by Monika Sziron, Ph.D.
In this week’s HigherEdJobs Podcast episode, Suzanne Teer from WittKieffer joined Kelly and Andy in a conversation revolving around search consultants in higher education.
What is a Search Consultant?
Search consultants work with clients (higher education institutions) and candidates (job seekers).
Working with higher education institutions, Teer says “We have a few roles that we play in the search process as a search consultant. We’re a partner, both to our clients and to our candidates, as partners to our clients, we help facilitate and drive the search process. We bring expertise and insight and teamwork to the search to really complement our clients. We also proactively recruit strong and diverse pools of candidates for our clients. And this is really the role that we’re best known for is as recruiters.”
When it comes to working with job seekers, Teer says “We’re also partners to our candidates. So, we are working to understand their goals, their experience, and their skills. And we communicate the unique needs of our clients to our candidates, with the hope that we’ll find an exceptional match between the client’s needs and, and the candidate’s aspirations.”
Why Choose a Search Consultant as a Job Seeker?
Search consultants can give job seekers the boost of external confidence that they need to keep moving forward in the job search, Teer says, “And many candidates really underestimate themselves and they sell themselves short. So having some outsider perspective, whether it’s from a search consultant or a trusted advisor can be really helpful in their journey.”
What Has Changed in the Higher Ed Job Search Process?
From the eyes of a search consultant, Teer shares, “We used to fly candidates all over the country for a 75-minute interview. That will still happen. But I think it will happen a lot less frequently. A lot of our clients are going with video interviews for that first round of interviews. And I don’t see that going away. They have realized that it’s effective, that it’s efficient. They can save a lot of money, save a lot of wear and tear on their candidates and on the environment. So, I certainly see that sticking around as part of the process. I think that some of the travel will come back…But I really doubt that it’s going to come back at the same level that, that we were accustomed to. So, what that means for candidates is, you know, being able to interview well on video is going to be a really important skill.”
Listen to the full episode to learn more from Suzanne and hear more of her inside perspectives and advice that you can apply to your job search.
