不能停留于常規(guī)評估流程

????傳統(tǒng)的內(nèi)部評估流程評價的是候選人的現(xiàn)任職務(wù)表現(xiàn)，并不能評估此人是否是塊做CEO的好料子。將此作為進入第二輪背景調(diào)查的基礎(chǔ)，背景調(diào)查可以提供更多洞察。2008年，葛蘭素史克（GlaxoSmithKline）為CEO讓-皮埃爾?加爾尼埃的離職做準(zhǔn)備時，就在常規(guī)評估流程的基礎(chǔ)上增加了14場面談，面談?wù)叨际桥c三位內(nèi)部CEO候選人直接或間接工作過的內(nèi)部高管，目的是評估候選人是否適合CEO一職。反饋意見通報給加爾尼埃和董事會。現(xiàn)任CEO安德魯?維迪當(dāng)時在候選人中并不拔尖，但面談結(jié)果發(fā)現(xiàn)相比其他兩位競爭者，他是更加合適的候選人。

保密

????我們看到過非常出色的候選人在競聘消息走漏后決定退出。解決這個問題的一個辦法是：在對CEO候選人進行背景調(diào)查時，公司可以詢問知情的業(yè)內(nèi)人士這位候選人是否適合一個潛在的董事職位，該職位可能需要具備大量的CEO技能，而不是直奔主題，直指CEO職位。

????大多數(shù)大公司都會聘請咨詢公司，確保能通過背景調(diào)查對CEO最終候選人有一個全面的了解。而且，確實，涉及候選人，很多證明人在面對第三方時與與面對董事時的說法并不一致。最近，我們?yōu)橐患邑敻?00強排名前100的公司物色CEO人選時，該公司董事會就同時采用了兩種方式進行背景調(diào)查，讓其中幾位證明人與公司董事和咨詢顧問都進行了獨立談話。

????新聘一位CEO總是不可避免地會冒一定的風(fēng)險。除了即時獲取信息，企業(yè)還必須將盡可能地掌握候選人的情況視為己任，然后再做出任命決定。只有這樣，才能確保任命的重大消息宣布之后不會有令人不快的意外情況發(fā)生，也不會出現(xiàn)“真相”曝出時的尷尬。

????Dennis Carey、Melanie Kusin和Jane Stevenson是光輝國際（Korn/Ferry International）的副董事長。

????譯者：老榆木

Go beyond the customary assessment process

????The traditional internal assessment process is designed to assess a candidate in his or her current position, not whether the individual is great CEO material. Use that process as an entrée to a second round of references, which will add insights. When GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) was planning for the departure of CEO Jean-Pierre Garnier in 2008, it supplemented its customary assessment with 14 interviews with internal executives who had worked directly or indirectly with all three internal CEO candidates. The questions were designed to assess the suitability for the CEO position, and feedback was shared with Garnier and the board. Now-CEO, Andrew Witty, while not the obvious choice at the time, emerged as a much better candidate than his competitors.

Keep it confidential

????We have seen stellar candidates drop out of consideration when their candidacy is made public. One solution to this problem: When referencing for CEO candidates, companies can ask knowledgeable industry insiders to evaluate a candidate for a potential director position, rather than the CEO spot, which encompasses many chief executive skills.

????Most large companies hire consulting firms to make sure they get a complete picture of a CEO finalist through references and, indeed, people offering references will often speak about a candidate differently to a board director than they would to a third party. In a recent CEO search we did for a Fortune 100 company, the board utilized a two-way process for conducting references where several referees spoke independently with both a director and the consultant.

????Hiring a new CEO will inevitably involve an element of risk. With instant access to information, companies must make it their mission to learn everything possible about candidates, before an appointment is made. That's the surest way to avoid unpleasant surprises the day after the big announcement or the pain of having the "real" story dribble out.

????Dennis Carey, Melanie Kusin, and Jane Stevenson are vice chairmen of Korn/Ferry International.