David E. Perry

Cheat Sheet / Updated 04-11-2022

These days, strong leadership is more important than ever. Companies with great leaders significantly outperform their peers. At the same time, globalization, attrition, and changing demographics have led to a scarcity of executive talent. As a result, the competition for top leadership talent is fierce. If you want to ensure your company's survival by hiring great leaders, you'll need some effective way to find them, hire them, and ensure they stick around.

Article / Updated 06-18-2019

Hiring the wrong executive will cost you, it really will cost you! For example, in the six months after Marissa Mayer took over as CEO of Yahoo!, the company's market value increased $17 billion. Around the same time, JCPenney, guided by new CEO Ron Johnson, saw sales decline by $4.3 billion. Regardless of what comes next for either Mayer or Johnson, there's never been a clearer example of getting an executive hire right versus getting it wrong. Looking at the costs: On the low side, you're looking at the executive's compensation — say, a few hundred thousand dollars. On the high side, that number is, well, higher. Dr. Brad Smart, author of Top Grading (How to Hire, Coach, and Keep A Players), has been quoted as saying, "It is painful and costly to hire the wrong person. Based on our studies the average cost of a mis-hire can be six times base salary for a sales rep, 15 times base salary for a manager, and as much as 27 times base salary for an executive." In other words, suppose you hire an executive who earns $250,000 per year, and things don't work out. According to Smart, that could be a $6,750,000 mistake! It could be even worse than that. Consider this story about NBA star Stephen Curry. In 2009, the Golden State Warriors used their first draft pick to select Curry, a scrappy point guard out of Davidson College. Over the next few years, Curry would energize an organization that hadn't won a championship since 1975. In 2013, Curry, who had long been a member of Nike's stable of athletes, was due to re-sign with that company. Things quickly went off the rails, however. According to Ethan Sherwood Strauss of ESPN: The pitch meeting, according to Steph's father Dell, who was present, kicked off with one Nike official accidentally addressing Stephen as "Steph-on," the moniker, of course, of Steve Urkel's alter ego in Family Matters. "I heard some people pronounce his name wrong before," says Dell Curry. "I wasn't surprised. I was surprised that I didn't get a correction." It got worse from there. A PowerPoint slide featured Kevin Durant's name, presumably left on by accident, presumably residue from repurposed materials. "I stopped paying attention after that," Dell says. Though Dell resolved to "keep a poker face," throughout the entirety of the pitch, the decision to leave Nike was in the works. Maybe that Nike official just had a bad day. But more likely, he was incompetent. If that was in fact the case, it seems fair to assume that Nike's HR department failed to vet him properly during the hiring process. In other words, he was the wrong hire — and this proved costly indeed. That's because Curry, instead of signing with Nike, opted for Under Armour — a move that analysts say could result in as much as a $14 billion increase in that company's value. That's billion, with a B. So to sum up: Nike (probably) made a lousy hire. That lousy hire botched the deal with Curry (who, incidentally, led his team to an NBA championship two years later). Curry went elsewhere — and now Nike's out on a potential $14 billion boost to its bottom line. If hiring the wrong person is bad, not hiring the right person can be disastrous. Here's an example. In the summer of 2009, Brian Acton, a former engineering executive at Yahoo!, sought a new position at Facebook. Now, you would think that Facebook, a technology company that's barely a decade old but is already a global brand with a market cap of $363 billion, would employ recruiters with super-human powers — able to spot high-performing individuals from miles away, that kind of thing. But in this case, Facebook blew it. It rejected Acton. Shortly thereafter, Acton partnered with another former Yahoo! engineer, Jan Koum, to develop WhatsApp, a messaging application that enables users to exchange messages on their mobile devices without having to pay for SMS. Five years later, Acton and Koum sold WhatsApp for a whopping $22 billion. Guess who bought it? That's right. Facebook. Bad hires can even bring down a business. Take Enron, which claimed revenues of nearly $111 billion in 2000 only to declare bankruptcy the very next year and eventually dissolve altogether. You could easily make the case that Enron's demise was due ultimately to poor hiring. After all, it was people — including senior leaders — who engaged in the fraudulent accounting activities that ultimately brought about not only Enron's collapse, but the collapse of the company that audited it, Arthur Andersen. Poof! Two corporate giants — once thought of as great places to work — gone. Less than a decade later, history repeated itself when shady practices, ultimately brought about through poor hiring, destroyed such venerable firms as Lehman Brothers, Bear Sterns, AIG, and Washington Mutual. The fresh thinking of a skilled leader can have a dramatic impact on your organization's bottom line. Hire a star, and he'll unleash innovation, empower employees, and generate wealth for your company. Choose poorly, and as you've seen, you could suffer serious financial penalties — or even the destruction of your entire organization.

