While we’d previously recruited for Multistack, at the time this search arose a few years has passed. They had a newer employee tackling the company’s hiring efforts, but they were facing a dilemma. A Regional Sales Manager with 12 years of history at the company left to enter a slightly adjacent industry. They knew they’d need a high-caliber individual with significant experience to fill the space left behind. 

Chillers are a unique product category, and they needed to find someone who already knew chillers like the back of their hand. Finding an engineer with technical knowledge of the equipment was also critical. With their need to also hire an experienced, proven, team-oriented salesperson, the combination of requirements left them in a tough spot. 

After struggling to find the right talent themselves, their hiring team decided to bring in a recruiting firm. While reaching out to several firms, they asked us to put our hat in the ring. 

Interestingly enough, they didn’t actually our firm to work with. They engaged another firm on retainer, but we knew something they didn’t: We had the perfect candidate already prepped and ready to go. 

Our team maintains a strong candidate network in the HVAC space (among others). Because we’re so specialized and have individual recruiters focused exclusively on the chillers industry, we’re incredibly well-versed in what makes a candidate successful in that market. That means we can quickly parse through prospective candidates, keeping in mind exactly what companies truly need from employees in each role. 

About six months before Multistack called us about this search, our recruiters cold-called a potential candidate. He brought nearly a decade of relevant industry experience and plenty of additional accolades to recommend him. We had a great conversation with him, ending with him deciding he’d be open to the right opportunity, should it arise. Lo and behold, six months later it, it did. 

Despite not being their retained firm, we knew the Multistack hiring team would want to at least talk to this candidate. We sent his information over, putting him up against three additional candidates uncovered by their retained firm. It was obvious early on why we were so enthusiastic for them to meet him. 

His career was a perfect product match. His personality fit within the team and company culture like a missing puzzle piece. He came with a strong history of generating exceptional sales numbers, including experience with a premier chillers manufacturer. And while he didn’t have experience as a Regional Sales Manager, he was in the market for a role where he could take on more responsibility than his current role. It was the exact direction he wanted to grow in. 

The day we found out Multistack had chosen to retain another firm, we sent the candidate’s redacted profile over. Within two months, they’d officially hired him in the RSM role. Those two months involved an extensive interview process with him and the other candidates, but in the end he won the hiring team over. 

They loved what he brought to the table with his past product experience, which outweighed the boxes he didn’t fully check. Despite his lack of RSM experience, they knew they could teach him any of the knowledge he didn’t have yet (and that “teaching” mindset is one of the things that makes them so successful). 

Since joining the team, he’s done great, hitting his sales numbers and actively engaging with the company’s trade show presences. He manages nearly 10 rep agencies, with a goal to meet with each one individually each year. 

We’ve helped the Multistack team fill several other roles in a similar manner, with a more passive ongoing relationship. While our candidates don’t always work out, we continue to share candidates we think could be an excellent fit for the organization.

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