Newsletter Archives - WilliamCharles

2025 HR Talent Trends and Strategies

January 23rd, 2025 by Amy Suitter

By Bill Benson and Jeff McGraw

We focused our December newsletter on Leader and Manager Development, which remains the top priority on most surveys, from LinkedIn to Gartner to Harvard Business Review. Culture is also at the top of my mind this year. Improving how you develop leaders and creating a culture that supports leader development, growth, and advancement will give you a clear talent advantage.

Other top priorities for 2025…. Here are the top 6 areas of emphasis discovered in our research.

Workforce Planning and Organization Development
Aligning human resources and talent strategies with both short- and long-term business goals has become increasingly critical due to significant shifts in the labor and professional talent markets. Despite this urgency, a recent Gartner survey reveals that only about 15% of companies engage in strategic workforce planning. Why is this a pressing need? Consider the following examples:

Automation in Manufacturing: As manufacturing shifts towards greater automation, the current workforce may struggle to adapt, leading to higher turnover rates. To address this, companies must redefine hiring criteria, implement reskilling programs, and establish new hiring projections to meet the demands of an automated environment.

Leadership and Workforce Retirements: Organizations are facing a surge in retirements, particularly in leadership roles. For instance, some companies anticipate that nearly 50% of their leaders will retire in the coming years. Similarly, hospitals are experiencing record levels of nurse retirements. While managing these short-term challenges can be overwhelming, it is equally essential to step back and develop a long-term strategy to ensure sustained success.

Change Management
Both employees and leaders are navigating an era of rapid transformations, driven by shifts in workplaces, advancing technology, leadership transitions, and evolving competitive landscapes. These dynamics are contributing to widespread change fatigue, as reported by 73% of HR leaders in a recent Gartner survey. Furthermore, 74% of managers admit they are not sufficiently equipped to lead their teams through these changes. This underscores the critical role of HR in supporting change management. By fostering readiness, providing targeted resources, and guiding leaders through change initiatives, HR can help mitigate fatigue, enhance leadership effectiveness, and ensure smoother transitions for the organization as a whole

HR Technology
Understanding how to use AI is evolving. Everyone agrees AI can be effective in saving time, streamlining processes, and enhancing productivity. Those who have been using AI in the talent acquisition process are finding it less effective. People don’t like to be cat fished by a bot pretending to be a human. Unsurprisingly, candidates will equate their experience as a candidate to the experience they will get as an employee. Candidates strongly prefer a human screening the candidate pool rather than having their fate determined by a keyword search. The human touch remains important!

Candidate Experience and Employee Value Proposition.
Talent remains a top priority for organizational leadership. Creating a compelling employee value proposition (EVP) that aligns the organization’s culture, compensation, and benefits with the evolving needs and expectations of employees is essential for attracting and retaining top talent. The hiring process is often a candidate’s first impression of your organization, making it critical to deliver a seamless and engaging experience that reflects your commitment to employee success. While recent trends show less job-hopping and a more balanced power dynamic between managers and employees, this should not be seen as an opportunity to revert to outdated practices. Instead, it’s a chance to reinforce a forward-thinking approach that values and supports your workforce, optimizing long-term organizational value.

Innovate Hiring Requirements.
Larger companies are discussing a shift to “key skill hiring” rather than the traditional requirements that included a degree. If you are investing long-term in an employee, it is best to hire someone based on their innate or fixed qualities. Skills and understanding of an industry can often be learned, but more innate capabilities including someone’s drive to succeed, resilience, EQ, and willingness to go the extra mile, are not likely to change. In a talent-short market… prioritizing the list of desired qualities is key.

Workplace – Hybrid is here to stay.
Return to on-site work is trending in some industry sectors. Where will this likely end up? While some companies will successfully impose an RTW strategy, it won’t likely be the norm. An Upwork survey suggests that by the end of 2025, about 36.2 million Americans will work remotely, about an 87% increase compared to pre-pandemic levels. A Gallup study revealed that six in 10 remote-capable employees would actively seek a hybrid arrangement, with only 10% preferring full-time office work. Some professionals have remained at work due to the requirements of the role, but those working remotely will keep looking for a role with some remote work if they are called back to the office full-time.

The overall theme this year relates to HR helping organizations adapt to change. These initiatives all require a strategic vs traditional or compliance-based approach to human resources. Elevating this function should be the top priority if your HR department is not forward-looking.

This newsletter’s sources include Upwork, Korn Ferry, Harvard Business Review, and Gallup workplace surveys, as well as our own anecdotal research.

