In an interesting article from Scott Anthony today, "When Are "Best Practices" Not Best Practices?", he touches upon an issue we so often see in the Talent Aquisition universe:

Blindly Worshipping At The Altar of Best Practices

Sound familiar? As Scott puts it, "The theory is that the manager should find a successful company, find out what practices have made them successful, mimic those practices, and expect success." But does that work in our space? Do the same principles that make one recruitment function effective work as well in another environment?

Well, if you think the answer is yes . . . you're mistaken. I still hear companies asking for better ways to find more names, when the actual desired outcome is increased organizational performance. Scott concludes with some great advice that should be well-heeded in our space:

"Before blindly copying a competitor’s best practice, or assuming a historic best practice will continue to provide positive results, ask three questions:

• Are market circumstances similar?
• Are corporate contexts similar?
• Is the practice “modular,” with few interactions with other corporate systems?

If the answers to these questions are yes, then mimicking best practice can succeed. If the answer to any of these questions are no, think twice. Following so-called best practice might lead to disappointing results."

Joshua Letourneau
Mg Director, SSF (Strategic Sourcing Framework)
LG & Assoc Search / Talent Strategy
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