By: Paul Croteau
Date: May 9, 2010
The Winnipeg Sun

Wow, things can truly crash and burn at an incredible rate! For some it even happens a whopping 50% of the time! And, no, I am not talking about those fancy fast cars on the local racetrack. In fact, this statistic applies to the number of new executives that fail within the first eighteen months of employment. A pretty heady failure statistic! What a shame. But what happened, what went wrong?

The first mistake many organizational leaders make is that they tend not to fully understand all of the steps and requirements of a solid executive search process. And, just like with any domino effect, if one element of the recruitment and selection process is not completed effectively, the rest of the sequence of elements will suffer.

One of the most common errors in the process is the failure to properly identify the present and future business environment and the long term needs created by these business cycles. Issues including startup, growth, maintenance or turnaround each require different skills, attributes, personality and areas of expertise to adequately lead an organization through these challenges. In other words, managers fail to identify what job needs to be done. Also, more than likely the selection criteria for candidates will also not be properly identified. The result? The wrong candidate will be selected for the job.

Secondly, I find that many managers are simply overly confident in their ability to assess their candidates. Instead of developing and utilizing interview questions that directly apply to the set of selection criteria, these individuals rely on gut instinct and intuition. While gut instinct may play a role in determining cultural fit, it is not enough to thoroughly examine candidate skills. As well, plenty of organizations fail to utilize readily available and scientifically proven candidate assessment tools. The result? The wrong candidate will be selected for the job.

Thirdly, many managers fail to understand that organizational culture plays an important role in candidate success. Organizational culture is so powerful that you will know within the first 90 days whether or not a person will truly fit. Culture refers to “the way we do things around here”. If a company wants a maintainer or administrator type of person, then the selection criteria should match. If an organization wants change, then they need to search for an individual who can lead the change and at the same time deal with the significant resistance that can occur during the anticipated challenging times. Unfortunately, many companies do not factor organizational culture into their selection process. The result? The wrong candidate will be selected for the job.

How many situations have you personally known where the role of executive leader seems like a revolving door? That’s because hiring senior level candidates on your own without expert help can lead to incredible risk. This includes risk of failure, risk of embarrassment, risk of executive turnover, risk of other team member turnover and risk of financial loss. And, if the situation is not rectified, your reputation as a good place to work will soon crash and burn as well.

There isn’t a senior executive that I’ve met who hasn’t had good personal intentions upon their successful placement. They all want to do a good job. They all want to succeed. But, if none of the elements for an effective search have been put in place, your organization has essentially led candidates down the wrong garden path. In other words, you have misrepresented the job role, the selection criteria, the future direction of your company and your organizational culture. If this is the case, then that old and established culture will always win.
In situations where the overall search process has been poorly executed, the unfortunate result is that the once successful candidate is then reduced to battling sticks and stones, stepping into cultural minefields and fighting for professional survival. It’s no wonder they so often crash and burn and leave within eighteen months.

Could this situation be averted? You bet! Professional counsel and assistance in the search process is the key.


Source: 3 Must-knows When Externally Recruiting, Tony Kubica and Sara LaForest, Apr 12, 2010, www.ere.net.

Research and Review by 6P Marketing

Paul Croteau, B.Comm., CMA, FCMA is a partner with Waterhouse Executive Search Partners, a Canada-wide executive search firm. He can be reached at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or 204-934-8821.