RECRUITING TEAMS

How Good Is Your Team?

Don’t Assume—Assess
Face the facts about your team’s performance instead of acting on assumptions.
By Linda Brenner, Managing Partner, inTalent Consulting

taffing. Talent acquisition. Search. Or good old- Feedback from Hiring Managers
S fashioned recruiting. Whatever you call it, the
function faces constant challenges trying to prove its a
While this can offer insight into performance, it can be
flawed data point. What if a hiring manager considers
worth to the organization. Business leaders want staffing “great performance” to be a recruiter who is a good order-
partners who are savvy, smart, and support their organi- taker, or a strong coordinator? What about the hiring man-
zation’s talent strategy. And for the most part, that’s what agers with “survey fatigue,” completing the same survey over
you’re giving them—right? Are you absolutely sure? and over as jobs are filled? How much accurate and action-
The talent acquisition function is a complicated beast. able information about your recruiters’ functional skills can
And only those who’ve led it can truly appreciate that you really get from this?
unique nexus where technology, process,
tools, training, metrics, marketing, and Metrics
stakeholder experience come together.
This effort isn’t for When the right metrics are obtained in
And what if just one of those components people who are OK with a timely and accurate way, this is a great
goes awry? The result can touch leaders the status quo. It’s indicator of your recruiters’ impact on the
throughout the business in a very visible only for leaders who business. But what if the metrics aren’t en-
and disruptive way. are willing to look tirely accurate, or measuring the right out-
In an effort to meet the needs of talent closely at each person comes? Most companies measure activi-
acquisition’s key stakeholder—the hiring ty: how many jobs are filled, how much
on their team—the
manager—most organizations have re- time it took, at what cost, etc. But does this
cruiters spread out across the geography
talented and the information tell you how well the work
of their business, often working virtually. green and everyone in was done? How good of a match the new
The success of the function in these loca- between. hire is with the organization? How suc-
tions depends, in large part, on the skills cessful they are a year later?
of the recruiter.
In such a structure, and with each recruiter playing such Self-promotion
a pivotal role, how can a talent acquisition leader accurate- Let’s face it. Great recruiters are great salespeople. And
ly understand the strengths and needs of each person on great salespeople are convincing, they know how to com-
their team? For that matter, what’s the best way to accu- mand attention, and are gifted at being in the right place
rately assess the skills of the person sitting in a nearby cu- at the right time. But do your most confident, well-liked re-
bicle? cruiters have the best recruiting skills, too?
If you’re troubled about the veracity of these feedback
Getting Accurate Feedback About Your Recruiters’ sources, then what can you do? How can you determine the
Skills strength of each individual recruiter’s ability to bring true
To assess their recruiters’ skills, most talent acquisition value to candidates, managers, and HR partners?
leaders rely on three inputs: In our work with talent acquisition functions large and

