No Bad Hires

By Jennifer Leake

Executive Summary: Learning to be more methodical about the hiring process.

For more information and guidance on each of these steps, listen to our short podcasts at SalesHiring StraightTalk.com.

The 6 steps you need for a stronger hiring system

Think about your interviews, especially when hiring a salesperson. Have you ever hired someone you wish you hadn’t? A candidate who wowed you in the interview but couldn’t sell? You hired a likeable person, but they couldn’t perform the job?

Two main things contribute to a poor hire: failure to know what hard-wired traits and abilities are needed for success in your position, and an inability to determine if the candidate actually possesses them. When hiring, what you are actually doing is renting job behaviors. Behaviors such as directing the actions of others, persuading prospects to buy, projecting warmth and friendliness to customers, solving unexpected problems, following rules and procedures, and performing routine tasks on a regular basis.

Hiring is often done solely on instinct and gut feel rather than supplementing it with data and information. That’s why I’m suggesting a 6-step hiring system for stronger interviews and better hires.

Step 1: Phone interview or screen. Save time when hiring with a short (about 15 minutes) and focused phone interview to determine if you want to move forward with the candidate.

Step 2: Use pre-hire assessments. Get an early, objective first look at your candidate’s abilities and traits. A good doctor with data from tests, x-rays, MRI’s and CAT scans will make far better decisions than a great doctor operating on their own.

Step 3: The First Interview. Using your hiring experience and information from resumes, phone interviews and your assessment data, plan your questions and what you’re looking for to have more meaningful conversations in your first interviews.

Step 4: The Second Interview. Even if you think you’ve found your new employee, don’t hire too quickly and skip this step. Organize and prepare for a second interview. Address doubts, ask new questions you’ve thought of and confirm your first impression of the candidate.

Step 5: Background and Reference Checks. References are still a powerful, yet underused, information source in hiring. Either call references because you know Who, How and What to ask from them … or outsource to a professional service.

Step 6: Make a Powerful Job Offer. Finish strong! Create a job offer that makes a candidate say YES! Create excitement about their decision, set expectations and lay the groundwork for the first days ahead. Good candidates can be scared away if you miss this step.