The Nine Factors that Attract the Best Candidates – Passive or Active

Executive recruitment has become tougher these days, especially attracting the more elusive Generation X and Y employees that everyone seems to want and who seem to be in scarcity. There are nine factors that will help to attract the most suitable candidates for any role. They are:

1. Job match. Is it the right job for them right now? Will it motivate and stretch them? If not, forget it.

2. Opportunities for future learning and growth. Will the person have the chance to get onto a fast track if they perform well?

3. Making an impact. The work must be important, so that the person feels that they would be making an impact. People will take lesser roles or a lower wage if they feel they’re part of something bigger.

4. The job stretch. The job needs to offer immediate stretch. For a manager, this could be a bigger team or a more critical project. For another team member, this could be working on a new technology or learning new skills. For an executive, it is perhaps the chance to work in a new market or tackle a new challenge.

5. Having a mentor. This is possibly the most important and critical factor. Working for a mentor and true leader is a key factor in a top performer’s decision list. The mentor must be active in the financial recruiting process: Pretty dumb if they weren’t involved in selecting their future team member—shows they are not likely to be a real mentor.

6. Work/life balance. You need to prove that it is reasonable AND that your company lives by it—get your staff, their future peers involved in the process so they can talk about it. What they say about this key issue means a lot more than what management says. Quality of life is increasingly important, especially to Generation X and Y. Always keep in mind that “balance” means different things to different people.

7. The company culture. As part of this you should address your unusual approaches to work. Non-traditional benefits are what will make you unique in your industry.

8. The quality of the team. Future co-workers are a critical aspect of on-the-job success and satisfaction. Emphasise the entire team during the hiring process.

9. The company’s prospects and strategy. Even if a company is not on an ‘employer of choice list’, it must still demonstrate that it is a great organisation with a bright future. If this particular job can be tied to a major company strategy, even better.

Surprised to see no mention of the salary and benefits? Get the other nine spot on, and how much you pay rapidly becomes irrelevant. Remind applicants that salary rarely contributes to job satisfaction—but the good ones already know.

Defining what makes a Great Person: The Little Known Truth About Star Employees

How many times has a recruiter told you that they have “good employees” for you? And how many times have you found that to actually be true? The next time a financial services recruitment firm (who knows little about your company or your job) offers to send you a “great employee”, ask them to send you a unicorn instead (at least you'll get some publicity). You see, both the unicorn and the good employee out of context are mythical beasts.

Let's take two employees. Joe Bloggs: aged 38, keen surfer, been with the firm 15 years, popular with the staff, leaves work at three, has no interest in further training, has never been promoted but is content where he is and never wants to be promoted; and Sam Slick: an employee of the same age, who started in accounts, and through tertiary study, determination and focus, has been promoted five times and is now seriously headed towards CEO. Who is the great employee? Most would say Sam, but take a closer look.

Recruit Sam Slick toa firm that does not match his values, doing work he has no interest in, and—for all his degrees, drive and talent—watch him flounder. Leave Joe Bloggs in his position, where he displays ongoing loyalty and long-term commitment, mentors junior staff, integrates the team, and contributes to stability and growth through his extensive general and technical knowledge and sheer experience, and you have in him one of the best employees in your firm.

It's all about fit. (Or matching, or positioning - whatever you want to call it.) Fit works both ways. For both the employer and the employee. Most firms make the mistake of focusing on what they want and not placing an equal focus on what the employee needs and wants, but employees these days are looking closely at What’s In It For Me? (WIIFM). Have the needs of one being met without this being true for the needs of the other party, and you won't have a good employee, no matter how talented or driven they are.

The simple truth is this: most people can be good employees if they are in the right job and the right company at the right stage in their career. You must BEWARE of the financial services recruitment consultant who tells you otherwise, and tries to convince you they have “great people” on their books.

So why are highly talented people in the wrong job not still great? They are very talented after all. However, whether someone is “great” is always determined by:

· The particular job.

· Whether it fits the particular stage of their career and their life (yes, even if they are extraordinarily talented.)

So how do these talented people get into the wrong job?

· They focus on money and not other important factors.

· They were pushed into it by a financial services recruitment consultant who was keen to “sell” them to the company, regardless of fit.

So how do you ensure you get that good employee who is talented, but who is also a great fit for you at this time?

Two tips:

1. Learn the dark secrets of the executive recruitment industry. Understand its flaws and don’t get sucked in. Watch out for the majority of finance recruiters who will sell people just to get commissions without any genuine concern for a good match. An absolute must is to only deal with financial services recruiters who specialise in your industry area: just like employees, finance recruiters are only good when they are doing the work they are good at, in the field they know.

2. Stop waffling: Sell your position and keep the job spec to one page—no longer. All talented people have choices, particularly those with scarce skills (the 'gold collar' or 'knowledge' workers). You have to sell your position to attract the best, so you have to make them want the job. Keep the Position Description to one page. List specs in point form, in order of priority and key, keep it clear and concise. Many people hide meaning in a lot of words: be clear so that you quickly eliminate those you don't want as much as attract those you do. You can keep your longer Position Description in your files to use later and for performance reviews

Next time you're looking for the great employee, really think about what your firm wants, and ask yourself if this really fits with what the applicant wants. Consider:

· Does the position match with their talents?

· Does it fit with their lifestyle?

· Is their personality a good fit for this job / company?

· Is this job good for this candidate at this point in their career?

A truly good fit means matching both sides. Don’t try to squeeze that talented square applicant into a round hole. Find an alternative, round candidate for a round hole. This will greatly increase the likelihood of a productive, satisfying, long-term working relationship for both employer and employee (and don’t forget to smile at Joe the next time he passes you with that surfboard!).