From My Perspective: Are You Listening?

Posted on August 14, 2013 by Bill Hagerty

Ever wonder why you struggle when it comes time to make a decision on which candidate to select? Try listening more actively. Just a few ideas that help me:

1) Resist Distractions – Clear your desk for every conversation so you can focus your attention. I take it one step further, meet away from your office and you’ll even stop thinking about that “voicemail waiting” light blinking at you. And for goodness sake turn off the ringer on your smartphone and put it your pocket!

2) Get to the Point – Ask good questions of each candidate, not necessarily the same ones or in the same order. In other words, have a plan – when you “wing it” the interview tends to become a verbal recap of the resume’.

3) Listen to Gain Real Understanding – If you aren’t careful it is too easy to listen only long enough to formulate your response or follow up question. Take Notes! Write down the great follow up question or comment.

Overall, assume each candidate will be the one you want to hire. Listen to have the information you need to make a good “buying” decision and also to understand the focus to bring to the “sales” presentation you’ll need to secure them for your team!

The above is the seventh installment – Year Four of “From My Perspective” – a collection of observations and anecdotes from the more than 29 years of business and professional recruiting experience of Bill Hagerty, an owner and principal consultant with Johnson ReSource Group.

The Power Of A Second Chance

Posted on July 12, 2013 by Bill Hagerty

Have you given a struggling employee a second chance? Of course you have! The real question is – did they know about it or did you just give them a “break?”

I recently experienced a powerful example of why just giving someone a break rarely works. This lesson came courtesy of a player on our 18 and under AA baseball team. #2 had a variety of home and school issues going on the last couple of seasons so everyone understood when I didn’t come down too hard on some of his on field behavior issues. However, when it crossed over into unsportsmanlike behavior I suspended him for two games and in a players’ only vote they decided not to reinstate him for the remainder of last season. The players and coaches did make it clear that he would be welcome to rejoin the team this season.

To his credit #2 did return this season but it was made clear to him what the behavior expectations were if he wanted to remain part of the team. What a difference – not a single outburst at the plate or in the field. His improvement was never more evident than in our last game when he committed an error on the opening batter of the game – last year his temper would have caused him to lose complete focus but instead he recorded three very nice putouts, had several productive at-bats and scored a run.

A lesson to me that the best second chances are the ones your “players” know about. It is not only acceptable but mutually beneficial to let someone know you observed some lack of performance on their part but only if you make it clear the performance you expect and that you will give them a real opportunity to improve.

Attracting The Best

Posted on July 8, 2013 by Bill Hagerty

This article originally appeared in the Sunday Business section of The Cincinnati Enquirer on June 9, 2013.

The best candidates are attracted by the intangibles. They expect the tangibles – compensation, benefits. From the very beginning of your search it is important to understand the intangibles your organization has to offer and to make certain they are consistently communicated. Communicate them early and often – not in response to the candidate’s question but up front so they believe they truly are part of your culture and not just a convenient response to their questions.

The three recurring themes I’ve heard in my practice whether I’ve been recruiting a Financial Controller or a Sales Executive are:

1) Will I have the chance to be involved in decision making? They don’t need to make the decisions they simply want to know you have an environment where input is valued.

2) Is there a mentor available? Top shelf candidates, especially those early in their career, want to learn and they realize it is about having a willing, capable and active mentor.

3) Is there an environment of professional flexibility? They don’t want flex-time or to be treated differently than others. They want to know that throughout your organization professionals who are achieving and exceeding goals are free to occasionally veer from a standard schedule to meet a personal obligation.

Attracting the best into your interview process is important, but now can you close the deal? Have you been gaining knowledge about each candidate’s real motivations since the beginning of the interview process? No surprise, money is part of it but money is by far not the key motivation to change for a top performer. Why? Because their current employer recognizes them as a top performer and compensates them competitively!

So how do you get them to open up and share their real motivations? Open up yourself. Move beyond the “About Us” and “Executive Profiles” sections of your website and share with them how you feel about your company and who you really are. Move beyond the questions focusing on the “Required” and “Preferred” sections of the position profile and really endeavor to get to know them. You’ll be much more successful in getting to know a top candidate’ motivations if they trust you, and for that they need to know you trust them.

Unless it is confidential information, share freely – about you, your company, the people they will meet in your interview process, the group they will be joining. Under the theory of reciprocation they will share with you and you will begin to understand if you can, and should, close them on your opportunity.

From My Perspective: Vacation? Really?

Posted on June 6, 2013 by Bill Hagerty

It’s that time again – are you actually going to take a vacation this year or will you just be working away from the office? There was a time when people actually “turned things off” and recharged, will you? Better question, will I?

I’m reminding myself (and maybe you) of certain benefits of truly “unplugging”:

1) Let your personal energy level recharge and reset. When the Blackberry “acts up” I remember the very helpful young man at the Cincinnati Bell Store who reminded me that proper operation of this complex device requires taking the battery out periodically so the system can reset! I’m convinced it is the same for people – without a periodic reset we arbitrarily turn off – to new people, new ideas, new business opportunities.

2) Show others you trust them. Whether these people are literally your “business partners” or are your peer/direct report employee partners, checking in every day says “I trust you, kind of.” Let them have your contact information and trust that they will reach out if they need you.

3) Prove that your business has real and significant value. Business brokers/investment bankers say if an owner/executive can’t take two weeks away from their business and remain confident in performance then the value of the company is significantly diminished in the eyes of any potential acquirer.

I’ll be taking some vacation this summer and I know how to suspend e-mail delivery to my phone as well as how to turn off the simultaneous ring feature. I’m committing to my family that I’ll do my best to control the annoying “I’m listening – just checking e-mail too” habit. I’ll check my cell phone voicemail each evening but I won’t check my office voicemail and email until the evening before I return to the office.

I’ll let you know how it all goes in the August edition of “From My Perspective” and I’m interested hearing your “vacation” stories as well – good or bad!

So… Where Will YOU Be In Five Years?

Posted on May 17, 2013 by Bill Hagerty

Most interviewers ask this question, thinking it provides a window into a candidate’s intentions. Does it? Most candidates dread the question because they aren’t really prepared to answer with any certainty. Why?

US News and World Report blogger Alison Green writes that it may stem from a fundamental misunderstanding on both sides. What information is really desired and how to convey your intentions professionally will go a long way to defusing a potentially dangerous question. This is a concise roadmap to ensure that you know where you’ll be in five years.