There is an old but true saying, "the best candidate doesn't always get the
job." If you have ever made a bad hiring decision, don't worry you are in
good company. All leaders and managers select bad hires even if they don't
know it. The difference is, really great leaders recognize their mistake and
fire faster. All hiring managers are sure to make bad hiring decisions,
because they made a decision based on situational questions, content on a
resume and mostly by their emotions or more notably referred to as "their
gut feeling." Selecting a bad hire is understandable; but accepting it and
not doing anything about it will cost an organization greatly.

There are several beliefs and opinions on how to hire the right person or
how to better identify the best candidates and they range from interviewing
skills, to aptitude tests, as well as situational scenarios. However, at the
end of the day nothing can truly ensure success. There are, however, three
things a leader can do to help ensure they have the right people on their
team.  

Interview BEFORE you have an opening

Build your bench. This means managers should not wait to hire until they
have an opening, rather, they should prepare for an opening. Many bad hiring
decisions are made because of the urgent need for a person to fill an open
spot and they don't have the time to properly interview candidates to ensure
the best candidate is chosen. Building the bench is also a great way to
allow a leader to hold their current employees accountable to high
achievement. Much like in sports where professional athletes must perform
every year to keep their jobs (in some cases everyday), due to draft day
coming every year and the fact that there are many players looking to get
that job.
 

In business we should hold ourselves to the same standard. A leader owes it
to the entire team to always be looking to add higher caliber employees to
their teams and employees should expect it. This is not a loyalty issue;
loyalty should not be based on tenure, it should be based on contribution.
Everybody wants to be a part of a winning team and leaders of great teams
recruit to hire better people, not to replace those that left.

Action item: Regardless of your budget restraints, actual open head count or current success; conduct one interview per month for the rest of 2012 – and let your team know you are.

Don't hire a victim

No skill or experience can outweigh the bad effects of a victim. No matter
the track record, years of experience or how well the interview went, under
no circumstances should leader who desires to build top teams and hold their
people accountable hire a person with 'victim disease.' A person with
'victim disease' believes it is always someone else's fault when they fail
or run into obstacles. They often believe they work harder than everybody
else and that their former managers and/or co-workers did things wrong. Keep
in mind, this means that most likely their future manager and/or co-worker
will do everything wrong as well. This person never takes personal
responsibility for failures or when they do, they have an excuse that points
to something or someone else. Most importantly, a person with 'victim
disease' rarely knows they have it.

Leaders need to ask questions during an interview or conversation to find
it. There are many such questions out there, but here are a couple of them: 
 

  • "Have you ever been part of a project that failed but it wasn't your fault?"
  • "Tell me about your least favorite and then favorite supervisor."
  • "Why were they your favorite or least favorite?"

There is no one answer that will tell the hiring manager that the applicant
is a victim, but the feeling and energy they give while answering the
questions usually will tell the interviewer. Side note: a person with
'victim disease' gets passed over when they don't get a job or promotion
they wanted, but a person without victim disease understands that at that
time a different person was chosen because the hiring manager felt the other
person was a better fit and they are working toward becoming the right fit
as well and can tell you what specifically they are working on. 

Action item: Prior to interviewing, know the attributes and skills you are
looking to hire and more importantly what attributes you are looking to
avoid.  

Fire faster: The only thing worse than a bad hire is keeping one

As stated, all leaders make bad hiring decisions. The key to not letting it
destroy the success in your team is not always in the hiring, but in the
firing. This does not mean to throw new hires to the wolves and see if they
can survive, rather to give new hires the tools necessary to succeed and
hold them accountable to the right attitude and activities. Many companies
have probationary periods where the applicant can be terminated without all
of red HR tape. Regardless if there is a probationary period or not, it is
the leader's job to work within the rules and laws to make sure all bad
hires don't become long-term bad employees.

What is fast? That is up to the leader and organization to decide, but some
would say that 30 days is pretty fast. Once a leader indentifies that a new
employee is not doing the right activities or does not have the right
attitude, they need to address it with the employee immediately. Be sure to
ask the employee their perspective and give clear expectations as to what it
will take in the near future to remain in the organization. Remember a bad
hire does not mean they are bad people, sometimes it just means they are not
a right fit for the position or organization. Doing the right thing is
rarely easy but always right, for all parties.

Action item: Spend time with new employees and pay attention to their
activities, attitude and results and take the necessary action.  

Final thoughts
Not every hire is the right hire and not every job is the right job, but
accepting a bad decision is wrong-for everyone involved. A leader does a
disservice to the team, the organization and the "bad hire" by not taking
immediate action.

By Nathan Jamail

ABOUT NATHAN JAMAIL
Nathan Jamail, president of the Jamail Development Group and author of "The Sales Leaders Playbook," is a motivational speaker, entrepreneur and
corporate coach. As a former Executive Director for Sprint, and business owner of several small businesses, Nathan travels the country helping individuals and organizations achieve maximum success. His clients include US Army Reserves, Nationwide Insurance, Metro PCS, State Farm Insurance, Century 21, Jackson National Insurance Company and ThyssenKrupp Elevators.

To book Nathan, visit www.NathanJamail.com or contact 972-377-0030.