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[sinatra]

I'd like to pose a question to the forumites here regarding searches that use consultants. In my career, I have never placed as a finalist in a search that used consultants. In fact, in every search that used a consulting firm, I never even got a call back. By contrast, in all of the searches that used a campus committee, I have been fortunate enough to make it to the second round of interviews at a bare minimum. In most of the cases, I have been a finalist. The searches happened in the same time period, so I did not suddenly pick up new skills or a new position between those that used search firms and those that didn't. So I am wondering if my experience is typical or just bad karma on my part. Although I am not personally looking for a job, my provost is thinking about farming out a search to a consulting firm and has asked for department chairs' and deans' input. I'd like to be able to offer something beyond just my experience to my provost, so I'll thank you in advance for any thoughts you'd like to share with me.

[anthroid]

I'd like to pose a question to the forumites here regarding searches that use consultants. In my career, I have never placed as a finalist in a search that used consultants. In fact, in every search that used a consulting firm, I never even got a call back. By contrast, in all of the searches that used a campus committee, I have been fortunate enough to make it to the second round of interviews at a bare minimum. In most of the cases, I have been a finalist. The searches happened in the same time period, so I did not suddenly pick up new skills or a new position between those that used search firms and those that didn't. So I am wondering if my experience is typical or just bad karma on my part. Although I am not personally looking for a job, my provost is thinking about farming out a search to a consulting firm and has asked for department chairs' and deans' input. I'd like to be able to offer something beyond just my experience to my provost, so I'll thank you in advance for any thoughts you'd like to share with me.

I've been a finalist in searches using a consultant and I have been a finalist in searches using a campus committee (so far, it's been the committee that has garnered me the jobs rather than the search firms).  My sense is that, depending on the size of the institution, I would not use a search firm until I was looking at VP level jobs, unless the university is larger than about 2000 students or if the search was a particularly difficult one (business school dean in a less than attractive area, for instance).  Understand, though, that academic leadership talent is diminishing as more Ed.D.s are being issued in higher education leadership, and that search firms are not necessarily going to winnow out the best candidates unless you are very clear about what you want (e.g., no Ed.D.s in higher education leadership).

I haven't seen the value in many consultant-led searches, personally.  At least some of them have no idea what is appropriate (I have had my share of very odd, unprofessional, gossipy kinds of discussions with some search principals).  Others do. 

IOW, YMMV.  Interview a number of them and reject those who tell you things you know to be wrong (like, no one good ever is on the market in the fall--yes, I had a search firm principal tell me that.  WRONG!).

[brixton]

I've been asked to campus interview both with a search consultant and through a campus committee.  I've only been offered jobs through the latter, although working with a search consultant has always been pleasant -- very aware of confidentiality issues, if I don't want my institution to know I'm on the job market, etc, very good at keeping me up on the process, available when I have questions with which I wouldn't bother a search committee (Probably the reason why I didn't get the jobs was because I didn't measure up.  Every school that I've worked with a consultant is top-tier!)  Both work.  I think it depends upon your resources and, of course, the consultant that you use.

[justanotherucprof]

I've worked closely with search firms on both sides of the process, and have generally been very happy with them.  Yes, there can be "gossipy" conversations, but the people I've worked with have been careful about candidate privacy, and "gossip" tends to be limited to sharing insight about challenges, needs, and history of the institution doing the search.  But any provost planning to "farm out" a search to a consultant is looking for disaster -- the search committee needs to understand how to use the search firm to supplement, not replace, their thoughtful efforts.

[sinatra]

Thanks for your input. I will share the information with my provost today.

[totoro]

I've only once been in a hiring process involving a search firm. Yes, they really kept me in the loop compared to most universities. I had a couple of phone conversations and a one on one meeting with one of their partners. But I didn't make it to the on campus interview. My feeling is they were almost spamming in their approach to finding candidates. Really, it would be hard to think of someone suitable to really fill the job description in this country. It was a full professor position in a not typical subfield in economics. So that's why they hired the search firm. The university has 26,000 students... but then there are no universities as small as 2000 students in this country.