Old Hiring Foxes vs. The Hedgehogs

You are about to compete for the best people again. The recovery is happening. Labor statistics indicate over 280,000 new jobs were created in the U.S. last May. Is your company's hiring process a competitive weapon-or a ball and chain? If you're not sure, here are some places to look:

1. You abdicate hiring responsibility to an HR person or executive recruiter. That's their job, right? Wrong. The job of HR is a support and advisory role. The role of a recruiter is to help you build a stronger pipeline of available candidates and advise you on key hires. For key positions, take a proactive role and implement a recruiting and interviewing process.

One software client of mine once relied on HR to design their job descriptions. For years, they attracted people with the right education and skills for open positions. The bad news is that the job description did not help a hiring executive assess a person's behaviors or cultural fit for that division. Two Directors who were hired under the old model were demoted after much customer uproar about missed deadlines on product launches.

2. You think lunch appointments and golf outings are great settings to conduct interviews. How much do you spend time wooing high-flying producers this way, yet cannot seem to get any decision from the interviewee? Listen for the much-dreaded response: "I'll think about it (which is a polite, wimpy way of saying no)."

3. You become attached to specific candidate(s). Do you ever hear yourself saying things like, "she would really do well in our culture?we go to the same church?I have a good feeling about her?" You lose commitment to hiring the best person, and get attached to a personality.

4. You confuse selling with interviewing. I recently heard the VP of a mortgage company tell me, "we want to build our candidate pipeline, get them in here for a meeting, and pitch them on our company." If you have to waste 2 hours "pitching" somebody to come work for you, what kind of loyalty and credibility are you fostering? How likely will they see through that inauthentic gamesmanship? Pretty likely.

5. When someone asks, "what makes your company an exciting place to work?" you draw a blank or start pitching. This may indicate that your company does not know its uniqueness-or, as Jim Collins calls it, your "hedgehog." In Good To Great, he describes how enduring companies are extremely clear about three things: what they are deeply passionate about, what fuels their economic engine, and what they can be best in the world at. If your company is facing this situation, how can you expect your future employees to be intrigued by what you offer?

Collins applauds GE's "process hedgehog." Their model is: build the greatest management development system (their passion), profit per unit of top executive talent (their economic engine), and developing the best general management talent (they are best in the world at it). Collins says "this basic hedgehog has driven their economic flywheel since 1910."

In my interviews and analysis of over 50 CEOs last year, I discovered that scattered, fox-like hiring behaviors truly separate the average companies from the superstars. I assert that in today's global economy, our only remaining competitive differentiators are our people, our innovations, and our hedgehog. How will your company secure solid ground in at least one these areas?

In our next ezine article, I'll present some fundamental hiring tune-ups every company needs to consider. As the Greek parable says: "The fox knows many things, but the hedgehog knows one big thing."

Lisa Nirell is President of Nirell & Associates in Del Mar, CA. She helps culturally creative leaders who want to attract and retain employees in order to sustain profitable growth.

Lisa recently completed a 10-month study of top performing services CEOs. For a free subscription to the monthly NirellNews ezine and a Special Report on this study, call 858-481-8787, visit http://www.nirell.com, or email marketing@nirell.com.

---

Acing The Interview

It's no secret that there is a lot of competition... Read More

Consultants - If We Cant Laugh At Ourselves?

There are hundreds of varieties of Consultants these days. We... Read More

Employment Under A Microscope

A certain amount of oversight is involved in almost any... Read More

Should You Lie On Your Resume?

Warning: Lying on your resume could cost you your job... Read More

12 Steps to Targeting Success in Your Career or Job Search

Is your job search sagging? Are you still looking for... Read More

Expose Lies on Resumes

Purpose: Learn about the new Polygraph for management hiresHis heart... Read More

Job Hunting Tips: Organizing Your Attack

Looking for work is an energy-devouring ordeal, often leading to... Read More

History Reports: When Your Resume Equals, I Did This, I Did This, I Did This

Do these sound familiar?"I worked for?" "My responsibilities were?"... Read More

Top 10 Super Job Interview Tips

Use these interview tips for job hunting success!It's a tough... Read More

Rethink Your Career Transition

Are you going nowhere in your career? If you've decided... Read More

Updating Your Plum Job Now That Youre a Parent

It's startling to discover how having kids changes the way... Read More

A Workplace Romance Can Be Detrimental to Your Career

Over 70% of single employees will become romantically involved with... Read More

Fun At Work Leads to More Success

Common sense at work: Such qualities as loyalty, energy, intelligence... Read More

Dont Stop! Your Transition is Still Moving!

Q. I'm looking for a new job and plan to... Read More

Writing A Resume That Gets You Noticed

As the old saying goes, "you never get a second... Read More

Do What You Love, Love What You Do

Everyone dreams of a life full of love and adventure.... Read More

Telecommuting Website (Part One)

"I've heard you talk about building a website to get... Read More

How to Recoup From Missing the Most Important Meeting of the Year

Sometimes missing a critical meeting just can't be helped. Despite... Read More

Sample Cover Letters ... The Hidden Pitfalls

You can benefit from sample cover letters as they can... Read More

The 4 Job Search Facts You Need To Know!

Are you harboring bitterness or anger towards your current or... Read More

Franchising Offers NO Guarantees --

You have to ask --- IS a FRANCHISE FOR YOU?There... Read More

It May Be Time to Walk in an Employers Shoes

If you are in a job search and aren't receiving... Read More

Yesterdays Hero

Wonder Woman makes it looks so easy. She gets up... Read More

Four Job Interview Mistakes That Can Torpedo Your Chances of Success

What are the worst mistakes job hunters make? It turns... Read More

10 Tips For Writing A Professional R�sum�

1. Start with an attractive layout. Use bold and italics... Read More

Hunting the Executive Head Hunter

5 tips to win over an executive head hunter or... Read More

Death By Workers Compensation

Excerpt of Death By Workers' Compensation"The Bleeding Rose"In this Excerpt... Read More

Jobseekers! Look For Smoke, Not Fire

"If you always do what you've always done, you will... Read More

Manage Your Boss - And Get Ahead!

It's clear there are a number of common issues faced... Read More

5 Steps to a New Job

The economy is picking up, budgets are new, positions are... Read More

Discover What You Really Want To Do

Are you doing what you really want to do or... Read More

The Network Within

When you hear the word "networking", what comes to your... Read More

Passing The Police Test Just Became Easier

You've taken the police officer selection test or law enforcement... Read More