Every CEO in the world has a hiring story nightmare, typically the one where the dream candidate
was identified, wooed and hired, and then crashed and
burned in spectacular fashion.
No matter what your nightmare, the lesson is always
the same — make that hire
count.
Over the past three years, we’ve
made a lot of hires as our company has
expanded across the nation. Here’s
what I’ve learned from the times I’ve
done it right and, more important,
when I’ve done it wrong.
- Clearly define the skill set. But be
willing to hire not just for the immediate position but for other positions
you anticipate creating later. Sometimes you can be a bit short-sighted
when you fall in love with a candidate who has exactly the skill set
you want today but doesn’t
really have what’s necessary
to handle other tasks inside
your company or department. Identifying the right
skill set for your organization is therefore more important than finding someone
with the right skill set for a
specific position. - Identify future leaders. Now’s the
time. If your business is in growth
mode, make sure to build in growth
opportunities for the employees and
your business; you never know what
you’re going to need in a year or two.
If you have an employee with a diverse
skill set, it’s never too early to identify,
hire and groom tomorrow’s leaders. - Be patient. If you’re a savvy CEO,
you don’t just throw money at your
problems. Nobody likes pain. And if you have an open position — new or
existing — that stays that way for too
long, somebody’s going to suffer with
a heavier-than-anticipated workload.
Often, that’s the tradeoff. Making the
right hire is simply too important to
get it over with just because you need
a warm body and you don’t want your
staff overextended.
Put out the word that you’re looking
for the right person rather than just a
person. You’ll be amazed at how willing your team is to pitch in and do the
extra work. In the case of hiring,
short-term pain is almost always
worth it for the long-term gain.
Contact Editor Dustin Klein at [email protected]