Article / Updated 06-18-2019

One way to source candidates is to place job ads on your company intranet, on online job boards, and in print publications. But if that ad is lousy, it could do your search more harm than good. A-players respond to challenges — the opportunity to have an impact — not the typical laundry lists of "desired skills and responsibilities," which appear all too frequently in job ads. Following are two examples of job ads — one bad one, and one that makes the grade. Bad job ad Here's an example of a bad job ad: Executive Vice President, Engineering We are a new electronics start-up. Looking for engineers with experience in electrical power systems, aircraft design, drone flight engineering, active control, systems integration, and machine learning. Job Type: Full-time Required Education: Master's Required Experience: 5 years engineering This ad — well, it stinks. It contains nothing even remotely enticing. Opening statements like "We are a new electronics start-up" only undermine the ad — start-ups are by definition "new." There's barely any detail — certainly not enough for anyone to rule himself in or out. Bottom line? This ad typifies the generic cattle calls that agencies use to cull résumés from the Internet, and that executives are loath to respond because they're so used to there not being a real job behind it. Will it garner a big response? Yes. But not by anyone who is actually qualified. Instead, it will attract hundreds or perhaps even thousands of people who think they might be qualified and have nothing to lose. This is a recruiter's worst nightmare: receiving thousands of responses from unqualified people. Attention-grabbing ad Here's an example of a great ad. It describes the role with precision, and would be of interest only to those who are qualified. That's exactly what you want when you run an ad: responses from only those people who meet the requirements exactly. Vice President Engineering Job Description Vice President, Engineering (Electronics) Location: Los Angeles, CA, or San Francisco, CA Complete relocation package. All inquiries will be held in the strictest of confidence. Our client is an award-winning organization with a rich history of providing technically advanced instrumentation to municipal and industrial markets. In business for 40 years, this company has experienced years of steady growth and has gained a stellar reputation in its industry. This organization is a worldwide leader for the industrial and environmental markets. Its primary market is in the environmental arena. Customers include municipalities, industry, and government environmental groups. The main industrial markets are in heavy industry, including pulp and paper, chemicals, mining, textile, steel, petroleum, and food-processing industries. In 2014, our client joined forces with another global leader in engineered solutions whose energy measurement products are distributed internationally and widely used in hydronic heating and cooling systems. This is a unique opportunity in that the successful candidate will be personally mentored by the founder for the purpose of eventually taking over the reins of the organization upon his retirement. We are now conducting immediate interviews, and that's where you come in. Attractions and Successes The company is an employer of choice as it has almost no employee turnover and high employee loyalty. This organization's products use cutting-edge technology. The company has experienced years of steady growth and there is now enormous opportunity for substantial growth. Our client has a strong reputation for quality products and exceptional service. They are agile. The company creates all products in-house, and is fast-moving, flexible, and robust — capable of rapid response to opportunities. The organization has strong reseller and distribution-channel relationships. The culture at our client's company is driven based on success factors. It is a positive culture that understands the potential and opportunity in front of them, and is ready to embrace change. The Position You will play a key role in new product-development efforts as well as implementing improvements to existing products, the conceptualizing and day-to-day management of simultaneous projects, delivering manufacturable designs to agreed specifications within time and budget constraints, while fostering innovative solutions to customer needs. You will use your background in product development to lead product-engineering efforts, which include product design, hardware and software product management, supplier interactions, and product verification and validation activities. You will build on the company's excellent reputation for exceptional product quality by capturing the essence of the company history and culture to apply industry trends and business savvy going forward. You must have a history of strong leadership, deep practical engineering knowledge, and a proven track record for timely project delivery, project management, cost control, and customer satisfaction. In essence, you will Oversee and be actively involved with the R&D, Engineering, and Product Development teams to ensure the company's products and service remain cutting edge Lead, participate in, or support the following product development activities: Concept, planning, design, and execution stages of major new products or product enhancements Risk assessment Prototyping and testing concept designs and initial engineering builds Pilot production Design reviews Design verification board: hardware/software testing, product validation, and usability testing Provide product leadership during pre-production, including strategic planning for product development activities, to create technology for existing and expanded markets/offerings Provide leadership for the