Executive Search with Depth — Part V:
The Joy of the Perfect Match

Today’s issue marks a crucial point of our Valdivia Inter­nal series: candi­date selec­tion. A place­ment job has been assigned, a list of candi­dates creat­ed – you have already learned about these steps of Valdivi­a’s Exec­u­tive Search proce­dure. We aim for noth­ing less than a long-term place­ment for the posi­tion. A match which is only good for today will not be suffi­cient for either side. Much rather it is all about sustain­abil­i­ty: a future perspec­tive with broad devel­op­ment poten­tial, shared by compa­ny and candi­date alike.

First Talks and a Back­ground Check

In a first, in-depth conver­sa­tion, we discuss the candi­dates’ CVs, their profes­sion­al suit­abil­i­ty and person­al moti­va­tion. At the same time, we check the formal­i­ties, such as degrees, certifi­cates, and qual­i­fi­ca­tions, as well as work and stay permits, if applicable.

This first group typi­cal­ly consists of up to 15 people; after our first screen­ing, we will present the customer with 3 — 5 candi­dates. Now it is on our client to study and eval­u­ate the profiles and conduct first inter­views with the rele­vant candi­dates. After that, they may choose to have inter­est­ing candi­dates assessed through an inde­pen­dent service provider, using the Behav­iour­al Profile Analy­sis method.

Iden­ti­fy­ing Poten­tial with Behav­iour­al Profile Analysis

Behav­iour­al Profile Analy­sis (BPA; German: Verhal­tenspro­fi­l­analyse = VPA) does not only provide the canci­dates with an oppor­tu­ni­ty to partic­i­pate in an in-depth, scien­tif­i­cal­ly proven assess­ment; the enter­prise and the vacant posi­tion itself will be involved as well. With this proce­dure, we at Valdivia  are ventur­ing on new terri­to­ry: VPA yields much more precise and mean­ing­ful results than your conven­tion­al assess­ment center, whose results often leave too much room for interpretation.

VPA is so much more than a one-sided obser­va­tion, it makes both sides analyse and consol­i­date suit­abli­ty and oppor­tu­ni­ties. It can capture a vast vari­ety of impor­tant attrib­ut­es, and with aston­ish­ing preci­sion, too:

• Self-image and motivation
• Behav­iour in routine situ­a­tions and under pressure
• Strengths and weak­ness­es in leadership
• Commu­ni­ca­tor behaviour
• Deci­sion-making
• Organ­i­sa­tion­al abilities
• Deal­ing with crit­cism and conflict

… while always keep­ing well-connect­ed with the customer’s concrete needs and profile. As much as a cadi­date may be the perfect match for the one compa­ny, the same person could actu­al­ly be a hindrance to the team in anoth­er one.

The Feel-Good Way of Deci­sion-Making – for Both Sides 

One essen­tial part of BPA is the exten­sive post-analy­sis talks. They are one of the reasons why we at Valdivia so high­ly recom­mend and arrange this approach for our customers, if request­ed. This will include a look at devel­op­ment poten­tials: BPA often indi­cates how candi­dates and enter­pris­es could find even more common ground through coach­ing or train­ing. The debrief­ing process then is the oppor­tu­ni­ty to care­ful­ly study the results of the analy­ses and discuss any conclusions.

Not only the customer will gain quite a clear picture of their future employ­ee with this very detailed and precise proce­dure. BPA also makes sure that the candi­date does not prema­ture­ly – and possi­bly for subjec­tive reasons – opt for an attrac­tive posi­tion that will later prove unsuit­able. For both sides, BPA yields impor­tant indi­ca­tors of often supris­ing precision.

And yet, it is always people who take the actu­al deci­sion: As consul­tants, we bring to the process our expe­ri­ence and good judg­ment of char­ac­ter. After all, the deci­sive factor will often be the chem­istry between customer and candidate.