Even the best get fooled

Jackson Pollock’s signature was spelt incorrectly on one forgery. 

On another, a yellow paint was used that was not available until 14 years after the artists death. 

Despite these obvious warning signals the art world was fooled for years. 

Over thirty paintings, mostly Rothko’s and Pollocks with no provenance and not a single reference to their prior existence were sold to major art dealers, certified as genuine by renown ‘experts’ and ended up in leading galleries. 

All these paintings came from one woman, previously un-known in the art world, who walked into a New York Gallery carrying a Mark Rothko. 

How did this happen?

The heart of the problem is how the human brain works.

Our attention is drawn to things that confirm what our sub-conscious wants to see. 

In the case of the art world, the prospect of new, previously un-discovered paintings, at a time when the artists were in-demand, was exciting (and highly profitable).  

This led to many people ignoring the obvious warning signs that something was not right. 

It wasn’t just the art world that got fooled. 

The world of vintage wines also feel foul. 

Rudy Kurniawan also tricked expert wine collectors by blending cheap wines and presenting them as vintage wines. He even sold more cases of one particular burgundy than had originally been produced. 

The same problem happens in recruitment. 

Interviewers latch on to something they like about a candidate and ignore clues and signals they should be exploring. 

It’s one of the main reasons that 46% of leadership hires fail with 18 months. 

An effective way to overcome this problem is using multiple layers of assessment. 

Instead of relying on a CV and traditional interview, candidates are screened with a variety of tools before being presented to the interviewers. 

This is how our retention results are so good. (96.8% staying for 2 years +)

Given the high cost of wrong-hires, this approach makes a significant impact to your P+L. 

Message us to find out more.