The success of any company is heavily reliant on the competence of its C-level staff—the Chief Executive Officer (CEO), the Chief Financial Officer (CFO), the Chief Operating Officer (COO), and, depending on the structure of the organization, possibly a few other titles in the same tier.

Executive Recruiters Often Fail

For executive recruiters, the task of finding the right talent, therefore, assumes a special urgency. A bad hire in the executive ranks will likely lead to rippling effects that could cause irreparable harm to the client.

Recruiters definitely need to bring their A-game when it comes to landing C-suite talent—but often this just doesn’t happen. Failure is quite common; let’s take this opportunity to pinpoint some of the reasons for recruitment misadventure in the executive ranks.

Not Enough Time – We’ve mentioned before that it is incumbent on recruiters to ensure that the process of finding, interviewing, and onboarding candidates do not drag on unnecessarily. Everything should proceed with reasonable speed. However, it’s also important to keep in mind that C-level recruiting isn’t the same as filling—for example—a line management position.

The fact is that there isn’t a massive pool of qualified candidates to draw from when you’re recruiting for a CFO or COO positions, especially if you’re looking for really first-rate talent. Try to give yourself time to do it right—think in terms of months, not weeks.

Inability to Understand the Client’s Needs – This is another one of those pieces of advice that sound too obvious to mention, but getting a solid grasp of what your client is looking for isn’t as simple as it might seem. Executive recruiting involves the ability to assess temperament and soft skills. Can the candidate fit in with the company’s existing culture? How do they communicate with others?

Executive Recruiting

We’re far away from words-per-minute typing speed and other easily quantifiable skill assessments, and you need to develop a good feel for the client’s spoken and unspoken requirements, as well as your candidates’ aptitude for accommodating them.

Failure to Communicate with Candidates – All candidates should be dealt with in a professional manner, but, with executive talent, it’s important to be able to go the extra mile to provide them with the attentive treatment to which they’re accustomed. This means you should be willing to answer emails promptly and, maybe, take a call from a candidate at an inconvenient time.

Remember: Really qualified candidates at this level tend not to be without gainful employment for long. That’s why you need mobile apps for on-the-go access to your messages and other vital materials. Exelare applicant tracking software provides a wide range of easy-to-use communication tools, so you always have multiple options when it comes to reaching out to your C-level candidates.