No. Of course not. Are you kidding?
These responses are probably some of the answers that were going through your head as you read this headline.
Yet, you do it all the time.
What am I talking about?
How many of you interview a candidate and hire that person after a 30 minute interview? Perhaps 20 minutes? No, you are not marrying that person in a Biblical sense. Yet, you are marrying that person. Taking commuting and sleeping into consideration, that person will probably be spending more hours at your company than with their family.
And what does this have to do with profitability?
Listen to my conversation with Kevin Price of the nationally syndicated Price of Business show about this important topic:
The wrong hire can KILL profitability.
Remember, during that 30 minute interview the potential employee will be at his best. The candidate presented himself very well and sold you on hiring him. You breathe a sigh of relief that your critical vacancy is filled. But is it? What do you really know about this person?
Find out more. Get to know that person. It takes more than 30 minutes. Here are some suggestions:
• The people who that person will be working with should interview. And yes, you will need to train employees on what they cannot say. Give them a list of questions. Better yet, have your employees come up with questions to ask. Many times they will be less guarded with their potential team members than with you or another manager.
• TORC them – What is TORC? Threat of Reference Check (thanks to Adam Witty of Advantage for this acronym). Here’s how Adam suggests you check references:
Give the candidate a piece of paper. It is headed by:
Name of reference – Contact phone number/email – On a scale of 1 to 10 how would that reference rate your performance?
Then you call the references and ask them how they would rate the person and see whether the answers match!
• Background checks are absolutely critical. If you are hiring a bookkeeper, make sure you specify a 15-year check rather than the normal 7-year check…Embezzlers are patient!
Candidates must give permission for background checks. They are not that expensive and could save you from making a hiring mistake.
• And, always Google, Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, and Instagram that person. This is NOT a substitute for a background check. However, you might find some interesting things.
A question on one of my clients’ applications was, “Were you ever convicted of a felony?” The candidate said no. Yet, when he did a Google search, there was an article stating that this candidate had been convicted of a felony. When he asked her about it, her response was, “I didn’t think anyone would check.” She was right. Most people wouldn’t. And no, he didn’t hire her.
Invest more than 30 minutes with a candidate before you marry that person. The wrong hire can cause havoc with morale and profitability. The right candidate can improve morale and increase profitability.
