I’ve worked in the search industry for most of my career—first as a recruiter, and later as the founder and CEO of an executive search software company. In that time, I’ve developed a deep understanding of how this industry operates, and in particular, what it takes to run an effective executive search firm.

Up and down the chain of command, what makes some firms succeed while others fail is that they collaborate. Researchers work with recruiters. Recruiters work with partners. Partners work with clients. Everyone on a given search team plays a critical role.

Recruiters often come into this work by happenstance, pivoting into the field from another industry. And new recruiters face a steep learning curve when they don’t yet understand the executive search process. Without a complete conception of what a successful search entails and how to provide the best service to clients, they tend to focus only on their singular responsibilities. That leads to difficulty collaborating, completing successful searches, and contributing to the growth of their firm as a whole.

Successful firms are not just groups of people focusing on individual tasks. They’re cohesive units working together throughout the search process to accomplish a common goal.

It’s important to educate new executive recruiters about what exactly that process entails. I wrote The Eight Stages of Successful Retained Search with them in mind.

What are the eight stages?

1. Find work. The first stage is finding clients to conduct executive searches. Without them, it doesn’t matter how strong your candidate database or outreach strategy is. Your firm depends on a consistent flow of new business.
2. Win work. Once you find the work, you have to win it. That means arranging meetings, demonstrating your capabilities, and convincing prospective clients that you’re the right person for this particular search.
3. Strategy. Next comes the critical step of developing your strategy for delivering on the promises you’ve made to your client. Work with your client to develop a deeper understanding of what they need and who they’re looking for. Then, create a roadmap to find that person—by planning where you’ll look, how you’ll contact them, and so on.
4. Research. Only after you’ve developed your strategy will you begin searching for candidates. This stage includes finding relevant potential fits who are likely to be interested in learning more about the role. The success of your search depends on surfacing and targeting the right people early on.
5. Outreach. This is the stage most new recruiters focus on, but it’s about more than simply making calls. Here, you need to meet candidates where they are, provide critical information about the role in a succinct but enticing way, and determine whether or not each candidate should move on to the next phase.
6. Assessment. Once you’ve phone-screened a candidate, it’s time to determine if they should advance to a deeper, more complete assessment. Gauge a candidate’s career experience, personality, and professional trajectory, weighing these attributes against the requirements of the role. Then, present this information to the client, so you can decide together whether or not to proceed with a face-to-face interview. The deliverables you’ll be providing for your clients are quality prospects who evidence how successfully you’ve conducted the search, and how much value you’ve added along the way.
7. Decision. If you’ve conducted the search effectively, then after passing on candidates to clients for face-to-face interviews, you’ll enter the phase of a search where clients will decide to whom they’ll extend an offer.
8. Close & Grow. Finally, if a client does extend an offer to a candidate, and if that candidate accepts, you’ll arrive at the last stage of the search. As you close the project, ensure the client is happy and will give you a reference, and validate your relationships with both the client and candidate. Both might provide work, references, or testimonials in the future.
   
   

Why is it critical for everyone on a search team to understand each stage of the process?

Every component of a search is connected and depends on the others. Outreach benefits from better recruitment, assessment processes depend on quality outreach, and so on. To complete successful searches, everyone on your team needs to understand how to proceed effectively from the first stage to the last.

Firms that understand and appreciate this approach complete searches consistently and sustainably. As a result, they do a better job of executing on strategy, growing and improving with time, conducting searches at scale, and allowing their individual strengths to shine. On the flip side, firms that approach the search process as merely a matter of calling 50 people a day, or searching for prospects only on LinkedIn, inevitably fall behind. I’ve been part of teams that operate with a limited understanding of the bigger picture. Most stagnate, and even devolve into chaos.

A sound, communal understanding of process is the solid foundation your firm needs in order to grow. So, if you’re just entering this work, don’t limit yourself with a lack of knowledge. If you’re running a firm, don’t let an incomplete understanding destroy your dream. Instead, step back, prioritize this education, and create a better way forward for your whole team.

To learn how The 8 Stages of Successful Retained Search are incorporated and supported in Clockwork, read our support documentation. To see it in action, view this playlist of videos.