How to avoid mis-hiring and get right fit for team

Nothing is more important for a company than hiring well and the best of the best — it can make or break a company. One of the reasons for General Electric’s success was its obsession with hiring the best, irrespective of cost or other considerations.

After all, the better the quality of hires, the better the performance of a company as organisations are just as good as the people that make it. Jack Welch used to say, “a good CEO is one who hires well.” However, there are a lot of biases that act as roadblocks to great hiring. Often, we do not calculate the cost of mis-hiring and have no system of accountability in place for bad hiring — it is merely accepted for what it is.

Mis-hiring is common — according to Bradford Smart, wrong hiring happens almost half the time in the biggest 500 companies of the world. This figure is likely to be higher in smaller companies, and it costs a company a minimum of 26 times the compensation of a candidate when it is a mis-hire. According to other experts, the percentage has increased during the last five years despite more sophisticated psychometric tools and greater awareness. 

This is because of over reliance on these tools as well as increased volatility and complexity in the business environment. For improved hiring outcomes, it may help to keep the following in mind:

Understanding candidates’ ‘DNA’:
Often, there is a tendency to jump on the professional side of a candidate in an interview without paying adequate attention to understanding their permanent behaviours, priorities and attitudes. Competencies are important but the candidate sho uld first qualify the ‘DNA’ test. If the candidate clears this litmus test, move on to checking competencies, track record and experience.

Check personal compatibility:
There are few people who can work equally well with everyone. With everyone being wired differently, it is important to validate the personal compatibility of the candidate with important stakeholders in the company. For if the personal chemistry works, big issues become small and if it does not, small issues become big. Outcomes and performance are both better when people like one another.

Focus on what you want achieved:
At times, organisations focus more on job specifications and less on what key deliverables are. It is, however, prudent to focus on the top three priorities without confusing them with everything the job entails.

Look at roadblocks:
It helps if organisations assess whether the candidate is equipped to overcome possible roadblocks well. All candidates may not have the necessary skills and temperament to face them, and assessing this parameter helps in knowing what to expect.

Look beyond biases:
Sometimes, talented individuals get missed by organisations because of bias in judgement. An outstanding candidate can change a company’s trajectory. In such cases, the candidate is often a contrarian, who sometimes is from a different industry altogether.
Given the stakes, it helps if the focus is on getting the best candidate for the company rather than settling for second best — someone who can simply do the job.