Approximately 70% of companies in the Life Sciences industry utilize a recruiting/staffing service provider to increase their network of qualified professionals and leaders. Why? There is a war for talent. GTS Scientific was founded to provide a recruiting service for highly regarded life science organizations in need of an efficient screening and selection process. As a service provider, direct communication with the decision maker generates all the difference in the hiring process.
A talent acquisition strategy that aligns the interest of the end user, with that of the recruiting fulfillment team is preferable. On average, this 30-minute time investment at the beginning of the search process saves days, weeks and even months of time saved at the end of the search. ROI in this process is achieved through clear communication and most importantly a Decision Maker Intake Call (DMIC).
The most important aspect of the DMIC is the information that isn’t apparent on most job boards. Many of these job descriptions provide an ample number of “requirements.” The intake call requires the decision maker to select at most five of those requirements versus the 15-20 seen on formal job descriptions. Which new hire do you remember having 20 of 20 requirements “necessary” for the role? As talent acquisition advisors, it’s our obligation to consult the hiring manager on realistic expectations from the labor market.
The DMIC also provides detail on the organization’s market position: Are they a small, medium, or large-sized company? How are they funded? What does career advancement look like for an interested candidate after 12 to 24 months in the role? These factors often determine whether the qualified candidate would be interested in the company and more importantly the long-term opportunity.
Even great operating companies often substitute the DMIC between their internal hiring manager and their recruiting service with less helpful techniques. These substitutions are paper job descriptions (often dated), or a requisition call with their internal human resources or talent acquisition representative; who at times doesn’t weigh in on the final hiring decision and often does not conduct the final interview. Each of these scenarios put the service provider in an adverse situation, left to interpret the decision maker’s request via a paper trail, or word of mouth.
Additional expectations are set during the DMIC regarding the interview process. Most recruiters have spoken with hiring managers who would like to “interview 5-10 good candidates in order to make a decision”. As talent acquisition advisors our role is to consult with the decision maker advising a reasonable number of candidates that are available and interested in the company and career opportunity. Hiring managers miss out on talent by extending the interview process and waiting for comparison candidates. Four qualified candidates, at most, is what we advise for technical skill sets. For the most niche skill sets the number of qualified candidates can be as few as one or two. In the current labor market, qualified candidates will accept competing offers if the decision maker hesitates and wants to conduct comparison interviews.
In 2018, GTS Scientific was five times more likely to fill a hiring manager or decision makers requisition in the first 45 days when a DMIC took place. Furthermore, GTS averaged three candidates to interview for every offer accepted – 3:1 interview to offer ratio versus 5:1 interview to offer ratio – for requirements lacking a DMIC.
A 30-minute time allocation by the decision maker with their service provider before the recruiting process begins is rewarded with great service and the proper candidates. Assuming the average interview takes 30 minutes and three managers will interview each candidate, the DMIC saves clients 2½ hours per position on unnecessary interviews alone. Providing data and analytics to a decision maker is the best way to show the operational excellence the intake call provides.
