While we customize the recruiting process for each organization’s needs, here is an overview of our typical process, which we’ve used to place successful candidates at outstanding organizations. If you have any questions about how we can tailor our Technology Transfer recruiting process specifically for you, contact us.

Technology Transfer Recruiting Process

1. Research

• Assessing Your Needs – We will conduct an extensive interview with the appropriate people, including the hiring manager and others who will be able to provide insight into the opportunity and the type of person being sought to join the team, including the vision, character, chemistry, and type of achiever your team desires.  Details of the interview process and compensation/benefits for the position will also be discussed.  Potential prospects and industries to pursue will be agreed upon so that a sourcing strategy can be implemented.
• Search Materials – We work with you to refine the job description, then we create a Position Specification to share with candidates. The position specification includes information about your office and organization, a detailed overview of the role, the job requirements, information about your city, and any other pertinent details you want us to include. We also create introduction/networking letters and job postings to post on relevant job boards.
• Candidate Research – Based on the job requirements, a list of individuals who have experience in the desired areas will be contacted as both prospects and referrals. This is done using our proprietary database, LinkedIn, and industry specific websites. We have indexed almost every licensing professional in the world, including members of AUTM, the Licensing Executives Society, and every registered RTTP and CLP. Through our vast network we have created categories of expertise so we can easily and quickly contact the most qualified people. Read more here about the reach of our network.

2. Candidate Prospecting & Screening

• Initial Contact – Confidentially, we will contact prospects and referral sources to gather interests and qualifications.
• Phone and/or Zoom Interview – All prospects will be interviewed. We will investigate each candidate’s drivers behind making a job change, as well as clarify technical expertise, professional experience and compensation expectations.
• Questionnaire – After the initial phone interview, candidates fill out a short questionnaire (see a sample of our questionnaire here), which serves three purposes; first, it shows commitment from the candidate, it serves as a writing sample, and it answers key questions that the hiring team will want to know.
• Third Party Profiles – If desired, we will administer any profile instrument that you request for your top candidates. We have extensive experience with DiSC / TriMetrix profiles. If you choose any other profile (Myers Briggs, Predictive Index, Pradco, Strengthsfinders, etc.), we can administer those as well.
• Candidate Profile – For all candidates you will interview, a candidate profile is prepared. Candidate profiles include: resume, questionnaire, non-confidential deal sheet (if applicable), and any other pertinent information. This candidate profile will be sent to the hiring team for feedback.
• Our goal is to provide a diverse slate of 7-10 candidates, all of whom match the desired requirements and/or bring a unique perspective and expertise to your team. Diversity in both people and ideas is important in every search we do. Read more about our commitment to diversity & inclusion.

3. Interview Process

• Candidate Phone (or Zoom) Interview – A phone interview with the client is arranged.
• Candidate Interview Debrief – The candidate will be debriefed to gauge interest and viability. That information will be provided to you as the client.
• Client Debrief – After the candidate has been debriefed, we confer with you to gauge your interest in the candidate.
• In-Person Interviews – After the phone/initial interviews are completed, you will select a short list of people for in-person interviews. Your team will interview each of the final candidates. After this round of interviews, we will obtain feedback from the candidates and support the hiring team in determining which candidate best fits the needs of your organization.
• Candidate Interview Feedback – Oftentimes, you will have several different groups of people interviewing each candidate. If requested, we will collect and distribute the interview feedback forms for the Search Committee. See one of our sample interview feedback forms here.
• Client and Candidate Communication – We will remain in contact with the candidates and client throughout the process to keep everyone informed and maintain professionalism with the candidates.

4. Making the Offer & Follow-up

• Formal Reference Checks – With all high priority candidates, we conduct formal reference checks to gain more insight and information from outside parties.
• Background Checks – We recommend all candidates be subject to a background check, as outlined by your company’s human resources policies.
• Offer Negotiation – We will provide the client compensation information based on market trends/job analysis available and compensation expectations from the candidate. Typically, compensation has been addressed in the very first interview, and we have found that if compensation is addressed early in the recruiting process, there are no surprises at the later stage. We explain the salary, cost of living, and benefits up front to make sure we are presenting people who fit into your salary range.
• Offer Presentation – Typically, Gardner Innovation Search Partners will present the offer to the candidate. We have found that there is a smoother transition when the client and candidate are not forced to discuss monetary issues, but that is up to you.
• Offer Letter/Employment Agreement – We help ensure all documents are signed and a start date is established.
• Post Search Client Interview – This interview is to gain feedback from the client on our process and to request a written testimonial. This interview is crucial as we look to improve our process. Our goal is to become long term partners with our clients, and we hope after the successful search, you will serve as a reference for our firm!
• Post Search Follow-up – We conduct follow up interviews with each placed candidate, typically at 30 and 90 days following the start date. We will communicate the spirit of those meetings back to the client as a means to ensure a smooth transition.