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Recruiting, Culture and Ethics
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article by Dr. John Sullivan & Master Burnett Rants can be useful when they bring to light archaic, idiotic practices that do more harm than good ó so be prepared, a rant is about to ensue. For world-class recruiters who understand business principles, let this article be your war cry. For all the administrative types who are in HR because they like people, be forewarned, you are not going to like what you are about to read! Your Issues Are No Different As corporate advisors, one of the most common things we hear when an organization is explaining their emerging issues is “we’re different.” It doesn’t matter what country the company is headquartered in, or who you’re talking to, undoubtedly at some point in the conversation the statement will emerge. You could be talking about almost any issue, and someone will volunteer why all of the best practices in the world are irrelevant for their organization, simply because “we’re different.” After working with more than 250 organizations in 23 countries, we can attest that while the companies themselves may be different, the issues they face are not. “We’re different” has become nothing more than an empty excuse for recruiters and other HR professionals to hide behind when they recognize the business logic behind some practice or approach but personally don’t want to do it. Greatness Comes Through Differentiation As huge evangelists for employment branding, we recognize that great companies often rise to their level of greatness by building a differentiated environment through management practices, workplace programs, and entrepreneurial vision. Some might call the unique interaction of all these elements organizational culture, but we prefer to recognize them individually, because doing so eliminates the opportunity to use culture as an excuse for shying away from something that makes sense for the business. Nothing is more infuriation for a corporate advisor than to be brought in to identify major areas of weakness and then told that the weaknesses can not be addressed because it is part of the culture. This perspective paints culture as some highly rigid, static element, which it is not. Like many things, culture is a ubiquitous element of an organization that is largely driven by perception. Two people may work for the same organization, yet define the culture in two dramatically different ways. Because it can be so many things to so many people, culture has become the easy excuse. Ethics, the Backup Excuse If culture doesn’t emerge as an excuse following the “we’re different” proclamation, you can be sure that ethics will. Somehow, it seems that every modern day business practice from functions other than HR generates an ethics violation when applied inside HR. We can’t apply the same marketing principles inside the organization that marketers use externally to attract and retain customers, because that would be manipulation! We can’t hire to hurt the competition, because that wouldn’t be fair! We can’t apply analytics to human performance, because that would be dehumanizing! No matter what you want to do, someone in HR will find a reason why it is unethical. The Time Has Come Using ethics and culture as excuses for not acting in the best interests of the organization must stop. Letting your guard down during a war is tantamount to surrendering. As the second iteration of the war for talent picks up pace worldwide, it is asinine not to do everything in your power to attract new top talent and protect/retain existing top talent. Failing to do everything possible will result in your organization being decimated by the competition. No company large or small will be exempt from fighting. As demand exceeds supply, the enemy will raid your house, taking anyone of value. Most salespeople spend a majority of their time trying to “steal customers” away from their competitors. Great recruiters also realize that the best hire a firm can make is a hire from their direct competitors’ top talent. Only socialist recruiters fight this notion by throwing up cultural and ethical concerns around poaching. There is no room for socialism in business; your responsibility is to the shareholders, not the greater public. So why hire a competitor’s talent?
Some actions to consider:
Building a world-class organization requires top talent. Every member of the organization must be actively engaged in both recruiting such talent and retaining it once onboard. But securing top talent isn’t easy, it requires great tools and great practices. Sales organizations have been perfecting the art of acquisition and retention for hundreds of years, so their tactics and approaches have stood the test of time. No longer can recruiters avoid making use of such tools and approaches on the grounds that they violate the organizations culture or ethics. If your sales organization uses the approaches, then so should you!