Good hiring demands deep understanding of the real person, not just the candidate who shows up on interview day. If you are stymied in your pursuit of the real story, learn how experience executive recruiters use reference checks (on and off the list) to build a complete candidate profile.
Takeaways:
- Questions to ask to get the true story.
- Unpacking a candidate’s track record..
- The art and the science of good reference checking.
- Advice on how to go “off-list” to get more views on the candidate.
 Laura Gassner Otting founded the Nonprofit Professionals Advisory Group in 2002. Prior to forming the group, she served as the senior vice president of ExecSearches.com, the web’s leading site for mid- to senior-level nonprofit job postings and search services. Laura served as vice president at Isaacson, Miller, one of the largest search firms in New England, and one of the most highly respected non-profit executive search firms in the country. Previously, Laura served as a presidential appointee for the White House Office of National Service, a program officer for the Corporation for National Service and as a member of the Clinton/Gore Transition Team and 1992 Election Team. She holds a Master of Arts in Political Management from the George Washington University and a Bachelor of Arts in Government from the University of Texas at Austin. Laura sits on the boards of Camp Starfish and Newton Montessori School, and is the immediate past chair of Strong Women, Strong Girls; she has served as a member of the Alumni Board of the Graduate School of Political Management at the George Washington University and as the founding board chair of the Boston Choral Ensemble. Laura is the author of Change Your Career: Transitioning to the Nonprofit Sector. |
 The Nonprofit Professionals Advisory Group was founded from the simple notion that every organization, regardless of its budget or geographic footprint can better fulfill its mission with a highly-tailored, innovative, and strategic approach to acquiring and retaining its most important resource: talent.
Designed to operate with ‘new economy’ savvy, the Nonprofit Professionals Advisory Group unbundles traditional executive search and leadership transition packages and offers sophisticated services tailored to our clients’ various needs. We are committed to passing along our knowledge throughout our process so that our clients’ internal capacity and independence is enhanced.. |
