Bitstream Is a Software Firm Which Has Encountered a Dramatic Opportunity, a New Network Printer Management Product

Bitstream is a software firm which has encountered a dramatic opportunity, a new network printer management product.

Jim Sole, the new president of this growing Boston-area company, is currently looking for somebody to take the position of a leader for the new product division. So he engaged a headhunter that gave him some propositions of possible candidates.

When searching for an appropriate candidate Jim is looking for specific traits. His policy is to seek internal sources of candidates to promote. However, this is a very specific case since the company is entering the market with a new product. Jim will have to recruit someone from outside in order to provide some insights about the selling channels. Therefore, one of the major requirements for the candidate is to have experience with networking products and understand Value Added Resellers (VARs) business. Any customer of VARs is a potential customer for Bitstream.

Since this new product has a prospect value of $100-million in a very few years, there are more than just a handful of requirements for the position. Personality traits such as leading skills, flexibility and intellectual curiosity are critical for the job. On the other hand, Jim considered that a specific amount of experience is not so important because a smart person can learn how to do the job. For Jim, the suited person for the job will have marketing skills, be energetic and enthusiastic. The president knows that they have to speed into the market and that is why he is looking for a seasoned professional with managerial skills. The company is willing to pay an 80.000$ salary and a 40.000$ bonus potential as well as some stock options.

Jim asked the chosen headhunter, Peter Dromeshauser, to contact people that already work for major companies in this market. However, Peter advised Jim about the risks of hiring someone from a big company: these people are not used to make tough decisions and they are happy with their jobs. But Jim's decision remained the same.

Now, Jim is left with four candidates proposed by Peter, described as "very political... very focused on own career", "work hard play hard kind of guy", "sometimes abrasive, headstrong, stubborn" and a last one mentioned that he was making more money than Bitstream offers.

In the end Jim has to develop a set of criteria in order to pick the best candidate.

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