Don't blame the headhunters

Paul Simpson provides a few quick tips on how to avoid making disastrous recruitment decisions.

When the appointment of a new chief exec who hasn't risen through the ranks goes wrong, it is all too easy to blame the headhunters. But mumbled excuses such as "When he said he'd run Apple, I didn't realise he meant the orchard business" just won't wash.

Getting the most out of your headhunter needn't be that difficult if you stick to a few simple principles.

Help draft the job specification

That's one way to ensure you won't get the default 'Company X, which is in the ______ (fill in as appropriate) business, seeks a new chief executive officer with proven leadership skills' type of job description.

As part of the process, create the opportunity to ask specific questions. For instance, if you're in the car industry, you could ask a candidate to suggest how they propose to cope with the upcoming slowdown in demand.

Give yourself a choice

This probably sounds too obvious a point to make. But at the recruitment agency's suggestion, one famous US company interviewed just one candidate. Unsurprisingly, the appointment didn't work out.

Don't get star-struck

Too many interviews of well-known outside candidates turn into meetings of mutual appreciation societies. However good a candidate's CV might be, they have to impress you as much as you have to impress them.

Some agencies suggest that directors split into two teams who create the time to ask candidates searching questions. That way, you'll lessen the risk of being dazzled by a candidate's presentation skills.

Remember why you're hiring

As Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, associate dean of the Yale School Of Management, says: "For the most part, external hires are evidence of a board's failure, rather than its responsiveness to shareholder interests. There is no real scarcity of talent for the top job, just a mindset that distorts the real market."

Headhunters often say their clients choose chief execs for the wrong reasons. One agency boss told The Economist magazine: "It used to be a case of 'Get me a name, even if they can't run the firm'. Boards didn't care if a person fitted in."

Use your contacts

Rakesh Khurana, assistant professor at the Harvard Business School, is highly critical of the cult of the superstar chief executive officer. And he believes the companies that are most effective at hiring externally, pool all their knowledge and external contacts to inform their decision.

If a candidate's CV contains a flaw or an outright lie, you can't just blame the headhunter for not picking it up. It's also extremely difficult to decide whether a candidate's success at 'Company X' really was down to them, or down to somebody else. Any informal (but informed) soundings you can make will reduce the risk of error.

(For more guidance on how to recruit chief executives, see 'How to buy a CEO' )