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Should Clients use Multiple Recruiters on an Executive Search? The Myth of Multiples

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It happens all the time.  We receive a call from a client seeking a highly specialized executive talent to fill a crucial role and time is of the essence.  We ask the pertinent, thought provoking questions about the role, position, culture of the company, etc. and get a good idea of what skills and acuity are necessary for success.  We begin to talk about our search models and the client mentions that they want to send the search out to multiple recruiters to maximize the chances of finding a great talent.  And it’s the exact moment that we know that their search will be a challenge – mostly because they don’t understand how executive search works.

It seems to make sense if you aren’t familiar with how true executive search works.  The client is trying to maximize their reach into the talent pool and cover as much ground as possible.  And if one recruiter can bring them 10 talents to consider, it should make sense that 5 recruiters will bring 50 talents, right?  Exactly wrong.

Using multiple recruiters may make sense when you are searching for 20 individual contributor roles but with the innovations in digital technology and social media over the past few years clients are often searching for talent with a blend of traditional and state-of-the-art skills.  Roles are becoming less siloed and are crossing over boundaries between departments and disciplines.  As such, the traditional methods of reaching into the executive talent pool are less effective because the specificity of the role dictates that the pool itself is very small.  And having multiple recruiters with varying levels of ability reaching into that pool will most likely work against the client’s goals.

Here are some potential dangers in using multiple recruiters on a high level search:

Minimal Investment = Minimal Return – More often than not a client interested in using multiple recruiters will want to do so on a contingent/pay for performance basis.  If you’re utilizing multiple contingent recruiters, you’re demonstrating a low level of investment in each one and in the importance of your open role, and you should expect a low level of investment in return.

When you enlist multiple recruiters, you turn your search into a competition. If you have numerous search firms competing with each other for a small talent base, are they truly going to conduct their due diligence in ensuring quality or are they going to try to get a candidate, any candidate, in as quickly as possible?  As they rush forward to provide you with resumes to consider, their discernment, attention to detail, and due diligence are likely to suffer – and so will you.  Using multiple recruiters turns speed into the primary goal and quality will be negatively affected – the ability to truly vet someone takes time and to neglect it will not add value to an organization.

One of our clients who tried using multiple recruiters said “They sent me dozens of marginal or completely inappropriate talent, claiming each one was a ‘Rock Star’”.  You get what you pay for and you pay for what you get.  And with high level Executive Searches this can be disastrous and result in…

The Poisoned Pool – High level executive talent can actually be turned away from your position if they encounter an inexperienced recruiter who is unable to maintain an intelligent conversation about your company and role.  Now multiply that by five and you begin to understand the dangers of using multiple recruiters.

At the executive level, candidates want to have an intelligent conversation with a search consultant about the goals of the potential organization, the role and how it interfaces with the organization, what the organization is trying to accomplish by hiring for this role and how the role adds real value.

We’ve spoken with numerous passive candidates over the years and have received a great deal of feedback on how they are approached by recruiters and why they might consider an opportunity proffered from one consultant and not another.  The feedback has been consistent; if the consultant cannot partake in an intelligent dialogue about the key points cited above, it reflects back on the client company.

Executive level talent want to know that the C suite is committed to the search process and that the search firm is working closely with the executive team.  Retaining a single firm to work on an executive search shows the talent audience that the organization values talent in general and the open role specifically.  If multiple recruiters are working on one role, the initial strategy looks disjointed and poorly thought out, your company appears disorganized or desperate, and an opportunity to convert that talent into an interested candidate may be missed.

Talent Ownership – Multiple recruiters tapping into a smaller talent pool will inevitably bring up the issue of ‘ownership’.  The client may be presented with the same talent from two different sources and now have to deal with the added complication of who sourced the talent.  Sometimes it’s an honest mistake and sometimes there’s an attempt to defraud.  One recruiter may have seen an online resume or profile and simply forwarded it without even speaking to the talent whereas another recruiter may have had extensive conversation with that same person.  Sometimes (although not usually with executive level) the talent will mistakenly think they are doubling their efforts to get the attention of the hiring manager.  And while you may initially feel that you don’t care who brought the talent, you just want them presented, your legal department may not feel the same way.  You’re more likely to see the same person coming in from different channels and that can cause possible legal complications and certain headaches, further delaying the search.

Going with the Familiar – It’s not uncommon for clients who have built relationships with recruiters who have assisted them with lower level roles to want to give those recruiters “a shot” at making an Executive placement.  And while that loyalty is admirable, it can also be counterproductive and potentially dangerous to your employer brand.  Again it goes back to the level of the recruiter involved.

Executive Search begins with thorough research into the needs of the client to develop an ideal talent profile, blending the multivariate skills, experience, leadership and compensation for the position.  An extensive examination of the competitive landscape follows as well as the crafting of a message to engage and entice passive talent to respond.  It takes skill and experience to find, engage, and vet someone who truly embraces the goals of the organization and is completely excited about its mission, culture and values.

Having an earnest but less experienced recruiter speak to an executive level talent may make you feel better but can result in the Poisoned Pool as noted above.  Your loyalty should be to your company’s success, not to your own familiarity and comfort.

 

The end result is that utilizing multiple recruiters on a search will cause more problems than it solves.  Your best bet is to choose a single search partner to work with and build a relationship over time.  Check their track record in your space/industry and conduct a “Search” for search partner.

 
 

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