Executive search is like many other aspects of our society from painting the interior of your home to preparing, cooking and serving a five-course dinner. It’s not that amateurs cannot do it themselves, but without extensive experience, it will take longer, there will be more mistakes learning the necessary skills, and it will usually cost more in the long run to achieve only average results.

When searching for someone to guide your organization, are you willing to accept only average results?

What follows are a few of the skills you might want to consider when you determine whether you should do your own executive search or hire Mersky, Jaffe & Associates.

First Impressions
Do you trust your instinct? It turns out that when hiring an employee, first impressions should not carry too much weight. Shyness, nervous excitement or extra chatter that may occur during the beginning of a first interview are not necessarily indicative of whether or not the person would excel in the position – even if the position includes donor contact. In-house job searches often result in decisions determined by “that feeling” that the interviewer gets when a candidate walks in the room.

Contrary to initial thinking, interview skills are not necessarily indicative of how a candidate will perform. Instead, we look at qualifications, past experiences and personal experiences so you can find your ideal candidate. In other words, our firm can help you and the candidate get beyond that initial awkwardness to find a more meaningful connection.

Your Marketing Message
Job searches often require you to publish the name of your nonprofit in multiple places. In addition to eliciting resumes, that simple bit of marketing provides increased exposure to your organization. But what kind of message is the public receiving?

Each delayed phone call, every time the job description changes midstream, all of those times you said you would get back to them next week and it took you three weeks – that says something. And it’s probably not what you are trying to project for your organization. If you don’t have the time to fulfill your end of the job search, hire professionals.

Forget the Title
So now that you understand the position for which you are trying to hire, you start publicizing the job listing and wait for resumes. It turns out that no matter how detailed the job description it might not hit the right potential candidates. A title, while necessary, can be misleading or a turnoff to a potential candidate. A conversation with someone at Mersky, Jaffe & Associates can help candidates see past those few words.

Contacts
We have more than one hundred years of combined experience in the nonprofit sector. And sixty+ years in the for profit sector. At, Mersky, Jaffe & Associates, we know many different types of people as well as how to use our combined networks to our clients’ advantage.

Imagine we are playing the game of “Six Degrees of Separation.” We are two degrees away from Bill Gates, seven of nine Justices on the Supreme Court, Christy Turlington, and your future Executive Director.

Understanding the Position
A principal function of our executive search work is to advise clients as to how the ideal candidate should fit into the current organization and which skill sets are essential to accomplish the enterprise’s goals. For example, realistic expectations might include how a coherent program of professional development could improve productivity and improve staff efficiency. Such a process will help ensure a higher level of job satisfaction and performance for any new hire.

Position Description Writing
Seems obvious, right? But, just as a good resume sends a certain message to a potential employer – a strong job description sends the right message to potential employees. Our experience shows with every step—including the development of position descriptions that are designed to elicit interest from people who are not even looking for a new job, but who may be your ideal candidate.