Q&A on Silos

Q: I'm trying to work with some recruiters in my firm. I need them to help me fill a critical position. The last recruit wasn't a good fit, and we should have eliminated him as a candidate a lot earlier than we did. (We all realize now that this candidate - and how we handled him - was a failure.) I'm concerned the recruiters just don't understand my needs very well. They don't understand what sort of person I need. And I want our process to be different next time. Unfortunately their group and my group are in silos - we don't communicate well and don't understand each other. How can I best proceed?

A: Start first with building rapport. Breaking down the silo is your first job. The other challenges will be a lot easier to take on once you do that.

So, how do you start to reduce or eliminate the silos? One way to start is by increasing your level of trust and communication. (Sometimes humor can be used at this stage, if you're comfortable with that - it can help people to let go of some of their defensiveness.)

You have a silo when members of a group view each other as "us" and the rest of the firm as "them" - as in "they don't understand us" (and we don't understand them or their needs). Frequently, expectations are mis-set, and one of "them" disappoints us, or we disappoint them, and the mistrust grows.

In this case, take advantage of the recent failed recruitment. Call a meeting with your recruiters, and start off with group problem solving: brainstorming what went wrong, all the possible ways to get it right in future, and how to best proceed.

During this brainstorming, it's vital that you mention some things you personally did wrong or could have done better. This works on several levels:

First, when you admit an error, you give others permission to do the same. You're modeling positive behavior.

Second, admitting an error is vulnerable. We trust people who are willing to trust us, and you can demonstrate trust by allowing yourself to become vulnerable.

Third, your problem solving session will only be good if it brings up good issues - and that means you can't hold back. You have to talk about your mistakes.

Once you've finished the problem solving exercise, there should be a higher level of both trust and communication in the room. Use that to move on to the next step - share with them your vision of how the process should look in the future. Tell them what you look for in a recruit, contrasted with the failed recruit if necessary. Give them enough detail that they understand your needs in detail, and tell them why you need it.

One thing you've told me before is that you want to recruit for "soft" skills like the ability to work well with others - you value those higher than the "hard" technical skills. I'm pretty sure the recruiters don't know that, and don't know why you prefer that.

You have to tell them why you prefer candidates with those soft skills. Once they understand why, they can internalize your need and will do a better job finding the recruits who will fit your mold.

Consider the example of the steel workers who visited the bicycle factory. There isn't that much for the steel workers to understand about bicycles. The steel is the same steel it was before the visit. But somehow, seeing the customer using the product makes a big difference in the quality of the work. Workers who go on trips like that come back and do better work. The steel maker who visits the bike maker, comes back and makes better steel.

You need to help your recruiters see the word from their customer's perspective - your perspective.