©2009 ERE Media, Inc. Journal of Corporate Recruiting Leadership | crljournal.com | December 2009/January 2010 19
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small, local and global, this is the most pervasive problem: back about how well they performed.
Leaders don’t have an accurate understanding of each re- Initially created in the 1950s by AT&T, assessment cen-
cruiter’s skills. And, compounding the problem, they are ters were originally used with external candidates as a way
often unable to assess the skills of their recruiting man- for the company to identify those most qualified for selec-
agers—to whom the recruiters report and rely on for coach- tion. Over the years, they’ve been increasingly used for de-
ing and training. velopment too, and are embraced today by a wide range of
This, in turn, leads to other challenges: if you don’t know organizations such as GE, Home Depot, IBM, Pepsi, Hon-
someone’s strengths and needs, you can’t drive their de- eywell, and the FBI.They are often used for the development
velopment. Nor can you leverage teachers or mentors on of high-potential and front-line leaders, and for the selection
the team if you’re not sure who should play those roles.You of entry-level or leadership program participants.
can’t effectively hold the team accountable for exhibiting As one of the most respected methods for identifying tal-
the right behaviors and developing skills that are critical to ent, assessing functional skills and providing a unique learn-
doing the job well.You can’t drive and sustain significant ing opportunity for participants, such a process is an excel-
operational improvements. Perhaps worse, high-potential lent way to identify and develop the skills of a large and far-
recruiters won’t work for long around flung team, including a team of recruiters.
middling performers. Whether you work with your in-house
To get around this dilemma, many OD or training team or use an outside re-
talent acquisition leaders take an old- source to develop and execute such a pro-
school approach: simply training everyone Many talent gram, there are some recommended steps
in most everything. Team-wide training acquisition leaders and outcomes.
(classroom, virtual or self-directed) on take an old-school
topics such as behavioral-based interview- approach: simply 1. Developing the Program
ing skills, influencing skills, or Internet
training everyone
sourcing are commonplace. But does What Are You Assessing?
in most everything.
everyone need such training, and all at the The first, and most important, element
same level? Does everyone benefit from of the process is determining exactly
it? Most important: does it really drive the what skills need to be assessed.What are
changes in behavior that are needed to the behaviors consistently demonstrated
speed and improve recruiting and selection? by high-performing recruiters across a variety of companies
And in this economy, are large-scale training programs and industries? The center we developed and have cus-
with nebulous outcomes even an option? tomized for clients began with a literature review of the core
competencies of best-in-class recruiters.We concluded that—
Assessing Before Training in general—the most critical recruiter skills are:
We suggest a different approach: assessing the function-
al skills of each recruiter and letting them know how they’ve • Finding Candidates
performed. • Engaging Candidates
An assessment center is a process by which a group of • Assessing Candidates
participants undertakes a series of job-related simulations • Influencing the Hire
so that their skills and competencies can be evaluated. A • Managing Stakeholders
team of assessors observes and measures the participants’
performance using a set of structured evaluations. From there, we researched and identified the most im-
With little upfront information, participants are typical- portant behaviors necessary to demonstrate “mastery” at
ly asked to follow specific instructions and complete each of these five competencies.
tasks within structured timeframes. They usually have to
deal with unforeseen challenges throughout the process. At How Are These Competencies Assessed?
the conclusion of such a program, participants receive feed- What is the best way to allow participants to showcase

20 Journal of Corporate Recruiting Leadership | crljournal.com | December 2009/January 2010 ©2009 ERE Media, Inc.
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their skills in each of these areas? How can simulations be 3. Drawing Conclusions Based on the Data
created that allow key behaviors to emerge in a way that can
be observed? How do you strike a balance between the re- What Happens After the Assessment Center?
sources (i.e., assessors) needed to conduct a robust assess- Typically, participants receive feedback—either written
ment versus the costs inherently involved? or in-person—within a month of an assessment program.
In our case, we brainstormed and tested the best way to The participant is usually encouraged to review the results
assess each of these competencies. In the end, we landed with his/her supervisor, and incorporate the feedback into
on a variety of activities—three of which involve live-act- an existing development plan.
ing scenarios, and two of which are self-directed, includ- We believe that immediate feedback has a bigger impact,
ing a traditional “in-basket” exercise. Assessors play the role
so we work through the night after the assessment center ends
of actors, observers, and/or evaluators throughout the to write both feedback reports and development plans for each
process. participant. Each assessor then sits down with a participant
the next day for a one-on-one coaching and
What Does “Great” Performance Look Like? feedback session. Some participants have
Once the activities are created, evalua- Recruiters will told us that this is the most comprehensive
tion guides ensure that the right behaviors approach the and actionable feedback they’ve ever re-
are assessed. Each module may highlight assessment process ceived.
six or eight different behaviors, such as with some trepidation. We encourage each participant to review
communication, influencing, prioritiz- the feedback with their supervisor and
Assuage their fear
ing, leveraging technology, time man- work the development suggestions into an
and make them see the
agement, etc. A goal of assessment guides already-existing plan, or create a new, for-
should be to highlight the behaviors that value of this unique mal one with specific goals and target
fall along the continuum of “mastery” to development program dates.
“unacceptable” and provide rater consis- and the accompanying
tency regardless of which assessor is as- personalized feedback. Does the Leader See Individuals’ Results?
signed the role of evaluator. Years ago, it was a common to have em-
ployees participate in development pro-
2. Communicating the Right Messages grams for their own benefit—and results weren’t shared with
their supervisors. But those days are largely over and com-
What’s the Best Way to Tell Recruiters Why We’re Doing This? panies, rightly so, demand accountability in return for their
An intensive program like an assessment center requires training investments.While companies have different prac-
an accompanying communication plan that clearly explains tices regarding who sees assessment center feedback,
what’s being done, and why. We’ve coached our clients to we’ve adopted the practice of sending each participants’ re-
introduce the process in face-to-face venues, and to be as port to the talent acquisition leader two weeks after the
transparent as possible about the purpose of the program: event. This gives the participants time to let the feedback
developing the team. “soak in” and, most importantly, gives them an opportu-
We also created a comprehensive communication plan— nity to take the initiative and review it with their boss first.
and the materials needed to execute it—including a “par-
ticipant preview” presentation, an FAQ document to What Other Results Does the Leader Get?
proactively answer questions, and an overview to kick the While the learning and feedback the participants receive
program off. is invaluable, it’s the analysis of the team data that is the real
We expect that recruiters will approach the assessment benefit to the business. Strengths and developmental
process with some trepidation, so we do whatever we can needs among the team as a whole can tell a fascinating sto-
to assuage their fear and make them see the value of this ry. And when the data is cut by position, level, business
unique development program and the accompanying per- group, location, tenure, etc., key conclusions—and plans
sonalized feedback. for next steps—can be made.