engineering team Plan and coordinate the long-term objectives and standards of performance for the department Lead new product-development projects from concept through production launch Lead productivity efforts and implement improvements to existing products Collaborate with cross-functional teams to research and understand consumer and customer wants/needs, benchmark competitive products, and develop innovative products that are cost-effective and meet those wants/needs Develop and optimize product costs to maximize value and competitiveness Lead manufacturing trials, testing, measurements, and related documentation from initial trials through production qualification Evaluate results using statistical analysis and propose/lead changes to product design, tooling, and/or process Conduct engineering evaluation and tests to validate the robustness and proper performance of new products Evaluate product non-conformances and recommend design modifications Research design options and perform experiments to determine potential design feasibility Identify, integrate, and refine technologies and products that can be used to create and enhance the company's products to satisfy requirements Apply technical principles and concepts to product designs Provide technical support for solving product quality problems as needed Work on special projects as assigned, such as competitive analysis and productivity projects in collaboration with the VP, Sales, and Marketing Be a student of current industry trends, ensuring that the company maintains and expands its technology leadership position Specialized Knowledge, Skills, or Abilities Work well in a cross-functional environment Make quick, reasoned engineering decisions and drive processes to conclusion Reduce broad requirements into a structured engineering solution Conceptualize and think strategically Develop strategies for enhancing communication, problem solving, teamwork, and innovation across functions Work with others to develop integrated strategies for improving engineering processes and operational efficiencies Understand customer requirements and translate them into solutions Focus on and manage key initiatives that balance both short- and long-term objectives Communicate effectively with senior management and customers (written and verbal) Manage the engineering division's operating and capital budgets Our Ideal Candidate Our client is seeking a "business leader" who will bring knowledge and creativity to the position, has practical business sense, and can provide the discipline to drive results, as this role is designated to succeed the founder, who has retired. You're an impact player. You're a leader who is comfortable playing a central role in helping the business translate its requirements into practical solutions to address the market. Obviously, you're good under pressure. You can formulate workable strategies, establish priorities, and then lead the team to deliver against them. You're a problem solver capable of running autonomously with a demonstrated ability to get the job done and work with others. Qualifications and Core Competencies A university degree in electrical engineering Strong business acumen and applied experience in the instrumentation or technology environment 10+ years of industry engineering experience Experience in developing and supporting products through their entire life cycle The desire to drive accountability across project teams and functional team members Competence in electronic hardware and software design The ability to manage diverse projects of varying complexities simultaneously The ability to focus on efficiency of production, as well as establish production reporting procedures A proven record of creativity and a sense of passion for product design The ability to apply technical principles and concepts to product designs Experience with industrial and municipal markets an asset Experience in ultrasonic technologies an asset Your Personality Characteristics You're a strong leader who can act as a catalyst for continuous improvement with a dedicated group of employees. You are unusually adept at building partnerships within the organization and can nurture relationships with outside service providers. In summary, you: Are in it for the long haul Have a high level of integrity Are more engineer than manager or an exceptional engineer with management capability (you have a strong hands-on engineering attitude) Want to be in a smaller environment that values and encourages employees who accept challenges Have a high degree of mechanical aptitude (hands-on) Are product development/engineering focused Are accountable, with a strong "owner's" mentality Are trustworthy, passionate, and decisive Are profit and loss savvy, with business maturity Are service oriented and customer focused Appreciate the culture and history of the company Are entrepreneurial Have a professional demeanor Energize people to achieve personal and organizational success Are an independent thinker, willing to take risks Foster collaborative working environments where people actively share information, rely on each other's expertise, deliver on commitments, and trust in each other Are a creative problem solver who fixes problems, not just identifies them Next Steps Let's talk. Managing Partner David Perry is leading the search with Mark Haluska. All inquiries and discussions are strictly confidential until you decide you're interested in the opportunity. And you need not have a current résumé prepared to have a preliminary discussion with us. To get started, please contact David Perry (xxx-xxx-xxxx or [email protected]) or Mark Haluska (xxx-xxx-xxxx or [email protected]). For more information on Perry-Martel International, Inc., please visit our website at www.perrymartel.com at your convenience.