Talent Trends 2025 – Building Leadership Culture

December 10th, 2024 by Amy Suitter

By Bill Benson and Jeff McGraw

Tis the season to look ahead to next year! The 2025 trend most discussed this year relates to leadership development and building leadership culture. Creating a center of excellence for leadership development will naturally improve leader retention rate.

One of my references this year was a webinar conducted by Korn Ferry, which discussed results from their survey titled Workforce 2025. The survey cites that 67% of employees would stay in their role if they knew they would be engaged in a leadership development program. The survey also cites that less than 30% of employees believe their current programs are sufficient. Data from Gartner cites that 75% of HR leaders indicate that managers feel overwhelmed, and Gartner data further points out 70% of managers feel current leadership programs are insufficient to tackle future challenges.

The large companies in this survey benefit from training and development budgets and functions. Here are seven strategies that mid-sized and smaller companies can easily employ.

Internal Leader led Training
- Peer-to-Peer Training: Identify senior leaders or high-performing managers to mentor and coach emerging leaders.
- Lunch-and-Learn Sessions: Host informal training sessions where experienced leaders share insights or lead discussions on leadership topics.
- Job Shadowing: Allow aspiring leaders to shadow senior leaders to learn by observation and participation.
External Resources
- Outside Coaches can be a highly effective way to provide structured development. We are happy to make introductions to some great coaches!
- Leadership Development Workshops: Enroll employees in workshops or conferences focused on leadership skills. Tony Cortese at InSight Action Learning offers various in-house programs and individual seats at periodic leadership development training classes.
- Utilize assessments for team development. We like Pondera’s PVA and Management Integration training. DISC and Predictive Index tools are also effective in developing leadership skills.
Use Free or Low-Cost Content
- Books and Articles: Create a leadership book club with recommended readings. One suggestion – Lead to Win by Carla Harris, available audio or print on Amazon.
- Podcasts and Videos: Curate free podcasts or YouTube videos on leadership topics for employees – great content exists for no cost.
- Webinars through professional organizations.
Create Leadership Experiences
- Stretch Assignments: Assign projects that challenge employees to lead cross functional teams, manage budgets, or make strategic decisions.
- Committee Leadership: Encourage employees to lead committees or special initiatives within the organization.
- Rotational Programs: Rotate employees through various roles to build cross-functional leadership skills.
Partner with Other Organizations
- Industry Associations: Collaborate with trade organizations for leadership workshops or certification programs.
- Community Programs: Engage in leadership programs offered within the community. We highly suggest programs through the Family Business Alliance.
Encourage Self-Directed Learning
- Customized Learning Plans: Help employees set personalized development goals and provide resources to meet them.
- Access to Resources: Provide stipends for employees to purchase training materials or attend courses of their choice.
- Recognition for Development: Celebrate employees who proactively seek and complete leadership training.
Foster a Culture of Continuous Feedback and Learning
- 360-Degree Feedback: Implement a feedback mechanism to help employees understand their leadership strengths and weaknesses.
- Coaching Culture: Train managers to provide regular coaching to develop team leadership potential.
- Instill coaching, mentoring, and leadership development as key deliverables for each manager/leader within the organization.

Improving your approach to leadership development can be a critical aspect of your Employee Value Proposition (EVP). Other trends hitting this year’s radar included AI, other workplace trends, including Hybrid work and skills-based hiring. We will explore some of those topics next year.

You Hired The Best – 9 Ways to Keep Them Growing

October 22nd, 2024 by Amy Suitter

By Bill Benson and Jeff McGraw

Fantastic, you have hired a series of “A” players! Now…how do you motivate, engage and develop those individuals so they thrive and do their best work? It is critical to hire right, but it is just as important to unlock their potential. Is your organization designed for top or average performers? Here are nine strategies to maximize performance of your top-level talent.

The First 30 Days – Give them a clear understanding of goals and responsibilities. Take the time to over-communicate company processes, behavioral norms, tools and expectations. This will help set the employee up for long term success. Help them make connections with key peers, leaders, and team members. Often when someone fails, it is due to missteps in the first three months on the job.

Empower – Talented employees thrive when given the freedom to make decisions and take ownership of their work. Encourage them to communicate with you and others to gain input as needed. Empowering doesn’t mean leaving them on an island.

Promote Collaboration – Encourage teams to rigorously collaborate concepts and ideas with peers and leadership with the goal of arriving at the best idea or approach. This promotes a culture of teamwork and learning and mitigates the likelihood of mistakes.

Don’t Let Issues Fester – Your best employees will be frustrated if they see leadership as passive and not actively addressing deficient performance and problems. Your best employees want you to deal with the elephant in the room.

