Hiring Tips Podcast

How Long Do You Want To Work Here?

What Isn't Fair?

What’s Not On Your Résumé?

Underpaid and Overpaid

“What’s The Next Job You Would Like to Have When You Leave Here?”

Give Them An Audition!

“What If You Win the Lottery?”

Is Passion Overrated?

How Can One Possibly Equal Three?

Let’s Walk Through Your Résumé

Count the Number of Times She Said…

Why Did You Leave Your Job?

"Hire Slow, Fire Fast"

What Do They Read?

The Importance of a Smile

Tell Me About Your Fellow Employees

Are Younger Applicants Distressing You?

Hiring Tips From the Folks at Google #3

Hiring Advice From the Folks at Google #2

Hiring Tips from the Folks at Google

What Does the Candidate Want to BE?

The Hiring Revolving Door

Many of us are experiencing a revolving door when it comes to hiring new people. We read through the résumés, we conduct what we consider are reasonably thorough interviews and we may even check some references.  

On A Scale of 1 - 10

You could use the 1 - 10 ranking scale to gain some interesting insights into your candidates.

A Very Key Question to Ask Prospective Employees

There are a number of questions employers ask prospective employees, but a very key question to ask is: "In your previous positions what did you PRODUCE?" Yes, you should be interested in what positions the person held previously. But you want to narrow in on what the person produced.

Did The Prospect Really Say That?

While watching a bit of news on TV the other day, a short segment was done for job hunters. The theme of the segment was: “what not to say in the interview.” Let’s take a look at a few of these: “I’m really nervous.”

Is the Prospect a Better Fit Somewhere Else?

What if your candidate isn't a good fit for you but would be a great asset for another company?  What if you you knew of a specific company where this would apply?  Taking this one step further, what if this specific company was your competition?  Should you make the effort to refer this candidate? Should you contact the other company and let them know about this prospect?  I would say: yes and yes. And yes, even with your competition!

The Problems and Solutions Interview

Let’s say you’re hiring someone for the Office Manager position. What are some of the routine problems for this position? Gather together a list of at least three of these and then ask your applicant how she would solve them.

Interviewing Millenials

Working with Millennials may be challenging for some. Invigorating for others. Here is a tip to help you in the hiring process.

Hiring the Salesperson, Part Six

In the previous Hiring the Salesperson tips, we covered preparation, motivation, prospecting, sales technique and closing.   In this tip, let’s discuss the salesperson who has sold something very different from you’re selling.

Never Miss a Good Chance to Shut Up

This Will Rogers quote can most definitely be applied to those giving hiring interviews.

You’re Not Hiring The Résumé!

Of course this is something you know, but how often do we see a fabulous résumé and then omit doing a thorough interview as we believe we’ve got the right person?

Using Google, Yahoo and Bing

Another way to find out more about your prospective employee is to perform a Google search.

Have Them Work for a Month On a Conditional Basis

The previous tip discussed having the applicant work for a full day (or even several days) without assurances of the job. This tip is similar but with a couple of key differences. Have your applicant work for an entire month on a conditional basis. He can leave at the end. You can let him go.

Have Him Work for a Day

One idea that has been found successful is to have him work for a full day. Or maybe even several days. Give him a fairly quick understanding of what's needed and get him rolling.

Hiring the Salesperson - Part 5

In the first four tips on Hiring the Salesperson, we covered preparation, motivation, prospecting and sales technique. In this tip, let's tackle the Holy Grail of sales: closing!

Take Him For a Tour

Let’s say you’re hiring an Office Manager.  Fred has shown up for his interview and has Office Manager experience.  How do we know how experienced Fred is? Well, we can take Fred for a tour of the office. Here’s how it could go:

What Did They Do When They Didn't Know What to Do?

Most people have a pretty good idea of what’s expected of them. They’ve had some training for their position and ideally some apprenticing. This tip could even include those who have considerable training, for example health care professionals or software programmers. The question is, “What did you do when you didn’t know what to do?”

Are You Hiring Mainly On Skill and Ability?

Today I read an interesting quote in a hiring book: “Companies are notorious for hiring based on skill and ability, and firing based on fit.” Certainly with regards to skill positions, I would agree with this.  

Don't Hire "Bad Apples"

What about the prospective staff who look and sound great but a month or so down the road quit unexpectedly or compel the owner to fire them?

Does the Job Align With Their Goals

If your candidate is very goal-oriented, it would be helpful to know how this particular job fits in with his goals.  

How Did They Handle Employee Arguments?

When two employees near you were going back and forth in a heated argument, did you take steps to break it up? Or were you more inclined to let them sort it out?

She Just Rubbed Me the Wrong Way

Have you ever had a job interview with someone and you came out of it thinking:   She just rubbed me the wrong way.   From the perspective of making a hiring decision, what exactly does that mean?

The Hiring Pie

I see the hiring process as pieces of a pie. Each piece can help you make a better decision.

Discuss the Purpose of the Position

Do you have a clear statement of the purpose of each position in your company? If not, take a bit of time and put this together.  

A Typical Work Day

“George, what was a typical work day like?” George might ask for clarification and you could say, “Well, I’d like to get an idea what you did in your previous job but from a different perspective than what is on your résumé.

What If He Is the Owner?

We owners understand that the work day doesn’t end at 5 or 6 o’clock. If several key things still need to get done, it is often the business owner who gets them done. If a customer calls after hours, the impulse is strongest with us to get back to him and not let it wait until the next day.

Disagreements With Management

All of us at one time another have had disagreements with our boss. So what happens when we are asked to do something we feel we shouldn’t have to do?

Why Do You Want to Work Here?

This is the classic hiring question. But it doesn’t always get the answer you’re looking for, which is simply an unrehearsed answer.

Hiring the Salesperson, Part Four

There are a multitude of different sales approaches and techniques. Some of them may be just right for your business, some may not. Some actually may inhibit sales if used in your business.          

Hiring the Salesperson, Part Three

In this tip, we'll look at what has become a somewhat controversial subject in the sales world: prospecting.