A Managing Directors guide to hiring the very best people for their business

AND SO, IT BEGINS…

I speak with Managing Directors, Business Owners and those in Senior Management positions every day and I’m sure it’s no surprise they all have the same requirement when recruiting; they want to recruit the very best people for their business. But what constitutes the very best?

Having pre-screened and interviewed thousands of candidates from every walks of life I love that “excited feeling” you get when meet a candidate who you truly believe can really deliver what they claim to be able to. Is this the same for you?

As Directors/Business Leaders you’re already recruitment experts and you wouldn’t be in the roles you are today if you weren’t, however, I’m going to take 10 minutes to give you a tongue in cheek overview of some key interview techniques or processes you could consider when hiring the very best people for your business.

1. HIRING THE WRONG PERSON

How many of you can honestly say you’re happy with everyone within your business? For those nodding your head, well done – what an achievement; you should still read on as I’m hopeful it’ll give you some handy hints and tips to adopt for the future. For those shaking your head, continue reading also as you’re not alone; many recruiting managers are in the same boat.

Talking about boats; did you know I’d own a yacht by now if I was given a ￡1 every time a recruiting manager told me, “I don’t use agencies as it costs too much”.

The recruitment process is so lengthy and can take anything from 1 day to an average of 45 days to get to offer stage, but this is significantly longer for those leaders who don’t really have a proper recruitment plan. Add another 35 days on for the offer process and notice period. You have 80 days or 11.5 weeks (let’s round it up to 12)!

Food for thought… Let’s say your business has an Area Sales Manager vacancy with a ledger value of ￡1m. For every month this position is vacant you have the potential to lose ￡83,333 in revenue. Break that down further, that’s ￡19,230 per week or ￡3,846 per day based on a 5-day working week. If we refer to the prior paragraph 12 weeks is equivalent to around ￡230,760 in lost revenue and that’s without your time, your HR managers time, other key stakeholders time, additional costs for travel to interviews, hotels as you’ve had to stay away for interviews and so on.

If a quarter of a million pounds isn’t enough reasons to get your interview process correct, imagine how much your business could lose with a larger sales territory vacancy, or if you have a vacancy within your management team; General Manager, Sales Director, National Sales Manager, Operations Manager, Manufacturing Manager, Office Manager and so on….. It’s a scary thought and not a position you want to be in. That’s the reason I’ve taken time to write this white paper to highlight some of the basic interview techniques you could introduce to your recruitment process.

It's therefore vital you have a robust recruitment process in place. Never rush it. Always ensure you’re 100% happy with the candidate before making that all important offer.

More eyes mean more candidates? Nope. Always use an agency who has your best interests at heart. You’ve heard of paying cheap, paying twice?

2. AVOID THE TRADITIONAL INTERVIEW TEMPLATE

Covid-19 has drastically changed the way we work at the minute, but the traditional interview is the most common scenario; you sit down in front of your potential new recruit and you fire a list of pre-prepared questions at them (the same for every candidate you’ve met over the last 5 years). Hopefully, they come back with impressive, detailed answers which tick all your essential criteria boxes. You then invite them for a second, maybe third interview, but this time you’ve brought out the big guns in your ‘next level’ of generic questions.

You may also introduce role play, ask for a presentation or even provide access for them to complete a psychometric assessment or “personality profiling” to ensure you stay politically correct. You then decide on the best candidate and make an offer which they accept and start with you immediately if unemployed, 1-3 months if a middle level recruit or 6-12 months later if it’s a senior hire. It’s been the same for years.

How many of you have been in this situation; thinking your recruit was the crème of the crop at interview stage yet 6 months later they’ve not hit their targets, they’ve upset most of your team and are have already (reverting to my opening paragraph); “lost their trust in you, feel they’re badly managed, feel overworked, feel they no work/home balance, don’t feel appreciated” …. etc. etc., you can see where I’m going.

This leaves you totally annoyed, angry, upset, and disappointed; you’re wondering where it went wrong and you're wondering how you can stop this from happening again.

American author Tony Robbins once said, “If you do what you’ve always done, you’ll get what you’ve always gotten”.

3. ENVIRONMENT

A study by Princeton psychologists found that it takes just a tenth of a second to form an opinion of someone. Digest that for a second… a tenth of a second!  Research does vary though and some say 2-3 seconds, some say 30 seconds. Either way, first impressions are important right?

It’s just as important for you to sell your business to the candidate, as it is for the candidate to sell themselves to you. Every candidate you impress will want to work for you, and even if they don’t secure the position, they’ll “sell your business” to their friends, family, work colleagues and even customers afterwards so don’t underestimate the value of this.

Your office/interview location should always be spotless so ensure your current employees are working professionally, have clean and tidy desks and let them know you’re interviewing. This will ensure a candidates first impressions are positive. Additionally, simple steps like this promotes happy working environments for your current team as they feel like you’re including them in the interview process.

It’s not only the shop floor that needs to be “spic and span” though, the outside of your building and your interview room needs to look the part too!

