By Dan Foster

Too often recruiting presentations are packed with benefits and features that loan officers will enjoy if they join a particular company. When that message becomes the centerpiece of a recruiting strategy a manager often makes a hiring decision based on someone’s excitement and acceptance of that message. While this strategy may help you to recruit lots of new people, it has a greater probability of leading to higher turnover, increased costs and loan officers that are “culture misfits”.

These “culture misfits” can be a cancer to the team and healthy work environment you are working so hard to develop. Left unchecked, they will destroy the culture and trust you have built with your team.

My experience as a recruiter and leader of sales professionals has taught me that your vision must be the centerpiece of your recruiting strategy. Vision highlights your long-term strategy as it relates to culture, key areas of development and major goals. Focusing your recruiting message on your vision and finding loan officers that are a match for your long-term strategy (rather than benefits alone) will decrease employee turnover and quickly connect new team members to your branch’s overall purpose.

In order to use your vision in your recruiting strategy, you must turn your vision into a compelling story. You can do this by answering three important questions that all recruits want answered.

1. What type of organization will I BELONG to?

Proudly tell of your company’s purpose, values and guiding behaviors. Provide examples of how these are more than just words on a piece of paper.

2. What is the organization striving to BECOME? 

Describe where your company is headed in the next five to seven years. Explain what it will be like for a loan officer to work in your branch, be a part of a healthy culture and to develop as a professional in your company.

3. What must this organization BUILD in order to achieve success?

Outline your company’s major goals for the next five to seven years and share how you see the recruit contributing to the achievement of those goals.

Your answers to these questions become your vision. The compelling story you will share with recruits. As you share your vision, look for their response to your story. Do you sense they are engaged? Do they see themselves participating in that story? Do your values, purpose and mission resonate and match with their own? Have them share with you their story and how they see it contributing to your vision.

Whether you lead a small team, a branch or a region you now have a story to tell. You have your vision! Focus your efforts on sharing your vision and you will attract the best talent to execute your long-term strategy and achieve overall success.

To learn more from Coach Dan and other Building Champions Coaches, check out Champions Edge, a complimentary, 30-minute webinar series.

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