©2009 ERE Media, Inc. Journal of Corporate Recruiting Leadership | crljournal.com | December 2009/January 2010 21
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ASSESSMENT

Summary Results by Division/Position (Sample Data)

Summary Results by Division/Position (Conclusion)

22 Journal of Corporate Recruiting Leadership | crljournal.com | December 2009/January 2010 ©2009 ERE Media, Inc.
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In this economy, post-assessment data can build a com- If this all sounds like a big undertaking, you’re right—
pelling business case for investing in future, targeted it is. Building and executing a recruiter assessment center
training and development for members of the team. Also, certainly requires the right resources but, most of all, it re-
assessment center results provide an important, addition- quires courage.This effort isn’t for people who are OK with
al data point for evaluating the performance of each re- the status quo. It’s only for leaders who are willing to look
cruiter.When used with other key measures—like perform- closely at each person on their team—the talented and the
ance reviews, hiring manager feedback, metrics, talent plan- green and everyone in between—and are prepared to act
ning discussions, 360 feedback, etc.—it can help build an on the results.
even more accurate picture of each per-
son’s performance and potential.
This process allows recruiters to expe-
rience—in real time—the power of their In this economy, post-
strengths and the limitations of their assessment data can
knowledge gaps. By increasing awareness build a compelling
in this way, they become more motivated
business case for
to drive their development.
investing in future,
In the words of Kim Rutledge, director
of talent acquisition for Dell, Inc.: targeted training and
development for
Having a large number of remote em- members of the team.
ployees, the assessment center veri-
fied some of my team’s key strengths
and needs.The center also identified
a significant gap that might have taken me years to
identify on my own. Because of the assessment, I now
know who on my team excels at the skill—giving me
resources for training those who need to improve.We
can then include this in each team member’s target-
ed development plan.

Linda Brenner, Managing Partner, inTalent Consulting

Prior to starting inTalent Consulting, Linda Brenner spent her professional career in human resources at leading retail and
restaurant companies. As director of retail staffing at The Home Depot, she led the effort to centralize the staffing function for the
first time in the Fortune 25 company’s history. She oversaw the hiring of over 100,000 field hourly and management employees
annually. She joined the staffing team after working in the company’s organizational development group. Prior to joining Home
Depot, she held leadership positions for The HoneyBaked Ham Company, Pepsi and Gap.
linda@consultingintalent.com

©2009 ERE Media, Inc. Journal of Corporate Recruiting Leadership | crljournal.com | December 2009/January 2010 23