Let’s face it. Recruiting, interviewing, hiring—it’s a long process that nets you a new employee in the end and hopefully, a good one. But given the investment in time and energy, are you getting the best possible candidates and new hires? Or could you be making better hiring decisions?
Forbes.com contributor Mike Myatt offers some insight into the secret of making better hires. He says that, regardless of who you are, you’re probably overlooking the obvious—the “gold standard litmus test” that translates into a good hire. And it’s not leadership ability, being a team player or being willing to work long hours or a whole host of other characteristics you may think you’re looking for.
Instead, Myatt says, “integrity and character” will guarantee you’ve made a good hire. Nothing else will matter if you can’t trust an employee to do the right thing. So hiring should be values-based, he says, which increases performance, enhances collaboration, reduces turnover, improves morale and creates a stable culture.
Why aren’t more business owners making better hiring decisions? Experts say that for many, it’s a good bet that emotions are getting in the way. It’s analogous to love at first sight when you’re dating. A candidate comes in with a good vibe, and you hit it off. But once the real person is revealed (usually after they’re hired), well, not so great. Going by your gut, at least in hiring, just isn’t the best way to go, according to ere.net.
Some managers will tell you they prefer to follow their gut, but that can be an excuse for not taking the time to do a thorough investigation of a candidate before hiring them. When someone looks good on the surface, it’s easy to get attached. And, there can be other factors at work, too:
- You might feel desperate, especially if you’re short-handed.
- You’re used to being right about many other things.
- As your business has become more successful, you may have become more impulsive and impatient and your listening skills might be slipping. This is NOT a good combination for really getting to know someone as a potential employee.
But recognizing that you may be falling prey to your own emotions can bring you back to a more rational process:
- If you start feeling that a warm body would be better than nothing to fill a critical position, think about the consequences, both long- and short-term.
- Acknowledge that there really are things you don’t know!
- Make sure you have a defined hiring process, so there are specific vetting steps between you and the candidates.
If you’ve been relying on gut instinct, without stellar results, don’t feel bad. You’re not alone, and it’s a lot more common than you think. According to social-hire.com, the last words you want to say—or hear from someone else—about hiring are “I’ll know it when I see it.” Sound familiar?
Instead, for better results, build your hiring process around a professional toolkit of data gathering: resumes, qualifications, focused interview questions, case studies, psychometric and ability tests, structured interviews, social media searches and reference checking.
And, you don’t have to lock up your gut entirely! There’s a time to rely on gut instinct. When you’ve gathered all the data on someone and it says yes but your gut says no, go with your gut. It’s trying to tell you something you shouldn’t ignore.
Image courtesy of Vichaya Kiatying-Angsulee / FreeDigitalPhotos.net
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