Article / Updated 05-16-2017

Your first search stop when recruiting executives — especially for a C-suite hire — is LinkedIn, a social network for professionals that boasts more than 480 million professional profiles, with more posted every second. Why LinkedIn? Simple. Unlike other social media sites such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat, and so on, LinkedIn is designed specifically for the sharing of professional information. True, most people don't visit LinkedIn or update their profiles anywhere near as often as they do on other social media sites, but that's okay. All you're looking for at this juncture is static data — in other words, information on people's profile pages. To expedite your search, LinkedIn offers an Advanced People Search feature. Notice that the Advanced People Search dialog box (shown) contains several fields. You may be tempted to just fill in all these fields at once and click Search, but resist that temptation! Otherwise, if you get zero results, you won't have any way of knowing which parameter is the bottleneck. And, you may accidentally eliminate people who may, in fact, be good matches. Instead, your goal is to find all potential candidates in a systematic manner. Follow these steps: Direct your web browser to LinkedIn and click the Advanced link next to the search box at the top of the page. To identify all possible CFOs on the site, type CFO in the Title field. But don't stop there. One by one, add other relevant titles and terms to describe the position — for example, chief financial officer or VP finance. Separate each of these with the OR Boolean operator and press Enter or Return when you're finished. Here's an example of what your search string might look like: CFO OR "chief financial officer" OR VP finance OR EVP finance OR "vice president finance" OR "chief finance officer" OR finance director OR financial director Why the quotation marks around chief financial officer, vice president finance, and chief finance officer? Simple. You're searching for those exact phrases; adding quotes ensures Google treats each phrase as one expression. Omitting the quotation marks around chief financial officer, for example, would result in hits that include chief+financial, chief+officer, and financial+officer, which is not what you're looking for. (No quotes are needed around the other multi-word phrases because those are limited to two words only.) Wondering how we came up with the additional titles and terms? By nosing around LinkedIn. During other searches for a CFO, we perused the results to see if any contained other relevant terms. You can do the same for your searches. On the right side of the screen, LinkedIn displays the results of your query, with links to profiles of individuals who match your search criteria. On the left is a narrow pane, shown in the following figure, that contains the same set of fields as before. You'll enter additional information in these fields to refine your results. In the field that appears immediately below the Title field, choose Current from the list. From the Location drop-down list, select Located In or Near. In the Country field, choose United States. To narrow your results to CFOs that have successfully raised money and have worked at a start-up, try typing the following search string in the Keywords field, leaving the Title, Location, and Country fields as they are: raised (funding OR funds OR money) (start-up OR start-ups) Notice the parentheses in the search string. On LinkedIn, you can add parentheses around AND or OR statements to combine terms. In this example, using the parentheses enables you to search for the word raised plus the word fund, funds, or money, as well as the word start-up or start-ups, in one stroke. You can also place quotation marks around multiple terms to find an exact match. For example, you might type "technology company" to return profiles that contain that exact phrase. This reduces the number of profiles shown significantly. Specify New York City as the location. To do so, type 10001 in the Postal Code field. Then choose 25 mi (40 km) from the Within drop-down list. This will limit your results even further. At this point, you could just screen those 19 profiles one by one and contact the ones that make the cut. But before you do, ask the following questions:. If you answered yes to any of these questions, your work is not done. It's time to drill down further. Could there be a CFO on LinkedIn who raised money for a start-up but did not mention that in his profile? Could there be a CFO on LinkedIn who lives in or commutes to New York but does not include a New York postal code in her profile? Could there be a CFO on LinkedIn who does not currently have a job? Could there be a CFO who does not have a LinkedIn profile? Change the drop-down list below the Title field from Current to Past Not Current. In this way, you can find people who were, say, CFOs in the past but now serve as officers in finance. Or, change the drop-down list to Current or Past to see everyone who has served as a CFO, both now and in the past. Play around with the terms in the Keywords field to loosen up the search. Delete the start-up keywords. After all, it's possible someone mentioned she raised money without specifying that it was for a start-up. Your search string should look like this: raised (funding OR funds OR money) Maybe a candidate in New York chose not to state his postal code, but did indicate his location in the text on his profile. To find these people, delete the entry in the Postal Code field. Then alter the search string in the Keywords field to read as follows: raised (funding OR funds OR money) (New York OR NY) For those who want to become LinkedIn search experts, Josef has developed a special talent-sourcing methodology. He calls it the LinkedIn Onion Search.

Article / Updated 05-16-2017

These days, top executive recruiting firms scour countless sources for outstanding candidates — both active and passive. To achieve this, many firms employ two types of investigators: Researchers: These professionals focus on targeted industries, companies, and functional positions, compiling competitive intelligence from a multitude of sources. Sourcers: These investigators, who rose to prominence in the early 2000s, use the phone, Internet, or both to find detailed bios or résumés of candidates who fit the position profile. So, what's the difference? Put it this way: Researchers can source, but not all sourcers can do full-spectrum research, including competitive intelligence. In our experience, sourcers tend to stick with the phone or Internet to locate potential candidates. It's not that executive recruiters are unable to perform the research and sourcing functions. In fact, some recruiters — particularly those who have been in the business for 20 years or more and remember the old ways of sourcing — handle all three roles: researching, sourcing, and recruiting. Others, however, believe these activities may not be the best use of their time. For example, the Perry-Martel firm employs both researchers and sourcers — often, several of each on a single project. These professionals work in support of the firm's recruiters, who handle all client-facing activities, including interviews. One more thing: Researchers and sourcers source, and recruiters recruit. In other words, once it's time to make a live connection with a targeted executive, the recruiter takes over.

