HONG KONG – This week was an explosive one for Yahoo! leadership after its CEO and four directors were cut.

In light of the explosive changes at Yahoo! executive search firm CTPartners offers five steps to help boards and senior management teams in Asia avoid the kinds of mistakes haunting Yahoo!.

"Today, social networks such as LinkedIn or Weibo have increased transparency and provide additional sources for background checks," said Train Luo, Managing Partner of CTPartners China.

CTPartners recommends the following five steps to prevent a simple thing like a résumé from severely damaging the reputation, trustworthiness and image of a company.

1) First round of due diligence – As a start, conduct initial third-party referencing of candidates prior to their inclusion on a list and discuss with the Board to spot any areas of concern.

2) Second round of due diligence – After the initial board review, include prior business results and additional referencing of short-listed candidates, as well as education verification, before the Search Committee’s first meeting with the candidate.

3) Rigorous competency-based interviews of each candidate - The Search Committee should arrange for interviews designed to draw out specific gaps and potential risks related to the candidate’s background, prior track record, leadership style, etc.

4) Direct candidate questioning of potential due diligence areas of concern - In addition, it is important to check on a candidate’s education credentials and specific accomplishment claims, as measured against outside sourcing, to validate the claims.

5) Final 360-degree candidate referencing - Supplement your due diligence with additional sourcing of people with direct knowledge of the candidate and his/her prior performance, supported by an independent background check by a trusted third party investigative firm.

cyap@sph.com.sg