True Story - I was invited to a multi billion pound manufacturers head office. As soon as I got through their security gates I was in ore. All the cars were reverse parked, I was given a personalised name tag with my photo on and was invited to select a drink from their fancy drinks machine - their offices were stunning. I was proud to have been invited there so can only imagine how happy their staff are!

4. QUESTIONS

The questions you ask will sort “the wheat from the chaff” so it’s vital you ask solid questions to get a full understanding of who they are, what they’ve done and what they could bring to your business. Don’t be afraid to push boundaries.

I’m sure you have a pre-prepared list of generic interview questions such as;

• “Name a time you’ve handled a particularly tricky situation”
• “Can you give an example of when you worked well under pressure”
• "what would you say is your weakness?"

These questions are okay but do you believe the answers they give? I can guarantee you’ve done it yourself in the past; you’ve made up a situation when preparing for the interview then exaggerate it tenfold when asked that very question.

True story - I pre-screened a candidate and thought I'd got a really great understanding of her as a person, an employee and sales professional yet when she interviewed with a client of mine, he asked a question which opened her up totally and he found out she shared her home with 74 snakes!

Finding the right person for your team is important so you need to take them outside of their comfort zone to really understand who they are and what they’re capable of. As well as results and competency-based questions, try asking some unusual questions, ones that give you an indication of their whit, humour, and ability to adapt to tricky situations. Here are few examples.

• Amazon asks, “How would you solve problems if you were from Mars?”
• Yahoo asks “"If you had to be shipwrecked on a deserted island, but all your human needs—such as food and water—were taken care of, what two items would you want to have with you?"
• Kraft Foods asks, “On a scale from 1 to 10, rate me as an interviewer.”
• Apple asks, “If you were a pizza delivery person, how would you benefit from scissors?”
• One of my favourites is “we finish the interview, and you step outside the office and find a ￡10million winning lottery ticket. What would you do?”

Now, I’m not here to explain how to answer these as there are no right or wrong answers. These questions are designed to get both the interviewer and candidate thinking about different unusual scenarios which everyone will handle different!

I recruited Club 18-30 & Escapade reps for a number of years, and a question I'd ask randomly is “sell me an excursion to a party in this interview room”.

5. VIDEO INTERVIEWS

Teams, Zoom, Whatsapp video and Facebook video interviews are becoming a norm now with COVID-19 restrictions which is great as historically these are so under-used and under-valued interview methods. This type of interview can be implemented almost instantly, and it highlights the candidates’ ability to commit, plus gives you an idea of how this candidate presents themselves not only verbally but physically also; what are they wearing? How prepared are they? Where are they doing this interview from? How well groomed are they? Will they see this as a real interview?

A big question on many peoples minds - can you really recruit someone without meeting them face to face?

6. OFFICE TOURS

Depending on the confidentiality of the vacancy, an office tour can really get the “juices flowing” in your potential new recruit. Of course, if you’ve already discounted a candidate following your competency-based questions it’s not as important, however for those you like, an office tour shows you’ve entrusted this person to “see where the magic happens”.

Implementing this simple change in your process can highlight a candidate’s personality and attitude. They’ll see the office and business in motion and see how things are done. They’ll also meet the rest of your team.

• How do they handle themselves?
• Do they communicate with your team?
• Do they look interested in your business, and are they asking questions as they go around?
• Do they treat everyone they meet with respect, and show interest in what they do?

You may even want to introduce them to certain ambassadors within your team to get a second opinion.

7. GET A SECOND, THIRD OR EVEN FOURTH OPINION

They’ve passed your 1/10th of a second challenge and they’ve answered all your pre-prepared interview questions perfectly; see how they conduct themselves with other ambassadors of your business. A common error is to only introduce the candidate to your senior team and although ultimately these are the key stakeholders you need to get an understanding of how they conduct themselves around your team at all levels.

You’ll already have already formed an opinion on this candidate so it’s wise to remain neutral to allow your team to make up their own minds up.

Even if you think you’re the best judge of character (of course you are, you’re the boss!), getting a second opinion from your team ‘kills two birds with one stone’; as it gives you a totally different perspective PLUS it shows your current employees you value their opinion.

Peter Miller, chief of OptiNose, a biopharmaceutical company has the candidates interact with between 15 - 20 people within the company, and each has a “blackball vote” which means they can say if the company should not hire the candidate. He believes “one bad apple can spoil the bunch” and there’s enough talent out there to ensure you get the best person for the vacancy.

I'd argue this fact though as top quality talent is very limited!

8. BUSINESS PLAN/STRATEGY

Asking a candidate to put together a 15-minute business plan not only confirms the commitment of the candidates but is incredibly important to understand how your new recruit thinks and how they’ll tackle the role when they’re on-board. You should get them to identify any areas they can “hit-the-ground-running” and areas where they’ll need more training.

You could ask for market research on your competitors or ask for a 3-month business plan for when they join you. There are lots of things you could request but don’t make it too complex as it can put potential candidates off.

A good tip here is to NOT disclose a deadline to the candidate (but sub-consciously set one in your head) – how quickly will the candidate prepare one? This will identify the candidate’s work ethics and commitment to your business!

