a result is the best personnel to handle your search.
These are all valid points, but the other side of the coin is that you miss out on objectivity. An executive search partner that is not compensated by commission brings a level of objectivity and credibility to the table that benefits all parties.
Candidates are far more likely to trust an executive search partner to give them the full story on an organization – warts and all. Likewise, your internal team is likely going to be rewarded for filling the search in a timely fashion.
A search partner can focus on making a quality hire that works out for candidate and client alike for the long-term.
A Search Partner Reduces Unnecessary Expenses
Finding the right leader for your executive team is invaluable. There’s no question there. But this is hardly the time for wasted dollars, and there’s no reason for you to pay any more than you should on a search.
A proven search partner has the expertise and knowledge to conduct a search in the most efficient manner possible. They will be able to engage and place an executive faster than 99% of internal teams with limited experience in this line of work.
Likewise, fees can vary dramatically based on different external search partners. Retained firms can go as high as 35% of base salary and require a steep upfront fee.
Here at Qualigence, we encourage businesses to think twice about why you should pay a company thousands of dollars in fees before you’ve even received anything of value!
We bill clients hourly for our time and expertise and cap every search at a maximum fee of 19% of base salary. However, we often complete searches before we hit that cap, resulting in fees as low as 12%.
In brief, we eliminate the unnecessary fees because we believe it shouldn’t break the bank to find the right leadership.
Leadership is Everything
The right leadership is everything – especially in today’s competitive, fast-paced business world. If you’re looking to find new leadership in the near future, carefully consider the processes you will use to identify, engage and place talent. It could mean the difference between your organization’s success or failure!
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