When the market thinks worse of a company than the reality

During a search project, several strong candidates declined the opportunity citing the same concerns: negative market rumours, uncertain operations and leadership problems.

A closer examination revealed that part of the market information rested on real ground, while another part was already exaggerated or outdated.

In the project:

• we had an honest leadership conversation with the partner,
• clarified the real situation,
• then communicated it to the candidate market in a controlled, credible way.

A project is often not only candidate search, but a reputational and communication task that begins with honest feedback to our partner.