Executive decision

“Candidate management is changing,”says Tanner. “People are looking to have career coaching and their careers managed, just as sporting professionals manage their careers with an agent. This is currently happening in the US, where over time, recruitment consultants will become exclusive managers of candidates and their careers.”

Graham Hollebon, national director of Michael Page International, says there is particularly strong demand for a number of certain positions, including senior associates in private law firms, financial controllers and finance managers, CIOs and project directors across engineering industries.

More generally, he says there is strong demand for commercially astute executives with a proven ability to initiate positive change and develop motivated teams. Soft skills are an important requirement at the executive level, and effective leaders need to communicate their vision and strategy across the entire business, according to Hollebon. “Communication and interpersonal skills are critical in this respect.”

The candidate-tight market is also affecting how executive recruitment is conducted, according to Brian Cooper, general manager of Trinity. “Good candidates are very likely to have several opportunities on the table and there is an even greater need to act quickly and professionally to secure the right candidate,” he says.

“Employers need to be clear on the value proposition being offered and also perhaps be more flexible on the remuneration packages. Interestingly, our industry is also finding it hard to attract good people and the focus is more on identifying people with the right character, behaviour and business experience, rather than simply recycling.”

Furthermore, the tightening of candidate supply has seen the proliferation of different search practices, according to Peter Tulau, general manager, Chandler Macleod Executive. “These range from fossicking in databases on a contingent basis, sector mapping in the mid-market, full retained, confidential search where boutiques or individuals have domain knowledge and a track record, through to the global search firms with aggressive fee structures.”

In such a tight market with limited candidate supply, Tulau says organisations need to take the time to ensure they select a process that meets their needs and delivers the goods.

Executive recruitment pitfalls

Recruiting at the executive level can be an intensive and challenging process. Hollebon says a successful outcome is dependent on the HR department and the recruiter avoiding certain pitfalls along the way. “HR has a responsibility to obtain a detailed job specification and communicate this effectively to the executive recruiter. Equally, the recruiter has a responsibility to assign an adequately experienced consultant to work on senior assignments,” he says.

Tulau notes that, in many instances, the HR executive is appointing a peer or a superior in the senior executive recruitment – a process that can create its own tension and potentially negatively impact the selection process. HR executives can act as a blocker between the recruitment consultant and a clear brief from the ultimate decision maker, or enable the process with a clear brief which would not have otherwise eventuated, he says. Alternatively, they could be unclear about time to execution imperatives, which delays the recruitment process and causes quality candidates to evaporate, or prone to expediency when the going gets tough.

“In some instances the HR executive is in a bind between a disinterested or busy internal client and a capable recruitment consultant. This can create situations where quality candidates are ‘bought to the door’ but the organisation is unable to get them over the line,” he says. “The key is to make sure all parties understand their role in delivering the desired outcome and clearly define expectations in terms of role brief, sourcing methodology, fee structures and communication frequency and content.”

Another common pitfall in the executive recruitment process is thinking that the lowest price will get the best candidates, according to Tanner. “While some businesses are fee sensitive, an experienced HR professional will not be basing their recruitment decisions on price or fee alone. They should be looking for track record, reputation of the firm, market knowledge and experience of the consultant,” he says.

HR professionals need to find a recruitment consultant who knows their industry; who understands candidates’ needs and who they can trust to represent their company or brand, he adds. “In the current talent shortage, candidates need to be convinced as to why they should choose one company over another, so the recruitment consultant will play a very important part in this selling process to attract the best talent. If you don’t have the right recruitment consultant, it may impact on the quality of candidates prepared to work for your company.”

Not allowing the recruiter to meet with the line manager is a very common pitfall, according to Tanner. In order to provide the best consultative service, he says a recruitment consultant needs to understand the line manager’s style, their idiosyncrasies, how they work and what they want to achieve so that they can gather the right information and produce the best results.

Another common problem in the executive recruitment process is that employers don’t insist on a face-to-face assignment briefing, according to Cooper. “The face-to-face briefing and site or company familiarisation is critical if the employer and the recruiter hope to match candidates to organisation and position. Too many times we hear that the candidate was not what was asked for, but examination shows that in many cases the employer was not prepared to invest the time up front to ensure understanding,” he says.

Future trends

In the executive recruitment market itself, there will be a continued consolidation of providers as larger executive recruitment firms cement their position in the market by acquiring other boutique businesses, according to Tulau.

He also predicts an upswing in the rigour of selection as pressure increases on organisations to get it right as candidate supply continues to tighten. “Executive recruiters will have to be innovative in their approach to sourcing and selection so that they can secure the best talent on the market. HR professionals in organisations should expect executive recruiters to integrate their selection methodology with the culture of the business, the style of the manager that the candidate will report to, and the behavioural competencies of the individual to ensure high performance in the role,” he says.

Furthermore, the role of true executive search will become more prevalent as the market tightens. This in turn will drive executive salaries up and will increase focus on the development of performance-driven short-term and long-term incentive schemes, according to Tulau. “These will also be useful tools in retaining senior executives and preventing poaching from competitors,” he predicts.

On the candidate side, Tulau says they will have more choice in the future and it will be incumbent upon organisations to engineer their “compelling employment experience” argument with panache. With the unemployment rate at its lowest level in 30 years, Hollebon also predicts the attraction and retention of top talent will be a core challenge for employers in Australia.

“This is a trend facing organisations around the world and many Australian companies are already competing with employers in locations such as the UK and US,” he says. “We predict this trend will strengthen in the next 12 months, particularly for talented individuals at the executive level. Australian employers will have to offer competitive packages and incentives to compete on the world stage.”

As such, Hollebon says HR functions will work in closer partnership with their recruitment providers to ensure the incentives on offer are in line with market expectations.

Tanner has noted a trend whereby recruitment consultants are becoming candidate managers and career coaches. Executive recruiters will be working more closely and more effectively with candidates in order to build stronger loyalty, he says. Candidates are provided with regular market intelligence and to help them navigate their careers in the right direction to achieve their goals.

Senior executives are also looking for job sharing and part-time opportunities, Tanner adds. “In a candidate-short market with an ageing population where people are working until they are about 70 years of age, an increasing number of senior people only want to work part-time, often in a job share role. In HR, it is quite common for senior HR professionals to job share and/or work part-time.”

Due to the forecast continued candidate shortage, Cooper also says there will be a definite requirement to look to older and more experienced candidates to fill roles and to become more flexible in our approach to shorter working weeks, job share and flexible staffing to cater to individual needs.

Looking after your own

In the challenges of assisting in the executive recruitment process, HR professionals often neglect development of their own careers. Tanner says HR professionals need to focus on managing their own careers. “I believe that HR is probably one profession that is the worst at managing its own career. HR professionals need to be proactive in managing their career by talking to a good executive recruitment consultant and discuss what is happening in the market and with their own career. If your values don’t align with your company, either influence those values or look elsewhere,” he says.