How to Recruit the Best
by
Matt Malden
Remember when you are recruiting candidates you want to hire people who are BETTER than you are. I know it is threatening, but be secure. If you surround yourself with great people, great things will happen. Second, when interviewing candidates, they need to not just meet the bar; they need to hop over it. If you are unsure whether to hire a candidate or not, you shouldn’t. One trick I use when having other employees interview a candidate (always a good idea to get multiple opinions), is to ask whom at the company would they compare the candidate to. Assuming you have good people at the company, this is a way of asking the interviewer if the candidate is as good as or better than existing employees are.
Interview
Every interview process is different. However, they all should ask open ended, valuable questions. Make sure not to lead the candidate towards the answers you desire. Don’t talk too much; you get great information when you listen. If you haven’t gotten the answer to your satisfaction, listen until there is uncomfortable silence, and then listen some more. One of the most important things you can discover about an employee is how they think and approach problems. So, ask open-ended questions, typically about something they know a lot about, and dig into their logic. For example, “Tell me about a project you worked on that you are proud of.” “Ok, tell me how you approached completing the project.”
Ask if he has any issues or reservations about the job. Most importantly, always ask the employee why he’s looking to leave his current job. You will use this later when trying to close him/her.
References
Always check. Nobody gives bad references. If you don’t get great, glowing references, chances are the employee is mediocre. If you can, ask any reference who else you might want to talk to that knows this candidate. Make sure not to talk to anyone at his existing employer without his permission.
Pre-Close
Once you are convinced you want to make an offer, talk to the candidate to accomplish several things: 1) Get the verbal commitment. Verify that the salary, bonus, etc. will meet their needs. If I could put together an offer that looked like… would that be compelling enough for you to join? 2) Get the emotional commitment. What would you do if your existing employer counters? They should say that they are leaving, not because of money, but because of the issues that they identified in the interview. 3) Agree on the start date.
Offer
Deliver the offer. Call first, then overnight the offer letter. Only provide a 2-3 day period to sign the offer letter. Include the start date.
Closing
Once the candidate gets the offer, stay in touch and talk regularly. Ask if he has any issues or reservations. Get other people involved in helping close the candidate (peers, managers, executives, founders, investors, etc.). It makes the candidate feel more important and gives him more perspectives on how great a place your company is to work. When he/she wants to talk to somebody, get them on the phone immediately if possible, regardless of time zone or geography. Speed impresses.
First Day of Work
The candidate is not closed until he shows up on the first day of work. Anything can happen until that occurs. They could get other offers, counters from their existing employer, etc. Stay in touch regularly with the employee to let them know you are really excited for them to join. Phone calls, emails, updates on the exciting stuff going on in
your business, sending a corporate t-shirt, etc.
Second Week of Work
You think you have the candidate closed? No way. You need to make sure that the employee is enjoying work and that you didn’t totally disappear once he shows up for work. I take the employee out to lunch on the first day, then either set up a meeting on the second week or casually drop by to talk to the employee when convenient. Ask him/her how he/she is liking the job. Is there anything we can do better? Any suggestions? Then, reaffirm that you are excited to have him/her and know he/she is going to have a huge impact on your business.