LESSON 1 OF 6 · INTERMEDIATE
Define the target through business needs
Start with the business the organization can support and the problems it can solve. Define job-related requirements and separate essential qualifications from preferences. Consider location, authorized product experience, service needs and the organization’s capacity. Avoid targeting people through assumptions about age, family status or other personal characteristics. A focused target is an operational definition, not a stereotype.
Write a target brief with three essentials, two preferences and two reasons the company may be unsuitable.
About 2 minutes reading + 12 minutes practice. Take longer when needed.
Apply the method
Use a target brief that starts with capacity and role needs. Identify the market and type of business the organization is equipped to support, then define essential qualifications and evidence. Add explicit exclusions: the company may not have the product, staffing, location support or leadership opening a particular candidate needs. Calibrate the brief with operations and the hiring leader before building a list. Review it as conditions change. This avoids pursuing a large producer whose needs the organization cannot meet, or excluding a smaller producer with a strong, relevant business-development method. Evaluate professional work and requirements; do not infer suitability from age, family situation or social similarity.
A worked application
Fictional worked example: The growth team wants purchase-focused LOs, but onboarding can support only two starts next month. The brief prioritizes candidates whose service needs match existing processing capacity, and it notes that a proposed specialist product is not yet approved. A prospect asks for that product. The recruiter explains the limitation instead of suggesting approval is a formality. Another prospect needs coaching and a reliable escalation route; a focused meeting with the relevant owners establishes whether those needs can be met. The brief improves both pursuit and disqualification decisions.
Common mistake to avoid
A target based only on annual volume is incomplete. A production number does not establish operational fit, professional conduct or the support needed after arrival.
Work through the case
FICTIONAL SCENARIO
A lender wants to grow purchase business in a market but lacks capacity for a sudden large team. An individual relationship-focused originator may fit the actual support plan better than a large branch.
Make it practical
Write a target brief with three essentials, two preferences and two reasons the company may be unsuitable.
Compare your reasoning with a worked response
Include support capacity and honest exclusions. A target should help you decline a poor fit as readily as pursue a good one.
Takeaway
Use the method to explain your decision, identify what you still need to verify and choose an accountable next step.
Treat the response as a model for reasoning, not the only possible wording. Adapt it to the role, evidence and appropriate organizational guidance.