We live in a century where talent is in shortage. Often we search and search and search for the best in class talent, just to realize, after months of searching that the people we meet are not covering all points of our ideal profile.
I have a live example from my work where a manager was in search of the perfect employee, matching all his criteria. This manager was focused on finding the perfect match of the profile so much that he and the HR person responsible to help him have invested 1,5 years in pointless interviews and still were at the beginning of the process. When started working with this same manager I had to do something. I had to teach him how to hire the best fit for his team, without having this strange feeling that the person he chooses is not perfect and won’t be able to meet the demand position is creating.
If this story sounds familiar to you, then you must continue reading. What I did shape the recruitment process with this manager and many more like him and added to their teams’ people who became the most productive and accountable employees in the department.
My simple rules for hiring the best in class talent are not based only on what the person knows, but also what is he/she capable to achieve. Some companies and theories call this potential for growth. I have formulated it like 3 simple rules for me. Look at them to help your hiring process and get to the best in class future talents for your team, able to ensure high commitment and high level of results achievement and make your team more successful. Here they are:
1. Hire employees that are humble
Humble employees are valuable for your team because they know how to balance. Humble people have confidence where they are, but this confidence is not driven by the ego. They can give credit to others for their effort and are gracious to others’ differences and needs as individuals. They know what they want, they have a clear role model and are able to plan their learning and development activities without being scared that these activities and plans can affect their appearance and position in the team. These people are not scared to talk about others’ achievements and their own development areas.
To check the level of humbleness of a potential candidate you are interviewing ask a question about skills and achievements they admire and how they want to get to the level where they share the same knowledge skills and achievements. The question you may formulate can look like this:
Humble check question: Who is this someone in your profession or industry that you look up and that you consider to be better than you in terms of their skills or accomplishments
2. Hire employees that are smart
Smart people need a challenge. They are active, they learn new things every day. Smart people are flexible, without being slick. They understand situations and put the knowledge and skills they have built during the time to change the status quo. Smart people are not those with the highest IQ, but those with the highest EQ. These people hold “a maser degree” in Emotional intelligence. They not only understand situations but also understand others, around them and know how to involve them in a difficult task or challenge to ensure the best results. Smart people do not lose time wondering why something happened and who has to take the most guilt in the room. Instead, they focus on finding answers on how to grow, using the situation or the challenge as a trampoline for future wins
3. Hire employees that are hungry
If you need to hire people you’ve met a group of people who know and can do a lot, but instead of standing out and start leading others, they position themselves in the corner with the hope no one will watch on them and will make them do something above the minimum they have planned to achieve. But if you want to succeed with your team challenges, projects and grant future success you will have to move away from those “know it all, but don’t care people”. You will make a better choice if you hire people that know less but are ready to invest in their future. These people are hungry for knowledge, opportunities to build skills and expertise and prove themselves. They are full of energy and need situations they can invest that energy. They are not afraid of taking more responsibilities and are not afraid to make mistakes. These people will help your team to grow further and your results to reach new heights.
IN CONCLUSION:
Every leader wants the best talents in its team. But often the best talent is not the one with the skills, but the one who wants to learn the team specifics and work on improving teamwork, morale, and results. So if we want the best talent, having the one with the largest amount of knowledge is not a guarantee for success. Instead, hiring the person with the energy and readiness to learn can help the leader build a better and sustainable in time winning team. So, what are you waiting for for…go out and search for the best talent that is ready to change your team and lift it to new heights…
The Human place 