Urgency Sends a Message and Top Sales Candidates Notice

In today’s market, speed matters, but not just for the usual reasons.

Acting with urgency in your hiring process isn’t about rushing to make a hire. It shows people internally and externally that you know what matters and you’re willing to move when you see it. Acting with urgency signals a company that knows where it’s headed and is willing to make the decisions needed to get there without pausing for roadblocks.  

One of the fastest-growing and most successful SaaS companies I helped recruit for became notorious for making fast hiring decisions.

I found myself in a situation where I was about 85%-90% sure about a sales candidate we had interviewed. I thought he could be a very strong fit, but I also felt the heavy weight of my client’s risk in the decision-making process. At the time, this created hesitation and doubt for me.

And the CEO told me during my moment of hesitation that we have to make decisions with incomplete information every day, and the important thing here was to just go ahead and decide.

His decision was that we go for it. And since it was his millions invested in the company, not mine, we did!

Here’s what urgency signals, and why it sticks with top-tier candidates:

1. Urgency Is Attractive to High Performers
   Candidates don’t want to feel like an afterthought. When you move fast on a resume, schedule an interview within a day or two, or follow up quickly after a conversation, it sends a strong message: You’re serious. That kind of attention makes people lean in. Especially high-performers.
   
   
2. Urgency Is a Sign of Priorities
   If it takes a week to respond to a recruiter or a month to coordinate panel interviews, it’s easy for candidates to assume the role isn’t that important or worse, that your team isn’t aligned.
   Quick action shows alignment, intent, and real business need.
   
   
3. People Remember What Happens First
   The first company to respond. The first to book an interview. The first to make an offer. Just last month, I watched a candidate accept a compelling offer in the time it took another company to decide to interview him. We all remember the first mover. And in a competitive talent market, being first increases your odds of hiring top performers, and it alters how your opportunity is perceived.
   
   
4. Urgency Models the Behavior You Want
   You want decisive, proactive, outcome-driven salespeople? Show them what that looks like.
   The way you show up in the interview process is often the best indicator of how your org runs. Candidates pay attention. The ones you want to hire will notice and they’ll want to work with people who move.
   
   

What Candidates Assume When You Delay

• The role isn’t critical
• The team isn’t aligned
• Leadership moves slowly
• The culture lacks urgency
• The opportunity won’t move their career forward

Candidates evaluate and interpret your interview process. They assume your hiring behavior reflects your company’s overall velocity and values.

Why Speed Matters More Than You Think
Hiring with urgency isn’t about procrastinating on hires so that pressure eventually builds and you find yourself in a position where you need to fill roles immediately. Urgency signals competence and clarity. If the role matters, act like it does. The right candidates will respond in kind.