Searching for shortcuts in recruitment will backfire on you. This applies even to the first step which is to define what you are looking for. If you skip this step, you are very likely to become a victim of some typical recruiting mistakes. That is at least what Lou Adler, U.S. journalist and expert on recruiting top talent, writes in his recent article on the LinkedIn social network. He summarizes the most common mistakes he has experienced in the course of his forty years of experience in recruiting for various positions at various management levels.
1. Predicting performance based on candidates' presentation skills
Recruiters tend to attach too much importance to appearance, friendliness, assertiveness, and verbal ability of job applicants.
2. Hasty choices
You should not select your future employees too quickly and then start looking for arguments and evidence to confirm the decision. Lou Adler advises to wait at least thirty minutes to make a decision.
3. Predicting performance based on hard skills
A candidate's ability to do a certain skill at work is more important than just having the skill.
4. Disparagement of soft skills
Recruiters still pay too little attention to how much soft skills can contribute to employee performance.
5. Hiring only partially competent candidates
Technically-oriented employees tend to focus too much on technical excellence, rather than on the technical skills the candidate needs on the job. Job interviews based on evaluating performance may help you prevent such problems.
6. Public voting
A job interview is not a talent competition where a panel of recruiters evaluate the candidates' live performance with a thumb up or down. Base you decisions on more concrete ways of measuring the candidates' abilities.
7. Misunderstanding motivation
Motivation to get a job and motivation to do the job are not the same thing. Recruiters should not be overly impressed by candidates who are well prepared for interviews. Search for real motivation.
8. Hiring a no-fit
Even if you manage to verify a candidate's skills, you still do not have a guarantee you have chosen the right candidate. If his working style and overall behavior does not seem to fit into your corporate culture, this is an important warning signal.
9. Poor judgement
Let's take salespeople as an example. Recruiters often expect the best salespeople to make the best first impression. But would it not be better to hire salespeople based on their sales results?
If you want to read Lou Adler's recommendations on how to choose the right talent, see our prior article entitled 10 steps to hire talents successfully.
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