Honest Recruiting

The most important resource of any school is its teachers! With this in mind, the job of recruiting is an extremely important one. A solid recruiting system can transform school culture, implement quality teaching, create community and make everybody's' life much easier! In the past three years I have grown significantly in this area. My associate, John Ritter and his wife Susan, at Search Associates have invested hours in me, teaching me the principles of recruiting. I would like to acknowledge from the start that much of my current learning has come from them, while also acknowledging, I have a lot yet to learn.

I recently took part in the Search Associates Dubai Fair. This was only my fourth fair to take part in as a recruiter. Speaking to some far more experienced recruiters than myself, I learned that it takes about ten candidates before you get the right fit for one teaching position. I found this to be very true. Recruiting, done thoroughly, is extremely labour intensive but extremely rewarding! 

With Bill Turner from Search Associates

Many international schools recruit through agencies such as Search Associates, International School Services and to a lesser degree The Council of International Schools. One of the great advantages to a reputable agency is that they require references to be submitted by candidates before their profile becomes active. These can help you screen out candidates at the early stages. Their websites also have filters so you can enter specific criteria such as experience or geographic location. There are of course flaws with these systems too, so asking questions and making connections with the associates and other recruiters is key.

So here are some of the eureka moments I have had when it comes to recruiting:

- Building Trust

Perhaps the most successful tool to hiring and retaining strong teachers is to be honest from the get-go. At fairs you will have an opportunity to do a presentation on your school and its context. This is most likely the first time you will meet teachers who are interested in your school. It is a time to sell your city and school. You should find that one thing that sets your school apart from the rest and communicate it clearly. You should also communicate the difficulties living in your context. I remember in Viet Nam the constant noise and honking of horns was difficult to get used to. Be honest from the start!

Speaking to a candidate at a fair
(permission for photo was granted)

- Reference checking

This is something that usually happens after the interview and before an offer is made. I have found it to be the most important part of the process. Checking a reference should be like an interview. It takes time and should always be done by a telephone call. Nowadays school leaders are very careful what they write, so if you want the truth, a call is the way to go. A great tip I learned is the awkward silence. When you are asking questions say something like, ''Is there anything else you would like to add?'' If the referee says no, say, ''ok?'' and leave a silence. It is incredible what can often come next. I cannot stress the importance of making connections through social networking. In IB schools, very often the PYP coordinator is not a reference on the C.V. or Search, however, this person is the one who plans with, teaches with and trains the teacher. More than once a Tweet to a fellow PYPC has saved our school years of pain!

It is vital to match the potential teacher to the culture of the school.

- Screening candidates

I am not one to be wooed by a great C.V., or PYP, or PhD for that matter. I am looking for somebody who has stayed for a significant amount of time at a school and who has perhaps been promoted in one of their previous positions. I believe pedagogy to be half of the equation and a positive attitude to be the other half. But how do you find the right candidate? It all starts with screening through hundreds of C.V.s. One of the questions in the confidential reference Search Associates asks is to rate a candidate between one to ten on how they impact school moral or climate. If this figure is consistently below seven, I will look no further. After this I will look for teaching experience, program knowledge, length of stay at schools and read the personal bio. Again looking for the right fit to school culture is key.

- Interviews

The decision to make an offer should not made by one person. This I believe is dangerous, as if I had my way our entire staff might love hurling, Guinness, singing and potatoes. Our Head of School will always conduct a second interview so the decision goes through at least the two of us and often the HR manager too. The interview is a time to determine the candidates knowledge of teaching and learning, not their character. Anybody can be nice for thirty minutes, character is checked through the references. Use the interview time to ask about teaching, classroom setup, personal pedagogy, communication with parents, assessment beliefs and other teaching related areas.

- Offers

Another key point I learned from John Ritter at Search Associates is to give candidates a reasonable amount of time to consider an offer. I have found one week to be reasonable. At Search fairs there is a minimum time of 24 hours to give candidates. I would advise you give them longer and not rush them to make a decision they will regret. It is much better to recruit a teacher who has made a well informed decision than twisting their arm into signing an offer they will regret.

So there you have it, my current understanding of the recruiting process. There is an old saying "hire slow and fire fast", I thoroughly agree with the first part of this.