GreenSearch Hiring: The Consequences Of Hiring Bad Managers … And How To Improve!

1. Develop Job Specifications - those items such as certifications, background and experience desired.



2. Develop a Job Description - the primary duties and responsibilities of the job.



3. Develop Critical Success Factors - those inherent behavioral characteristics that a candidate must possess to be successful at a particular employer. (This is the key!)

Achieve A Consensus On Qualifications
Make sure that the business owner and the other managers who will work with the selected candidate are "on the same page" in terms of the aforementioned specifications, description and Critical Success Factors. It is most common that the hiring principals differ in agreement regarding these key elements. As a result, confusion exists among the management team, and mixed signals are sent to the newly hired individual about their responsibilities and span of control. By doing an internal "double-check," a greater degree of consensus is achieved prior to the commencement of the recruiting and selection process.

Establish An Interview Plan
Do what? Sounds too simple doesn't it … but how often does this phase of the process have any real organization or flow? All we mean is to make sure the most appropriate internal decision makers are talking to the candidates. This requires sufficient time to be allocated for the interview and discussion about job expectations, company philosophy, etc. It would also help to supply each interviewer with a rating sheet that would be filled out immediately after the interview. These notes would then be used by the team after the candidate has completed his round of interviews to gain agreement on the next steps leading toward a selection decision. It is important at this point to stress the objective, observable characteristics that the candidate displayed.

Check Their References!
We cannot underscore enough the value garnered through performing reference checks. Getting in touch with a candidate's past supervisors who can comment on his work quality and job performance is most valuable. Do not be dissuaded from performing this step because you may feel "his employer won't tell me anything anyhow!" This is not true in most situations, especially if you are well networked and respected in your industry, are known to check references and have mastered the technique.Make sure not to omit verifying educational achievements and industry certification credentials as these are the most common items candidates knowingly exaggerate or misstate. Finally, if you feel you do not have the time or are otherwise uncomfortable performing this task yourself, there are many third-party services who specialize in this task.

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The above article was developed by GreenSearch which provides key management search, web-based job posting and management consulting services to the green industry and allied trades nationwide.

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