McCracken Search: Finalist Candidate Referencing

Gary McCracken of McCracken Search shares insight on the importance of finalist Candidate Referencing.

Before commencing anything it helps to be clear about what you’re trying to accomplish. Are you merely determining whether to proceed further with that candidate? Might you also be interested in gaining insight into how best to work with them? There is much more than this to be determined from a proper referencing process including, for example, potential insight into your offer terms.

This blog helps to focus on how you would best work with the candidate in question:

• Equal but different: Team members collectively represent a wide range of personalities, skills and needs. A good formal referencing process should provide insight into such differences.
• Objectivity: You should be very careful of any formal referencing process that, consciously or otherwise, amounts to little more than a simple Thumbs Up / Thumbs Down.
• Consider participating yourself: Trust your search partner’s expertise and professionalism, but consider getting personally involved in the process as well.
• Bottom Line: Formal referencing is a critical step in a thorough executive search assignment. It is not a merely a hurdle to be cleared. Nor is it a process of simply hunting for concerns or potential problems. It is a valuable tool for objectively evaluating and better understanding the impressive person you’re about to hire, in order to ensure you make the most of your considerable investment in them.

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