What's the difference between job placement and head-hunting? When consultants locate jobs with applicants in mind, it's job placement. That is, a candidate seeking a particular job approaches a placement agency. The agency then contacts the relevant companies for a suitable position and helps fix up a job for the candidate.

But when the procedure is in the reverse order, it's head-hunting. Say, a telecom company is looking for a CEO. The company gets in touch with the placement consultants of its choice. The consultants will then hunt for a candidate who's fit to be the CEO of the client company.

In other words, it's a case of executive search against a job that is already present. Westminster is one such consultant that follows the procedure of locating people after the job. This method of placing people saves the clients' cost and time, says Ronald Das, country head, Westminster International.

A UK-based company, Westminster has been in the head-hunting business in India for the past two years in a joint venture with the Ampro group. But why India? One, there's potential in India. Two, to bring in its long international experience and create an awareness of executive search in India, explains Das.

Talking about executive search, Das stresses that Westminster aims for a perfect fit. With a diversified portfolio -- manufacturing, service, aviation, power, sugar, textiles and many others -- Westminster provides a complete update on companies it deals with, to be able to achieve the right fit for its client and the candidate in a particular job position.

The search technique is rather elaborate, but systematic. Das explains. Understanding the position, the job profile and the person required to occupy the post is very essential. Knowledge of the company and the organisational structure cannot be ignored either. The vision 2000 of a company is another crucial aspect that must be checked. So, there are a number of questions that need to be answered before finding the right candidate for a given job.

After the initial research about the company comes the target person. Suppose Company A is looking for a CEO, the second man in the rival company (say Company B) becomes the automatic target for the vacant post. Das reasons: As the top man in Company B is not likely to join Company A on comparable perks, etc, the second man in Company B becomes the obvious choice for the head-hunter.

Thereafter, it's a research phase again -- this time, research is about the candidate who's been spotted. But it's got to be discreet. Ethics play an important role in Westminster's approach, which is targeted and discreet, according to Group Captain I B Sinha, director, HR, Westminster.

The targeted person must possess a happy blend of professional qualifications and experience, both in technical as well as in managerial aspects. Also, to be at the top position, human values such as initiative and loyalty are important, too, adds Sinha.

To make an assessment of the human values, Westminster opts for a personality analysis, if required. For that, neighbours may be interviewed. In some cases, Westminster has even contacted the wife of the candidate to understand his interests, Sinha says.

Once a person has been identified for a particular job, Westminster calls him up and talks to him briefly about the new job option. That's a kind of `break the ice' session. ``Once the ice is broken, you have created in him some interest for the job,'' says Das. The next step is to market the company to the candidate. ``If he agrees to send in his papers, 50 per cent of the work is done.''

Before getting back to the client, however, the CVs are restructured, states Sinha. ``So we don't send the original papers.'' The objectives should be presented well, with a vision for at least the next 5-7 years, he adds.If the client okays it, a meeting is fixed between the candidate and the client, again discreetly.

Sinha says: ``If at any point, we feel that the candidate is not right for our client, we state it clearly. We don't believe in hiding facts and giving wrong information to the client.''

But how good are ethics when loyalty to the client is so central? Das adds: ``We are not loyal to the client alone, but also to the candidate. When we locate a candidate for a job, we make sure that he gets an environment to grow further in the new company.'' Westminster is not here to break companies, nor is it here to pick up cheques, he states.

But, of course, the services come for a price. The pricing is rational, says Sinha. Generally, 20 per cent of the cost of the company on the candidate's annual package. But the executive search fee may vary from the top management to the middle and the junior levels.

The middle and junior level executive search is usually from the databank, which is divided into four categories: engineering, finance, market, information technology and software. These categories are sub-divided. For example, finance is divided into accounts, taxation or advisory services.Then there's a division based on experience: 1-5 years; 5-10 years; and 10 years and above.

From the search categories to the job market, it's all about being specific. Das explains Westminster's role in all this. With employers becoming more and more job-specific, the market is very tight. With so much of downsizing in the past 3-4 years, a vacuum has been created between the Indian corporates and the multinational companies. MNCs are downsizing, and the Indian corporates are picking up staff without matching their job content or remuneration. Therefore, a vacuum in terms of job profile and remuneration. This is where Westminster comes in: providing the right fit, marketing the profile of the corporates to the right candidates, counselling and advising the candidates, and attempting to fill out the vacuum.

That's not all. ``Even when a candidate has been placed, we get feedback from the people placed in a company,'' adds Sinha.

Though rather new in the market, Westminster, it appears, is adhering to ethics and values to be successful in the head-hunting business. A professional beginning in the age and times of making a quick buck.

Copyright © 1997 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.