Pitfalls in international recruitment was the DIF webinar theme on 21st March. Cornerstone International Group consultants – Markku Sahi and Jussi Pokkinen (Finland), Walter Baker (the US), Laurie O’Donnell (Canada), and Gerhard Benneck (Germany) – dived into the topic from a risk and challenge point of view based on AESC (Association of Executive Search Consultants) survey, practical examples, and lessons learned.
Attract and Retain Top Talent
The number one challenge organizations are facing is attracting and retaining top talent. To find the top talent, you usually need to reach other countries. Some real-life recruitment processes were discussed by explaining the opportunity, challenge, strategy, and outcome.
The critical question is what kind of person fits your culture and values.
Also, you have to ensure that the compensation package is according to the target country’s standards. Each industry and country has its own pay scale.
Align – Attract – Accelerate
A successful recruitment map takes into account alignment, attraction, and acceleration.
The candidate profiles must align with your business plan. Outcomes have to be determined for the local market level as well as the corporate level. You must ensure the culture fit and success by looking for the right candidate pools.
Management skills needed are totally different depending, for example, on the size of the company.
Attracting is done through a targeted, well-defined, disciplined process. What you are as a company and your values and the opportunity have to attract the candidates – and vice versa. Major pitfalls are related to wrong candidate pools and evaluation criteria, and stick ratios.
Acceleration relies on successful onboarding, engaging, and ensuring employee productivity, satisfaction, and retention. When the person is hired, you have to get her integrated and on speed as soon as possible. Agreed and clear, measurable objectives and timelines and performance coaching help with it.
As executive turnover is 50 percent after 18 months and the cost of a mis-hire 20-45x annual cash compensation, finding a partner and thinking strategically is critical for successful recruitment.
