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Alexandra was having a very
bad day.
Her business was growing fast
at the same critical time as her
Marketing Director resigned to
take a new position in another
company across the country.
Alexandra put out feelers,
talked to an executive recruiter
and found Juan. He had the
perfect
qualifications
on
paper. Alexandra liked Juan
immediately and was confident
of his ability to get the job done.
Does that mean that Juan is the
right candidate for the job? How
will we know that Juan will be
successful?
The answer depends on how we
define “right” and “successful”.
Will the person with the right
charisma, charmand credentials
necessarily get the job done?
How will we know?
The right person has that elusive
“IT” factor. In recruiting, “IT” is
the results you need.
What is the wonderful outcome
that happens when you hire the
proper person for any particular
job? This could be tangible
(increased revenue, reduced
cost, increased productivity) or
intangible (happier customers
or employees).
Alexandra needs to answer the
big IT question: How will you
know a year (or two or three)
from now if the person you hire
is successful?
If she is stumped about
outcomes, then she is likely to
hire on gut and get-along factors
like charm and charisma.
Hiring on gut alone increases
the chances that you just hired
the wrong person. It is true!
The person you want to have a
beer with is often just a great
person to have a beer with, not
necessarily the right person
to achieve that particular goal.
Hiring on that factor alone often
leads to disappointment.
If you can’t name the outcome
you seek then why add another
person to the team? You don’t
need to fill a chair. You need to
accomplish some very specific
result. Otherwise why fill the
position?
Alexandra needs to push a little
harder to uncover the particular
outcome she really needs from
the Marketing Director. This
information is not usually found
in the job description.
Here are some tips on how to
identify the elusive “IT”:
•
Be honest with yourself
about what you need. Don’t
just look for a carbon copy of
the last person who held the
job.
•
Don’t just hire from the job
description with its list of
everything, including the
kitchen sink, that might
be involved in the job
parameters.
•
Think about a very specific
business
measure
that
this person will influence.
Profitability?
Some
satisfaction,
process
or
quality improvement?
That Elusive “IT” Factor
in Talent Acquisition
By Katherine Burik and Dan Toussant
SOAR TO SUCCESS
/
S
eptember
2016
/
Core Business Strategy