Provide Challenges and Allow Failure – The best performers will move at a faster pace. Keep them learning and keep challenging them with projects. Often the most impactful learning comes from failing -don’t deny the opportunity. Just be sure the lessons are learned for the future.

Leadership vs. Management – Encourage innovation and calculated risk taking. Stay involved to help them grow and show you are committed to their success. Micromanagement or not enough involvement (no management) will contribute to them leaving.

Competitive Pay – Pay for performance if you want to keep your best people. A top performer may double the output of a more average employee. If they believe they are treated the same, you risk them leaving for better pay elsewhere.

Strategic Involvement – It’s best if senior leadership takes the time to engage your high potential talent by sharing organizational goals and vision. Create a culture where top performers have a platform to share their ideas and suggestions. People who feel they are making a difference are far more likely to stay.

Recognize and Celebrate Success – Acknowledge achievements and reward top performance. A culture where “everyone wins a trophy” will foster mediocrity. Top performers want to see credit where credit is due.

Accumulating “A” talent and optimizing their performance will make a dramatic difference in your company’s performance. At WilliamCharles we take pride in finding “A” talent for our clients. We experience success when we get a front-row seat to see them thrive when they are put in the right environment!

Hiring Right for Culture Fit

August 14th, 2024 by Amy Suitter

by Bill Benson and Jeff McGraw

If you are looking to hire individuals who will thrive in your organization, they need to have an environment that complements their style and approach to work. The gravity of culture fit becomes increasingly important when hiring leaders and is paramount if that leader is in an executive role.

Organizations will sometimes hire a new leader to adapt a culture. We often see this post-acquisition or during instances of ownership transitions. Organizations that need to change their culture due to market conditions or competitive pressure will need to consider several risk factors when approaching the change.

Failing to Consider Culture in Hiring Has Consequences

Owners, boards and top executives often favor attributes that lean toward their aspirations or a desired future rather than understanding who will successfully lead the current organization. Companies can be enamored by a person’s credentials or specific industry experience rather than a more holistic understanding of the candidate. These risk factors include the following areas:

Underestimating the Resistance to Change: Not fully understanding how current values, leadership styles and practices will react to a new approach. This can impact the effectiveness and performance of the new executive.

Misalignment of Expectations: Ownership and the new executive have conflict because they are not aligned fully on pace, methods and outcomes of changing culture. This falls into the category of “be careful what you asked for.”

Neglecting Employee Input and Ignoring Existing Strengths: This will lead to trust and morale issues which may result in losing your best employees. Listening and building upon strengths in addition to addressing needed areas of change will be more effective.

Lack of Communication: Failing to communicate the reasons for change and the role everyone will play in the change process, including the new executive, can be a critical failure point. Over-communicating needs to be the practice.

Lack of Support: Let’s assume you fully understand the factors involved in hiring your change agent. Failing to give the new executive the backing, support and time needed will hinder their ability to be successful. (See: Misalignment of Expectations.)

Understand Your Current Culture

The following diagram offered up by Harvard Business Review, and Spencer Stuart, offers 8 different organization cultures.

Lee Hecht Harrison does an excellent job giving examples and describing how these eight culture factors impact leadership activities in this article.

Hiring Right for Culture Fit: A Good Recipe to Follow

Vision and Values: Alignment in this area will ensure decisions and strategies that reflect the company’s core principles and lead to a more cohesive direction.

Leadership Style and Influence: A leadership style that aligns with the culture will resonate with and more effectively influence, motivate and retain employees.

Change Management: An executive aligned with the culture will be better equipped to lead seamless change.

Decision-Making: Culture fit influences decision making processes. The right fit will lead to someone making decisions that fit the values and be more sustainable in the long run.

Collaboration and Team Dynamics: Aligned leaders will create more harmony and an environment that is more innovative and efficient.

Brand and Reputation: Misalignment often leads to turnover and can additionally impact customer and investor satisfaction.

Long-Term Success: The right culture fit will ensure long-term success through continuity and consistent leadership.

Incorporating the right hiring specification which includes intangible “fit factors” along with effective behavioral and conversational interviews, assessments and references, are critical in identifying and selecting the candidate who will be most successful.

Check out another blog article we have on culture fit here.

Can we help you find a candidate that’s a good culture fit? Contact us.

8 Reasons For Outsourcing Your Executive Search

July 18th, 2024 by Amy Suitter

by Bill Benson and Jeff McGraw

Where do you start when you need to conduct a search for an executive level position? Do you have the internal resources to handle a project of this scope and evaluate candidates at this level? Do you need the search to be confidential?

