From: <Transactional_Recruiter@RecruityMcRecruitFace.com>
Subject: Re: New England Football Manager
Dear FA Chief,
As promised, we’ve managed to put a shortlist of candidates together for the new England Football Manager. They’re all out of contract and are keen to be interviewed as soon as possible.
With a bit of luck, you could be announcing the new England manager before the end of the week.
Here are the names we’ve come up with…
Gary Neville
His previous track record as a manger was short and, let’s face it, pretty disastrous. But he’s got pretty good with that touchscreen TV thingy and he’s keen to have another crack at it. He reckons he’d be way better than Southgate and he said something about a new 8-1-1 formation he wants to try.
Neil Warnock
If you want a guy who can turn a bunch of has-beens and mediocres into something greater than the sum of their parts, this is your guy. Although if he gets through the qualifiers it might be an idea to appoint somebody new. He tends to struggle at the top level. And I’m not sure if he owns a suit.
Gary Lineker
This would be a crowd-pleasing choice and would sell a lot of England shirts. He admits that he knows nothing about management, but he’s got Shearer on speed-dial who he reckons can fill in a lot of the blanks. Might be able to get Walkers as a shirt sponsor as well. Free crisps!
Jose Mourinho
Jose has an amazing track record at every club he’s managed except for the occasions where it went horribly wrong and he alienated everybody around him, created a toxic atmosphere, openly criticised his own players to the press and left under a cloud. But on the plus side, Pogba’s French, so that’s something you won’t have to worry about.
As agreed, given the size of the England manager’s salary, we’re cutting our usual 15% fee to just 1%. Really excited to hear back from you.
Regards,
Mr. Transactional Recruiter
***
From: <Consultative_Recruiter@i-intro.com>
Subject: Re: New England Football Manager
Dear FA Chief
It bears repeating that I’m sorry your attempts to find a new England manager have been so frustrating. There’s nothing worse than spending weeks reviewing shortlists from transactional recruiters, only to see the same names coming up time and again with no real sense of who is most likely to be successful in the role.
After sitting down with all the FA directors, I’d like to propose a different approach.
It seems pretty clear that, once it’s been officially announced that Southgate is leaving after leading the England team to a third glorious semi-final defeat, there will be no shortage of interested candidates reaching out. So, rather than looking for candidates immediately, we should take this time to make decisions about the qualities that are essential in the new manager.
We’ve analysed previous managers to see what has worked and what hasn’t, and it’s clear that the best England managers are those with a clear tactical plan and who picked players to fit that plan, rather than trying to shoe-horn the so-called “best eleven” into something impractical.
Southgate also demonstrated that a good managerial track record is less important than a level-head, tactical flexibility, solid man-management and long-term thinking. For example, arranging for the Under-21 team to use the same training routines, formation and tactics as the senior team, has made it easier for younger players to step up to the next level.
I firmly believe the last thing the England team needs is a “big name” manager coming in with a sledge-hammer and trying to create something in his own image. It will be far more productive to appoint someone who is willing and able to build on Southgate’s fine work of looking good in a waistcoat.
Identifying these required qualities in the candidates will be difficult, even through video interviews and psychometric assessment, so our recommended focus will be on the Key Competency Questionnaire (KCQ).
Working with the assumption that what the candidates have achieved in their previous managerial roles is less important than how they’ll handle the pressure and challenges ahead, we need to create a questionnaire that will test these elements.
Through discussion with the FA board I recommend designing a KCQ that invites the candidate to offer strategies and responses to specific footballing quandaries. For instance…
1. What strategies would you employ to build on Southgate’s progress and take the England team to the next level, without undoing the good work that has already been accomplished?
2. The England team is 1-2 down against Iceland with 10 minutes to play. What substitutions and/or tactical adjustments would you make to avoid a national embarrassment?
3. Peter Crouch calls you and says he wants to make an International comeback. How would you let him down gently?
We’ll be looking for specific responses with lots of detail, rather than vague responses or evasions. This information will be invaluable when deciding who to interview and in making a final decision.
Once we have together a plan of action with which you’re satisfied, we’ll be able to start the recruitment process in earnest with a clear vision of what we’re looking for.
As you’re probably already aware, given the size of the England manager’s salary, we’re cutting our usual 30% fee to just 27%. The first third of the payment has already been received – thank you – the second payment will be due on delivery of the shortlist, and the final payment once the new manager has signed a contract.
If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to give me a call.
Kind regards,
Mr. Consultative Recruiter
***
Compared to the relative freshness of video introductions and psychometrics, the usefulness of Key Competency Questionnaire (KCQ) can often be overlooked. A CV will give you a general idea of the projects and challenges the candidate has previously faced, but a KCQ gives you the opportunity to craft questions specific to the role you’re looking to fill.
And the responses will often vary wildly in terms of specificity and approach. Sometimes candidates with less experience than they might want you to believe will provide short, non-specific answers. By contrast, well-seasoned candidates will give detailed replies that refer to previous successes in handling scenarios similar to the hypothetical you’ve created.
KCQs are also a good part of the assessment to create in conjunction with the client. They will often be able to come up with questions that are important to them. And by involving them in this stage, they can see the depth and the usefulness of the assessment process.
Of course, this kind of in-depth assessment isn’t generally possible if you’re recruiting on a transactional basis. It would be very risky to put in day or weeks of research and preparation with no guarantee of receiving payment.
Achieving this kind of recruitment accuracy requires a consultative contract that allows adequate time for the recruiter to do their work and that guarantees payments at key stages.
For what it’s worth, I hope Southgate stays in the role for many years to come. If only to reduce the risk of a knee-jerk, Phil Neville appointment 
Look out the next article in this series: A Transactional Recruiter Picks the New… US President