Hiring outstanding leadership talent differs slightly from recruiting frontline staff, in both process and the weight of the decision regarding the candidate’s fit in the organization. A strong leader can build positive workplace culture, engage employees, and boost retention, but a poor leader can damage these critical areas.
Employee Value Propositions
A primary component of an effective leadership recruitment strategy is the Employee Value Proposition (EVP): the package of total aggregate benefits offered to staff including compensation, extended health benefits, career progression, work environment, and corporate culture. In the case of management recruitment, it is imperative that the EVP and the brand value of the organization be reflected by your leadership group. Enticing applicants with standout plans reflected in comprehensive job descriptions is essential to effective recruitment strategy.
By considering other parts of the EVP, salary is no longer the sole focus, but remains a strong factor. Compensation packages for management staff should be competitive but sustainable. Consider structuring leadership compensation as a mix of base and variable goal-based bonus pay, to engage participatory control in performance-based merit-increases; or offer equity shares, generous paid time off plans, and promotions.
Employee benefits have become standardized, so focus on developing a standout plan designed to reflect your workplace culture. Employee wellness plans and generous health spending accounts, RRSP matching, paid personal leave, on-site health facilities or corporate gym memberships, shift-based meal plans, and flexibility to offset childcare difficulties can tip the balance.
A career continuum provides stability, which plays a huge factor in recruitment and retention. Internal succession plans and opportunities for funded education, continuous learning or lateral advancement maintain drive and engagement with management staff.
The work environment and company culture were driving forces behind the pandemic’s Great Resignation (GR). Factors leading up to the GR included long hours, inflexible work schedules, and limited mental health support. These factors align with the shifting workplace paradigms that see candidates more focused on understanding an organization’s mission, purpose, and values, as reflected by leadership. Consider if you can offer flexible or hybrid work arrangements, that fit within your organizational brand and corporate culture. If your focus is connectivity involving regular staff events, you will want to look for leaders who enjoy these engagements and are committed to culture building.
Recruitment Strategies: Job Descriptions and Candidate Connections
Engage in a perennial approach to recruiting by focusing on both passive and active recruitment, including engaging in candidate networking in-person and online. Develop comprehensive and well-defined job descriptions and identify the minimum criteria for your ideal candidate. Your job description should reflect daily work, from broad areas of responsibility to standard tasks and direct reports. During the recruitment process, ensure candidate engagement by responding quickly and with transparency. For existing applicant pools, keep connections warm for potential future recruitment through quick opportunity updates.
Internal Succession Strategies: Developing a Talent Pipeline
One of the most effective methods of recruiting managers is by building from within. Focusing on internal candidates with a proven track record of engagement and strong performance creates an internal talent pipeline that minimizes or eliminates the considerable investment in time, energy, and resources that external recruitment requires.
There are benefits to external leadership candidates: they can bring new strategies, ideas, and perspectives to an organization and may be ideal for a company that requires a cultural reset or strategic directional shift. Alternatively, external candidates lack the deep cultural understanding of an organization, and if you’re currently on track with existing staff, a new direction can cause disruption in growth trajectory, destabilize teams, and potentially impact retention.
Internal candidates come with focused and on-track momentum, relational equity, shortened or minimal onboarding needs, an existing fit for workplace culture, and have significant organizational knowledge and perspective. If a skills disparity exists, evaluate if investing in training is viable, and provides more return on investment than external recruitment.
Keep in mind, for internal succession plans to be the most effective, they must be fostered daily, and you must invest in your organizational culture. Develop strategic support networks, mentor team members, and utilize positive performance management. Focus on leadership before promotion: provide opportunities for your internal succession candidates to engage with your team, then evaluate their successes and identify opportunities for improvement.
Staff training should align with the overall business strategy, and should represent the mission, values, and strategic objectives of the organization.
Candidate Selection: Consider Central Competencies
Workplace paradigms are shifting, and with that shift comes an emphasis on leaders with strong emotional intelligence. Pre-pandemic, there was a significant focus on a candidate’s ‘hard skills’. Technical knowledge, education, and work experience were typically prized as indicators of management material. Apply the concept “hire for attitude, train for skill”. Consider what skills can be easily developed through training and find a balance against behaviours that are intrinsic to whom a person is, as the latter can be difficult to change.
To expand candidate pools, balance narrow search criteria (hard skills) with central competencies (soft skills) and look for signs that the candidate will make an excellent leader: emotional intelligence in terms of communication, conflict resolution, and active listening; proven problem-solving and adaptability skills; strong work ethic and inclusionary teamwork practices; and stress management balanced with empathy. These skills not only provide a manager with tools to succeed, but also support their staff to thrive in the workplace.
When recruiting managers, focus on developing a holistic strategy to attract candidates with leadership styles that fit within the organizational goals as a method for driving retention for all staff, and contributing to a strong and positive workplace culture.
Sarah Best is Northern BC HR Consultant at go2HR.
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