If you visit our blog often, you may have noticed that I've followed Sandy Ogg, Founder of CEO. Works, since he wrote his blog series on connecting talent to value.
CEO.works Managing Partner in Europe, Hein J.M. Knaapen, has given us a window into how the talent-to-value agenda applies to candidate selection in Recruiting. Knaapen illustrates this with an excerpt from Alice in Wonderland:
"If you don't know exactly what you're looking for, whatever you find will be right."
He offers three ideas that should drive your selection agenda:
1. Focus on demand.
The way I see recruiting done is that we're focused on a "good fit," attitude, emotional intelligence, and other social traits.
But Knaapen explains that every role has a few vital deliverables. The search should start there, considering the expected results and the risks "inherent to the context in which they must be delivered." We would expect nothing less from a Talent to Value champion.
The selection process benefits from identifying expected outcomes, but many recruiting processes don't include this factor. The technology process dictates the outcome.
Only a few things in any role impact company performance, usually three to five, according to Knaapen. "You overlook them at your peril," he writes.
2. Align all relevant stakeholders.
We need to align stakeholders around the role's deliverables and inherent risks. With that alignment, you can focus the search.
If you're precise about what matters and what doesn't, you can make it possible to live happily with what your new hire isn't proficient in if it doesn't impact the role's core deliverables.
Aligning stakeholders is tough. You must work with stakeholders to keep them from widening the focus on work and risks. Bring the conversation back to the three to five key deliverables. Use the same scope management techniques required to prevent scope creep in a tech project. Involve stakeholders in the scope-setting process, communicate clearly, and document every decision.
3. Evidence over opinions.
Evidential Assessment Tools
Here are some examples of evidence-based methods:
Personality Tests: You can use these tools to check for specific inherent attributes as part of the application process. They help identify traits relevant to the job role and can predict potential job performance.
Skills Assessment: Another method of practical assessment that challenges problem-solving and creative thinking skills. You judge results based on established criteria, providing objective evidence of a candidate’s abilities.
Structured Interviews: Recorded interviews can be evidence-based by incorporating structured and data-driven approaches into the interview process. You will need job analysis, research, and objective data to develop interviews and structure interview questions and assessment methods.
Job Performance Predictions: Evidence-based hiring also involves measuring critical metrics over time, such as job performance, job satisfaction, and overall productivity. You use this evidence to determine scientifically which factors are more likely to predict job performance than others.
Long-term Measurement: Using evidence-based hiring makes long-term, continuous measurement and analysis necessary to prove the relevance and effectiveness of your tools.
Conclusion
However, while these strategies can improve the hiring process, they may not always guarantee success. For instance, even with a strong focus on deliverables, a candidate’s ability to deliver may be influenced by factors outside that person's control: team dynamics, company culture, or personal circumstances.
While evidence-based hiring improves objectivity, it may not fully capture a candidate’s potential or fit with the company culture. You will need other assessment tools to gauge those factors.
Over the past 25 years, I've seen countless hiring decisions based on nothing but a resume, an interview, and opinions, almost always by people with long experience and an unshakeable faith in their personal judgment (which may not have been correct). This was in a heavily bureaucratic government organization.
I've also seen hiring decisions made with only a short psychometric test and a one-on-one interview. That was in a high-turnover customer service business where the primary aim was "butts in seats."
In both cases, the process reflected the culture. However, hiring decisions must be based on solid evidence for an organization in a competitive industry with a need for skilled talent. This means using data-driven methods to assess candidates’ skills and potential.
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