Purple Squirrel:
Definition, Comparison & Benefits

A purple squirrel is a term used by employment recruiters to describe a job candidate with precisely the right education, experience, and qualifications that perfectly fit a job's requirements. The term emerged in the early 2000s, with documented use by 2000, and gained wider recognition after CBS published material in 2010 and Google recruiter Michael B. Junge published "Purple Squirrel: Stand Out, Land Interviews, and Master the Modern Job Market" in 2012.

The metaphor suggests that finding such a candidate is as rare and unlikely as finding an actual purple squirrel in nature. Purple squirrels possess an exact match of technical skills, relevant experience, desired soft skills, cultural fit, and appropriate salary expectations, all while being immediately available to start.

Related terms: unicorn candidate, rockstar hire, perfect fit candidate, ideal candidate profile

Companies pursue purple squirrels based on 4 theoretical benefits:

• Immediate value addition: The candidate can hit the ground running without extensive onboarding or training
• Colleague motivation: High-performers elevate team standards and serve as mentors to others
• Reduced training costs: Companies save on development resources when hiring someone who needs minimal training
• Enhanced employer branding: Having renowned talent attracts other top performers

These benefits sound compelling because businesses want to do more with fewer workers and need candidates able to take on a wide range of duties. The allure of a candidate requiring minimal ramp-up time to reach full productivity is particularly attractive in competitive markets.

Purple squirrel candidates exhibit 5 key characteristics:

1. Exact match of skills and experience: Possesses the specific technical skills, knowledge, and experience required for the role with a proven track record of success in similar positions or industries
2. Unique combination of attributes: Demonstrates a rare blend of technical expertise and soft skills, such as leadership, communication, and problem-solving abilities
3. Cultural fit: Aligns with the organization's values, mission, and culture while demonstrating strong passion for the company's products, services, or industry
4. Immediate impact capability: Can make an immediate impact in the role and requires minimal training or ramp-up time to reach full productivity
5. Long-term potential: Shows potential for growth and leadership within the organization and possesses the adaptability and agility to evolve with the company's changing needs

These candidates are caring, motivated, represent the company with the highest integrity, and are sincere, personable, humble, and transparent. They are top performers with quality experience who are adaptable and innovative in nature.

Purple squirrel recruiting creates 5 major negative impacts on hiring processes:

• Unrealistic expectations and unfillable roles: Job descriptions demand candidates who simply don't exist, reflecting a loss of reality in the hiring process, especially for newly created or rapidly evolving roles
• Wasted time and resources: The pursuit of perfection leads to prolonged vacancies, drastically increasing time-to-fill metrics and directly impacting business operations
• Drastically shrunk talent pool: Setting unrealistic expectations automatically eliminates qualified candidates who could excel with training or development, reducing candidate pools from hundreds to zero
• Damaged employer brand and candidate experience: Extended hiring processes and unrealistic expectations create negative candidate experiences, causing top talent to accept offers from companies with more efficient processes
• Internal friction and misalignment: The purple squirrel hunt leads to accountability issues between recruiters and hiring managers, with recruiters feeling set up to fail and hiring managers frustrated with empty pipelines

The effort seeking purple squirrels is commonly asserted to be wasted. Prolonged vacancies hurt team productivity and company profitability, and even if a purple squirrel is hired, their presence can create insecurity among existing staff, potentially damaging team dynamics and culture.

Recruiters can avoid the purple squirrel trap using 4 practical strategies:

1. Run better intake meetings and separate needs from wants: Transition from order-takers to strategic business partners by running structured intake meetings with clear agendas to establish realistic expectations, distinguishing between must-have skills (core competencies absolutely necessary for success) and nice-to-have skills (beneficial but not essential qualifications)
2. Educate hiring managers with market data: Arm yourself with data about available talent in your market, typical qualification combinations, realistic salary expectations, and average time-to-fill for similar positions, showing hiring managers the business cost of prolonged vacancies
3. Focus on potential and cultural fit over perfection: A candidate's attitude, learning capacity, and alignment with company culture are often more valuable than checking every technical box, using tools like psychometric assessments to evaluate personality traits and cultural fit more effectively
4. Streamline your process to secure great talent: When you find an excellent (not perfect) candidate, move quickly, making offers within 24 hours when possible to avoid losing candidates to competitors, and maintain consistent communication throughout the process

Being open to candidates who don't have all the skills or retraining existing employees are sensible alternatives to an over-long search. Sometimes your purple squirrel is already working for you but needs development opportunities.

Organizations that successfully hire purple squirrel candidates experience 5 key benefits:

• Immediate impact and productivity: Purple squirrels quickly integrate into the role and make an immediate impact on projects or initiatives, requiring minimal training or onboarding
• Increased innovation and problem-solving: Purple squirrels bring unique perspectives, experiences, and skills that drive innovation and creative problem-solving, offering fresh ideas and approaches to challenges
• Enhanced team performance and collaboration: Purple squirrels elevate the performance of their team members through their expertise, leadership, and collaboration skills, mentoring and coaching colleagues
• Improved retention and employee engagement: Purple squirrels are highly engaged and committed to their work, leading to increased job satisfaction and retention, contributing to a positive and high-performing work culture
• Competitive advantage: Hiring purple squirrels gives organizations a competitive edge by bringing in top talent with specialized skills and experiences, helping organizations stay ahead of industry trends

These candidates can reach full productivity faster and inspire and motivate their colleagues, driving superior results across the organization.

Finding a purple squirrel candidate requires 6 targeted strategies:

1. Clearly define the role and requirements: Develop a detailed and specific job description that outlines the ideal candidate profile, identifying the must-have skills, experiences, and attributes critical for success
2. Leverage employee referrals: Encourage current employees to refer candidates from their personal and professional networks, offering referral bonuses or incentives to motivate employees
3. Utilize targeted sourcing strategies: Use niche job boards, industry-specific forums, or professional associations to reach targeted candidate pools, and engage in proactive sourcing by searching LinkedIn or other social media platforms
4. Build a strong employer brand: Develop a compelling employer value proposition that showcases the unique benefits and opportunities of working for the organization, creating engaging career pages and employee testimonials
5. Offer competitive compensation and benefits: Conduct market research to ensure the compensation and benefits package is competitive, considering flexible work arrangements, professional development opportunities, or other perks
6. Conduct thorough and multi-step interviews: Use a combination of behavioral, situational, and technical interviews to assess candidates' skills, experiences, and cultural fit, involving multiple stakeholders in the interview process

Recruiters should also be open to non-traditional candidates with transferable skills or experiences from different industries, looking for unique combinations of skills that could bring fresh perspectives to the role.

Organizations face 4 significant challenges when hiring purple squirrels:

• Time and resource-intensive process: Finding and recruiting purple squirrels requires significant time and effort from recruiters and hiring managers, with the search for the perfect candidate potentially leading to prolonged vacancies or missed opportunities
• Higher compensation expectations: Purple squirrels often command higher salaries and benefits due to their unique skills and experiences, requiring organizations to offer competitive compensation packages
• Potential for overqualification: Purple squirrels may be overqualified for the specific role or may become bored or disengaged if the position does not fully utilize their skills and potential
• Risk of turnover: If a purple squirrel candidate is not properly engaged, challenged, or recognized, they may be more likely to seek opportunities elsewhere

Organizations must ensure that the role and responsibilities align with the candidate's long-term career goals and aspirations, and must have strong retention strategies in place to keep purple squirrels motivated and committed to the company.

A purple squirrel is often compared to 2 related recruiting terms:

Purple Squirrel vs. Unicorn

Purple Squirrel vs. Rockstar