The Most Important Business Decision
As an HR Manager, one of the most important business decisions that I make in a company is the hiring decision. If you think about it, an organization is completely reliant on the Hiring Manager to shape the organization. The people you bring into the organization can spring-board the team to higher levels of performance, or could be a drain on the team because they were entirely wrong for the job or the company. To boil it down, as a business owner, YOU ARE WHO YOU HIRE, AND YOU ARE WHO YOU DON'T FIRE.
As an HR Manager, one of the most important business decisions that I make in a company is the hiring decision. If you think about it, an organization is completely reliant on the Hiring Manager to shape the organization. The people you bring into the organization can spring-board the team to higher levels of performance, or could be a drain on the team because they were entirely wrong for the job or the company. To boil it down, as a business owner, YOU ARE WHO YOU HIRE, AND YOU ARE WHO YOU DON'T FIRE.
30-Minute Interviews
Hiring is one of the hardest things to really do well. It takes you away from running your business. It's time consuming. It's energy-draining. And, it's a little scary knowing that you're making a long-term business decision from a 30 minute interview with a person. Whoa! Let me give you a little advice, though, that generally has worked for me.
Hiring is one of the hardest things to really do well. It takes you away from running your business. It's time consuming. It's energy-draining. And, it's a little scary knowing that you're making a long-term business decision from a 30 minute interview with a person. Whoa! Let me give you a little advice, though, that generally has worked for me.
Hire Based on Character
As an HR Manager, I interview a lot for CHARACTER. It occurred to me some time ago that when all is said and done, it is a person's character that best defines their fit into the organization.
As an HR Manager, I interview a lot for CHARACTER. It occurred to me some time ago that when all is said and done, it is a person's character that best defines their fit into the organization.
As a result, I like to use questions that help examine how they behave when their character is tested. I hold to the belief that character is best defined when things are rocky and not going so well. No, I don't put them through a torturous interview...under a heat lamp and such (tempting as it might be). Instead, I ask questions that reveal a person's natural character tendencies. Their tolerance to being frustrated. Their hot-buttons. I examine their integrity (decisions they have made when no one was watching). How they handle themselves when they are under pressure.
These traits I cannot teach! I have to hire for them. You can generally teach technical skills, but it's very hard to teach integrity, honesty, commitment....You have to interview and screen for these qualities.
Examples:
- Rich, share with me about a time when someone on your project team dropped the ball and you had to explain what happened to you boss.
- Larry, tell me about something that frustrated on your last job? What did you do about it?
- Kim, tell me about a time when you disagreed with your manager's decision. How did you handle it? What was the result?
- Chris, tell me about a time when you witness someone doing something on the job that they shouldn't have been doing. What did you do about it?
Chemistry
As an HR Manager, I have to feel comfortable with the person I'm interviewing. As a general rule of thumb: I have to like him; I have to trust him. I'll never hire a person that I didn't like or that I didn't trust. It's never worked out. It winds up ugly, and I've kicked myself for having disregarded my intuition. Trust your gut. If the person has all the qualifications (they are "all that and a bag of chips...."), but something seems to be...let's just say...."off"...then trust your gut. Don't hire the person. Continue looking. It's ok...trust me. There are plenty more where they came from. And you'll not be regretting something down the road.
As an HR Manager, I have to feel comfortable with the person I'm interviewing. As a general rule of thumb: I have to like him; I have to trust him. I'll never hire a person that I didn't like or that I didn't trust. It's never worked out. It winds up ugly, and I've kicked myself for having disregarded my intuition. Trust your gut. If the person has all the qualifications (they are "all that and a bag of chips...."), but something seems to be...let's just say...."off"...then trust your gut. Don't hire the person. Continue looking. It's ok...trust me. There are plenty more where they came from. And you'll not be regretting something down the road.
Manage Out Bad Performers
I once had a conversation with a supervisor-candidate, whereby I asked him to tell me about a person on his team that tested him the most. He told me about a guy, Mike, who was a lousy employee, with poor attendance, bad attitude, disruptive to the team. I asked him what he did to manage Mike, and his response was fantastic. He said, "Sometimes you have to shoot one to save the herd." (Ok, just to clarify....this guy was from Kentucky where they do a lot of deer hunting, and he was using a metaphor -- he didn't really suggest that he shot him). But he went on to explain that the team was like a herd of deer, all reliant on one another. So when Mike was behaving badly, doing things other than working, the rest of them were more consumed by what Mike was or was NOT doing. As a result, the team was dysfunctional and not performing. They were bickering, gossipping, and frankly, were plain angry that no one did anything about it. This supervisor understood that one of the most important things you can do for your team is to manage them (UP or OUT). By removing Mike from the workforce, the team actually could breathe again, and started to perform well. Hint: if the team actually increases productivity when Mike is absent, it's a sign that his "contribution" is more of a detriment.
I once had a conversation with a supervisor-candidate, whereby I asked him to tell me about a person on his team that tested him the most. He told me about a guy, Mike, who was a lousy employee, with poor attendance, bad attitude, disruptive to the team. I asked him what he did to manage Mike, and his response was fantastic. He said, "Sometimes you have to shoot one to save the herd." (Ok, just to clarify....this guy was from Kentucky where they do a lot of deer hunting, and he was using a metaphor -- he didn't really suggest that he shot him). But he went on to explain that the team was like a herd of deer, all reliant on one another. So when Mike was behaving badly, doing things other than working, the rest of them were more consumed by what Mike was or was NOT doing. As a result, the team was dysfunctional and not performing. They were bickering, gossipping, and frankly, were plain angry that no one did anything about it. This supervisor understood that one of the most important things you can do for your team is to manage them (UP or OUT). By removing Mike from the workforce, the team actually could breathe again, and started to perform well. Hint: if the team actually increases productivity when Mike is absent, it's a sign that his "contribution" is more of a detriment.
The One That Tests You The Most
Managing performance involves a very clear process to address "course corrections" of poor/bad performance. We'll talk about performance management later. But, let me just leave this final note, a quote from Stephen Covey, author of the 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: The secret to the hearts of the MANY is how you handle the ONE that tests you the most.
Managing performance involves a very clear process to address "course corrections" of poor/bad performance. We'll talk about performance management later. But, let me just leave this final note, a quote from Stephen Covey, author of the 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: The secret to the hearts of the MANY is how you handle the ONE that tests you the most.
Kathleen Lapekas - PHR
Action HR Consulting
For Personal Attention to Personnel Matters....
Suppose the one team member who is a detriment to the productivity of the group holds an executive position - how would you handle that?
ReplyDeleteThis is a great blog and is so true!
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