Is your approach to hiring top procurement talent a game of hide-and-seek? (CPO Strategy Magazine)

I was recently asked to write an article for CPO Strategy magazine regarding how organizations can attract, identify and hire procurement leaders. Specifically, what are the key elements of a successful supply chain executive recruiters strategy.

Here is the excerpt with a link to the full article at the end.

What recruiting strategies are companies using to attract the best talent, and how does it align with what senior procurement candidates are doing to assess if the company they are considering is the right fit for them.

Whenever someone asks me this question, I always say that the hiring process should not be a game of hide-and-seek between a company and candidate, but a communicative process of mutual discovery. Specifically, are you using the right methods to attract, identify and ultimately hire the right person within the needed timeframe.

It is an important question and based on the ongoing challenges companies are having in finding their next procurement leader; there does not appear to be a ready answer.

The purpose of this article is to provide you and your talent sourcing team with that answer.

Understanding the gap

When we discuss the ongoing topic of the war on talent and the growing talent gap, what exactly does that mean? In other words, is it the result of an external reality or an internal strategy?
Most people think of a talent gap as being solely a lack of qualified people in the general marketplace to fill their immediate needs.

While this is true to a certain extent, what we have also found is that in addition to any external “general” shortage, a misaligned recruiting strategy magnifies the challenges considerably. In other words, it isn’t that the right talent isn’t out there, it is that the methods used to find and engage candidates at a senior level are not in alignment with the positions an organisation is looking to fill.

Final Thought:

“According to a March 11th, 2020 article, less than 10 per cent of jobs at a senior level is the result of candidates being on a job board. Conversely between 80 and 90 per cent of hires are the result of networking.” – Iain Campbell-McKenna, CPO Strategy article (May 2020)

Use the following link to read the rest of this article, and while there, check out the many other interesting articles and resources in this month’s CPO Strategy issue.