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Are you in the process of recruiting for a senior position within your organisation? 

Have you truly taken the time to compile a checklist of what you want from this person before posting that vacancy or appointing an executive search agency?

By giving your senior level recruiting serious thought and structure right at the start of the process, it will benefit you greatly in the long run ensuring you appoint the right candidate for your business.

At Featherbank, we understand the importance of getting leadership positions right, particularly within the care and later living sector. Our expert executive head-hunters have first-hand knowledge of the criteria required for successful leadership roles and we’d like to share some of these with you. Here are our top tips:

1. A uniformed vision

Do you and all the other senior level decision makers have the same vision of who this senior-level appointment needs to be?

What does their personality need to be to fit within your organisation?

What does their work ethic need to be?

How would you like them to be motivated?

Everyone needs to be on the same page right from the start of the recruitment process.

2. It’s not all about money

At senior-level, the expectation of a great position within a great organisation requires more than just a great basic salary. 

What benefits can you offer them such as extra holidays?

What flexibility could be offered to them?

What perks are there within your organisation that they can’t get elsewhere?

3.  Explore their long-term ideas

Living in the world as we are today, we can often be in a rush to appoint positions and make the wrong decisions. Senior-level positions can take longer to fill and require much more interviewing and negotiations.

When interviewing, find out what their long-term ideas are for the business and whether these meet your requirements at senior decision-making level. Do not recruit in haste as that will only fulfill a short-term gap and you may have to be doing the recruitment process all over again very soon.

4.  The importance of business culture

Senior management play a huge role in influencing the culture of your organisation. Make sure that you are clear on what your organisation’s culture is and that your potential candidate is a strong cultural fit. If they aren’t a pillar within that culture, it could lead to confusion and chaos.

5.  Consider looking outside the sector

Having a great track record within your specific industry is ideal at senior management level. It means that all experience is relevant, and references may be easier to obtain. However, sometimes it’s worth considering candidates from a slightly different sector who can offer transferable skills and a fresh pair of eyes. We like the saying “hire for attitude, train for skill”.

6.  They may not know they want the job yet

At senior level, it is very important to pro-actively seek passive job hunters who may be happy in their current role and aren’t yet aware that they actually want a different position.

This is where tools such as Linked in and Executive Search companies can be useful to identify candidates who aren’t actively seeking employment but may be perfect for your senior-level position.

At Featherbank, we match professionals to senior-level leadership roles within care and later living. Working closely with our clients, we only connect them with those candidates that are a great fit for their organisation and values.  If you want the best people in the sector to fill your senior level vacancies, get in touch!