The two biggest mistakes companies make when hiring that are preventable

A survey by Career Builder reports that two-thirds of employers were affected by a bad hire last year.

Of nearly 2,700 employers surveyed, 41% estimate a single bad hire cost $25,000 and 25% estimate that a bad employee selection cost $50,000 or more.

Not all of the blame can be placed at the foot of a candidate who might have “oversold” their abilities.

Often companies are to blame for poor hires.

There are two common mistakes that I find companies make when hiring employees.

1.

Companies are often guilty of overselling the opportunity to a candidate.

Sometimes companies get so excited about attracting the “right” talent that they will sugar coat the facts regarding the situation of

both the company and/or the opportunity in order to get commitment from a stellar candidate.

For example, a company that might have exaggerated the internal commitment for a specific mandate might really require a change management leader instead of someone with strong corporate vision or someone with sales strategy which were the focus during interviews.

A savvy strategic turnaround expert is a completely different skill set than someone who knows how to leverage processes and product portfolios.

It is important to note that it is not just private companies that are guilty of this sin.

Public companies that have created new divisions or companies who have acquired or transitioned divisions are just as guilty.

If certain aspects of a position are downplayed or ignored, the new employee can become resentful towards the person who pulled them away from their previous role.

I have witnessed employees becoming disengaged because of everything from overstated earnings to overstated manufacturing capabilities.

Having someone in the role for a short period of time compounds problems by delaying solution implementations as well as affecting employee morale and that is in addition to the hard cost associated with hiring the wrong person.

The answer is to clearly lay out challenges and obstacles in addition to the opportunities within a position.

Transparency should always prevail.

2.

Too much emphasis is often placed on a candidate having the right corporate “fit”.

Companies are still guilty of hiring similar profiles because of the culture within a company.

This used to be based on the old adage “Birds of a feather stick together.”

This is no longer the case.

Employees are much more attracted to environments where they will prosper by working with bright people who can help them deliver their mandates.

Most employees are not looking for an environment where they can have drinks with their colleagues after hours.

People would much rather work hard during office hours while having success, make any associated variable compensation that comes with achieving both personal and corporate goals and going home to friends or family.

Family oriented or social club work environments no longer exist and are not expected to exist so hiring similar people who have similar skill sets is not a progressive way to grow a company or an effective strategy for attracting talent.

Farewell,

Mike