Self awareness

I meet a lot of people, interview a lot of people and hear many descriptions of career highs and lows.

I often reflect on how often really talented people sabotage their careers by displaying a lack of emotional maturity or self awareness.

Self awareness is an attribute that used to be called 'humility'. A complete and radical understanding of our own emotional landscape, a realisation of all our strenghts and weaknesses, an acceptance that we have many faults and that our successes are not neccessarily a result of our our own individual efforts or strength of character.

Our society does not place high value on humility. Being meek is seen as a weakness. Could it be that having the maturity to realise shortcomings is actually the beginning of wisdom?

Bubble Thinking

Interesting chat today about 'bubble thinking'; its all about what I can consume, house prices will continue to rise, personal debt is good, live for the now....

Was talking to a client about how businesses practice 'bubble thinking'; its all about growth, sustainability is a concern for the future, high gearing is good.

This particular client commented that although the bubble has burst, he does not expect to see a return to bubble thinking anytime soon. If he is right, we are about to see a reordering of economic behaviour that will have radical effects for a long time to come...maybe long overdue?

Building better business

I hate cold calling, I think most sane people do. It takes a masochistic streak to really enjoy the adversarial nature of overcoming objections, etc etc. I have always believed that there is a better way to build business, and in my experience there definititely is, it's called being a professional.

Here is how it works. Make sure you focus on the clients you have in hand. Really be attentive and make sure you satisfy them as your number one priority. Invest in them, take time to understand their business, try to find new ways to make their business better, add some value. Give them the best of your attention. When you are in front of a potential new client remember it is all about them. Don't bang on about your business. They don't care. Listen, listen, listen.

That's it. It is a long term approach but it just works. Oh, and I hate pitching for work. Beauty parades are boring. If I can find a way to not take part in a competitive pitch, I do. I much rather agree a deal that works for both parties up front than go through the whole charade.

Accountability & Values

Without accountability, most of us will 'cruise' along at a level far below our real potential. To get things done, we have to to held accountable.

The things we hold dear and demand that our people are accountable for, also reveal our true values.

We hold people accountable for financial reporting, because we value revenue. If we don't hold people accountable for outstanding client service, if we treat it as an occassional thing to be done when we have the extra time, then we don't really value client service.

A firm will never become known for its deep understanding of clients' businesses if individuals within it can decide whether or not they choose to meet this standard. To really make this change stick, firms have to become intolerant on matters of values and strategy.

If we make a commitment to change, but don't have the self discipline to measure our progress and demand accountability, then we really haven't decided to change at all.

War Metaphors

Some time ago McKinsey & Co coined the term 'War for Talent' to describe the cumulative effect of demographic change and lack of new qualified talent coming into the labour force.

Now, for an undefined period of time as yet, we are seeing the supply side of the labour market flipping to surplus. The game has not only changed, it is changing every day.

The new reality will make the 'War for Talent' seem like a minor skirmish. Now the war is for business, and executive search firms are fully engaged in that battle.

Here are a few 'strategies' we can expect to see in the marketplace:

1. Price reductions - not so much a strategy, more of an adjustment as we are now in a deflationary market, prices are falling and professional service fees will feel the pressure too.
2. Consolidation - in tandem with price reductions, firms will be pitching for greater share of current client business
3. Diversification - some firms will start to pitch for business outwith their core competence
4. Focus - some firms will decide to dig deeper within their sector and concentrate on their core

What is certain is that some firms will not have a plan for this market. If you don't have campaign objectives, you had better get some.

Dealing with tough times

There is a lot of noise in the market about dealing with the 'new economic reality'. In the workplace there a lot of people who are worried and anxious about the future.

Personally I welcome the 'new economic reality'. It is a return to sanity. Someone once said, 'Life is tough, 3 out of 3 people die, so shut up and deal with it'. Or to put it it another way, even if we are going through tough economic times, must I whine and complain going through it?

The key is not to let the constant economic gloom perpetuated in the media overwhelm clear thinking. Business wise and personally I believe that there are three reactions we must avoid:

1. Rabbit in the Headlight syndrome - negative news overwhelms and causes us to 'freeze'.
2. The frantic action syndrome - the fire, ready, aim approach, being busy, chasing every 'opportunity' that moves.
3. Famine mentality - turning on each other, building individual survival positions, taking care of number one and not working as a team to pull through.

