Executive Recruitment
Selecting the right senior executives is a critical process for your organisation. Merit Solutions can assist to ensure outcomes which deliver highly capable individuals well matched to your culture and future needs. Our professional approach will ensure that internal and external candidates develop positive impressions of your organisation and operations. We offer assessment tools including psychometric assessment specifically designed for executive recruitment. Our executive consultants have established reputations for their capacity to develop and deliver timely and targeted selection strategies and to ensure candidates are attended to as individuals.
Our Services include:
Job Descriptions
We can develop or refine your executive job descriptions effectively and discreetly when you require a timely response.
Job Description services include:
- Design of well targeted job descriptions
- Updating existing job descriptions in line with organisational changes
- Advice on job evaluations (including the Queensland Government JEMS System)
- Benchmarking against other organisation and industry standards
- Development of a candidate information package to support the sourcing process
Search
Our candidate sourcing and attraction strategies are based on analysis of candidate requirements with regard to expertise, experience and potential sources.
Search services include:
- advertising by Merit Solutions for the client (jointly badged)
- advertising by the client but with Merit Solutions providing the contact point for enquiries, candidate care and receipt of applications
- search of social media and other on-line resources
- full executive search or direct approaches to supplement the candidate field
Shortlisting
Our executive consultants can assess the field and provide a report outlining the applicants’ background with recommendations for those who warrant your close attention.
Shortlisting services include:
- Pre-screening and preliminary shortlist based on written applications and resumes with follow up by telephone where required to clarify experience or claims
- Initial assessment interviews designed to professionally and reliably evaluate candidate claims and fit for the role
- Psychometric assessment using tools such as PAPI, MSQUIT, Values Assessment interviews with two executive consultants
- Other assessment tools such as written exercises or in-basket exercises may be appropriate to assist in shortlisting (for example in more operational or technically focussed senior roles)
- Referee checks
Assessment Services
Our consultants are experienced in developing assessment strategies at the executive level and can provide practical and professional advice on how best to assess your pool of competitive applicants.
Assessment Services include:
- Arrange interview times and venues
- Develop questions, presentation guidelines and/or other assessment tools in consultation with the client
- Administer psychological and/or ability tests and report to the client
- Attend interviews and facilitate assessment and decision-making
- Participation as a senior independent representative on a selection panel
- Record key responses and facilitate panel assessment
Referee Checks
At the executive level, it is vital to eliminate any future risk an external appointment might bring to your organisation. The judgement, tenacity and discretion of our consultants is much appreciated by our clients.
Referee Checks services include:
- Managing referee checks to ensure that appropriate referees are nominated and that confidentiality is maintained
- Obtaining full and frank comments using skilful probing techniques, confirming (or otherwise) examples given by applicants and exploring work behaviours
- Documenting referee reports taken by phone and ensuring these are endorsed by the referee when required
- Obtaining meaningful reports from referees who are hard to contact (eg overseas, interstate, busy executives)
- Establishing requirements and managing pre-appointment checks as required to ensure the validation of claims and reputation
Scribing
Our consultants are able to provide professional reports, worthy of scrutiny at the highest levels, in very short timeframes.
Scribing services include:
- Liaise with internal HR staff to ensure the smoothest possible transition through subsequent approval processes.
- Scribing at shortlisting meetings, interviews or through other selection processes
- Preparing a draft selection report using agency templates
- Finalising executive appointment documentation
Candidate Care & Feedback
Our executive consultants will provide timely and respectful information to all applicants about their progress including frank and constructive feedback to unsuccessful candidates.
Candidate Care services include:
- Responding promptly and professionally to candidate enquiries
- Receiving and promptly acknowledging applications
- Immediate telephone responses to the majority of applicants, asking clarifying questions
- Following up promising candidates to encourage lodgement of application
- Timely feedback to applicants not shortlisted
- Maintaining communication with clients and applicants through the application process to the feedback stage
- Feedback to unsuccessful applicants
- Preparing notes to assist the panel chair in providing feedback
- Participating in a joint feedback session with the panel chair and/or entire panel
