How do companies in this industry grow faster than the industry average? The common denominator is that they think outside the box when bringing new people on board.

When you think about it, every company is basically looking to fill their roles by looking at the same criteria. You want someone with product experience, selling experience, and a proven track record. The only thing that separates the top companies from the average ones is the culture of the organization. In fact, a recent USA Today study concluded that 85% of the people that were hired only had 65% of the actual criteria they were looking for.

Companies are hiring people who fit their culture as opposed to people who have the exact skill sets they are looking for. They are thinking outside the box about what skills could be transferable from a similar industry just by teaching the product.

“We’ve had success recruiting pharmaceutical reps”

When we look for A&D reps, we certainly would love to find someone with that experience, but we also have had a tremendous amount of success actually recruiting pharmaceutical reps. A&D reps update libraries, work with a designer to influence them to specify their product on a particular project, and they do lunch and learns. Pharmaceutical reps have a very similar transaction with their doctors. They influence the doctor to write the scripts, work with the office in updating samples, and do lunch and learns. As you can see, those skills are very transferable and this strategy has been very successful for the companies we have worked with.

When you’re thinking about hiring, thinking outside the box is important. Don’t go down that normal track because you have the same people always cycling through the industry, just with a different business card. Be different and be bold.

If you have any questions for me, don’t hesitate to give me a call or send me an email. I look forward to hearing from you soon.