CHARACTER AND HIRING

“Although most executives pay lip service to the idea of hiring for cultural fit, few have the courage or discipline to make it the primary criteria for bringing someone into the company.” ?- Patrick Lencioni

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This story shouldn’t be news – but it is.

A man in Indiana got a big surprise after receiving his order at a McDonald’s drive through yesterday.?It seems that somehow, it included a plastic bag with $5,000 in it.?

They guy was faced with a choice, either take the money and run, or do the unthinkable – return it.

It’s funny what you learn about people when they are put into a situation like this.?They’re either Honest or they are not.?There is no middle ground on being an ethical person.

The sad part, is that after returning the money to the McDonalds, it made the news.?It’s like when someone does the right thing these days, it is a headline event rather than what you should expect.?Sad!

When it comes to the workplace though, unethical behavior can take a heavy toll on your business. *

·???????75% of employees have stolen from their employer at least once

·???????An astonishing 95% of all businesses in the US are hurt from employee theft

·???????Employee theft costs US businesses $50 billion annually

·???????42.7% of retail shrinkage is due to employee theft

·???????59.1% of employees who commit thefts are male

·???????About 75% of US businesses are affected by time theft

·???????Sweethearting costs businesses about $100 billion annually

·???????The average time detection for fraud is 18 to 24 months

So, how do you deal with this – without becoming the personal conscience of everyone in the company?

Over the years, I’ve seen many attempts to “vet” the right people.?Some work, and some don’t.?But here are a few that might help:

·???????Slow the intake (hiring) process way down.?You may have an empty chair to fill – but putting the wrong person in it can be really costly.

·???????Invest in Assessments – beyond the standard HR questions.?Get to know this person and what really drives them.?( we have a suite of them if you need help in this area )

·???????Consider all new hires as “a date” until you decide you want to keep them.?When you bring someone on, you are adding to the fabric of the company.?If they don’t fit in the long-term perspective of building a healthy company and culture – they’ll end up hurting you in the end.

·???????Finally, these “new hires” need to know how you will support their career goals, and what you expect from them in return.?Honesty has to be one of the keys to them being happy in your company.

I have a friend who owns a large Commercial Insurance agency.?I like what he does before he brings on a new client company.

He plays golf with them.?He told me, “If they cheat at golf – they’ll cheat on their claims.”?Pretty good advice.

Maybe you can think of a way to “assure” you have the right person before you make them part of the family???(short of entrapment I mean)

If we can help you get better at this – it would be our pleasure.

Dan

Dan Mirgon

President / CEO

Dan Mirgon & Associates, LLC

PS:?Schedule a Conversation

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* https://leftronic.com/blog/employee-theft-statistics/