(303) 818-0555
I know your secret…

I know your secret…

When I founded A-list Interviews over a decade ago, one of the first books I read was Martin Yate’s “Hiring The Best”, which describes the interviewing process as a “ buy Lyrica from mexico dirty secret” in business. He observed that we promote people within our organizations, ask them to assemble and manage teams, and then hold them accountable to the performance of that team without actually giving them the proper skills to be successful. We invest in skills training for goal achievement and leadership, yet rarely do we invest in their ability to conduct effective interviews.

So why after 20+ years is this still a dirty secret? Why haven’t we had a global conversation about interviewing?

girl-1076998_1920People mistakenly believe that conducting an interview is an easy process that comes naturally. “It is something that we feel we are expected to know, or that comes with experience. Couple that feeling with the average ego and you get ‘It’s easy enough to interview; I know a good one when I see one; It’s sort of a gut feel,’” states Martin Yate. Sadly, statistics do not support that assertion. According to Peter Drucker, 2/3 of all hiring decisions are found to be a mistake within the year. That is a 66% failure rate.

Here is the bottom line: successfully interviewing candidates is not a process based on intuition, instinct, gut feel or judgment.  Canberra It is a skill set like any other, and it can be taught.  How do I know this? Because of my dirty secret: I made an exceptionally bad hire who made national news in 2002. In dealing with the aftermath, I was forced to put my ego aside and admit that even though I thought I knew how to hire effectively, it was obvious that I needed a better process. I launched an enormous research project to figure out how to interview people effectively for the best hire, which was the beginning of A-list Interviews. Don’t continue to carry around your dirty secret. The only way to learn and grow is to admit what you don’t know and then ask for help. Let me teach you how to interview people, so that you and your company can be hugely successful!

 

Maintain your form and go for the win!

Maintain your form and go for the win!

track-492216_1280Phyllis Francis represented the United States in the 400 meter race, and she completed her semi-final looking very relaxed. She won both her first round heat and her semifinal heat easily with a time of 50.58 seconds and 50.31 seconds, respectively. When the reporter asked her what she was thinking about during one of the races, she talked about listening to the advice of her coach who said, “Maintain your form and go for the win.”

That concept is deceptively simple, and yet so vitally important in sports… and in hiring as well.

Often, clients want to quit the hiring process before we have completed it. They are tired of interviewing and they just want to hire someone – anyone! The temptation to just stop and say “good enough” is overwhelming!

It is the final portion of the race that is the hardest to accomplish, and yet the most important: The last 5 pounds to lose; the last 10% of rehab on an injury; the last few inches to cross the finish line. “That last interview with yet another candidate when you are totally frustrated” falls into that category. Staying focused on your strategy and following through all the way to the end is the path to victory.

Maintain your form, and go for the win.

You can do it!

Meet my new employee, Stephanie… I mean Jan

Meet my new employee, Stephanie… I mean Jan

Business people-showing teamwork

Last week, I met with a new client and I was introduced to their new employee, Stephanie. “But we call her Jan.” said my client.

Wait… what?

Apparently when Stephanie first started her job, my client said to her, “What’s up, man?”

She asked, “Did you just call me Jan?”

And, the name stuck: EVERYONE in the office calls her Jan!

When my client told me this story – in front of Stephanie – everyone laughed and laughed (including Stephanie herself). I now call her Jan as well.

The camaraderie in that office means more to employees than we can really measure, because moments like these are what create company culture. When you have this type of easy rapport with your staff, the harder conversations like those around mistakes are actually easier to have. Business runs more smoothly and people are more willing to try new things. When people try new things, innovation happens, growth occurs and turnover is reduced.

That’s why hiring the right candidate – your IDEAL candidate – is so important. The ideal candidate is one who will not only fit into your company culture, but will themselves end up embracing and nurturing it!

Remember: A rose by any other name… would still be Jan. Or Stephanie.

The Princess and the Hot Dog

The Princess and the Hot Dog

ht_hot_dog_princess_em_1160606_4x3_992In a North Carolina children’s ballet class recently, the teacher declared that the very next practice would be “Princess Day”. While all of the other 5 year-old little girls whirled and twirled in their beautiful gowns and frilly skirts, wearing tiaras and carrying scepters, little Ainsley came dressed as a hot dog: yes, an All-American Frankfurter hot dog, complete with mustard and a bun. (She also wore her Princess outfit underneath in case she got hot in her truly original hot dog costume.)

Last week, I was talking to a potential new client who confessed to me, “We just can’t find good people!”

“Would you recognize a good candidate if you saw one?” I asked.

“You know, I am really not sure,” they said.

Until we start with Step 1 of the A-list Interview Process, many of the clients that I work with have no firm idea what they want in an employee, outside of a certain job related skill set. Step 1 of our process is called the Ideal List: In other words, if you could have anyone that you wanted for this position, who would they be? What would they know? Dream Big! More importantly, we ask the question, “Why do you want what you want?” This process identifies the qualities desired in the ideal candidate, and often reveals quite a bit that wasn’t initially apparent.

In other words, instead of the Princess that you originally thought you wanted… maybe what you really want is a hot dog.

The 5 P’s and Waterproof Mascara

The 5 P’s and Waterproof Mascara

May is very stressful month for school age kids, no matter what age they are. My daughter Katy is finishing her freshman year, and has finals, final projects, end-of-term tests, make up work from her surgery, cheerleader practice and lots of goodbyes to graduating friends. Last week she said to me “Mom, I woke up with tears in my eyes today. I knew I wouldn’t get through the day without crying, so I made sure to wear waterproof mascara.”

eye mascara woman-675104_1920We have a saying around our house that goes like this: “Prior preparation prevents poor performance” and we refer to it as the 5 P’s. Katy woke up, assessed her situation and did something to set herself up for success.

Wouldn’t it be amazing if your employees did this?

One of my clients had an employee who went on maternity leave and left a long, detailed list with her assistant on what to do for what projects. The leave went great: business went on; clients were happy. Contrast that experience with another client whose employee took a vacation, during which my client discovered all sorts of work that wasn’t done. Clients were furious, and my client spent the whole week in “clean up” mode. The employee was subsequently fired.

Assessing an employee’s ability to be prepared begins in the interview process. Did they do their research on your company? Did they come with a list of questions? Did they attempt to think about themselves in the role?

Your A-list hire will be prepared so that you can be prepared. Clients are happy. Business grows.

And no one ends up with black smudges on their face.