Are you really satisfying who you need to?

Are your hiring manager REALLY satisfied with the job you do?  follow this blog postposted by Sarah White on June 15, 2009

Last night, I attended my 29th 311 concert.  While the anticipation (I love anticipating something, often more than the actual event), songs, band members and concert itself seemed so familiar after all these years, there was one thing that really stood out to me.  We are getting older.  

The drive down was a mix of conversation about what our favorite venues/shows have been over the years (I am partial to the 1998 Grand Rapids show in a tiny venue when first got to meet them after a show),  where others were at that weren’t able to make it with us this year, and work.  I know, I said work – 5 years ago, the thought wouldn’t have crossed our minds – but now there are budgets to manage, hiring decisions to be made, marketing strategies to be planned.  It just always is there for all of us.  

Let me start (the part you may actually care about) by saying that I am the only recruiting industry person in our group of friends and I am in a group of what I refer to as “hiring managers who don’t think we (recruiters) actually do anything or provide value”.  One of those guys by chance read my blog last week and wanted to learn more about it – potentially for the sales/marketing future.  About 30 seconds in, the eyes glared over and he lost interest.  Again – I think it is amazing, but not everyone else is on board yet (I think back to video resumes – but I will get to next week).   

The conversation then quickly turned to why do you (by you I assume they mean recruiters in general since I am no longer actively recruiting) do various things in the process to make the hiring managers life so difficult. Another one chimed in asking why they never seemed to be listened to.  While you can say these are isolated cases, from my last 4 years in consulting, I can tell you those struggles seem to effect companies across the board in terms of size, revenue, and ‘staying power’.

Personally, I know that my goal was always to be a partner to my hiring managers – to give them the support & guidance they may need to help them make the right decision.  It was not to cause issues or put up roadblocks in the process.  My goal was always doing what was in the best long term interest of the department, manager and organization.  I am sure many of you feel the same but – are you hiring managers really satisfied or are they tolerating the process you have in place?

If you want to really have a true partnership with your hiring managers, you need to make sure that they have had and continue to have a say in what you are doing and how the process is working for them.  In the same fashion that you are (or should be) continually improving your process from the candidates perspective, your hiring managers deserve the same.  Can you honestly say you really know how your hiring manager feels about the process?  Do you really care? 

If you don’t care – don’t bother going any further.  Save yourself the extra 2 minutes in your day and get back to whatever it is that you were doing.

If you do care (and this should be almost everyone in the corporate setting) then there are a few quick and simple things that you can do without having to create a big drama filled world of surveys and focus groups and ugghhh….

(I will forwarn you that this will potentially seem obvious, but I have also found that there seems to be a general lack of common sense the more overworked we are and the longer things have been broken)

1. Talk to your hiring managers about the type of person they are looking for in the role – not just the skills and background.  What type of EI matters in this role?  How will the ideal person effect the balance of the team – what is currently lacking?  
2. Talk to your hiring managers.  That is it.  Even if you don’t have an opening with them, every once in a while shoot an email (you can have some pre-templated up), pick up a phone and just say hi, or (for those of you with the option)  just go by their office or cube.  This should be done with no other motives or agenda other than getting to know them (respectfully) as a colleague, or dare I say it, eventually a work friend.   This goes a long way in continuing to build a relationship of trust and respect.
3. Ask them directly if the process is working for them.  Just like with everything else in life, you can’t possible learn if you don’t have the cahones to ask the question.  The worst thing that will happen is they say “no, it sucks” and you realize that you have an issue.  Don’t take their thoughts on the process personal – it (normally) will have nothing to do with you.  Hiring managers like to have a say in things – sometimes a small little fix can make the relationship and hiring process better all around.  
4. Ask if they are comfortable with who they get to see in the process.  Especially if you (or they) are new to your company OR you are new to work with each other.  Do they need to see more until they are comfortable, do they feel like you are wasting their time with too many candidates?  Are the candidates you are giving them REALLY what they are looking for in the person?
5. Look at your metrics – are you sending over more than 2-3 people to be interviewed? (It could mean a lack of trust or a bad judge of quality people during the screen process – both should be addressed) Are you really providing them with the value that an “expert” should be providing them with?

Again, this doesn’t seem like rocket science, but when I listen over and over to hiring managers complaining about what are relatively simple fixes or larger scale, process related problems.   These quick fixes can give you an overview of what is going on with your hiring managers and let you know if you may have a larger problem to address.

Tags: 311, concerts, hiring managers, partnerships, process, recruiting