by Beth | Jan 6, 2014 | Employee Hiring, Employee Retention, Firing Employees, Interview Process, Selecting Good Candidates, Uncategorized
Last week, I met with a new client who suffers from what I call “the Hiring Hangover”. He had just fired a long time employee and had to hire someone else quickly. The whole experience left a really bad taste in his mouth and he was having a hard time getting over it. He kept trying to change his policies and procedures to make sure that he did not get into the same position with a new employee that he had experienced in the past. In other words, he wanted to punish the new employee for the sins of the old employee. While it is completely understandable, it will not work. When you hire a person while “hungover”, you will make a bad hiring decision. You have to feel good about bringing a new person onboard. You have to be excited.
So, how do you recover from a bad hire?
- You take a deep breath. Do not hire too quickly. If you need immediate help, hire a temp. Jumping in to a situation with a new hire when you are not ready sets you both up for failure.
- Create your ideal candidate list. Put your head in the clouds and dream BIG. And I mean really big, like roses and rainbows and unicorns. You cannot have what you want unless you know what it is and how to identify it. So until you are ready to write a list of what you want, then you are not ready for a new hire.
- Be patient. Do not start the interview process until you feel excited again.
Every manager has had a bad hire. It feels awful and firing someone should never feel good. So give yourself time to recover and breathe. Things will look better tomorrow. And your next amazing employee is right around the corner. I promise.
by Beth | Dec 19, 2013 | Employee Hiring, Employee Retention, Selecting Good Candidates, Uncategorized
The end of the year is always a time of reflection for me. I like to look back and see the difference I have made in the lives of others and plan for how I will continue to bring value in the coming year. 2014 should be an exciting year, as my plan to publish a book about interviewing in a new era has taken shape and well on its way to being realized. During this process of publishing a book, I was given the rare opportunity to interview my clients to learn more about how I have assisted them with better hiring practices. Below is one such testimonial I received that brought tears of joy to my eyes. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I….
One of my clients, The Doss Heritage and Culture Center, hired me 2 years ago to find them an Executive Director. “Our Board had a very poor hiring record,” said James May, the Board President at the time of the hire. ”We floundered for a number of years. We would hire folks because they were local, and we’d sit down with them for a chat. This is not the best way to do business.”
“The whole experience with A-list Interviews was so different for us, in that we sat back and observed, and let the expert keep us on track. We made decisions very quickly. We now have a successful operation that runs seamlessly, and we are reaching goals that we never dreamed possible. “
Heather Castagna, the Executive Director, said “How has A-list changed our organization? I now have a cohesive team of people, and our budget has increased by $300,000 in the two years since I got here. Our attendance has doubled, our events have doubled. I now understand the importance of looking past experience and skills- I need to find the right fit and develop them. It has worked out fabulously!”
What a great way to end 2013!
Happy Holidays to all of our clients and here’s to a prosperous 2014!
Yours in success,
Beth
by Beth | Aug 21, 2013 | Employee Hiring, Hiring Managers, Interview Process, Selecting Good Candidates
Sand on the stage, beach balls in the air and Parrot Heads! This was the scene at the Pepsi Center several years ago for a Jimmy Buffett concert I attended. The back-up singers and dancers began rousing the crowd to get into the groove, which reached a feverish frenzy until finally, the man himself stepped out onto the stage to a packed house of screaming fans. If you have never been to a Jimmy Buffett concert, it is hard to describe how the music started, the colors of the lights flashing and just how enamored I was with the entire scene, especially because right before the concert, I was the lucky holder of a backstage pass to meet a legend himself!
Meeting Mr. Buffett was indeed a lifetime experience, and one that I keep living over and over. I relay the story often to my friends, colleagues and now you. However, because you were not there, you probably do not have the same attachment to the story as I do. Shaking his hand, listening to the crowd in the background, and having my photo taken with him was truly amazing. But since you were not there with me, it is not possible for you to have the same relationship with Jimmy that I now have. After all, listening to Margaritaville on your iPod is just not the same.
Now you may be asking how this relates to interviewing for employees. Imagine that you send your very capable team to an interview with a candidate. Then imagine them trying to describe the interaction to you in a manner that encompasses all facets of the interview. It is simply not the same thing as meeting with the candidate face to face. Even when your team takes great notes and really listens to the candidate, they will not be able to fully describe the interview in its entirety. No one can, anymore that you could possibly grasp the full experience of meeting Jimmy Buffett. In order to fully experience a candidate’s interview, you have to be in the room with them. You have to shake their hand and see how they interact with you in order to know if this candidate will be a good fit for your open position. With approximately 2/3 of all hires being mistakes, and the money that those mistakes cost, can you really afford to short change an interview process by not being present?
by Beth | Dec 22, 2011 | Adventures in Interviewing
When I interview 14 people in a day and write 2-3 pages worth of notes on each, my fingers can get really stiff. I will bend them a few times and shake them out, causing the knuckles to pop occasionally. Last week in an interview with a hiring manager, I was in the middle of asking my questions and my fingers popped. The candidate sitting across from me reached over to hold my hand and shouted “DON’T POP YOUR KNUCKLES! Ewwwwww!”
Now, I get that some people are offended by knuckle popping and I do my best to keep it to a minimum. This candidate however didn’t even say please or thank you with her request, which was presented to me at the top of her lungs. If she is willing to yell at me in front of her potential boss, imagine what she might do to your customers. EWWWW!
by Beth | Nov 4, 2011 | Adventures in Interviewing, Employee Hiring
I interviewed a candidate that disclosed to us that the current boss is going through a bankruptcy. The candidate supplied us with his prior employers name, address and telephone number. While this seemed rather inappropriate, an even bigger offense is the fact that the candidate worked in a financial industry and had licenses which prevented him by law from disclosing someone else’s financial situation.
When I pointed this out, my client said “So we can’t trust that this candidate won’t talk about our clients’ financial situations.” My client is right. Disparaging a former boss or co-worker is a red flag in any interview process, no matter what industry or position. Discussing information that is protected by law is not only illegal; it is also unethical.
Last week, I met with a new client who suffers from what I call “the Hiring Hangover”. He had just fired a long time employee and had to hire someone else quickly. The whole experience left a really bad taste in his mouth and he was having a hard time getting over it. He kept trying to change his policies and procedures to make sure that he did not get into the same position with a new employee that he had experienced in the past. In other words, he wanted to punish the new employee for the sins of the old employee. While it is completely understandable, it will not work. When you hire a person while “hungover”, you will make a bad hiring decision. You have to feel good about bringing a new person onboard. You have to be excited. 