Article / Updated 05-16-2017

Research is often laborious — even tedious. But it's through research — and only through research — that you can tightly target your prospects. Research lets you hone your message and deliver it to exactly the right person. And, thanks to research, you can speak knowledgeably about that person, his industries, and his challenges, enabling you to emphasize the positive aspects of your opportunity. In this way, you develop a relationship with the prospect. You become a trusted advisor — someone he'll happily refer to others. Suppose you wanted to take a dream vacation. You wouldn't just walk into a busy airport, amble up to the counter, and say, "I want to go on my dream vacation. Could I have a ticket please?" If you did, you'd likely wind up with nothing more than a baffled stare from the ticket agent (and maybe a cavity search by the TSA). No, instead, you would think about what kind of trip you wanted to take — a beach trip, a mountain vacation, a visit to a big city — and then do a bit of research to decide where to go. Well, recruiting top executives is a lot like taking a dream vacation. You don't just buy a ticket and hope it all works out. You need to do a bit of research first. In-depth research may be time-consuming upfront. But in the end, this level of research will save you time. Why? Because in addition to helping you identify qualified candidates, research helps you to weed out unqualified ones — before you waste precious hours interviewing them. (As an added bonus, this also helps you limit the number of people who know you're hiring, which helps you maintain a higher level of confidentiality.) Look, hope is all well and good. But it's so unpredictable! You need a more reliable way to efficiently and effectively find just the right person for the job — and research is the only way to achieve that. Like time-management guru Alan Lakein says, "Planning is about bringing the future into the present so that you can do something about it now." When an executive recruiting effort fails, it's usually because of a lack of good research. No question, good research gives you the ultimate competitive advantage!

Article / Updated 05-16-2017

Nine times out of ten, you need the candidate way more than the candidate needs you. After all, she probably already has a job — and one she likes. So you don't want to blow it by conducting poor interviews. That's why you write an interview guide: to usher you through the interview stage. Prospects form impressions of the company with each interaction — especially interviews. One misstep could sour a prospect on the opportunity. For example, no senior executive would tolerate a generic "Tell me about yourself" during an interview. Candidates expect you to have done your homework and to know everything about them before the interview. That's why the interview guide is so important! When interviewing senior executives, there should be no off-the-cuff questions! So, what is an interview guide? Simple. It's a document that contains several questions that relate to the competencies required for the role. You'll use the job order and job description to write these questions, many of which will be unique to the role. Candidates' answers to these questions will reveal their qualifications, traits, characteristics, and behavioral tendencies, improving your ability to identify and hire the right executive for the role. The interview guide should be so thorough that an inexperienced interviewer would be able to pass as a pro and be able to assess the answers provided by the interviewee. The interview guide is an internal document. It is not for public consumption. Only those involved in the interview process — the ultimate hiring manager, search chair, search committee, and recruiters (internal and external) — should have access to this document. The candidate should not have access to this document, however. You must create a unique interview guide for each specific position. Although some questions will be more generic, designed to assess leadership style and management skills, others will be specific to the role being filled. Contents of the interview guide Often, the interview process occurs in several stages. That means you'll need specific questions for each stage. These include the following: Basic qualifying questions to gauge the candidate's skill and experience at a macro level, to be asked by phone Questions to tease out the confidential candidate brief Recruiter screening questions Initial face-to-face questions Search chair questions Ultimate hiring authority questions Search committee questions As you might expect, interview questions tend to get deeper, more specific, more personal, and more pointed the farther along you are in the interview process. Some will be behavioral, while others will be situational. During the final stages of the process, these questions will help you cull the truly excellent candidates from the merely great ones. By the end of the process, the final candidate may have answered as many as 50 specific questions, which in turn generate dozens of follow-ups. Each successive step in the interview process will prompt new questions. Sample questions While it's true that each interview guide will be unique, there are some standard questions that apply whether you're hiring someone in engineering, sales, marketing, finance, operations, administration, or what have you. These questions primarily pertain to past performance, as well as leadership and management style: To what key factors do you attribute your career success to date? What do you consider to be some of your most outstanding qualities? What is your greatest strength or asset? In what areas have others been particularly complimentary about your abilities? Why? During past performance reviews, what have your superiors consistently cited as your major assets? Why? From a performance standpoint, what do you consider to be your best attributes? If I were to speak with two or three of your peers, in what areas would they describe you as particularly effective? Regarding this position, in what areas do you feel you would be a particularly strong performer? Why? Describe your three greatest strengths and tell me how you used them to bring about improvements in your job. What two or three major accomplishments best demonstrate your key strengths? Interview guides can take days to compose. The intricate weaving of questions is best left to an experienced recruiter or HR professional.

