As the employment market starts to shake out in the near future – which it should given even the slightest perception that there might be opportunities again for people to change jobs – what will happen? Our roundtable panel on employment (featured in our upcoming June issue) discussed the job shuffle that we all anticipate.
Lots of folks who felt that they were lucky to have ANY job, even a job they HATED, were reluctant to look around these past few years lest their employer discover they were looking – and decide they weren’t critical to that business anymore. Experts estimate that over 70% of the workforce today has “disengaged,” so what does that predict for tomorrow?
There is a natural retention rate in a stable market, but in the aftermath of a recession, movement is predictably unpredictable. Our roundtable experts suggested that Madison is going to see a lot of movement in the next six months or so, and that has some employers gearing up for interviews. Which brings me to the real point of this column … common hiring mistakes and how to avoid them.
Mistake #1: Not communicating with the “no” pile
When we are short-staffed, one of the biggest wastes of time (we think) is letting candidates know they did NOT pass the initial paper-screening process, the first interview process, or even the last round. That’s shortsighted; the ill will that silence generates in hopeful candidates who feel that they put themselves on the line to apply is real, and it can cost a company a word-of-mouth trashing.
When hired as my admin assistant, Shirley’s first job was to write “sorry” letters to first- and second-round interview people who did not make the cut. I had already written at least 150 emails myself to the myriad people who applied via Craig’s List – most of them completely lacking the skills I listed as “required.” These were the ones denied even that first interview, though I wished them well with their employment search.
It’s a pain, frankly, to respond to more than 100 people, but that’s 100 opportunities to hurt someone’s feelings or make them feel too insignificant to bother with, and that’s something I wouldn’t wish on a child of mine, or a friend who is re-entering the job market and already feeling defeated – or an IB advertiser’s family member, who wants to work here because of the good things they’ve heard (don’t forget that potential customers also apply). I keep in mind how I’d like my family (and me) to be treated, and that’s how I try to respond.
Mistake #2: Thinking what you see is whom you get if you hire them
When people arrive early for an interview, I let them sit in our reception area until it’s time for the interview, but that time actually becomes part of the interview. How did they address the person who greeted them, someone they are not trying quite so hard to impress as the interviewer? During the last interview I conducted for a management position, I took the candidate out for coffee. How he treated the waitress was as important as how he treated me, though he didn’t realize it at the time. And he passed with flying colors, which helped assure me that future direct reports to him would have a respectful audience. Another candidate did not fare so well in the “real world” test.
Conversely, some of the people who have interviewed the worst have become our best employees. I’m not so interested in hiring a people person for a role in the business office because I don’t need a social butterfly; I need a person with a keen sense of detail. And a person who answers interview questions too quickly and glibly may be able to interview well, but are they authentically engaged and passionate about their work?
Mistake #3: Saying too much
This is the mistake I too often make. I can talk all day (all year!) about IB and what a great place it is to work. I can talk about the job and what I want done in that position. I can talk, I can talk, I can talk. But I’m learning to stop talking after asking my three or four questions. (“Why do you want to work for In Business?” “What skills from your past job would you bring to this position?” “What would you need to learn to feel confident in this position?” etc.) And then I ask them if they have questions for me. At this point, I shut up and let them lead the interview. Are they interested in the business, in the customer base, in their potential colleagues? Or are they only concerned with the salary, the medical benefits, and flex time?
These are just a few suggestions or lessons learned that I’m putting forward, and now, in the interests of space and time and wanting to know what you know, I’m going to shut up, so feel free to add your own to the list!
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