Let’s face it, getting the right fit for the job is not always a walk in the park. Some candidates radiate an outstanding vibe that shows they will be a great asset, while their records speak otherwise. Some will have inch-perfect qualifications and a few soft skills. Even after decades of revolutionary transformation in hiring practices, the actual basic technique for hiring great people remains a tough row to hoe.
Have you noticed that most successful organisations have a unique ability in hiring methodologies? At Gislen Software, we put a tremendous effort into recruitment because we know the impact of every good hire; that makes us as successful as we are today!
So, how do you seize an exceptional candidate?
There are some very important things to look for other than technical skills. You might ask, Why don’t you use a résumé to do the job? But you have to remember one thing,
‘‘People are not their resumes
A significant percentage of resumes contain false information. We have chosen the following statistics to share among the thousands of research reports on this topic.
| Resume / Application Falsification Statistics | Data |
| Per cent of resumes and job applications that contain falsifications | 53 % |
| Per cent of college students surveyed who would lie in a résumé to get a job they want | 70 % |
| Per cent of job applicants who have a misdemeanour record | 3 % |
| Per cent of job applicants who have a felony record | 7 % |
| ADP reported that 46 % of employment, education and/or credential reference checks conducted revealed discrepancies between what the applicant provided and what the source reported | |
| Resume Falsification Statistics | |
| Per cent of misleading resumes | 78 % |
| Resumes that fraudulent state degrees | 21 % |
| Show altered employment dates | 29 % |
| Have inflated salary claims | 40 % |
| Have inaccurate job descriptions | 33 % |
| Give falsified references | 27 % |
Source: Statistic Brain
You get the idea. It is not rocket science to check a person solely by his or her resume, but evaluating with the right ingredients is!
Anyone can be trained to do a job, even a tough one, but few things are more critical than mere skills that cannot be enforced artificially. If you want to be an expert in catching the right fish, read on and learn the secret ingredients from our Hire Great People manual.
Attitude
One of the principal and paramount qualities to look for in a candidate. Some might have an attitude that stands out despite their average skills. They can learn and become an expert in things in no time.
Hiring someone with a bad attitude just because they are very skilled and have a shining record is wrong. It might seem manageable due to the time constraint you have, but you should always remember,
‘‘It is important to make the right decision rather than the easiest one.
So be patient till you get the best hires. A good attitude is a much-needed quality if you seek a great hire. Any decision otherwise might cost your long-built and nurtured company culture.
Fill the hole
‘‘Don’t repeat your hires
Look for skills that your employees don’t have already. Your team should grow in a new aspect when that person enters the arena, increasing your production value. They should challenge you and your teams. So, always hire people who are better than you.
Spark
A quality that cannot be found by following guidelines. When you sit with the candidate for a full interview, you will know if he/she has a spark that makes them stand out. Use your intellectual and emotional intelligence to extract the ones with budding flame.
Those who are hungry for opportunities are extremely concerned about their careers and take things seriously when given a chance.
Proactive
Yes, there is plenty of fish in the sea. But you don’t want the lazy ones, do you? Anyone looking to achieve something out of his/her career will thirst to go the extra mile instead of doing just what is required. Because that is what we believe in, too, our company’s motto is to stand on our toes and walk the extra mile. That is why the customers love us, and we want to keep it that way! That’s the reason we take our hires seriously.
So, ask for a solution to a simple problem that has many ways to be solved. See if he/she picks the easy or the right one because the right way is always more challenging than the easy one!
Accountability
Ask for a time when the applicant has screwed up badly. When asked what happened, look for those who take responsibility for the actions that caused the blunder instead of blaming others/circumstances.
You need someone accountable for their actions. Test if they can stand up, take responsibility when something goes wrong, and have the skills to make it right.
Improvise
Forget the decision-making problems from the internet. Sadly many HR departments still choose to ask these questions and wonder later where they went wrong. If you want a good candidate who can improvise, create a scenario yourself.
Your scenarios should demand candidates choose between passion and money, love and career, honesty and loyalty, and anger and diplomacy.
There are no defined answers for these. But when asked why he/she chose it, the explanation will give you a clear hint of their improvising skills, honesty, lateral thinking and many others.
Fight the First Impression
‘‘Don’t fall prey to your bias.
Most of us judge a candidate just by physical attractiveness, a confident tone, or, even worse, a firm handshake. Even though many of us do not admit this, we are victims of our bias sometimes. We tend to ask nicer questions to the ones we like and harder questions to the ones we don’t. This is toxic for your organisation. If you want to hire great people, you must manage your bias!
Most of us trust our gut feeling too much. However, while gut feelings are helpful, if you want to hire great people, you should, as Lou Adler suggests in his book – Hire with your head, use your gut feeling and then ask questions which counter the gut feeling to find the occasions when the gut feeling is wrong and not try to confirm it by asking questions which are aligned with the gut feeling. The challenge is to find when the gut feeling is wrong…
Handle your biases carefully while interviewing, and learn to be aware of them. If you are tired, you are more likely to fall prey to your bias. Also, multiple interviewers should be involved in the panel. Assess based on the quality of the candidate and not on whether you like or dislike him/her. For more information on how to manage your bias read more here…
Hire Great People
These valuable strategies helped us become one of the finest around here. We want you to become successful, as Marianne Williamson quotes in her book A Return to Love.
‘‘We are all meant to shine, as children do.
Add these points to your hiring notepad, and we guarantee that you will never regret a hire again. Thank you for taking the time to sharpen your hiring skills. We hope you can hire great people and wish you all success in your future hiring! You deserve it.
And if you are reading this looking to work for Gislen Software, now you know what we’re looking for! Read more…