Provo Craft changed from a company with meager profits and a unique management system to a thriving retailer with sales up 40 percent.
And Jim Thornton made all the difference.
Coming from Chicago, where he was president of the consumer-product division of Apogee Enterprises, Thornton was recruited to elevate the Spanish Fork company — and he did so by doing some executive recruiting of his own.
Wanting to build a team of corporate superstars, he worked with recruiting firms to seek out potential candidates from AT&T in Seattle and Honeywell International in New York.
And when Provo Craft’s team was assembled — success ensued.
Without the help of executive recruiting, Provo Craft may not have experienced the same growth curve. Here are three “Qs” as to why executive recruiting is easy, efficient and obtains the proper results.
Quick
Hiring an executive recruiting firm provides a quick, efficient way to fulfill a company’s upper-level leadership needs. It eliminates the tedious work of posting a job opening, accepting applications and sifting through the immense stack of potential candidates.
Mark Robins, managing partner of Hire Point in Salt Lake City, has been in the executive recruiting business for nine years. He believes a crucial benefit of his services is the time element.
“This way, companies don’t have to go through a laborious process of qualifying and disqualifying candidates,” he says. “Most people have quotas and deadlines they have to consider and be responsible for, but finding people is time consuming and not necessarily their core skill.”
Once an executive recruiting firm has been contacted, the process can go much faster.
“Some companies will call and say they want three to four candidates in four days, and we can do it,” he says.
The quick nature of an executive recruiting firm isn’t because they approach just anyone off the street — they’ve got other benefits up their sleeve.
Quantity
Executive recruiting firms have large databases and networks of highly qualified individuals, so they can present a number of potential applicants in a timely matter.
“When you hire an experienced search firm, they have a database of individuals they’ve worked with in the past and a database of people they can contact,” Robins says.
The executive recruiting databases are worth the expense because of the targeted network and information firms can give.
“The biggest advantage of executive recruiting is the access to people they wouldn’t normally have access to,” says Mike Jamison, co-president of MRInetwork in Provo.
At MRI, recruiters specialize in a specific industry. When a company approaches them with an open position, the client works with a targeted recruiter and is sent applicants from a qualified network.
“[Executive recruiters] will specialize in a certain industry,” he says. “They will know the industry and the people in the industry through knowledge and network.”
With an executive recruiter’s vast knowledge, they can give four or five strong, qualified candidates to the client.
“I will send information on a few people, and then hear feedback from the client,” he says.
In addition to databases, during the cold calling process, executive recruiters work off referrals.
“We talk to people who are doing something the client is looking for and ask them for a referral,” he says.
Quantity is not always quality, but executive recruiters know how to get both.
Quality
Before contacting potential employees, executive recruiters like to know the intimate details about the job.
“Since our customers are paying a fee, we like to take the risk out as much as possible,” Robins says.
Jamison reinforces to clients that exceptional candidates are not out looking for a job, they are succeeding at their current job.
“A strong performer doesn’t need to move,” he says. “They will only move if a better opportunity presents itself.”
Robinson agrees. He likes to educate himself on the client’s needs, then search for an applicant that has expertise in the field, experience, successes and the right cultural fit for the company.
“I work with companies to find the exceptional candidate,” he says. “They aren’t unemployed but are doing a great job for another company.”
To ensure a successful interview, Jamison likes to coach both the interviewer and the applicant prior to the interview to familiarize them with the other person.
“Most applicants I work with are highly successful,” Jamison says. “I need to educate my client on selling their company to this person, because they are happy where they are.”
Bringing quality candidates to clients not only helps the client, it also helps the recruiters by building a good reputation and forming relationships around the community.
“Our reputation is built upon who we send to companies,” Jamison says. “If we don’t send the best, then we won’t get repeat business.”
With repeat business on the line, executive recruiters only send the best their network has to offer — something a company may not get from a simple job posting on a Web site.
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