When I first started out in this business, my hiring
practices were a little haphazard, to say the least. I met
a person, and if they had been referred by someone I knew,
that was good enough for me. I hired them.
After getting burned a few times, I am still learning how
to (and how not to) hire people. Overall I have gotten a
lot better at hiring the right people for the job the first
time out.
A great many CEOs like to have a long, drawn-out employee
interview and selection process, and that's fine. I've
found it's best if all potential new employees are
interviewed at least three times, by three different
executives in our company. After each interview, each
executive submits his or her own thoughts and perceptions
on the candidate.
Some companies have much, much longer interview and
selection processes that include live case studies (like
Google), with days and days of interviews. There was a time
when I thought they were crazy and just wasting time - but
now I think they are brilliant.
But there's one aspect of hiring that is often overlooked.
Hiring is not just about checking someone's competency
level. It's about seeing if someone "fits" your company.
Just because someone is good at what they do doesn't mean
that they will be a great employee in your organization.
Here's the #1 mistake you can make when hiring someone: You
hire them because they have a great talent, great skills,
great everything...but you pay no attention to how well
that person will fit within the existing corporate culture.
You see, every office has a particular atmosphere. Every
company has a certain "mood" and "attitude." It's often
hard to put your finger on what that mood or attitude is,
and it's virtually impossible to quantify. But believe me,
it's there - and it should be an important factor in any
hiring decision.
So no matter how wonderful the candidate is, the question
you MUST ask is "Will this new employee fit nicely into the
status quo? Will they mesh with us and our corporate
culture?"
If an office is populated with a very competitive,
sales-driven group of people, then an easygoing, laid-back
person won't be the right fit for that office - even if
they are incredible at selling and have proven it time and
again. The high-key atmosphere would almost certainly cause
stress, and a laid-back person would soon be ready to climb
the walls!
The opposite is true in my office. All of us are very laid
back, sometimes even goofy. We like to have fun, and you
almost have to have a good sense of humor to be in the room
with us! Someone who was by nature a serious type would be
a really bad fit. In fact, I recently had to let go of a
lady who was smart and competent, but so grimly serious
that she scared all of us to death!
True Story: Why I Didn't Even Interview the Best Salesman
in the Industry!
Just a few weeks ago I found myself seated at a table with
one of the best of the best salesmen in our entire
industry. His sales feats are legendary. His Rolodex is
eye-popping, everyone knows him, and everyone is already
very accustomed to buying from him. On the surface, he is
the PERFECT salesman.
I actually had a chance to interview him - possibly even
snap him up for our company. But I didn't.
The minute we sat down and started talking, I realized that
this super salesman was just not a good fit for our
company. I could just tell that he would make all our team
conference calls more tense, the whole office more tense,
and just make everyone feel more reserved (including me).
His style was simply counter to our corporate culture.
He would undoubtedly make lots of sales, but he would also
make me and the rest of our team a lot less happy with what
we do...and we ARE happy with what we do!
I had a nice chat with the super salesman without ever
asking one typical interview question at all. One great
salesman is not worth ruining the WORKING dynamics of the
rest of the team.
So the next time you are thinking about hiring someone,
remember that personality is a key element. You should ask
yourself, "How would this person get along with my team?
Does this person fit?" Sometimes your answers will be a
surprise even to you!
----------------------------------------------------
The Mystery CEO is a young entrepreneur who started a
company now doing close to $2 Million a year right in his
DORM room! Now he lets you watch over his shoulders as he
learns more about entrepreneurship. You can even listen-in
when he interviews CEOs who manage $100 Million+ companies!
Read his entrepreneurship blog right away for all the
entrepreneurship training you'll ever need!
http://www.MysteryCEO.com
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