Looking Beyond Talent – Key Personality Traits Sought By Executive Coaching Experts In China

Like most other business organizations across the globe, companies operating in China are constantly trying to attract and recruit top talent. This is because such employing such talent is considered to the key towards ensuring the growth and success of a business organization. However, over the past several years, the top leadership development firms in China are advising their clients to look beyond talent to make their hiring process more effective. Discussed below are some these key personality traits that recruiters should seek in potential candidates to compliment their talent and make enhance their value as a great organizational resource.

Honesty And Integrity

It is important for the hiring professionals to treat honesty and integrity as the most important personality traits in potential candidates. The absence of these essential qualities in candidates reduces their trustworthiness, which plays an extremely important role for the employers while they assign critical responsibilities and projects. Moreover, candidates who are not honest can prove to be a major risk for the organization in more than one ways and hence might not be worth investing in.

Communication Skills

The next most important trait that the recruiters need to look for in prospective candidates is their communication skills. This should not only include the ability of the candidates to express their views, opinions and ideas in an effective manner, but also their ability to listen to what others have to say. Sadly, most hiring executives focus only on the former aspect of communication skills while short-listing candidates. This can prove to be a grave error, especially when the candidates being recruited need to handle leadership positions within the organization.

Level Of Teachability

The willingness of the candidates to learn things and get trained in new skills is another important personality trait that recruiters need to focus on. Candidates depicting a high level of teachability often prove to be more beneficial for a business organization in the long run. This is because they are willing to expand their skill set and knowledge to meet the demands of a challenging role that might become available within the organization. They also prove to be the turn to option for the organization in case of sudden talent shortage which can be fulfilled temporarily with minimal training.

Humility And Empathy

Most business organizations today operate as a close knot unit where the employees share more than their professional expertise and knowledge. To maintain the smooth workflow within the organization, it is important for the recruiters to choose candidates having the traits of humility and empathy. According to the professionals offering executive coaching in China, these two qualities can help minimize conflict within the work environment. The humble and empathetic attitude of top executives can help burn barriers and create a more open and frank work culture.

Great Time Management Skills

The high level of competition and the increasing work pressures make it extremely difficult for executive professionals today to maintain a great work–life balance. This can affect their professional growth and performance besides exposing them to high levels of stress. That is why the recruitment experts need to focus on candidates with exceptional time management skills.

Guidelines To Help Business Organizations Create Data-Driven Talent Pools In House

Having a strong in-house talent pool is essential for business to gain success in the highly competitive markets today. However, building such a talent pool is not a task that can be accomplished overnight. Rather, it is a continuous process that needs to be planned and executed in a careful and efficient manner. In this context the professionals offering the services of board advisory in China stress on the importance of using a data-driven approach towards identifying employees with the best potential. It is then the responsibility of the business organization to provide the right avenues of growth and development to these employees, who will naturally become a part of the exclusive talent pool of the organization.

Understanding The Data Driven Approach

Data plays an extremely important role in the smooth functioning of most business organizations today. Whether it the market statistics or information related to productivity and sales, every aspect of business operations relies on data obtained from various sources. This widespread data usage has also influenced the manner in which the employee performance is measured and recorded. This in turn has made it easier for business organization to assess the performance of individual employees over a given period of time. The companies can further use this data and information to identify the top performers within the workforce and provide them with better opportunities to improve their skills.

Making Efficient Use Of Data Driven Approach

In order to exploit the best benefits of using a data driven approach, it is important for the business organizations to first learn about the best ways to harness the relevant information. This might include the following.

Seek Relevant Data From Managers

The first step to be taken in this direction is to seek regular feedback from the managers operating at various organizational levels about the performance of their subordinates. The managers should be provided with a basic performance data sheet that they need to fill at regular intervals for each member of their team. This is one of the easiest way for the top management to analyze the performance statistics of the individual members of the workforce and identify the candidates with the best potential.

