Landing on your feet in any profession takes mastering the skill set required for the job. However, truly excelling in your profession involves not only a certain skill set, but a mindset for success as well. Successful executive recruiters know this. They match candidates with organizations every day based on this very premise. But the question is, what is the mindset for a successful executive recruiter? What habits do the best executive recruiters share in common? 1) Successful executive recruiters use honesty to build trust. Recruiters are the guardians of trust. As a recruiter, you must build trust with both companies and candidates. Since your ultimate goal is to create a pairing that is in the interest of both parties, a reputation for honesty is essential. The article “Why Some Recruiters Will Almost Always Be a Success” observes: “The most successful recruiters are part salesman, career counselor, consultant, advisor, fact finder, archaeologist, and “shrink.” They are balanced in their advice. They present both sides of the story, ask candidates a multitude of questions geared directly toward their professional needs and wants, and work to build relationships based on trust with candidates. This is something that takes time and commitment.” [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/295199255″ params=”color=ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false” width=”100%” height=”166″ iframe=”true” /] 2) Successful executive recruiters have a plan. Understanding the industry, the organizational need, and the candidate are all essential pieces of the recruiting puzzle. Successful recruiters do their homework. They research, they delve deeply into all aspects of a given situation, and they are always prepared for the unexpected. Good recruiters use data to aid the decision making process. They understand the talent demand within an industry and have a solid concept of the motivating factors for candidates in their field. They use analytic tools to help them identify and cultivate candidates for their talent pipeline. 3) Successful executive recruiters are students of human nature. Recruiting is a very human endeavor, and good recruiters are students of human nature. They are capable of thinking beyond the professional qualifications of a candidate to the less obvious qualities that will help a candidate fit with an organization’s corporate culture. This necessitates a mentality far beyond merely ticking off qualifications on a checklist. Good recruiters are intuitive, focused, and intimately familiar with details. They take a genuine interest in people. Template: Creating Ideal Candidate Personas – Our free persona template will help you improve your talent acquisition by identifying who your ideal candidates are and how best to reach them. 4) Successful executive recruiters avoid a set-it-and-forget-it approach. Successful recruiting is about continual relationship building. The goal is never merely to fill a position within a company. Rather, successful recruiters continue to build relationships beyond the hire date. One recruiter observes: “Once the hire is made, your job isn’t over. You should be actively involved during the onboarding process, preparing the candidate for the job and making sure everything goes smoothly. Then stay in touch over the long term with the occasional call checking in. This helps you measure your success and actively maintain your network.” 5) Successful executive recruiters leverage technology. Recruiters use all available technologies to interact with their candidates and companies. From a quick email to an in-depth phone conversation, they seamlessly work to keep the lines of communication open. They use robust applicant tracking and talent management systems to help them collaborate with hiring managers and cultivate candidate interest. They leverage such systems to engage active and passive candidates and build a deep bench of talent from which organizations can choose when needed. ThriveTRM is a favorite among executive recruiters and hiring managers. Schedule a demo of ThriveTRM today to explore everything it has to offer as a total talent management solution for your enterprise.