The Secret of Great Hires

It is a familiar scenario. You need to hire someone to head up an important department. This someone will have specific abilities, as well as pretty high level of interpersonal skills.

So, you get the word out—through a listing on your website, through internal postings, through web-based job directories, though the company Linked-in page, through the local newspaper even and the other 21^st Century recruitment vehicles. Thanks to the “send” button resumes start to flow in. Many are impressive.

But there is a catch. By their very nature, resumes are like rear view mirrors. They describe where the candidate has been. When it comes to where they are able to go, they are basically silent.

Fortunately, you think, there’s the interview. You call in the most promising candidates. You find them knowledgeable, articulate and personable. But, would they be good at handling the demands of the job as they are at impressing you?

Personal assessments can provide the insight you are looking for…to not only hire great people but also avoid the costly bad hire. Personal assessments offer a comprehensive evaluation of a person’s aptitude, skills and traits. They shed light on the fit between the candidate and the company as well as his or her likelihood to succeed in a specific job. Used with resume, interviews, reference checks and other hiring basics, assessments are a valuable tool in making sound hiring decisions.

Once candidates are on board, assessments can also be used to promote personal growth, help managers in the coaching and mentoring roles, build effective teams, determine training needs and make good decisions on promotions. 

  

Posted by Joel Thigpen, Victory Lap Architect with The McGrail Group (www.mcgrailgroup.com); a leadership, productivity, membership development and performance improvement company located in Raleigh, NC, affiliated with Leadership Management International.   We inspire leaders to engage their teams and to take a “Victory Lap.”