Match Performance Data With Personality Skills

Relying simply on the performance data of individual employees to include them in the in-house talent pool is not right. Rather, the top management needs to ensure that the individual personality skills of the employees are in tandem with their overall performance. This is of utmost importance as the skills will be responsible for driving the performance of the employees under an entirely different set of conditions which might be more stressful and demanding.

Establish Their Passion Towards Fulfilling Career Objectives

The professionals offering the services of CEO advisory in China also need to focus on the passion that the employees have towards achieving their career objective. For this the management needs to consider the data that details the skill enhancement activities that the employees might have taken part in. In addition, it is also important to keep an eye out for other relevant data that might reflect the eagerness of the employees to prepare themselves for more challenging roles. 

Fixing Toxic Company Culture In China – Learning About Its Why And How

When it comes to listing the various factors that influence organizational performance and growth, company culture plays an extremely important role.  Unfortunately, the company culture in most business organizations operating within China is extremely weak and is likely to stay the same unless some serious steps are taken to rectify it. This, in addition to the cut throat competition in the talent market makes it extremely difficult for the recruiters includes the life sciences executive search firms in China to attract and recruit the best candidates. The good news is that changing the toxic work culture is entirely possible and can be done simply by the determined action of the top leadership within the organization.

 

What Makes Company Culture So Important

Chinese businesses have traditionally operated in a hierarchical manner, which focuses more on the growth of top managers with the junior level executives expected to follow their orders. However, with the increasing influence of western work culture, an increasing number of Chinese executives seek equal opportunities for growth within their own organizations. In addition, there is also demand for a more open and flexible work environment, which is an integral aspect of the western company culture. Organizations that are not willing to adapt these new relatively new norms face the risk of losing their most efficient performers as well as experiencing a loss in their credibility as a preferred employer.

 

The Best Ways To Overcome The Challenge

Having understood the significance of company culture for organizational growth, it is now time to look at the best ways to rectify toxic culture. This would require the top management of the organization to make some key changes in their organizational policies as well as their traditional approach in terms of interacting with the members of the workforce. Discussed below are some effective steps that the organizations can take in this direction as suggested by the experts from international executive search firms in China.

Promote A Transparent Work Culture

The most important thing that organizations need to do in order to create a positive company culture is to promote an open and transparent work environment. This essentially means that the members of the workforce should be made aware of the organizational objectives, the road map to achieve the same and the policy changes that might necessary for fulfilment of these objectives.

Place The Right Candidates In Leadership Roles

Executive leaders today need to be less dictatorial and more people oriented as it helps them to win the trust and loyalty of their followers. Hence it is important for the organizations to place candidates with such leadership qualities in key management positions. This is essential to enhance overall employee engagement and drive performance for continued growth and success of the business.

Encourage Social Bonding At Workplace

It was not uncommon for the managers and senior level executives within an organization to frown upon social bonding between the members of the workforce. However, this attitude should not be supported by organizations working towards creating a positive company culture. Rather these companies should encourage such bonds which are known to improve the camaraderie between employees and enhance their team working capabilities.

4 Blunders Companies Need To Avoid While Dealing With Employees Being Laid Off

Sudden reduction in the size of the workforce for various reasons is a reality that most business today have to live with. It is important for the companies undergoing such changes to have a more humane approach towards managing the employees that are being laid off. According to the professionals offering outplacement coaching in China, this helps in making the whole process somewhat less painful for the outgoing employees, besides giving them a solid reason to not badmouth their employers. Sadly most organizations tens to commit various mistakes which make the actually enhance the distress and sloppiness of the laying off members of the workforce. While most of these mistakes can be made up for, the employers should steer clear of the below discussed 4 blunders while handling laid off employees to prevent any catastrophic consequences.

