We previously introduced the concept of talent differentiation and the need to classify existing staff as A, B or C players. Our goal is to retain high performing A player employees, B players with A potential and no C players. Since it is not realistic to fill every internal opening with an existing A player or high potential B players, organizations must create and maintain vigorous recruiting processes that can supply A player talent as needed.

For large organizations with ample resources, the maintenance of effective recruiting processes would not seem difficult. In fact the opposite is often true. A recent survey of 600 large company human resource executives revealed that less than 10 percent measured their hiring and promotional success rates. Meanwhile, large company executives often complain about the scarcity of A player executive talent in the current labor pool.

One significant reason for small business failure is the failure to attract talented employees. Unfortunately, many small business owners do not possess the skills and knowledge necessary to recruit successfully. And like some of their big company counterparts, most fail to grasp the concept that recruiting top notch talent requires an ongoing commitment.

Building an effective recruiting process starts with the idea that everyone in management must be talent focused. This means being constantly on the lookout for A players. Effective recruiting processes identify candidates from multiple sources. In today&8217;s ever-changing world, the old recruiting standby, the newspaper help wanted ad, definitely is not the answer.

An effective recruiting process must have a defined interviewing and selection process, a component typically missing in small businesses.

The lack of a formal selection process, which should include thorough candidate assessments and background investigations, will result in many poor hires.

Additionally, many small business owners and managers have no training or experience in conducting effective and legal interviews.

This also contributes to poor hiring decisions, which leads to employee turnover and continued recruiting challenges.

Recruiting A player talent is critical to any organization&8217;s success. Management&8217;s challenge is to ensure that their recruiting and selection process makes this happen on a consistent basis.

Kevin McKenzie is a partner in The Moser Group. You can be reached by e-mailing mailto:kmckenzie@mosergroup.net