Article / Updated 05-16-2017

You can use a confidential candidate brief (CCB) instead of a resume to quickly and unobtrusively obtain an accurate picture of a prospect's qualifications. Indeed, the CCB essentially acts as the first interview — only better. With the CCB, the prospect can take her time to answer your questions thoughtfully and with as much detail and color as she chooses. This will give you significant insight into her character. The CCB also enables prospects to screen themselves into (or out of) the search, basically doing all the grunt work for you! As an added bonus, the process of generating the CCB leaves the prospect with the impression that the organization knows exactly what it's looking for to fill the position and, perhaps more important, is considerate of her time. If the prospect isn't a good fit or decides not to proceed, at the very least, thanks to the CCB, you'll have left her with a great impression — which means she'll certainly take your calls in the future! Building the form for a confidential candidate brief The CCB form contains four main sections: Contact information: Here, ask for the prospect's personal email address and his phone numbers (his direct line at work, his cellphone number, and his home phone number). Also ask what the best time to contact him during the day is. Current employment: In this section, ask for the candidate's current title and the dates of employment at his current organization. If he's left that position, ask why. Position-related questions: This is it — the meat of the CCB. This section features several questions designed to determine whether the prospect is a good fit for the role. The questions should derive from the information in the position profile. They should be easy to read, conversational, and presented in order of importance. They can be behavioral in nature — that is, they can ask the candidate to describe a time in the past when he displayed certain behaviors. (Think: "Tell me about a time when. . . .") Or, they might be situational, in which case the interviewer presents a problem or situation and asks the candidate how he would handle it. (Think: "What would you do if. . . .") It's best to omit questions pertaining to personal interests. Ditto questions designed to gauge "fit." These will be addressed later, in a face-to-face interview. Questions of a legal nature: Here's where you dot your is and cross your ts, legally speaking. Specifically, you want to cover the following: The status of any noncompete agreements in effect The status of any nondisclosure agreements in effect Whether he has the legal right to work in the country where the position is located The status of any other current employment negotiations Permission to keep his file in your database, with a guarantee of privacy Permission to share his information with the search committee The CCB form should be 100 percent fluff-free. Otherwise, you'll find that most executives — whose time is at a premium — will simply dismiss the exercise. A sample confidential candidate brief for a CFO To help you wrap your head around the whole CCB thing, here's a sample CCB form — in this case, for a CFO. Why a CFO? Because every company has one, and most CFO roles are pretty much the same regardless of company size, whether it's public or private, and irrespective of industry. Compared to, say, the CEO role, or the VP of sales or marketing, there's not much variation among CFO positions. Reviewing a confidential candidate brief When the prospect returns the CCB form, you'll want to review his answers. Here's what you want to find out: Are the candidate's answers relevant? Are they concise? Did the candidate spell-check his answers? Can the candidate communicate effectively in writing? How thoughtful were the candidate's answers? Do the candidate's answers make it seem like he was in a hurry to plow through the form, giving the questions little thought? Does it seem like the candidate cut and pasted his answers from another document? Or does it seem like he really tried to answer your questions? Did the candidate provide proprietary information that should have remained confidential? If a candidate shares proprietary information, it's a huge red flag. In fact, it's so bad, it should automatically disqualify the candidate from consideration. After all, what's to stop him from sharing your proprietary information in the future? The answers to these questions will give you a good idea of whether to proceed with this candidate.

