Finding the right person to recruit has similarities to finding romance because you want your employees to be loyal, and love their job and company. However, for many firms’ recruitment is transactional, with expectations on both sides being nebulous. Recruiting the wrong person causes emotional and financial pain impacting the team and can damage client relationships. With the average cost of recruiting a midlevel lawyer in excess of 15K in recruitment costs alone its essential to have a strategy and process that attracts and retains the right people. In this article I will break down the three steps you should follow to hire the right person for the best return on investment.
External Considerations - State of the legal market
The legal sector is grappling with seismic changes. Since the pandemic the way people view who, how and where they work has shifted. Flexibility and autonomy are much higher up on the checklist for Gen Z[1], however some firms such as Weil Gotshal & Manges have mandated that all employees must return to the office 4 days a week, to maintain mentorship, morale and professional development[2]. Trying to find the balance for the team and business is tricky.
Today we have five generations working together with millennials making up 75% of the workforce by 2025 and Gen Z 30% by 2030 therefore how you persuade and engage both generations will be critical to how you grow.
To complicate matters further, demand for quality lawyers has outstripped supply every year for the last decade and this trend is not likely to change any time soon which means that candidates have more options and are in the driving seat. It’s an awful feeling when you have gone through the interview process, made an offer to the best person who then decides to decline your offer to join a competitor. Offering your second choice could be an option, but failing this you are back to square one.
Keeping up to date with external trends is essential research however I believe that the current, standardised recruitment process is no longer fit for purpose because the landscape has changed therefore to hire the right person you need new tools which are, an employer brand and value proposition. Your employer brand is the internal and external perception of who you are. It works in combination with your employer value proposition which is all that you offer an employee when they join and grow with your firm. Follow these three steps to have a strong employer brand and value proposition.
Step 1 Assess - What culture do you have?
Your culture is an essential part of your employer value proposition (EVP). When you know who you are, it makes it much easier to attract and hire the right people to help serve clients and grow the business.
I love watching and following my football club Arsenal. I believe there are lessons businesses can learn on how sports clubs build teams. Five years ago, Arsenal said good bye to Arsene Wenger who was the manager for 22 years. The board brought in rookie Mikel Arteta who evolved the club and realigned its culture with the clubs business objectives. He began by communicating his values and beliefs which everyone needed to accept and follow otherwise they were out, including backroom staff. He brought in players that believed in his vision. There was better team cohesion on and off the pitch, clear boundaries gave individuals guidelines on expected behavior but also freedom to be themselves. Within his short time of service, and with limited resources he’s won the FA cup and was runner up to Man City last season.
The first step of developing your employer brand is to understand what culture you have and why because you want candidates to love what you stand for and buy into your vision.
The values you share on your website are your North Star. They set the parameters on how people work together and the level of service that needs to be offered to your clients. Your values must be regularly communicated and lived for them to become alive otherwise they are nothing more than words on a website.
In deciding what culture you have, you must analyse both quantitative and qualitative data. Engagement surveys, number of employee referrals, retention rates, and glass door score are useful metrics to gauge how people feel about your firm. What KPI’s you decide to track should be determined by your business objectives and goals but it’s advisable to measure as much as possible. Employers must listen to their employees to gain the insights on “who you are”. Perception is reality therefore it’s their experience that matters and is the true barometer on what culture you have.
Before I founded Thomas Telman, I was a head-hunter for a global city firm, and I remember how clearly the culture was communicated to me. In my interviews I met with senior managers, directors and consultants and they all described the environment as being fast paced, dynamic, with no two days ever being the same. They said, “if you are motivated to earn well then this is the place for you, but it will be late nights most nights”. Every morning we had a short team meeting reminding us on what it takes to be successful reinforcing the values and vision. I loved how I was being treated because it was transparent and fair.
It’s argued that cultures are too ambiguous to be managed however if it’s not measured you run the risk of creating a toxic culture and potentially damaging your brand. With a system of regularly gathering data on how people feel about their job, personal development and environment you can protect your workforce from burnout, low engagement and early resignation.
Once you know what culture you have and why, ask yourself are we happy with it? Is there anything that needs to change? Your culture is your secret weapon and can be your unique selling point. It can’t be copied or replicated by your competitors therefore should be nurtured, protected and developed.
Step 2 – Communicate Your Employer Value Proposition
As much as we want to show off our firms to have the best culture and is a great place to work, we must also be honest about the stuff that isn’t going well and use it to your advantage.
People want to join a company where they can make a difference. Your struggle could be the perfect opportunity for your ideal applicant. It’s important that new joiners at all levels understand the reality of working at your firm. The good, bad and ugly.
An EVP is everything that you offer your employees in return for their skills, experience and knowledge. It’s made up of your compensation, quality of work, work life balance, culture etc. However, where companies go wrong is to have a one size fits all approach. An effective EVP must be attractive, realistic and true to stand any chance of resonating with your target candidate pool.
Two of the most important elements of your EVP is your culture and salary therefore how you present your EVP is important particularly if you can’t or prefer not to compete on salary. In your favour, is that Gen Z value “culture” more important than any other previous generation[3].
There is a tendency for job descriptions to look and feel generic. They are usually uninspiring and aim to appeal to a wide audience. However, it’s better for them to be drafted and communicated with the purpose of talking to a specific person. The best marketers will tell you that before you try selling your services or products, identify your target market, create personas and talk directly to that person. Trying to speak with everyone you end up speaking to no one.
