Business owners often believe that passive candidates are the best candidates.  Everyone wants to recruit them.  I hear over and over again from business owners, "Find me someone who is working for one of our competitors, who I don't have to train so they can hit the road running on day one!"

Sounds great, yes?  But, great passive candidates are just an illusion.  There is a reason why they are called "passive."  It's because they are "passive."  They generally do not move into action until someone pushes them to do so which is not a characteristic of an "A" player.

"A" players will do one of 2 things.  1.) They will never leave their current position because they are superstars and compensated handsomely.   They are loyal and passionate about the company they work for.  Or, 2.)  They are proactively looking for a better job so they can reach their potential.

There is nothing passive about "A" players.  "A" players are proactive.  Passive candidates are simply content to be average players  . . . waiting for recruiters to call to push them into action.

Is this the type of employee you want on your team?  My guess not.  Passive candidates are plentiful.  They just are not "A" players.