Companies attempting to compete in an increasingly global marketplace face challenges unheard of in years past. The pressure to expand globally to reap the economic rewards of globalization puts many organizations in foreign territory, both figuratively and literally. What are some of the biggest challenges in global executive recruitment? More importantly, what can your organization do to mitigate those challenges and achieve global recruiting success? Challenge Number One: Talent Mobility Issues Expanding and setting up offices in geographically diverse locations requires something beyond the skill set normally required of an executive in one’s home country. Executives who flourish on home soil often flounder in international environments. One obvious obstacle is the potential language barrier an executive may have to address when moving overseas. However, perhaps the more challenging barrier is the clash of cultures, both external to the organization and internal. The article “Emerging Markets, Emerging Issues: Talent Mobility and Global Recruiting” notes: “One of the biggest factors influencing this growing gap between company geographies and organizational capability seems to be the fact that many organizations continue to recruit and relocate talent using the same policies and procedures as they do domestically, or between developed markets and offices. It’s imperative that employers realize that placing talent in emerging markets necessitates not only a different approach for talent acquisition and management, but, perhaps, a different type of employee altogether.” What different approach is needed, and what type of employee will best acclimatize to relocation to an emerging market? In short, global executive recruitment must include looking not only for executives who are proficient in job skills, but executives who are proficient in people skills as well. Rather than simply measuring a prospective candidate’s leadership ability, weight should also be given to his or her adaptability, cultural sensitivity, and emotional intelligence. Additionally, concentrating on hiring a more diverse workforce in general will help an organization learn adaptability and cultural sensitivity at every level. Thus, more of your workforce will be available to handle relocation smoothly when the time comes. [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” /] Challenge Number Two: Communication with Candidates Those tasked with recruiting executive talent globally may also find effective communication with international candidates to be challenging. Linguistically, you and your candidate may both speak a common language, but that does not always mean that there is a meeting of the minds when communication occurs. Often, it is not the language spoken that presents the largest obstacle, but it is the cultural differences which simply do not “translate” between one culture and another. How can this challenge be addressed? Once more, the answer is in cultivating a more diverse workforce. Exposure to difference cultural viewpoints is a healthy and essential part of any organizational strategy for future growth. As globalization becomes increasingly important as a competitive differentiator, it is the organizations that ensure diversity in their hiring practices that will rise to the top of the heap. eBook: Using Social Media for Executive Search – Learn how to leverage social media in your executive search process more effectively. Challenge Number Three: Increased Budgetary Concerns Global executive recruitment represents a significant strain on an organization’s talent acquisition budget. Relocation of executives internationally comes with a hefty price tag. How can this be mitigated? The best way to ensure that your budget is well-spent involves accurate recruiting in the first place. Investing time, effort, and money into hiring an executive who turns out to be a poor fit for your firm is one of the most costly recruiting mistakes you can make. To ensure that does not happen, it is wise to leverage state-of-the-art talent management software to thoroughly vet and cultivate top executive talent. Recruitment tools that enable robust collaboration with your entire recruiting team and healthy communication with candidates will help you keep costs down while keeping the quality of your hires high. Contact us today to schedule a demo of ThriveTRM and see for yourself the competitive edge it provides for your VC firm