To Get the Best Talent
Apply a Little Science to Interviewing
Everyone wants all of their employees to be ÒA playersÓ, and with constantly increasing pressures for more producers, and lower workers compensation rates, fewer companies
wonder why they donÕt have all AÕs.
In the book Topgrading, Bradford Smart claims the failure to hire the best of the best is due to the interviewing process being unstructured, very inconsistent, and unfocused. In a time of tightening talent hunts, focus is emerging in the interview part of candidate selection.
Here are some tips to give your process some structure:
á Acknowledge that there is a correlation between structured interviewing with behavior-based questions and knowing that youÕve hired the best.
á Allow people who are intimate with the open position to help write interview questions.
á Base questions on applicantÕs past behavior with questions, such as, ÒTell me about...
...a split-second decision you made.Ó
...an angry customer you soothed.Ó
...a time you failed at a task.Ó
...a risk you took for your company.Ó
á Compare each candidateÕs score against a group norm.
á Do team interviews, never rely only on a single interviewer.
A science-based approach using methods like these is not fool-proof, but it greatly increases knowledge of past job-based behavior, therefore making it more likely you will find a majority of ÒA playersÓ.
For more, check out these resources:
The New Science of Hiring, August 2006
