The Art of Hiring Smart

Turns out it was their number one problem. People. Yeah, we can be messy sometimes. And getting us to work as a team is an art unto itself. (Actually if you ask several of our Ph.D. level Organizational Development gurus they'd say it's more science than it's ever been.) The bottom line is it's hard work. How many business owners do you know who have essentially given up? I've met quite a few.

Recruiting has long been a discipline I've worked on with clients. It's like anything else in business. To do it well requires learning and consistently implementing a predetermined hiring process. A system that enables you to clearly define what you are looking for in the position you are trying to fill. Then filling it without screwing it up. Jim Collins in Good to Great calls it putting the right people in the right seats on the bus.

My posts to follow will address the WealthNet Business Coaching process. Much of the system is derived from the work of Lou Adler author of Hire with Your Head. Hiring is an art. Yet there are many tools that enable us today to "x ray" people and screen their personality, values, and work history before you hire them. These tools developed by rocket scientists in psychology and organizational development make it more science.

What is most amazing to me is how few hiring managers really have a defined process. I can understand some mid-level corporate person winging it with the company's money. What's harder to get is why so many business owners wing it. Damn, it's so expensive to wing it without discipline in hiring!

So I look forward to sharing some of the things that work for me when recruiting. I want to specifically thank my friends Jim, Shawn and John at the staffing and consulting firm of Kellen James in Scottsdale, Arizona. They have helped me a ton lately in the realm of recruiting and people issues. If you ever need help finding talent in the legal services and education (sales and business development types) sectors let me know and I'll put you in touch. Or you can go to their website at www.kellenjames.com. I'll be including in future posts their insights related to the many costly bad habits hiring authorities have in Corporate America today. Great stuff.

If you have any suggestions, ideas, or comments please feel free to contribute.

Best regards.

Cliff Jones

Comments

Marie-Claire Andrews | Email | February 20, 2008 | 8:18PM
Completely agree that consistently implementing a predetermined hiring process is hugely important for firms. Not just because of the legal quagmire you can so easily get into, particularly here in New Zealand where our employment law is fairly complex. It's led to reliance on outside recruitment agencies, which is not always successful for companies - and in response I've noticed a start up nearby us in New Zealand that's focussing on providing a tool for companies to take away the reliance on outside agents.. www.hirewall.com
Cliff | Email | March 6, 2008 | 1:29PM
Good comments. Outsourcing any aspect of the recruiting or hiring process can be problematic unless strong systems are put in place and procedures followed. Defining a process and job descriptions are fundamental to the process itself. Defining expectations for employee performance, going beyond needing a "team player" so to speak, is critical.

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