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| Home - CEO Spotlight - Jun 03 Issue |
CEO Spotlight: Louis Tetu, Recruitsoft
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Angel Mehta: So what role has luck played in Recruitsoft’s success to date?
Louis Tetu: See, that’s what I was getting at when I said I don’t believe things happen accidentally. Oh, there is such a thing as luck once in a while, Angel, but when you start getting up into larger numbers, there is no such thing as consistent luck. There is no such thing as consistent bad luck, or consistent good luck. I think success is a very predictable event. It's a matter of very closely and tightly managed planning and execution in everything you do. And if luck happens, luck happens. But, you know, the law of great numbers says good luck happens just as much as bad luck, so it's kind of irrelevant to talk about.
Angel Mehta: So let’s talk about what happens when the planning is done. Everyone seems to know that ‘execution’ is key, but the real question in my mind is, how do you ‘execute flawlessly’, as you put it? What’s the secret that allows for that to happen?
Louis Tetu: In order to execute flawlessly, we promote some core values around three concepts: who we are, what we stand for, and how we do business. The ‘Who We Are’ component is important, and it gets summarized with two terms: Number one, and I know it's kind of cliché because everyone says this, but it’s about integrity. Which means, we do what we say we’ll do. It's as simple as that. Integrity is a binary event. You don't have more or less integrity – you either have it or you don't. It's as simple as that. The implication of that at Recruitsoft is that when you speak, you have to be very accurate. For example, when a client asks you something, you shouldn’t have any grey areas. You set appropriate expectations and then you deliver. The second aspect of ‘Who We Are’ is passion. One of our key conference rooms is named ‘Passion’, in fact. Passion, to me, drives knowledge - and Recruitsoft is all about knowledge.
The knowledge we bring to the senior executives of a large corporation concerning human capital…we are literally defining their HR strategy for the next five to ten years. We are the McKinsey of Human Capital, to a large extent. In order to foster knowledge within an organization, you cannot shove it down people's throats, you know? You can't just put people in the room and train them to death. It doesn't work that way. You need people who share that passion. Of course, it would be a very boring world if everyone had the same passions, right? So we’re extremely respectful of people who do not share our passions – just not within the confines of Recruitsoft’s walls. In my mind, when you wake up in the morning and you're passionate about what you do, you want to learn more.
Angel Mehta: As opposed to getting paid to learn more…
Louis Tetu: Exactly. When you’re passionate, you want to push the envelope. You want to excel. You want to innovate. Passion drives knowledge and innovation. More than anything else, I think that’s why we execute so well.
Angel Mehta: Let’s talk about iLogos. My understanding is that it’s a think-tank for human capital and staffing-related issues. What role does iLogos play in Recruitsoft’s strategy? What was the reasoning behind acquiring them to begin with?
Louis Tetu: I've always been a firm believer in research and benchmarking. It goes hand-in-hand with our strategy in terms of being very analytical about the decisions we make. There's always a danger, at any company – even a successful one - of drinking your own Kool Aid. What research provides is the ability to distance yourself when trying to make decisions. Objectivity is so important. iLogos is a separate entity from Recruitsoft – it runs on it’s own, despite the fact that we own it. The iLogos charter is benchmark staffing best practices and analyzes the economics of talent flow optimization. They analyze staffing trends ofthe Fortune 500, Global 500, Canadian 100 and European 500 around the whole topic of staffing, workforce optimization, etc. and understand the benchmarks around staffing processes and understand staffing economics. The group is a wonderful source of advice for both us as a company as well as our clients and the industry.
Angel Mehta: How do the recent consolidations in the industry impact Recruitsoft's immediate or long-term future? I’m talking about the Peoplesoft/JD Edwards announcements…and of course, Oracle’s big move.
Louis Tetu: We're actually pretty excited about it because I think it builds a stronger case for the best of breed players that are much more nimble. With the advent of more open platforms…middleware that facilitates real time data exchange, integration standards such as XML….You will see, I think, the true best of breed players within high value niches exploding in the future. The overall customer confidence in the notion that large software companies will be able to cure their problems is going to drop because they can’t offer best of breed functionality. Particularly within areas such as human capital management, where companies are not willing to compromise or be sub-optimal in the platforms they deploy…I think it will create a huge opportunity for not just Recruitsoft, but all best of breed players that have a really high value offering.
Angel Mehta: If you were given the opportunity to go back in time and change some of the decisions you’ve made with Recruitsoft, what would you do?
Louis Tetu: I would probably accelerate the investment rate and growth rate of the company…but beyond that, there is nothing major in the road map that we’ve missed…otherwise I wouldn't be doing my job, right? I think we've had the right focus on hiring the best people possible. There is an extreme amount of passion around the whole topic of being number one, being the best and winning. That’s not going to change.
Angel Mehta: You mentioned the importance of objectivity and trying to avoid getting into a situation where you’re drinking your own Kool Aid. Let’s talk about the concept of mentoring in that context. Who did you learn from? Are there any mentors in particular that you rely on?
Louis Tetu: I don’t believe in idolizing any particular individual. I see mentors in most of the people I work with. If you surround yourself with great people, they all bring something to the table. But I don't believe in the white knight or the ‘idol’ type of concept. I believe that every individual has certain fortes. They're good at certain things, they're less good at others. As long as you can recognize that, and as long as they can recognize that… you can build a balanced team. I will tell you that nowadays, I find myself learning a lot from our investors and board members. They have all kinds of data and experience that I can draw on. The key is to never waste energy trying to reinvent the wheel. If I can find someone else who's been through a similar experience, I will try to leverage that experience as much as possible.
Louis Tetu is Chairman and CEO of Recruitsoft. Prior to Recruitsoft, Louis served as President of BAAN Supply Chain Solutions. To send feedback, email Louis at: ltetu@recruitsoft.com
Angel Mehta is Managing Director at Sterling-Hoffman, a retained executive search firm that focuses on VP Sales & VP Marketing searches exclusively for enterprise software companies. To send feedback to Angel, email: amehta@sterlinghoffman.net
 
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