Hiring processes don’t fail on salary. They fail because the rules of the game are missing.
In the first conversations, a lot still goes well.
The chemistry is good, the profile fits, the interest is there,
on both sides.
And yet the process tips over later. Usually very quietly, through small question marks forming in the candidate’s mind.
Many companies underestimate how early candidates start doing the maths.
And I don’t just mean base salary, bonus or location.
I mean entirely different things:
- What responsibility will I really carry?
- What’s the set-up around me?
- Who decides in the end, and why?
If these points only become clear late in the process, or only half clear, a risk builds up in the background. A feeling we hear about in many conversations:
you don’t know the rules. Or they change along the way.
This is especially sensitive in private equity.
Because it isn’t just about a new job. It’s about a different playing field, with different rules:
- governance structures
- reporting lines
- investment and exit horizons
If these topics only come up in the third conversation,
or get a passing mention in the last call, it doesn’t look like strategy. It looks like a lack of clarity, and that quickly makes candidates doubt.
A lack of clarity creates friction and slows commitment down,
or stops it altogether.
In the best processes we see something different:
clarity, early, transparent and binding.
Specifically:
1. What is the role really,
in 12 to 24 months, not just on paper today?
2. Who decides in the end,
at portfolio, advisory board or shareholder level?
3. What does the set-up look like
in the cap table, on the advisory board and in management?
These aren’t delicate topics. They’re leadership topics, and they belong at the start of a process, not the end.
Put them on the table deliberately and in good time, and you create something very valuable:
trust.
And a solid basis for a clear decision, on both sides.
Have a good start to the day,
Andreas
