Tuesday, August 09, 2005
Own The Bottleneck
I get a kick out of questions like 'How to influence hiring managers?'. Jeff Bloch offers a reasonable treatment . The problem is that we don't always have time for a nice, neat program. To me, these limitations to my productivity are career-limiters. As such, being nice takes a backseat to being effective.
We solved this problem a long time ago. I had to, because without a solution, my career would have stalled (and I couldn't afford that). Once you have established a reputation for quality recruiting, it's easy to influence hiring managers. Here's how: the experienced managers realize their business depends on having good people. You merely need to establish that the talent they need runs through you. And if they can't reel it in, you can't afford to focus on their needs. You'll continue to troll on their behalf, of course, but a full-blown effort is not a good use of your time; you are a corporate resource, not their personal lackey. Inexperienced managers learn through the pain of understaffed offices. They learn fast, and they learn on their dime, not yours.
Clearly, you can't just blurt this out to your customer or you may be fired. The message is sent in subtler ways - like sharing the misadventures of some clod hiring manager who lost a recruit in some a colorful manner. Of course, you point out, you can't afford to send grade 'A' talent to the clod. Ha ha ha. They'll get the point. You should also ensure your clients understand that you work for the company - not hiring managers. Your primary responsibility to staff the organization. This is what you do to improve the stock price (it helps if you speak business). You have learned that hiring managers who fail to land the talent you bring to them are, in fact, hurting your productivity - wasting the company's resources invested in recruiting.
This is the leverage you have by owning the bottleneck. When talent is scarce, your power increases. Remember, you need to be doing good work in the first place. If you've established a reputation for laziness, it won't work. The caveat is you must only use your powers for good. But, you need to use them. In fact, you owe it to your employer to maximize your contribution. Too many HR professionals minimize their input by avoiding things like leverage. But when it comes to your livelihood, a pragmatic (and effective) approach is best.
We solved this problem a long time ago. I had to, because without a solution, my career would have stalled (and I couldn't afford that). Once you have established a reputation for quality recruiting, it's easy to influence hiring managers. Here's how: the experienced managers realize their business depends on having good people. You merely need to establish that the talent they need runs through you. And if they can't reel it in, you can't afford to focus on their needs. You'll continue to troll on their behalf, of course, but a full-blown effort is not a good use of your time; you are a corporate resource, not their personal lackey. Inexperienced managers learn through the pain of understaffed offices. They learn fast, and they learn on their dime, not yours.
Clearly, you can't just blurt this out to your customer or you may be fired. The message is sent in subtler ways - like sharing the misadventures of some clod hiring manager who lost a recruit in some a colorful manner. Of course, you point out, you can't afford to send grade 'A' talent to the clod. Ha ha ha. They'll get the point. You should also ensure your clients understand that you work for the company - not hiring managers. Your primary responsibility to staff the organization. This is what you do to improve the stock price (it helps if you speak business). You have learned that hiring managers who fail to land the talent you bring to them are, in fact, hurting your productivity - wasting the company's resources invested in recruiting.
This is the leverage you have by owning the bottleneck. When talent is scarce, your power increases. Remember, you need to be doing good work in the first place. If you've established a reputation for laziness, it won't work. The caveat is you must only use your powers for good. But, you need to use them. In fact, you owe it to your employer to maximize your contribution. Too many HR professionals minimize their input by avoiding things like leverage. But when it comes to your livelihood, a pragmatic (and effective) approach is best.