9. EATING OUT

Why not take your potential new recruit out for lunch or dinner. I worked with a KBB client who have such a robust recruitment process for Sales Director, National Sales Manager or Area Sales Managers vacancies;

• 1st interview (in their amazing offices), they show the candidates around the office and manufacturing facilities and asked them a number of generic interview questions.
• Those who make it past 1st stage are given psychometric testing to complete before they progress to a 2nd stage interview with a presentation to the MD & selected members of the business.
• If the vacancy is for a manager role, they have a 3rd interview in which they must put together and deliver a business plan together to all key stakeholders. (Area Sales Manager vacancies skip this process).
• Finally, for all vacancies they invite the top candidate out for a meal with the whole sales team. They pay for their travel to London, put them up in a hotel and they pay for the meal with unlimited drinks, before finally offering them the job the next day (if they conduct themselves well of course).

This is an example of a global giant in the Building Product Sector however all companies can replicate this on a smaller scale.

Eating out with the team will reveal;

• Personality - do they fit in with your team?
• Respect - do they look people in the eye?
• Attitude - are they positive?
• Engagement - are they interested?
• Consideration – do they hold the door open for other people?
• Manners - are they polite to restaurant staff?
• Conversant – can they make conversation and keep it going?
• Team player – do they get on well with the team?

For obvious reasons, you’ll see attributes that can only come out when a candidate is taken outside of their comfort zone and put into this situation. At the end of the day, they need to be able to replicate this with your clients!

10. GROUP INTERVIEWS

Not my favourite method of interview and certainly not a candidate’s favourite method either.

Thankfully, they aren’t used too often as only really work when you want to interview a significant number of candidates for a role in a short amount of time. I was recruited by Thomas Cook in my early years as a Holiday Rep in Cyprus. The process involved a group interview with hundreds of candidates present. After numerous different role play and presentation activities the candidates who excelled proceeded to a second stage competency-based interview later that day.

You should try to avoid this interview method if you can help it. If time is of the essence, working with a Specialist Recruitment Agency will do all the hard work for you; carefully handpicking the top candidates for you to interview.

11. ARE YOU TWINS?

I’m fascinated at the poor recruitment choices business leaders make when hiring the person most like them. When interviewing it’s easy to identify with candidates who have very similar traits to you; candidates with a similar background, experience, and career aspirations as you may seem appealing but is that what you’re really looking for? Does your business need another you?

I do however believe that there are business leaders out there that need people in their business who have the same/similar personality, ambition and attributes as themselves so there's certainly a thin line - tread very carefully!

Even if the person you’re interviewing feels as comfortable as a well-worn shoe, it doesn’t mean they’re the “perfect fit”. Did you see what I did there...?

12. DIVERSITY ISN’T JUST THE NAME OF AN AWESOME DANCE TROUPE

Race, ethnicity, religion, sex, disability, language, nationality, family status, sexual orientation and age are all areas you cannot discriminate against, but you GENUINELY need a wide variety of expertise to make for a successful business. You don’t want a whole team of plodders, nor do you want a whole team of whippersnappers.

You need to consider if your team is diverse enough to build a great business culture?

It’s therefore incredibly important you get that fine balance. Hiring a diverse team provides different perspectives for innovation, problem-solving and creativity which helps grow your business successfully.

Imagine you have a team of 10 25-year-olds, all males with a wolf of wall street attitude - think of the testosterone flying around. Who would learn from who? Is this a healthy environment?

13. REFERENCES

Recruitment takes up a lot of valuable time so gathering as much information on your potential recruit is vital in ensuring you hire the right person for your business.

You should only contact the references as given by the candidate although you and I both know they’ll only give references from those who are guaranteed to give good feedback! If you need more information you could play detective and confidentially speak with mutual connections but it’s not the most ethical practice.

If you can obtain feedback from former supervisors and managers of the candidate, it will help you to build a picture of them but don’t use it as your final decision. We’ve all got that one job on our CV which didn’t quite work out. You never know the circumstances surrounding your candidates’ past and it’s irrelevant if they’re the right person for your job! People can change!

However, if you decide to get this information, you must do it extremely careful or you/the person giving the reference run the risk of the candidate suing you for damages if they don't get the job or suffer financial loss because of it. A bad reference is permissible, provided that it’s not malicious.

14. HEAD OR HEART

At the end of the process, you have to make a decision. You have to decide who’s genuinely the best fit culturally and who will make YOU the most money. After all, business is business.

If you have doubts about a candidate, try to understand why and what you need to do to eradicate these concerns. Any issues now will be magnified 100-fold when the person starts with you so it’s important you address these concerns before making the all-important offer!

BUT…whether you’re recruiting direct or through an agency; you need to ensure you’re hiring the right person for your business, and no-matter however many thousands of pounds it’s costing you having the vacancy open, NEVER feel pressured to fill a vacancy if you’re not 99.9% sure, it’s important you find the very best person for your business not just the very best person you can find in the quickest time!!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Adam Paine is the Managing Director of Evolution Sales Recruitment and has helped business leaders across the Building Product Sector deliver significant sales growth by sourcing the very best General Managers, Sales Directors, National Sales Managers, Regional Sales Managers and Area Sales Managers.