Gently Pushing Back As A Valued Partner

Our Director of Recruitment, Kira Pozehl, weighs in on how to be a great partner with the client and adding value to the hiring process. Well said Kira and thank you!

Last year we were running a search that was at first, yielding mediocre results. Our client had a strong need for a local candidate. And while I uncovered a lot of great talent, no one had the complete package we were looking for.

After weeks of detailed searching and endless calling, I finally received a message from one of the nicest and most helpful resources I have met to date. While the position wasn’t quite right for her, she had a referral that she was certain would meet the mark for our client. After this candidate made it through my pre-screening and Salvatore Balistreri’s in-depth interview, we knew this was the person for the job. The problem was, our client didn’t quite agree with us at that point.

As recruiters, clients hire us to find the “best fit” for the technical requirements and the company culture. It is our job to gently push back when we know someone has the potential to work. In this instance, our client seemed to see everything that was wrong with the candidate instead of the positive aspects of the candidacy. We pushed for a second interview and most importantly, we asked the client to step back and look at the big picture and genuinely listen to why this candidate was a great fit. To their credit, they listened.

What was the result? The client heard what we had to say and came to realize that the candidate we discovered was exactly what they were looking for. It just took some time to see it.

As an Austin Retained Executive Search Firm, it is our job to gently push back on candidates we truly believe in. Of course, the client always has the final say and we truly respect that. In this particular case, the hired candidate continues to thrive and make a significant return on investment for the company.

Being a valued partner who offers candid and well thought out opinions with the client is one of our roles that adds value to the hiring process. Successful placements begin with a trusting and mutually rewarding and listening relationship between the client and our firm.

Kira Pozehl, Director of Recruitment
Salvatore Balistreri Executive Search Consulting

2017-07-15T02:06:08-05:00By sbalistreri|Austin Executive Search Firms|

“As a search committee member, we selected Sal's firm to help us with a key CEO search. They made the process painless both for the candidates and our search committee. We made the right choice and Sal's team delivered.”

Michael Bennett, Head of the APRO Search Committee, APRO Search Committee

“Sal specializes in executive search and has delivered some outstanding results for Silvercar. He has assembled a great team and they conduct searches the way it should be done – from scratch! He understands the importance of not only finding the right skill set, but also finding the right cultural match. He does his homework before he starts and does it well. Sal has jumped through hoops for me and delivered great results. He provides personalized service from start to finish and won’t stop until you are satisfied. I highly recommend that you consider Sal and his team for your next search.”

Kay Stroman, Former Chief Administrative Officer, Silvercar

“Sal was definitely a huge asset in our recruiting efforts. He spent a lot of time getting to know our culture and understanding the values that were essential to the makeup of of our team. Sal is a great partner and I certainly recommend him and his firm to anyone looking to recruit a great team. You will not be disappointed!”

Craig Taylor, Former CEO, Cirrus Systems

“Sal clearly understands the culture of the client and clearly understands the REAL person behind the candidate. This allows him to best match clients and candidates because he sees beyond their words and understands their real talents and value systems. Sal also has the ability to present a candidate because he is committed to her/him and their talents and values they could bring to the job. He is even MORE committed to the client’s analysis of the candidate so that he learns from any rejection of a candidate in order to fine-tune the search for the next better candidate.”

Vickey Thayer Kleinsmith, Former Vice President Human Resources, Lozier Corporation

“I appreciate the fact that Sal takes not only the job requirements into account, but he also considers culture and “fit”. These are rare and valuable traits for a recruiter and that is one of the many reasons that we love working with Sal.”

Debbie Mitchell, President/CEO, Velocity Credit Union

“Sal is able to communicate our company culture and organic growth strategy and along with his high level of responsiveness, is a great partner to work with.”

Karen Ganzlin, Former Chief Human Resources Officer, TD Ameritrade

"Sal and his team are awesome partners in our success. His team has taken the time to become part of our team so that they understand the "fit" component of our hiring process that includes the mission, vision and values and most importantly, our culture."

Scotte Hudsmith, Chairman & CEO , Specialized Dental Partners

“Consider Sal if you need a recruiter for key management positions and C-Level searches. Sal is very focused on finding the right person for the right position. He produces solid candidates across a variety of industries and will personally work with his clients to help them achieve success in hiring. He is a seasoned expert, well networked and very responsive.”

Kurt Halvorson, President, Imprimis, LLC

“Sal and his team offered a great process with a very good long term result for Lozier. It was a process made easy for our team to meet all the candidates in a short period of time and come to a conclusion.”

Sheri Andrews, Co-Chair, Lozier Corporation

“Sal is one of those rare business executives who truly believes in the power of ‘doing well by doing good.’ He is generous to a fault with his time and his network. He spends his professional capital to help others in his community with no eye towards personal gain.”

Cat Nawawi, President, The Highland Group

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