I continue my series of blog posts on the hiring process in the compliance field based on a series of interviews I did with Maurice Gilbert, the Managing Partner at Conselium Partners LP.  Today, I want look at the presentation of the interview process by a company for the shortlist of candidates that Gilbert and his team at Conselium have presented to their client.

Everyone who has ever gone through any hiring process understands the importance of the interview process. However even many seasoned compliance or legal professionals have never understood how to use this process to sell themselves or even make themselves a better candidate for the position. It is much more than simply showing up, looking good and answering questions competently. Gilbert and his team at Conselium put as much time and preparation into this step with each candidate as they do with the other steps I have previous detailed. The three things which Gilbert emphasized in his discussion were to (1) be prepared; (2) perform due diligence as a candidate and (3) make a connection.

Preparation

For any Chief Compliance Officer (CCO) or compliance professional, you would not go into any presentation without being prepared. The same is true in the interview process. Preparation can mean several things in the context of a compliance position interview. Gilbert said that a candidate should come prepared to ask some questions in the interview process “that defines what the interviewer is looking for. That could be done in a few different ways. It could be, “What would you like me to accomplish within the first year if you are to hire me?” There are several ways of doing it. Another way that could be productive is, “Could you tell me three or four of the most significant criteria you’ll utilize to evaluate me for the opportunity?””

Gilbert emphasized that “however you ask the question and those are some examples, what it does is it draws out from the interviewer precisely what they want. It paints a bulls-eye and then it provides the candidate an opportunity to relate specific experiences that they have directed toward what the interviewer wants so what that concept does with that technique, it allows both parties to stay very on target. Without it, the conversation could drift. It provides some structure and discipline to the interview process and it facilitates the candidate driving home his or her expertise and how it relates to what ultimately the hiring authority wants to see in that individual.”

Perform Due Diligence

While it may sound counter-intuitive Gilbert advocates that candidates perform due diligence on not only the company but also the compliance position itself. Clearly one reason to do so is for the candidate to demonstrate that the company should hire him or her. Gilbert encourages candidates “to not only create a list of questions but actually write them down so that you don’t have to struggle to remember. Again, we’re very deliberate in how we approach the entire process here so what we encourage professionals to do is put their questions in buckets which would include questions about the company.” Some questions Gilbert suggests a candidate consider are about the opportunity; the management style of the hiring authority; and the culture of the company in general.

Make a Connection

Interestingly Gilbert was most passionate that a candidate should strive to make a personal connection with the interviewer(s). A candidate can do this through researching the individual(s) with whom you will interview. Gilbert provided an example, “We had a professional that was interviewing for the Chief Compliance Officer to be a Senior Director and we said, “Okay, you have to research the individual and find something that may help build a very quick and solid connection.” She researched and found that the CCO had done a presentation at a compliance association, she read it and the first thing she said when they got together was, “I read your presentation on such and such.”

Gilbert believes that such communications in an interview can be very powerful. First and foremost, it demonstrates the preparation point above. But equally important, which Gilbert believes is “more subtle, she [the interviewer] was flattered. This helped build a very quick and solid connection as they talked about this presentation for a few minutes and then they segued into the interview. Gilbert concluded once again “that technique is powerful.”

A Compelling Story

Through all of the above techniques, Gilbert is trying to have each candidate present a compelling story as to why the company should hire that candidate. A candidate can create resonation and a personal connection with the appropriate hiring authority in a company. Therefore a candidate should development solid connections with the interviewer(s); perform the requisite due diligence and come in prepared to not only demonstrate technical competence but also show the soft skills of leadership necessary and then package it all together in a compelling story as to why the company should hire them.

Continuous Debriefing

One of the true values that Gilbert and the team at Conselium bring as established executive search professionals is continuous debriefing; both from Conselium to the client and Conselium to the candidate. Gilbert said, “No matter how competent a professional is, a client will always say I like this, this and this but I’m concerned about X. Well, the problem is, sometimes, the client, well often times, the client will tell us this data but they won’t articulate it to the candidate in real time and in other words, they won’t give the candidate an opportunity to possibly address that. When we debrief the client, if they say, “Well, I’m concerned about X.” Then we take that data and we share it with the candidate and we say, “Look, when you go back for your next round, this was of concern.” And figure out a way to bring that into the equation and address that concern.”

This continuous debriefing is also important to the candidate. Gilbert provided the following example, “If I’m a candidate and my primary interest is capturing more international exposure, if the client did not thoroughly address that and let’s say, the first round of interviewing, then I go back to the client and I say, “Look, you didn’t do quite an adequate job of articulating how this position is going to have tremendous exposure internationally.” Maybe in Russia or China markets so you need to put some more color to that in the next round of interviewing if you want to continue to capture the imagination of this particular candidate.”

After completion of the interview process, the client should be ready to make the job offer. Tomorrow I will conclude this Hiring in Compliance series with a discussion of the offer process.

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