To ensure the best possible results, you have to hire the best competitive candidates. At least, that’s how most of the competitive companies do most of the time. Competitive environment of headhunting supposes that a company or a recruiting manager aims to recruit the best possible candidate for the vacancy. Having in mind that as the term suggests this is a highly competitive process, let’s break it into stages to have a better understanding of it.
Also known as executive recruitment/search, headhunting goes beyond HR automation processes. In other words, recruiting managers and HR professionals apply the “now and here” approach to solve current (and often urgent) business problems. Though the process often can go beyond usual recruiting steps, it also can be systemized and optimized. Following bullet-points will help you to survive and overcome market competitiveness with the best competitive candidates.
1. Making a list/shortlist
Before stressing out about the process, if you lay down and take a deep breath, you may figure out that there are a couple of candidates’ list in your brain already. The first step that successful recruiting managers and competitive companies do is the accumulation of the entire data. Doesn’t matter whether the source is your personal network or a list of candidates from a particular source, firstly make sure you have all possible options under your hand.
2. Determining
After you have the names of all possible candidates, it is time for market competitiveness. In the competitive environment of headhunting to fight for the best competitive candidates the time is more expensive than gold, thus one better have already prepared a shortlist of candidates who he/she can make an offer. To help yourself with that, you must beforehand determine the objectives and goals of the company/team and understand how exactly the potential employee is going to help or contribute to the team/company. That said, the competitive environment of headhunting is competitive due to the lack of time, and having a clear vision can help you to save precious time. To learn more about how you can optimize your time and strategy, also take a look at the article explaining employee retention 10 best strategies.
3. Research
When there is already a shortlist of candidates to reach, a recruiter/company must conduct a thorough research regarding each candidate even before approaching him/her. This may include steps from thoroughly looking at CV to gaining feedback from the candidate’s current colleagues. Talking about CV, there are easy-to-use tricks that as a job seeker you can apply on your resume to make it stand out from the rest from the market competitiveness point of view. As a recruiter, you can look at the article as a good example of a resume and filter out certain candidates based on it.
4. Filtration
When there is already a shortlist of candidates to reach, a recruiter/company must conduct a thorough research regarding each candidate even before approaching him/her. In the competitive environment of headhunting, competitive candidates tend to have resumes that are quite outstanding and from the first sight they all tend to qualify for the job. This serves as a barrier, as it is always hard two choose from two almost equally good candidates. But filters and questions such as “How much should I pay my employee?” come to help. Having in mind the team’s/company’s vision, time/money efficiency aspects, and more filters, it is possible to aim right at the bull’s eye. If you think that you are that candidate with an outstanding resume, then there are options waiting for you, especially in the fields of tech jobs.
5. Promotion
After analyzing the market competitiveness and setting clear objectives, it’s time for the promotion. Competitive candidates look for competitive companies and offers. The good approach always pays off. And in most cases, the candidate’s decision is predetermined even before the main negotiation process. That’s the power of the company’s brand power promotion. This applies to individuals as well. Setting the right mood of subordination and communication motivates potential candidates similarly, as it does to already employed workers.
6. Offer
The preparation of an appealing offer is a theme for a separate article. It contains a number of aspects one must follow in order to come up with the best and the smoothest communication that is hard to refuse. Or, one can simply trust the professionals to do that, especially in narrow fields like the tech industry. However, before jumping straight to the offer, make sure you introduce (or he/she is aware) about the company’s corporate culture, values, and visions. In the competitive environment of headhunting, you may get only one shot for the candidate you want to hire. But if you do it right, that’s enough. In the case of an offer, there are several things to consider.
• The context – Every candidate is different, thus the dynamics between a candidate and a company varies as well. Always consider that, and make your offers having in mind specifics of the context.
• Approach – Competitive candidates have competitive offers. Never forget that, and having in mind that they most probably have other offers as well, better have a prepared strategy with a Plan B.
• Offer – after having the context and right strategy/approach, the offer itself will come naturally during the conversation/call.
So, if you want to survive in a competitive environment of headhunting there are 2 ways – you either prepare yourself, or trust someone who is already prepared.