Article / Updated 05-16-2017

The job description for an open executive position for which you are recruiting explains what the position entails and what type of person would be a good fit. It's about what you need. No offense, but it's not all about you and your needs. You also have to consider what your potential candidates might want. Why? Because unlike other types of capital — natural capital, manufactured capital, financial capital, and social capital — human capital in a free society has a say in whether you use it. That is, no matter how attractive a candidate may be to you, if you want to employ her, she can — and often will — say no. That's where the position profile comes in. In effect, the position profile is a marketing tool. It's like a corporate brochure. The mission of the position profile is to catch the eye of top candidates. Think of it this way: If your job description is a humble silver sedan, then your position profile is a flashy red Ferrari. The position profile answers one key question: What's in it for me? When you provide prospective candidates with the information they need to answer this question, you're guaranteed greater success in attracting your ideal hire. In fact, we've seen position profiles foster a swell of interest in jobs that were less appealing than a bran muffin. Creating a position profile demonstrates to potential candidates that your organization is serious; that your executive team has taken the time to paint a full, accurate picture of the ideal candidate; and most important, that you're not just winging it. So, how long should the position profile be? And what should it contain? The position profile should be brief — five to seven pages. Any longer, and you'll lose your audience. As for what it should contain, here's a rundown: Cover page and opening statement: The cover page should feature the company's logo and the job title, along with an attention-grabbing graphic that conveys the essence of the company or the role. The opening statement's job is to tout your company as a great place to work. To that end, it contains five to seven paragraphs that describe the company, including its vision, mission, and products or services. It also provides pertinent stats, such as the number of employees, annual sales, industry accolades, and whatnot, and notes the position of the company within its industry. Above all else, the opening statement kindles curiosity. This is a tall order — which is why you should seek the help of a marketing professional for this part of the position profile. You might be tempted to include links to more information on the overview page. Don't. All that does is distract the prospective hire. If you want to provide that type of info in the position profile, do it on the last page. Position description and job details: The position description is a tightly worded — yet compelling — overview of the position, including its title, major responsibilities, and desired outcomes. This piece of prose should pique the prospect's curiosity and provide enough info to qualify (or disqualify) him from consideration straight off. The job details offer more depth as to the roles, responsibilities, and objectives. As you write this piece, keep the job description handy. You'll want to refer to it often to fill in these details. If you want, the job details can include a list of the future hire's peers and an org chart for his department or division. Or, you can keep this info private until you're down to your final selection. To make the position profile easier to read, use bullet points in the job details section (and anywhere else that makes sense). People automatically assume the first line they read is the most significant, so put the most noteworthy point at the top and list the rest in order of importance — especially if it contains more than five bullets. Specialized knowledge, skills, and abilities: Here's where you list any qualifications that are absolutely mandatory, along with those that are merely preferred. This list should include specific skills, years of experience, certifications, licenses, education level, and technical proficiencies. The laundry list of skills often present in job postings on job boards are designed to cast a wide net — which is exactly what you don't want here. These catch-all descriptions do more harm than good. The ideal candidate: This section, which may run a full page, cites the qualifications and core competencies required for the role. It should also note the desired personality traits and soft skills — think communication, work ethic, attitude, and values. Finally, it should list any accomplishments the ideal candidate will have achieved. These should be consistent with what you might expect from someone who's held a similar role at a competitor. When citing accomplishments that pertain to growth, skip the dollar signs and go with percentages. For example, suppose someone oversaw a $5 million increase in sales. If the organization had only $2 million to begin with, that would be a big deal. But if it was a multi-billion-dollar company, then not so much. Conveying growth as percentages more accurately conveys the importance of the accomplishment. The depiction of the ideal candidate should be a bit of a stretch — something the ideal candidate would view as the next step in her career. Ultimately, the purpose of this section is to show the prospective candidate why she is qualified (or not) — and, for the eminently qualified, to see herself in the role. Next steps: This section is for prospective hires who'd like to learn more about how to proceed. It contains detailed contact information, including a dedicated phone number and email address, as well as the best times to get hold of you or the recruiter responsible. One thing the section should not contain: a call for a résumé. Why? Simple. For most executives, the idea of updating their résumés is about as enticing as a root canal. In fact, they hate it so much that if they have to do it, they'll probably skip contacting you altogether — especially if they're happily employed elsewhere. Remove this blockage by inviting them to engage in a friendly conversation without supplying a résumé first. Frequently asked questions: You can use the frequently asked questions section — which is optional — to anticipate what questions a prospective hire might have about the position and organization and answer them. (Don't go too crazy — four or five questions and answers will do.) For example, you might include compensation information here. You can also use this section to provide links to the company website, newsletter, annual report, or whatever else you think might pique a candidate's interest. As you've seen, the position profile should use clear language and be neither too descriptive nor too vague. But there's something else: a good position profile should reflect the company's character and brand. That means employing a vocabulary and writing style that matches your company's culture. For example, if your business is a start-up with a very distinct ethos, you want to communicate that ethos through the words you use, the feeling your writing evokes, and the visual appearance of the profile. If that means straying from the norm, so be it. In the end, your goal is to attract people who are right for the position and the company. If your organization has a successful and widely read blog, consider using a similar style of writing in the position profile.