Many companies hesitate about the cost of a fee associated with using a recruiting firm. While conducting the search on your own may save the expense of the fee, you also increase the likelihood of not finding and hiring the best candidate, which could cost you more in the long run. Networking or posting the position will lead you to some candidates and a few might even fit the role, but a thorough process led by a professional will help ensure you are achieving the best result.

Hiring the absolute best candidate should be the goal. It is about finding a transformative leader who can drive growth, innovation, and sustained success within the framework of your culture. Outsourcing your executive search with a professional search firm offers distinct advantages.

Here are eight reasons to outsource your search when the need arises:

Professionally Organize the Search: A consulting search professional will help you build the right specification, search strategy and internal hiring process. In addition, the search professional will help navigate involvement of stakeholders, internal candidates and constituent communication.
Better Candidate Pool: Executive search firms have extensive networks, research capabilities and the knowledge to access the entire talent pool rather than the 10-15% who might be actively networking and answering postings. Top talent will need to be recruited and won’t be answering postings. A better and deeper pool of candidates will always generate a better outcome. Additionally, you may want to increase the diversity of the candidate pool which can be done in a targeted way via a search firm. Recruiters may also be able to target companies that you are uncomfortable doing based on some type of relationship you have in the market.
Vetting and Discerning: Professional search firms have proven skills and methods to evaluate and assess candidates, not just for skills, but also for cultural fit, leadership potential, and alignment with your organization’s strategic goals. This added layer of discernment will lead to a better outcome and significantly decrease the risk of making an expensive hiring mistake. An executive hiring mistake is often 5 times the salary of the executive. The right fit from both a skills and intangible perspective will return the investment many times over.
Assistance with Every Step: You may not have the resources available to put the time into conducting a thorough search. The search professional will help you develop an interview guide, provide access to personality and psychological assessments, conduct references, background checks and bring other methods and tools to help you make the best decision possible. Having an experienced search professional walk through each step of the process with you is an invaluable resource.
Confidentiality and Discretion: Maintaining confidentiality during sensitive executive searches is crucial. Executive search firms provide a discreet process that protects your company’s reputation and minimizes internal and external disruption. You may have a need to conduct a quiet search while an incumbent is still in the role and the right consultant has extensive experience with this type of project.
Time and Resource Efficiency: Outsourcing your executive search saves valuable time and drag on internal executive resources that could be spent on other key initiatives. This also helps ensure you keep the project on track.
Negotiation and Offer Management: Experienced search consultants facilitate negotiations and manage offer details to ensure a smooth transition and acceptance of the position by the chosen candidate.
Long-Term Value: Hiring the right executive can have a profound impact on your organization’s trajectory. Working with a consultant that spends the majority of their time viewing and vetting top talent gives you a strategic advantage. Executive search firms help you make strategic hires that are game changers and contribute to the long-term growth and stability of your company.

Using the right executive search firm will provide a strategic advantage that goes beyond simply filling a position. WilliamCharles has deep and broad experience working across a number of different industries and sectors. We take pride in having close-up knowledge of the talent within our local markets around Grand Rapids, Michigan and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. We also offer capability across the Midwest and globally through an established network of partner search and recruiting firms. Partner with WilliamCharles today and let us help you find the exceptional talent that will drive your business forward.

Evolution of the CFO in Middle-Market Enterprises

May 30th, 2024 by Amy Suitter

by Bill Benson and Jeff McGraw

We have experienced a clear shift in the role of CFOs with our family owned and middle market clients. The CFO has always played a key role as a member of the executive leadership team and as a financial business partner. Risk management, cost containment, internal controls and increasing the value of the organization are typical areas of focus.

The CFO role has often been involved in strategic decisions but more as a catalyst rather than an alter ego. Today, CFOs find themselves involved in leading change, innovation, and business development decisions. One factor driving this change is the need for data and dashboards across the organization. In addition, the CFO is often at the helm solving problems and leading change, which also requires the right data to navigate successfully. This expanded role often requires transparency, more communication and emotional intelligence – (not always qualities associated with a finance leader.)

Many small to medium-sized companies have been operating fine with a controller who is more of a traditional accountant and less business focused. However, not every accounting leader is able to adapt and transition to a more conceptual and strategic role. This gap between the traditional controller and strategic finance leader becomes obvious and apparent when an organization faces a downturn, a growth spurt, or another type of change.

Here is a deeper look at what has changed in the CFO role.

Broader Responsibility Domain: While financial oversight remains a cornerstone, they now serve as key contributors to strategic planning, actively identifying growth avenues, and leveraging data for strategic insights as well as risk assessment.

