by Beth | Dec 20, 2011 | Interview Process
I recently talked to a client who said “Just send me your top 5 people.” Well, I can’t, and here is why: NO ONE can take the place of the hiring manager in the interview process. They know too much about the department or company, and their knowledge can not be duplicated or ignored. And yet, the people that I talk to would rather have a tooth pulled than conduct an interview. Why? Because they have never been trained. They view it, and rightly so, and a colossal waste of time because it is generally not done well. They are unprepared.
Martin Yates in his book, Hiring and Keeping the Best, calls interviewing “a dirty secret.” We expect hiring managers to put a team of people together, we hold them accountable, and then we are shocked when they aren’t successful. If you want a team to be effective, you must concentrate your efforts on an effective interview process, including training the people who will be responsible for the hiring. Otherwise, just flip a coin and call it good.
by Beth | Oct 20, 2011 | Interview Process, Selecting Good Candidates
In the movie “Up in the Air,” George Clooney remarks “I stereotype. It’s faster.” It may be faster, but it is not 100% predictable. In other words, you cannot predict an employee’s success in their position by stereotyping. I work with business owners and hiring managers every day who use stereotypes to predict employees’ success or failure. I say that for every stereotype that exists and is used to predict behavior, I have a success story to disprove it.
So, which interview method works best to accurately predict the likelihood of success in an employee? The answer may surprise you: just listen.
Don’t talk. Don’t think about the next question you are going to ask. Don’t look at your phone. Don’t clean your finger nails. Don’t tie your shoe. Sit. Focus. And listen. Really hear, observe and absorb what your candidate is telling you. Be entirely present to the moment, and the candidate will tell you if they will be successful in the position with their answers.
