As a Certified Master Business Coach and Certified Executive Coach, I continually hear frustration around problems finding and retaining motivated talent. Managers complain of disengaged workers just skating by, doing the bare minimum to avoid firing while counting down to the next vacation. Not exactly a catalyst for growth!
But I remind clients the hiring process sets the tone for engagement or apathy. You won’t discern between passionate players and clock-watching slackers without rigorous vetting. Here are my top tips for landing employees genuinely excited to drive your organization forward:
Profile the Ideal Candidate
Identify your absolute star employees and analyze what makes them shine – beliefs, attitudes, behaviors, and drivers. Extract key traits into a “perfect candidate profile” outlining qualities to target in hiring. This helps develop laser-focused job listings to resonate with kindred spirits.
Ask Revealing Questions
Standard interviews full of canned questions elicit rehearsed responses to hide fatal flaws. Create custom questions to unmask authentic motivations, habits, and work ethic. You’ll quickly spot misaligned mindsets.
It’s also vital to assess essential emotional intelligence skills like self-awareness and empathy to enable smooth collaboration, growth, and leadership. These underpin discretionary effort and loyalty during good and challenging times alike.
Incorporate Assessments
Pre-employment testing, such as online personality and motivation assessments, adds data and insight to the hiring equation. It illuminates temperaments and drivers that indicate likely engagement and culture fit.
Include Future Colleagues
The people new hires will regularly interact with can best assess compatibility. Have team members and managers conduct second-round interviews to determine work style symmetry.
Verify Through Backchannels
Carefully comb through social media feeds and proactively reach out to references beyond those provided. Be forewarned of any concerning behaviors before extending an offer.
While finding promising candidates takes effort and discernment, it pays dividends in inspired, loyal employees. Passionate people drive businesses forward through ingenuity, grit, and discretionary effort.
Conversely, disengaged hires drag down morale, innovation, and outcomes, no matter how strong your vision and systems are. Ultimately, an organization reflects who you let in the door. While perfect hires don’t exist, those exhibiting sincere excitement to join your mission do. And they will move mountains, not just Mondays, to accelerate outcomes. You can build an unstoppable team of diehard difference-makers with careful candidate filtering.
As one of the 10 Most Inspiring Transformational Coaches – Globally, Celebrity Coach & 7x Winner of the Brian Tracy Award for Sales Excellence, and with a Ph.D. in GSD, I have over 15 years of experience advising executives on hiring and culture. I can help you nail your recruiting process. Let’s connect to discuss how to attract and retain startup all-stars ready to hustle each day. The right people make all the difference.