Article / Updated 05-16-2017

What, pray tell, is a SWOT analysis? Simply put, it's a way to assess an organization's strengths and weaknesses (the internal factors that affect your business), as well as opportunities and threats (the external factors that play a role in your success or failure), and to compare them to those of their competitors. In the context of executive recruitment, competitors might mean direct competitors, indirect competitors, suppliers, and so on. After all, every organization competes for talent at the executive level! Strengths: Strengths are the things that make an organization better than its competitors. Examples of strengths include popular products or services, an established customer base, a golden reputation in the marketplace, strong management, qualified employees, ownership of patents and trademarks, or anything else that sets the company apart from the competition. Strengths should always be gauged against those of a competitor. Something you do just to keep up with the competition is not a strength. It's a necessity. Weaknesses: These are the areas in which a company does not perform well, making it vulnerable to aggressive competitors or negative market forces. Weaknesses might include poor management, employee problems, high turnover, lack of marketing and sales expertise, lack of capital, bad location, poor products or services, a damaged reputation, and so on. These conditions make it more difficult to attract the right candidates, so it's imperative to identify them now. Opportunities: Opportunities are things that could make your business stronger, more enduring, or more profitable — for example, the emergence of new markets or the expansion of old ones; possible mergers, acquisitions, or strategic alliances; a competitor going out of business or leaving the marketplace; or the availability of a desired employee. Threats: Threats are the things that could adversely affect a business. Threats might include changing marketplace conditions, rising company debt, cash-flow problems, the entrance of a strong competitor in the market, competitors with lower prices, possible laws or taxes that may negatively affect the company's profits, or strategic partners going out of business. Performing a SWOT analysis will reveal how the organization rates within its industry. This information can then be used to identify the ways in which the position you seek to fill is superior (or not) to similar roles in competing companies, and how best to structure the job description and position profile to attract the talent you need. It'll also help you anticipate any concerns that prospective candidates may have about the organization, and to negotiate from a position of knowledge when you find the person you want to hire. Ultimately, the purpose of a SWOT analysis is to help companies build on their strengths, minimize or correct their weaknesses, leverage opportunities, and formulate a plan to deal with potential threats. Performing a SWOT analysis is no small task. Usually, it's done in conjunction with the search chair and maybe the search committee. (If the role you're filling is of the super-senior variety, you might want to do it with the board instead.) The good news? There's a chance that other departments will have already done a lot of the heavy lifting for you. Marketing and sales often conduct SWOT analyses to ensure they understand how the company is perceived in the market. And odds are, the finance group has a business analyst on staff who can help you out, too. How do you perform a SWOT analysis? To start, grab a piece of paper and draw one vertical line and one horizontal line on it to divide it into four quadrants or squares. In the top-left square, write Strengths. In the top-right square, right Weaknesses. In the bottom-left square, write Opportunities. Finally, write Threats in the remaining square. Next, detail the company's strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats in the appropriate squares. There will be obvious ones, of course — like, "The company is the market leader for product x." But you'll also want to try to uncover SWOTs that are a bit less apparent. To assess the organization's weaknesses, it helps to do a little sniffing around to find out what its employees say about it. Good places to start include Glassdoor, PayScale, Vault, The Muse, Comparably, and Blind. You can also try Google and the Better Business Bureau if the organization is large enough. Finally, here are some general questions to spark discussion: What about each of the company's main competitors stands out? What does the organization offer that its competitors do not? What doesn't the organization offer that its competitors do? What is the company's rank or position in the industry? What about its competitors? How long has the organization been in operation? What about its competitors? How is compensation — salary, bonuses, options, equity — determined at the company and at its competitors? Are the organization's benefits better than, comparable to, or worse than those offered by its competitors? Are the organization's advancement opportunities better than, comparable to, or worse than its competitors? What is the organization's forecasted growth? What about its competitors? Is the company in expansion mode? What about its competitors? How is the company's core operation trending? What about its competitors? How valuable is the company's credibility? What about its competitors? What was the company's revenue percentage increase or decrease for the previous year? What about its competitors? After you have filled in all four squares, you can use this information to devise strategies to leverage your strengths, minimize your weaknesses, and reduce your vulnerabilities and potential threats to recruit exactly the right person. Prospective candidates will also want to know which departments in the company are strong and which are weak.