October 12, 2006
Recruiting Trends: M.B.A. Scouting
To explain M.B.A. scouting, Maury Hanigan uses a sports reference.
"If the Chicago Cubs decide they need a new shortstop, they go to a scout and say, 'Tell us who the most talented candidates are so we can focus our recruiting,' " Hanigan explains. "M.B.A. scouts do the same thing for employers. We go to campus and meet with students and talk with them about their genuine interests, where they want to work geographically, and the opportunities they are pursuing. Then, we go back to an employer with our recommendation for the five to 10 students they should be focusing their resources on."
Hanigan is president of Hanigan Consulting Group, which publishes the M.B.A. Scouting Reports. Hanigan has recruited a network of M.B.A. scouts—former career services directors as well as individuals who have run M.B.A. recruiting for major corporations—throughout the country. The scouts spend a week at each business school, meeting with students and identifying those who are the best match for each client.
Clients choose specific schools at which they want to identify the most qualified students in their function (e.g. marketing, banking, supply chain) and provide their screening criteria. Hanigan sells just one report by function per school on a first come, first served basis.
The benefit of M.B.A. scouting can be found, first and foremost, on the bottom line, Hanigan says.
"What clients really want is to connect with students who are genuinely interested in what they have to offer and have the basic qualifications they are looking for," she explains. "They don't really want to go to campus, give a corporate presentation, and have a reception for 140 students. The reality is, there are only a handful of students on any given campus who are a good match for them."
Hanigan notes that studies show employers hire just one out of 10 M.B.A. candidates they interview on campus.
"If that number is correct, it means that there is a 90 percent failure rate," she notes. "Ninety percent of the time and effort an organization spends on recruiting M.B.A.s is spent on individuals who don't ever join the organization. Given the incredible amount of time and money spent on recruiting, the waste is enormous."