TMG's Take... on The War for Talent
A perspective on legal management issues from The McCormick Group

Just like in the rest of the corporate world, law firms are in the throes of a war for talent. And all demographic indications are that the war will only become more intense every year. But just as in the corporate sphere, law firms often lose candidates, not on the merits, but because of flaws in their hiring process. Here are the mistakes we most often see:

• Failure to communicate what the steps of the process are, either to the candidate or to the outside recruiter. We recently handled a search where we had a candidate ready to accept an offer, only to be told for the first time that a high-level official at the firm demanded an interview. That took two weeks to set up, and in that time, the candidate received another offer, and he was gone.
• Failure to make the interviewing and hiring process an inviting one. All the studies on life stress indicate that one of the leading causes is a job change. As a result, those considering a new career opportunity can be insecure about everything from their resume to interviewing. And that applies to law firm partners and C-level candidates. So they can take every little thing, whether it’s a rude receptionist or whether someone is five minutes late to an interview, personally. When all other factors are more or less equal (compensation, benefits, platform, opportunity), the candidate will invariably choose the firm that “showed them the love” during the hiring process.
• Becoming a slave to your hiring process. Too often, we see the following scenario: a firm brings in a slate of candidates for interviews, but doesn’t really give any feedback or take any additional steps until all of the first interviews are completed. If you interview someone that you’re really excited about, make the next move immediately. Find out if there are any time issues. Set up another interview, even if it’s an informal get-together. Again, there’s a war for talent going on out there, and if you don’t act quickly and decisively, you will lose.
• Failure to stay in constant contact with the candidate (or the recruiter), even if you have nothing to say. We’re well aware that at crucial stages of the process, unavoidable delays occur. Key people are unavailable, or some aspect of a package has to be cleared. Often, the first instinct is to tell the candidate nothing, because you don’t want to appear that you don’t have your act together. But you’re better off explaining to the candidate or the recruiter that you can’t get an answer right now (for some very good reason), rather than saying nothing. A good rule of thumb is that you should never let a week go by without making contact at least once.
• Keeping candidates “warm.” As Rocky often said to Bullwinkle, “that trick never works.” What you’re really saying is that you’re really not excited about that candidate, but that you want to prolong his or her agony as long as possible. Candidates don’t like being manipulated, and nothing says manipulation better than long delays with flimsy explanations. If you’re worried about that slight chance that things might change, you’ve got more chance of reviving things by telling the candidate no, and coming back hat-in-hand two months later. And remember, candidates tell their peers about their experiences interviewing with a company, and if you treat candidates badly, it will hurt your overall reputation.
• Hiring only for “open slots.” Talent is talent, and even you have no obvious need or a budget for a position, law firms should consider talented people, whether they are lawyers or other professionals. Did the New York Yankees fail to consider bringing in Alex Rodriguez because they already had a great shortstop? Of course not. Corporate America is filled with positions like Chief Strategic Officer and Director of Policy and Planning; don’t think that someone came up with those titles in yearly budget reports.

TMG's Take is a regular e-mail advisory produced by The McCormick Group. The company's Law & Government Affairs and Law Firm Services groups combine the expertise of more than 15 Consultants to help law firms fulfill all of their lawyer and administrative recruiting needs. TMG's Take covers topics across the spectrum of law firm management, including associate and partner compensation, growth strategies, marketing and business development, operations and facilities management, finance and accounting, professional development, and technology. Please direct all inquiries to Steve Nelson, Managing Principal, at 703.841.1700 or snelson@tmg-dc.com.