Choose Me, Part 1
July 17, 2008 | Written by Richard Funess
In 1984, Alan Rudolph directed a film titled "Choose Me". It provided a lot of laughter, tears and radio talk show telephone calls to an on-air therapist. (If you have a chance you should order it on NetFlix when you’re in the mood for a great little movie.) It also provided me with an apt title for this blog.
Of the many responsibilities I’ve had in my career, the "Choose Me" experience, as I like to call it, of hiring new people, at all levels, might be considered the most trying. The titles may have been different, the responsibilities varied, the market factors may have been an issue, the use of a good executive recruiter could have made it easier, but the bottom line would be for me to choose the best candidate for the job!
What really makes one a better choice than the next? You’ve reviewed their resumes, acknowledged their impressive education, their previously held positions, listened to their thoughts on business and business strategy, received input from the internal or external recruiters (who in most cases are going to try to match the best players for your team) checked references you’ve been given by the candidate (lot of objectivity there!) done your own Google search, Facebook, etc, etc. With all those things done, is making the final decision to choose one individual over another really as objective as it should be?
In the business book section at Barnes & Noble, I perused a book entitled "I Quit, But Forgot to Tell You". One of the first lines in the book cites a survey which states that 72% of management has failed to acquire interviewing, hiring and profiling skills. But, I find the surest way of choosing the right people lies in the little things we observe about a potential employee—the things that aren’t mentioned in "How To Hire" books or business magazine features. They’re not really measurable because I believe they’re based more on personal feelings, life experiences and one’s own ego — few employers would admit to that.
(The second installment of this entry will appear next week)
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