
Recruitment is all about reading between the lines. Even the most detailed job description acts as a foundation for finding the right new employee. For the past 4 years, Andrew Gallagher has built strong relationships with his clients because he has learned to anticipate their needs before they do. Recruiting relationships are built on listening to the client’s wants as well as interpreting their needs today and down the road. Andrew sat down to talk about how his recruiting strategy has advanced over the past few years and how it has built trust with his clients.
What does it mean to you to anticipate a client’s needs before they realize what they need in a new employee?
Typically, our clients come to us with a great understanding of their job needs at an execution level. Yet, they find it hard to articulate the workflow and work-culture experience that they are seeking in a new employee. As recruiters, we are expected to vet applicants for hands-on skills. This means that much of the interview process after my initial call is about the hiring manager finding a ‘great colleague’. The hands-on skills are arguably the easier to deal with, the black-and-white part of the search process. However, grasping our client’s culture and communication process in way that allows us to introduce them to the right applicants for the job is more nuanced. Finding the right fit for the job is not as easy as having hands-on skills.
More often than not, I can anticipate that a candidate coming from a similar industry, from a direct competitor, or working in a similar process / work culture will do much better than someone who doesn’t have any common foundation with the hiring manager.
How do you extract this type of hidden information from hiring managers?
It’s incredibly important that I research and understand their industry, competitors, and supporting products that employees in their industry have experience with. It’s also critical that I get a sense of who the company is at an employee level and an organizational level. I ask about paid time off, work-life balance, and remote work options. I ask what time they log on and off for the day. These may seem like details between a new employee and boss, but realistically, they help me gauge the organizational culture and who will transition well into this type of company.
Does an applicant who has worked in a similar industry, job, or work environment always put them in a better position to be hired?
I’d be remiss to ignore the fact that every industry has so many facets and unspoken rules. When you bring an employee into your company who has never worked within the industry, they are forced into a ‘crash course’ into the industry in parallel with transitioning to a new job and working with new colleagues.
The time from hiring a new employee to seeing their value within the organization’s strategy can have significant ramp up time due to the learning curve. One of the biggest issues with this learning curve is that most of our clients come to us with time-sensitive jobs.
Typically, a position has been open for some time and they need someone to find the best person now. When you hire someone from a similar industry, both clients and I have a greater sense of security in knowing that the new employee will be able to ramp up and start contributing from day one. When I do introduce applicants who are from the same industry, we largely eliminate the possibility that a new employee will leave in three months because this industry isn’t for me. While everyone has the right to say that a position isn’t for them, the possibility of having to re-hire for a job isn’t ideal. By seeking out industry veterans, we mitigate some of the risk.
Are new employees more confident when they start in a position with similar experience?
Absolutely. Transitioning to a new role with similar workflow or industry experiences gives them a sense of ownership in their career. I like to explain to applicants that growing their skill set within a certain industry’s parameters helps to demonstrate strategic career growth, therefore making them more marketable for future opportunities. It’s a win-win. The client gets an employee they’re confident about and the new employee feels confident about a (life-changing!) career move.
If a particular industry is small or new and you can’t find a candidate who has had previous similar experience, what do you do to set the candidate up for success?
When I can’t find a candidate that comes from the same industry, I look for employees in industries that have similar ways of operating. Many have comparable regulation processes, data environments, or backend architecture. Or, they have parallel connections that will help an employee excel in my client’s industry. I’m there to draw connections from my candidate’s experience to the client’s open role. You don’t always need to find a candidate within the same industry to draw these connections. From there, I’m able to explain the client’s position on the market, their competitors, and the general mindset that exists within the company and industry as a whole. Simply drawing connections and providing relevant information give candidates the ability to see how they can be successful within a particular job.