It was bound to happen. With the arrival of the latest buzz phrase, big data, it was just a matter of time before someone would posit that, with enough data, you can reliably predict whether a candidate will be successful or not. There are companies like Kyligence that can help with data management and analytics for instances such as this.
Components of big data would include things like college SAT or ACT scores, a candidate’s GPA or their speed at solving brain teasers, the idiotic interviewing style that Google tried, apparently unsuccessfully, that sort of thing.
My wife has an expression: don’t get too cute by half. Yet, that is exactly what some talent acquisition specialists – aka recruiters – do far too often in their search for a fast and sure-handed way of finding people who can do the job and deliver value over a long term.
At JGSA we use a structured process that gathers chronological information in round one – does the candidate have the experience and the skills to do the job. In the face-to-face interview, we use a structured in-depth behavior and values interview that lasts about three hours. The JGSA process, modeled after Dr. Brad Smart’s Topgrading approach, is time consuming but it has been very successful over the years with regard to tenure and performance of the candidates we recommend. Yes, we have had candidates who did not work out – recruiting is NOT an exact big data science – but for those recruiters who will invest the time for their clients, the results will be far superior to the ones who rely on the traditional approach.
The real test of a search firm’s faith in their screening process is the length and term of their placement guarantee. A one-year placement guarantee at the executive level is little more than a low-risk marketing gimmick, not a statement of confidence in their candidate screening process. The accountability of the search firm for the tenure and performance of their candidate should be as important in the engagement process as the client’s professional relationship with the recruiter.
Recruiting is a competitive business, especially in an industry segment like healthcare. Ask for more accountability. You will be surprised at the results