HINT: SPELL OUT IN THE JOB DESCRIPTION EXACTLY WHAT SUCCESS LOOKS LIKE AFTER SIX MONTHS.
1. CREATE ACCOUNTABILITY FOR HIRES AT THE TEAM LEVEL
The CEO shouldn’t interview every candidate. That’s time-consuming and adds a layer of implied approval from someone who ultimately won’t be accountable for a candidate’s performance. But especially in startups and high-growth companies, C-level leaders are often still involved in the hiring process, and it isn’t always clear when it’s time for them to step back.
The real work needs to be done in the trenches, which means the accountability to making good hires rests with them. Using a simple scorecard approach, your company might grade candidates on the attributes you feel they should possess in order to succeed. Intuition is often wrong, so keeping documented proof to back up hunches helps better identify the right candidates. Use a specific set of questions to measure desired applicants’ attributes, which further helps standardize the way you evaluate candidates.
2. MOVE TO A COMMITTEE MODEL
Committees also take unilateral hiring power away from someone who might be willing to compromise to fill a role.
In most companies, candidates move through successive rounds of individual interviews. Committees, on the other hand, allow everyone to get an impression all at once, streamlining the process and decreasing the possibility that an individual interviewer will miss something critical. Committees also take unilateral hiring power away from someone who might be willing to compromise to fill a role.
Hiring committees understand the company’s vision and the responsibilities of the position and uses that knowledge to find a good fit. The committee reviews all information simultaneously, including resumes and scorecards. Each hiring committee includes a member of the recruiting team, a hiring manager, and an unbiased third party.
The team then tries to provide a well-rounded assessment of every candidate: The recruiting team member holds the information, the hiring manager has the most to gain or lose by hiring a good fit, and the third party ensures quality by maintaining a holistic view of the company’s needs.
3. BASE JOB DESCRIPTIONS ON OUTCOMES AND PERFORMANCE, NOT EXPERIENCE
The best hire a company can make is often the up-and- comer who’s willing to step up to a new challenge, and not necessarily someone who has been around the block.
Your job descriptions should detail what success in the advertised role looks like at both the six-month and one-year marks; think of it as providing the candidate with an upfront performance review. You might also advertise position-specific KPIs, responsibility expectations, and the top five job responsibilities that you measure during performance reviews. This combination helps you choose not only the most experienced candidate, but also the one you believe can best help reach your goals.
Clearly defined outcomes can also scare off the wrong candidate. If people know they can’t meet expectations, they’ll often opt out.
4. CHECK REFERENCES EARLY
Check references after the initial phone interview (but prior to the committee interview) to get the fullest impression of a candidate. This allows you to verify the information you’ve collected and test any glaring red flags that would exclude someone from the pool of viable candidates. It also removes the awkwardness of a bad reference check that forces you to rethink an otherwise promising interview.
And remember: The goal is not to discern whether candidates were well liked by their previous coworkers or supervisors. It’s to test the strengths and weaknesses you’ve identified in them and make sure they’re strong fits. We ask candidates for up to three of these three references: a supervisor, a peer, and a subordinate (if applicable).
Ask questions focused on the context in which the reference worked with the applicant, including the applicant’s demonstrated strengths and areas for improvement, but also their overall character-for instance:
- “Did this person contribute to the greater good beyond the job description?”
- “What would you not hire this person to do?”
- “Who else do you think we should talk to regarding this person?”
Then have the reference rate the applicant’s overall performance on a scale from one to 10.
5. PUT A CAP ON INTERVIEW ROUNDS
Anything beyond three or four interview rounds is a waste of time and resources. Best hires are usually the ones you felt were right after the second interview.
As your company grows, senior leadership must recognize that finding the right talent and culture fit for new employees starts with empowering teams and making them accountable for hires. If you focus on growth by defining expectations clearly, your company will grow faster without having to devote ever great resources in the process.
Source: FastCompany