Interview better. Hire better.

I attended a celebration of life this week, one of several that have come my way recently, unfortunately. Standing in line, I began chatting with two gentlemen who had heard David Brooks speak the night before, primarily about the art of really knowing other people and how we’ve lost the craft of how to develop relationships with depth. Check out his book, How to Know a Person.

As we continued to share thoughts in line, a montage of scenes ran through my mind: coffee meetings, networking events, interviews and how very true this idea is. We are so focused on our own goals and agendas that we are almost blind to the person standing in front of us. In our heads, it’s “what can this person do for me?..and I don’t really have the time (or interest) in getting to know them and entertaining what's going on in their life.”

Earlier this same day, I had a conversation with an HR manager who is struggling with a couple of stores who are short staffed and have been so for 6 months or more. We looked at the dashboard and saw 40+ applications and hundreds more in the Rejected pile.

They're hiring for entry level positions at a casual restaurant. How is it that none of these applicants are a fit??

If the specific skills can be taught, then what we’re really looking for is what’s the makeup of the person. Do they inherently possess the personality that is a fit for this industry? We need to get to know them.

According to Brooks, as a generalization, we’ve lost the know-how on this. And I don’t disagree. The good news is that we can adjust and recalibrate, even a tiny modification will make an impact on your hiring results.?

Let’s start with being a better Interviewer.?

1. Stop asking what + where questions. That information is on their resume.
2. Start by asking the applicant what they like to do when they're not at work. What are they passionate about and how do they pursue it? Get them to tell you a story and open up about themselves. What we choose to do on our own time tells a lot about who we are and what we value.?
3. Ask how their co-workers will know when they’re angry or frustrated? Don’t sleep on this question because it illustrates how self-aware the applicant is and specifically for hospitality, how they will interact with customers when they are feeling this way.
4. End your half of the Q&A conversation with this ask: Tell me something you’re not good at. Again, the goal is to quickly get a deeper understanding of who this person is and how you could best support them in the role.

Try this line of questioning and let me know if you notice a difference and maybe discovered that you made your best hire– and it had nothing to do with the experience listed on their resume.

And if you want to know how we are building these same tactics into our algorithm, click here.