The answer is radical. Slow down. Think first. Get strategic and bring your team with you. Of course we can take advantage of easy opportunities for new business that come our way, however short termism has a short shelf life.

This is a great environment to really assess ourselves - are we in the right business? Are we doing the right things? How should we be positioned in the market? What should we look like as an organisation?

Making Predictions

Yogi Berra once said, 'Making predictions is tough, especially about the future'.

The Energy sector is so unpredictable just now that it changes on a day to day basis. Somes days there seems to be an inkling of positive change, but then the effects of the credit crunch find a new and interesting way to cause the sector to stall.

I was asked at the weekend for my view of the oil price. I paused, knowing full well that if I could accurately predict it I would be in a different job altogether. So I predicated my response with, 'Here is what I want to believe....':

• We are approaching peak driving season in the States
• The 'glut' of oil stocks is starting to dwindle
• Recent Opec production cuts will start to have an effect
• The underlying trend is still scarcity of supply, even with reduced worldwide demand

With all that in mind I suggested that the oil price could recover from the low to mid $40's to around the $60 per barrel mark. 'But would you bet your mortgage on it?' I was asked. I said no, but on reflection, I already have.

Bad Contracting = Bad Projects

What makes a search successful? For a start, the initial 'contract' between the search provider and the client has to be properly defined. Contracting well is a skill and is too often neglicted or half completed.

Here is my take on what constitutes a 'good contract' with a client:

1. The basics - understand the scope of the task in hand
2. Expectations - set out what the client can expect to receive in way of service levels
3. What you will and won't do - the client needs to understand the limits of your input, and
4. What you expect - the client needs to agree to a level of partnership on the project
5. The commercial stuff - get the T's & C's right and agree commercial terms
6. If the scope of work changes, go back to step 1.
   

Setting out service levels, making them explicit and absolutely sticking to them is vital. This constitutes the beginnings of good client management. Getting the client to commit to the process and actively participate as part of the search team is crucial.

Never ever skip a stage, even if the client pushes hard for you to do so, it will only work out badly for the client and the project if you do.

Remember, the aim of the game is to successfully complete the project, provide good service and be profitable.

Why Executive Search?

I'm often asked to describe in one sentence why Executive Search is a good route to go down when looking to hire senior talent. Why not advertise a role, or ask recruitment agencies to supply candidates?

I am never able to succinctly sum up the Search value proposition in one sentence. Obviously I have spent a lot of time thinking about 'why search' and the value our service adds to our clients. So here goes:

1. We find people - the obvious part.
2. We manage risk - we ensure our clients have credible choices to make when it comes to hiring key people.
   
3. We manage the message - sometimes our clients don't know what their message in the market should be, we advise and coach clients plus take the newly crafted message to the marketplace.
4. We manage reputations - how clients interact with propsective candidates throughout the recruitment process can colour the markets view of the client in a positive or negative fashion, it is our job to ensure that the client does the smart thing and that the client is always managed in a professional manner.
5. We manage the candidates - our candidates are sophisticated people and managing them through the process can be challenging and time consuming.
6. We manage the client - we don't take the 'problem' away for the client, instead we guide and work in partnership with the client to get the job done.
   

I used to believe that search was all about people. I now believe that search is a knowledge management business that, at the end result, ensures talented people in key postions.

Challenging Times

The market place is changing all around us, I intend to provide a view from the perspective of a provider of Executive Search services.

Since the beginning of 2009 the press has been full of dire economic news and the impact on the Energy sector has been dramatic. However the news is not all bad. The underlying fundamentals are still the same. Oil and Gas is a finite resource, reserves are an issue and the world is energy hungry despite the economic downturn.

Being out in the market place and talking to clients it is plain to see that the picture is mixed - Energy businesses are 're-calibrating', adjusting to the new level of demand for products and services. The good news is that our clients have learned lessons from previous downturns, they are making sure they retain key talent and using this economic adjustment as an opportunity to improve their leadership teams.

I am very bullish, in an environment like this only the best service providers prosper and I am all for a correction that helps promote attention to client service and really adding value to client businesses.