Back in the1980's, I was one of the lucky ones who had Celtics
season tickets. And in the spring of '84 I was there -- in the
Boston Garden -- for the Celtics-Lakers playoffs. I watched Larry
Bird and Kareem-Abdul Jabbar make basketball history while I
listened to the late, great Johnny Most give the play by play on my
Sony Walkman.
During one of those games (a must win for
Boston) the Celtics were down over 20 points at the end of the third
quarter. It seemed futile. So, understandably, many fans started
leaving, not wanting to witness first hand this humiliation. I
turned to my friend and made the gentle suggestion that we just
might want to follow suit. "Betsy," she snapped back, "it ain't
over till it's over!"
The Celtics went on to tie the
game in the fourth quarter and win it in overtime. (And we went on
to gloat about the losers who had left the game!) The Celtics beat
the Lakers for the championship that year and Larry
Bird was named MVP.
I was reminded of my friend recently while we were on a search
for a senior salesperson for a client. We found them three great
candidates to qualify to sell their suite of network
availability solutions. They were all highly skilled selling into
that market and had certifiable quota busting performance.
We sent the first one in for an interview and our client fell in
love! We were quite pleased ourselves that he had made such a hit
but suggested that we still line up interviews for #2 and #3. The
client was reluctant to do that and scheduled a second and a third
interview for candidate #1. At the end of the third interview, they
were so excited, they not only made a verbal offer but also handed
him the letter to go with it.
I think you can guess the end of this story. Our candidate
turned them down. He committed the mortal sin of accepting a
counter- offer from his current employer. (He obviously didn't read
our August
newsletter on what a no-no this really is!) And, during the time
the company was interviewing (read "courting! ") their top choice,
candidates #2 and #3 totally lost interest in the company and took
other positions. Could this have been avoided? You bet!
A Confusing Process
The hiring process can be confusing. You have to juggle a lot
of balls. Scheduling first, second and third interviews, making
follow up calls on your candidates, checking in with your recruiter
or just plain remembering which candidate is which can be confusing!
So, here's one suggestion that might help you change the way you
think about your hiring. Think of the hiring process as the sales
cycle. That's right!
HIRING PROCESS = SALES CYCLE
What would you say if your #1 salesperson came into your office
and told you that it looked like his biggest prospect was finally
going to sign a contract with you. It wasn't signed yet - but all
systems looked like a go! He had met with them three times and the
prospect indicated they were really interested in buying. So,
instead of doing any prospecting today, or making sales calls on any
other prospects, he was going to spend the day in the Marketing
Department helping them write that new brochure. Well, we know what
you'd say!
Keep Selling!
Remember, when you're hiring, no matter what the economic climate
or how "hot" your market or technology is, you are SELLING your
company to a prospective employee. And, you don't stop selling
until the deal is done! You don't stop any of your other hiring
activities until your best prospect (your #1 Candidate) says yes and
signs the deal!
More Prospects in the Pipeline - More Potential Hires
Until the time you get a signed offer letter, continue ALL
of your other hiring activities - interviewing and even prospecting
for more candidates. This additional activity will also serve you
well if, for some reason, your hire doesn't work out. If you have to
restart your search, you won't be starting at square one!
You don't want to be slam dunked. So, remember Larry Bird and
that determined Celtic team and remember too, "It ain't over till
it's over!"
