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Fail to Plan or Plan to Fail -
Have a plan before you pick up the phone.

By Jon-Paul Ales-Barnicoat, June 28, 2007

Before you pick up the phone and start calling potential candidates and referrals, what's your plan? Whom are you calling? Why are you calling? What's in it for the people you are calling? Know the answers to these questions, the approach you want to take, and what you want to achieve with every call, or stay off the phone. There is nothing worse than blowing a call with a great contact because you were not prepared to speak intelligently about your company, client, or the positions you are representing. If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.

Read more articles by this author.

Related Topics:

Newsletter, Sourcing

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Start by knowing your audience and the results you want to achieve. Are you simply building pipeline, networking, or staying in touch with industry contacts? Or, are you calling the person that is either "the one," or knows "the one"? Either scenario requires a very different approach and the ability to determine how much time you should invest in each call. Sourcing candidates for pipeline is all about networking and leaving the door open for future conversations. Landing "the one" means that you will know what it will take to land them by the end of the call.

When building a pipeline or networking from industry contacts, it's important that you get as much relevant information from the person you are calling as quickly as possible. These calls tend to be short and should be to the point. In most cases, the contact did not expect your call and is giving you a few minutes to tell him/her what you want and what's in it for them. The three-minute elevator speech is key to piquing this contact's interest. The trick is to give them just enough information to be interested in hearing more, and not so much that there is no need to talk to you again.

Quickly assessing the situation is critical in managing your time with each contact on every call. Gaining insight into each of your contacts' background, social networks, employers, and associates is the goal. This is the information that you will refer back to and use to build out your master sourcing plan the next time you have a critical opening. If you are not getting the information that you need, or the contact is not going to help you get to what you need, respectfully end the call with the option to call back.

If you are getting what you need, the decision is much more about how much time will it take, do you have the time to spare, and does your contact have the time and interest in spending it with you? Every person you talk to has the potential of being a candidate either now or in the future. Rank the contact based on whether they are a placement, a person to provide information and insight, or a referral point person.

The ability to recognize that you have "the one" on the phone requires a clear understanding of the role, the organization, and top performance in the job. These are the factors that drive your approach. Top people want the best opportunities; they are all different or unique. Your goal is to create the link between their past performance and what the role will require for future performance. Controlling the conversation and maintaining control is critical. "The one" will want to control the conversation and quickly assess their interest. However, you should assess appropriate fit and get "the one" to that point over the course of the conversation. It is this give and take of information that separates the good sourcers from the great sourcers.

Taking the time to plan before picking up the phone pays off. Too many recruiters jump on the phone and burn through strong contacts without any plan for what they want to accomplish. (Rate your strengths and weaknesses as a recruiter.) Top performers want to talk to top performers, which includes the recruiters and hiring managers they are working with. By being prepared your credibility dramatically increases, you're ready for wherever the conversation goes, and you're better able to manage the conversation.