The Definitive Guide to Recruiting in Good Times and Bad
www.hbr.org
FINANCIAL CRISIS SPOTLIGHT
The Definitive Guide to Recruiting in Good Times and Bad by Claudio Fernández-Aráoz, Boris Groysberg, and Nitin Nohria
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Included with this full-text Harvard Business Review article: 1 Article Summary The Idea in Brief—the core idea The Idea in Practice—putting the idea to work 2 The Definitive Guide to Recruiting in Good Times and Bad 12 Further Reading A list of related materials, with annotations to guide further exploration of the article’s ideas and applications
Reprint R0905F
FINANCIAL CRISIS SPOTLIGHT
The Definitive Guide to Recruiting in Good Times and Bad
The Idea in Brief
Recessions present an unexpected opportunity for companies to snap up the toplevel talent needed to drive growth in better times. But most firms squander this opportunity because their recruitment practices are scattershot. To capture the best talent now and retain your stars once the recession eases, you’ll need a rigorous recruitment process that includes these steps: • Anticipate your future leadership needs, based on your strategic business plan. Intuit’s deep analysis of long-term staffing needs has contributed to famously smooth management transitions. • Identify the specific competencies required in each position you need to fill. For example, ask, “Does this job require an entrepreneur, manager, or leader?” • Develop a sufficiently large candidate pool. Considering both inside and outside candidates increases the likelihood you’ll find the right person for each job.
The Idea in Practice
Steps to effective recruiting: ANTICIPATE YOUR NEEDS Every two to three years review your high-level leadership requirements in light of your strategic business plan. Answer these questions: • How many people will we need, in what positions, in the next few years? • What will the organizational structure look like? • What must our leadership pipeline contain today to ensure that we find and develop tomorrow’s leaders? SPECIFY THE
FINANCIAL CRISIS SPOTLIGHT
The Definitive Guide to Recruiting in Good Times and Bad by Claudio Fernández-Aráoz, Boris Groysberg, and Nitin Nohria
•
Included with this full-text Harvard Business Review article: 1 Article Summary The Idea in Brief—the core idea The Idea in Practice—putting the idea to work 2 The Definitive Guide to Recruiting in Good Times and Bad 12 Further Reading A list of related materials, with annotations to guide further exploration of the article’s ideas and applications
Reprint R0905F
FINANCIAL CRISIS SPOTLIGHT
The Definitive Guide to Recruiting in Good Times and Bad
The Idea in Brief
Recessions present an unexpected opportunity for companies to snap up the toplevel talent needed to drive growth in better times. But most firms squander this opportunity because their recruitment practices are scattershot. To capture the best talent now and retain your stars once the recession eases, you’ll need a rigorous recruitment process that includes these steps: • Anticipate your future leadership needs, based on your strategic business plan. Intuit’s deep analysis of long-term staffing needs has contributed to famously smooth management transitions. • Identify the specific competencies required in each position you need to fill. For example, ask, “Does this job require an entrepreneur, manager, or leader?” • Develop a sufficiently large candidate pool. Considering both inside and outside candidates increases the likelihood you’ll find the right person for each job.
The Idea in Practice
Steps to effective recruiting: ANTICIPATE YOUR NEEDS Every two to three years review your high-level leadership requirements in light of your strategic business plan. Answer these questions: • How many people will we need, in what positions, in the next few years? • What will the organizational structure look like? • What must our leadership pipeline contain today to ensure that we find and develop tomorrow’s leaders? SPECIFY THE