Assuring The Employees About The Possibility Of A Rehire

Giving false hope to the outgoing employees is worse than giving them no hope at all. So if the companies are not seriously considering re-hiring the outgoing employees at some time in the future, they should not suggest the same. Such false promises, even if based on a kind intention, are likely to make the outgoing employees reluctant to take up suitable job options. It might also prevent them from improving their skills and expertise for improving their chances of re-employment. This is especially true if the employees have been working with the organization for a considerably long period of time.

Discuss Performance Issues During Exit Interviews

The exit interviews are definitely not the right time to discuss the performance issues of the outgoing employees. Many employees might consider such an activity akin to the management rubbing salt into their fresh wounds. This might lead them to develop a grudge for the company that they remained loyal to till the very end. That is why it is important for a business organization’s career partner in China to ensure that the exit meeting focuses on the positive aspects of employment history of the outgoing employees.

Stay Clear Of Playing The Blame Game

It is only natural for the managers to feel bad about having to follow through on a lay off decision. However, they should make sure that they do not start playing the blame game in order to simply get into the good books of the employees. Rather they should try to make the employees understand the reasons that might have forced the management to take such a grave decision. They should also assure the outgoing employees of all the help and support in finding a suitable job with another organization and be sure to fulfil this promise.

Be Sympathetic But Do Not Show Pity

Laying off employees is often a tough business decision and can upturn the lives of the affected individuals in more than one way. As such it is highly advisable for the employers to adapt a sympathetic approach towards such employees while dealing with them throughout the process and even beyond. However, at no time should their sympathy turn into pity as it is likely to hurt the outgoing employees more than they can imagine.

A Step By Step Guide To Executive Search Process Followed In China

The primary objective any executive search process is to ensure an effective and targeted recruitment in accordance with the specific needs of the job position. In order to fulfil this objective, the recruiters need to adhere to a well laid out search lifecycle that provides a solid foundation for talent recruitment and eliminates the risks and costs associated with a wrong hire. A thorough search process provides the leading recruitment search firms in China the advantage of a strong list of candidates for each hiring assignment. Discussed below are the various steps that from an integral part of such a search process in the Chinese business environment.

Setting Search Requirements And Timelines

A thorough search lifecycle starts with establishing the priorities, which in turn comprises of defining the exact requirements of the search and its timelines. During this phase, the recruiters need to invest time and effort in understanding the specific skills, abilities and knowledge sought in potential candidates. It also includes learning about the unique hiring challenges faced by the client organizations as well as understanding the company culture. The recruiters should also develop a personalised candidate and job specification that is in tandem with the responsibilities, objectives and challenges associated with the job position.

Create An Appropriate Search Strategy

The next phase involves the creation of an appropriate search strategy based on a through market analysis. The recruiters also make use of various research tools to create the right strategy that can help them reach out to the most suitable candidates. These tools can range from the internal to external database of senior executives, various online sources as well as the contacts and networks established by the executive recruiters over the years.

Identification Of Potential Candidates

At any given time, the executive search firms in China have access to hundreds of talented executives across various levels and industries. The recruiters need to create a narrowed down list of candidates suitable for a specific job role on the basis of the requirements provided in the job description.  The process of identifying potential candidates includes evaluating the executive professionals who match the client needs and play a significant role in organizational growth. They should establish open lines of communication with the clients to better understand their needs. 

Short Listing Qualified Candidates

The next phase of the search lifecycle comprises of short listing the candidates that fulfil a majority of client expectations. For this the recruiters need to conduct a series of interactions and interviews that will provide them an insight into the background and competencies of the candidates. They can then use this information to create a list of 10-12 candidates they might consider most appropriate for the job. 

Finalizing The Search Process

The final phase of the search lifecycle comprises of finalizing the best candidates after negotiating with both the clients and candidates. The recruiters also need to ensure that the finalized candidates are serious about taking up the new job position and feel satisfied with the compensation and other benefits being offered to them. In addition, they also need to assure the clients about the capabilities and competence of the finalized candidates for specific roles.