Shifting Business Landscape: Middle-market companies face a host of financial and strategic challenges influenced by rapid digitalization, global economic shifts, and changing customer behaviors. CFOs must adapt to these evolving demands, displaying not only financial acumen but also an ability to pivot and drive innovation.

CFOs as Growth Catalysts: Today’s CFOs bring more than “check and balance” – they are growth catalysts. They play a vital role in shaping and executing the company’s growth strategy, proactively seeking expansion opportunities, forging strategic alliances, and overseeing financial aspects of mergers, acquisitions, and investments.

Tech-Driven Finance and Data Insights: The intersection of technology and finance is reshaping how CFOs operate. They harness advanced data analytics, AI, and automation to gain data-driven insights into the business. This empowers them to make informed decisions, optimize costs and foster a culture of innovation. Tech proficiency is now a fundamental skill for finance leaders.

Striking the Balance Between Finance and Strategy: Balancing financial stewardship with strategic leadership is an art. CFOs must maintain fiscal discipline while actively contributing to the organization’s strategic goals. This involves seamlessly transitioning between intricate financial analysis and high-level strategic thinking.

Fostering Collaborative Relationships: Effective CFOs understand the importance of nurturing collaborative relationships across the organization. They work closely with sales, marketing, and operations, to align financial strategies with broader business objectives. This collaboration fosters a culture of unity and shared goals. Finance has become every department leader’s “wingman” or more aptly put…wing person.

What Intangibles Are Critical? If you are a CFO and looking to build the right kind of capabilities…here are a few areas to focus your growth:

Business Savvy – Able to translate functional finance, HR & IT concepts to actions that support reaching business goals.
Critical Thinking – Utilize critical thinking skills, breaking down problems into components and using data driven action plans to positively impact the business.
Change Management – Bring emotional intelligence into play to advocate for change in a way that is digestible with minimal disruption. Successful CFOs are no longer command and control oriented. They need to be part of casting the vision and leading through influence.
Agile – Able to navigate constant change to develop both short term and long-term solutions. Work in gray areas and adapt plans along the way.
Team Builder – Able to build strong teams and get them focused on the right things that will drive results. Exert influence sometimes without direct authority.

Conclusion: The role of the CFO in middle-market enterprises is undergoing a remarkable evolution. No longer confined to managing finance departments, CFOs are strategic leaders driving growth, innovation, and success. By embracing change, cultivating collaborative relationships, and staying abreast of industry trends, today’s CFOs are well-equipped to steer their organizations into an exciting and dynamic future.

Contract or Interim Hiring

June 17th, 2019 by Amy Suitter

Contract or Interim Hiring

Most companies find contract staffing a complimentary addition to their overall staffing and talent acquisition strategy. Talent continues to be a challenge for companies given the supply and demand characteristics of the current economy and labor market. There are many reasons to consider hiring a contract employee.

Stay Flexible – One constant in business is change. Having a contingent element to your staffing budget gives you flexibility. This is true whether you are growing, shrinking or in a seasonal peak or valley. Contract options can help you stay lean.
Fill a Gap – You need a solution for a period of time, but not permanently. This might be filling in for a maternity or some other leave of absence. Perhaps you feel you need additional head count in a particular area and bringing someone in on contract can help you determine the right level of staff to hire on a more permanent basis. When someone leaves unexpectedly, filling the position on a contract basis while you take the proper time to conduct a thorough search may be the right approach.
Import a Skill – A contract resource can supplement your current team with a specific skill set or capability that is lacking. This also prevents you from making a long term hire for a specific skillset needed for a shorter term project or to build an organizational capability that doesn’t currently exist.
Expand Resources – This current labor supply environment makes it challenging to find certain types of talent. You can expand your resources by making use of people who are open to gig or project type work. This is also an option when you simply need more hands on deck to get something accomplished.
Contract to Hire – Sometimes all factors align and you may decide to convert a contract person to a direct hire. You now have a known quantity on board, a person that has already auditioned and can hit the ground running. This is a great way to tap into those on deck players for unexpected needs.
Optimize Finances – Use contractors to manage peak work-loads and projects. Keeping your direct hiring level at a level constant with the “valleys” will optimize your fixed employment costs. This will make your CFO happy!

Hiring contract or interim talent for shorter term needs is a compelling strategy in today’s labor market. Many professionals are finding it advantageous to work interim gigs. They can utilize skill sets they have developed that are in demand, build relationships with a variety of organizations and keep a more flexible work-life balance by working on a contract basis.

We will dive deeper into this subject in our July newsletter including misperceptions along with a couple case studies. If you are considering hiring talent on an interim or project basis WilliamCharles Search Group is happy to discuss this option with you.

Call one of our search consultants to learn more: 616-464-4355