4 Ways to Improve your Chances of Hiring a Candidate you are Pursuing

We are seeing more candidates receive multiple offers, including counter-offers, this year than we have in the past. The good news is the markets (molecular diagnostics,  CLIA Lab, life science, and biotech) that Connexis Search Group serves are experiencing exponential growth. The bad news is that hiring the candidates you need for your business is harder to secure. We have been in business for over 19 years and place over 150 candidates per year and can offer some suggestions that will minimize the chance that the candidate you made an offer, accepts an offer with another company.

Have two candidates that you are willing to hire!

The best way to make sure you make a hire is to have two viable candidates at the end of the interview process. You would be excited about either candidate joining your company. If the candidate you make an offer to does not accept the offer, then you immediately offer the other candidate. There are some timing issues that you need to consider to be successful with this strategy. Such as the number of days that you give your first candidate to accept the offer. If a candidate is ready to join your company, then they will only need 1-2 days to sign and return the offer. If you give them more time than 1-2 days, then you run the risk of losing your other candidate.

Understand the candidate’s motivation for leaving their current company

A great question to ask a candidate is “Why are you considering leaving your current company?” If you can solve their problem, then your chances of securing the candidate are greatly enhanced. If you can’t solve their problem, then pass! Your recruiter should have this information, so ask them as they present candidates. I hate to admit it, but we recently made a mistake with a candidate by not honoring their desires. The candidate wanted extensive travel; he was interested in traveling to the US. We secured an offer for him with a company that offered some travel, but not as much as he desired. He turned the offer down and joined a company, that offered less money but with extensive travel. 

Ask the candidate questions about other opportunities

Asking the candidate questions that will reveal their intentions. Candidates will not offer information about other opportunities they are pursuing if you don’t ask them. The key is to ask direct questions such as: “What other companies are you considering?” “How far are you in the interview process? “Have you met in person?” “Have they made you an offer? “Are you going to accept their offer?” If you are working with a recruiter ask them to gather this information for you. Good recruiters are trained to ask these questions, but don’t assume they have. Ask the recruiter if they have this information. Always assume that the candidate you are pursuing is also being pursued by another company.  

Counter Offers

In 16 years as a recruiter, I have never seen so many companies make counteroffers. In the past, many companies had a policy never to make a counteroffer. The trend has changed! How do you prevent a candidate from accepting a counter? It is not easy and should be handled by your recruiter. A good recruiter can minimize the chances of a candidate accepting a counteroffer, but keep in mind that we do not make decisions for the candidates. This is an involved process and would take too long to describe in this article.

Connexis Search Group is a permanent placement recruiting firm that places a wide variety of candidates in the medical device, life science, and biotechnology industries. We employ over 20 recruiters and have offices in San Diego, Boston, Raleigh-Durham, Baltimore, Gulf Port, Cincinnati, and Greenville, SC.