A couple of months into the pandemic things looked pretty dire for the marketing industry. Significant layoffs seemed to be happening everywhere. How things have changed. At GALE, we’ve grown significantly in the last year, and while not everyone has been so fortunate, talk to any good recruiter, and they’ll tell you they’ve never been so busy.  

The bottom line is that hiring is hard right now for everyone, particularly at the most senior levels. I’m not a recruiter and have never worked in HR, but at every step of my career, I’ve always made talent acquisition and recruitment a big part of my job. I don’t have a 100% close rate, but I’ve done pretty well. Here are three quick tips for hiring great senior people.  

1. Don’t delegate. It’s ok to use recruiters or HR to help you source people but make the call or do outreach yourself. Early in my career I got a personal call from the COO of an agency I was interviewing with. I was far below him from an organizational hierarchy perspective. The call was a surprise, and it tipped the scales for me. I remember the conversation to this day. People want to get paid well and have access to opportunities for growth, but they also want respect and to work at a place where their voice matters. Make it personal. Show them how much their hiring would mean to both the organization and you.  

2. Great people are attracted to great ambition. Don’t sell them on where you are today. Sell them on where you’re headed and clearly articulate the role that they could play in the vision.

3. Lastly, passion wins. It’s contagious. Don’t expect someone to get excited about your company if you’re not. Bring excitement and energy to the conversation.

We hired 270 people at GALE last year. We still have many spots to fill. Come join us and make great work that drives business.

‍