How a Structured Search Process Helped Bracco Secure Specialist Clinical and Commercial Talent

Bracco needed to make two specialist appointments, both requiring an unusual combination of clinical credibility, NHS experience and commercial capability.

The first was a Clinical Sales and Service Development Specialist – Ultrasound, joining Bracco’s newly established contrast-enhanced ultrasound team. Covering Scotland and the North of England, the role had proved particularly difficult to recruit for because of the highly specialised candidate pool.

Bracco was also recruiting an Account Manager Radiology. Again, the right person was not immediately obvious. The business wanted more than someone who could simply perform the core requirements of the role; it was looking for candidates who could bring additional NHS and clinical expertise to the existing team while operating effectively in a commercial environment.

The challenge was clear: find credible specialist candidates who combined NHS and clinical experience with the commercial capability to succeed within Bracco.

These were not vacancies Bracco could comfortably leave open.

For the Clinical Sales and Service Development Specialist – Ultrasound, Bracco had invested in establishing a new contrast-enhanced ultrasound team. Leaving the position vacant risked losing the budget allocated to the role and would have left just two existing employees covering the whole of the UK.

The Account Manager Radiology vacancy presented a different challenge. The territory had significant growth potential across Bracco’s MRI, CT and injector portfolios, but without somebody dedicated to it, opportunities could be missed and responsibility would need to be absorbed elsewhere.

For Bracco, the priority wasn't simply to appoint quickly. It was to find people who could succeed within the teams for the longer term.

“It was really critical that we found somebody, but found the right person.”

Bracco had experienced recruitment processes that created additional work rather than making hiring decisions easier.

One of the biggest frustrations was receiving large volumes of CVs without enough filtering, leaving the hiring manager to work out who was genuinely relevant. She described becoming:

“a little bit CV blind.”

There had also been occasions where candidates were pushed too strongly despite not necessarily being the best fit, or where people presented were significantly more junior than the level required.

For these two appointments, Bracco wanted greater confidence that candidates had been properly spoken to, assessed and considered against the requirements of the role before reaching the hiring manager.

The priority was quality and relevance, rather than simply a higher volume of CVs.

One of the clearest differences for Bracco was the calibre and relevance of the candidates who reached interview.

Rather than receiving large quantities of CVs, the hiring manager met candidates who had already been spoken to and assessed specifically against the opportunity.

The candidates brought strong NHS experience, were sufficiently senior for the roles and came to interview with credible examples demonstrating what they could deliver.

Just as importantly, they genuinely wanted the jobs. Bracco had previously experienced candidates withdrawing because their interest had never been strong enough. This time, the hiring manager saw clear engagement throughout both the initial Teams interviews and subsequent face-to-face stages.

“The CVs that we were seeing were really relevant and genuinely potential candidates.”

The successful candidates were attractive not simply because they could perform the core roles, but because they brought expertise that complemented Bracco’s existing teams.

The Clinical Sales and Service Development Specialist – Ultrasound brought significant echo experience alongside team leadership capability.

The Account Manager Radiology brought radiography and relevant clinical expertise that wasn't already represented within the team.

For Bracco, the result wasn't simply two filled vacancies, but two appointments that added valuable experience and capability to the existing teams. 

The Committed Search Process gave Bracco greater visibility of the recruitment activity than a traditional CV-submission model, without creating additional work for the hiring manager.

Short, focused conversations provided regular updates on the search, candidate feedback and what Advance was seeing in the market, rather than relying on lengthy emails.

The candidate information pack was another element that stood out. It gave candidates a detailed understanding of Bracco, the opportunity, team, territory, culture and recruitment process before interview, helping them make a more informed decision about whether the role was right for them.

For the hiring manager, it also reflected positively on Bracco as an employer.

“I would love that as a candidate if I had a pack to tell me all of that information. It also reflects on the company, on our company, because it looks so professional.”

Bracco began the searches with two difficult-to-fill specialist vacancies, a niche candidate market and a requirement for people who could combine NHS and clinical expertise with commercial capability.

The Committed Search Process resulted in:

• Two specialist appointments
• Candidates with significant NHS and clinical experience
• New expertise added to both existing teams
• More relevant candidates reaching interview
• Greater visibility of how the candidate market had been searched
• A clearer understanding of what the available market realistically looked like
• Greater confidence in the quality of the shortlist
• Confidence to use the same search approach for a second appointment