Most organizations, when hiring for positions, are specific about the functions of the role and what they perceive to be the ideal set of skills and experiences required for the person to succeed in the role.
What of the person? How much time do we spend understanding the ideal person for that position? We hire people, not skills and experience. Therefore, an alternate perspective in hiring complements the traditional hiring focus is necessary.
Team fit
While the organization may have a culture, each team has its micro-culture with nuances. This is often reflective of the people in that team, and are we hiring for someone who will complement the team and bring some diversity in thought, demeanor, and approach, or are we supplementing what already exists? Too much of the same brings its weaknesses in time.
Character
What is the candidate’s character? What are their values? Do they demonstrate values consistent with those of the organization, and will they uphold the standards and behaviors that you wish to model your culture on? Assessing how they respond and behave in adversity is essential since it is in the difficult moments that we ultimately put one to the test, yet it is rare that we ever test for that.
Communication style
How do they speak, and can they concisely and effectively get their message across? Any initiative, plan, and process success depends on communicating the ideas well. Therefore, the art of listening more than speaking is essential. Did the candidate hear your questions, did they ask questions, or did they incorrectly make various assumptions?
Hiring is such a small amount of time in the lifecycle of any employee’s tenure. Yet, we rush it and often blindly ignore the apparent faults we notice upfront. Until it is too late, we say what if we are more deliberate, but then repeat our mistakes with the following open position. We should instead be pedantic in our approach than hurried. Of course, we will appreciate it but so will any candidate if we share our intention and process with them. Would they not want to avoid any possible mismatch?