The science behind neuro marketing is fascinating and powerful when applied. 95% of our buying decision is based on emotion first then logic. One way of doing this is to tell the story of why you are a special company which must connect emotionally. For example, this is how you can share your story on a job description.
Open with a question
What if your legal knowledge was the only thing stopping us from closing the gap on climate change?
Empathy is created with anyone that cares about climate change. The vison of the company is also clear.
1st paragraph
We are committed to supporting one of the world’s leading construction companies to develop new affordable homes that are eco-friendly.
Our team is not just filled with some of the best construction lawyers but we are also working alongside scientists, educators and engineer experts to make incredible breakthrough discoveries every month.
Working together we are looking for highly skilled and dedicated technical thinkers capable of unearthing solutions under pressure with no margin for error.
This works because curiosity is piqued and the candidate realises it will be a challenging environment.
2nd paragraph
Did you know that the UK is currently 13th out of 20 countries for eco building with a total of 30, 000 homes built and we were responsible for 20, 000 of them? We estimate that we are already reducing carbon footprint by 25% but this is not enough. With your help we want to increase that to 50%. We are one of the most revered construction and commercial property teams known for our work therefore we offer compensation packages to match.
This works because you are revealing facts about your work that’s making a difference. Belonging and impact are both reinforced by saying “with your help”. Benefits are also referenced.
3rd paragraph
What you could expect to be doing daily:
· Solving complex business and legal issues
· Drafting complex contracts based on new theories
· Collaborating with scientists, engineers and developers
The strengths we would like you to bring:
· Excellent written and verbal skills to explain complicated matters in simple terms
· An ability to build rapport quickly
· An attentive listener
This works because it provides specifics of the role and the interpersonal skills required to execute at a high level.
Paragraph 4
The call to action
Together, let’s make the world a better place before we leave it. Apply today.
Your job description is one of the key places where you can tell your own unique story that compels your target candidate into action. Have fun with it.
Step 3 – Create talent pools
It’s well reported that attracting and retaining talent is one of the biggest challenges facing firms in 2023 and 2024[4] therefore if your recruitment process follows this model, it’s time for change.
· Advertise vacancies on website, social media and job boards
· Wait for CV’s to come in
· Assess skills, experience and personality in interview
· Make offer
This process is out of date and fraught with pitfalls. Most companies recruit when someone resigns and the usual step is to find an exact replacement without evaluating who would be the right person. Furthermore, this reactive type of recruitment only attracts active job seekers representing approximately 21 % of the market. It’s also likely that if you have received a CV from a top candidate they will be interviewing at other firms.
This process relies on you finding the right person who is actively seeking a new job at exactly the right time of you advertising. More often than not this person isn’t the right fit, but is the best person on the market.
Speak to any hiring manager looking for quality legal talent and they will tell you that vacancies are often open for over three months. If this is an empty chair, it’s lost revenue and can put additional pressure on the rest of the team. This is a costly and a time-consuming way of recruiting.
If you happen to use an agency then you have a better chance of finding better quality candidates however their expertise comes at a price ranging anything from 20 - 35% of the base salary per vacancy. If you want to keep your cost per hire low without compromising quality of candidate then the final element is to switch your recruitment process from reactive to proactive by following a new process.
In data we have gathered over the years only 21% of candidates are actively looking whereas if you had a process to engage passive candidates which make up 70% of the market then you stand a better chance of recruiting the right person with little to know competition.
Quoting the words of James Caan from Dragon Den, “observe the masses and do the opposite”. That’s how you stand out and make a difference.
Proactive process
· Ask passive candidates to join your talent pool all year round
· Engage them with content and invite them to events showcasing your culture.
· Invite candidates for an interview from your talent pool database
· Track performance of your talent pool
The above process is used by companies where they need highly skilled talent which are in short supply. For example, companies in the IT sector go through a talent mapping exercise, identifying individuals they need in the event particular individuals leave, because their role is vital for continued business performance. They develop a relationship, build trust early to fend off competition and demonstrate their desire to hire the right person.
The great thing about this proactive process is that it can be something that team members outside of HR can be involved in which boosts engagement. Many firms have an employee referral system that is underutilized, either no one refers or it’s the same few people that do. Where are those silver medallist candidates that you interviewed but you didn’t offer? What online and offline events can you hold that showcases your expertise and culture?
With a live database of engaged passive candidates you will be building trust and reducing the need to use agents and job boards. The sunken feeling of your offer being turned down will be a thing of the past whilst also reducing your recruitment costs.
Conclusion
In knowledge-based organisations like law your people are the biggest expense and also your most important asset therefore considerable care must be taken on how you recruit and create an environment for them to thrive.
The traditional process of recruitment can work for you if the vacancy requires a low skill, however when you need highly skilled talent in a talent short market proactive recruitment is the best way to find the right people. A well-defined and drafted EVP will attract the right people and position you as the firm of choice. Follow this process to win the war on talent without having to fight.
[1] https://action.deloitte.com/insight/3375/its-not-a-stretch-gen-z-and-millennials-want-flexibility-and-balance
[2] https://news.bloomberglaw.com/business-and-practice/weil-joins-firms-forcing-lawyers-into-office-four-days-a-week
[3] https://www2.deloitte.com/content/dam/Deloitte/at/Documents/human-capital/at-gen-z-millennial-survey-2022.pdf
[4] https://www.iflr1000.com/NewsAndAnalysis/United-Kingdom-Combatting-talent-shortages-in-the-legal-and-other-professional-s/Index/13350
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