“Bad apples? Some jobs can’t have bad apples. Some jobs, everybody gotta be good. Like … pilots! American Airlines can’t be like, ‘Most of our pilots like to land. We just got a few bad apples that like to crash into mountains. Please bear with us.’”¹

Rock’s bit on the unforgiving nature of high-stakes hiring is spot-on. Medical professionals, first responders, pilots, military personnel, and people in other potentially risky occupations have little room for error. A slip of the scalpel or a miscalculated military directive could easily result in the loss of human life. And just as precision is required of those who enter high-stakes professions, it is also required of the talent acquisition processes that fill these roles.

High-Stakes Hiring Depends on Data

Those who manage high-stakes hiring processes know that even the most competent candidates have weaknesses — the highly qualified are still human, after all. Problems arise when a candidate’s shortcomings conflict with the demands of the job. Using personality tests in talent acquisition processes can help identify a candidate’s possible weaknesses up front. This allows hiring managers to determine whether a person’s possible shortcomings represent an area for development or a potential liability.

To avoid headline-making accidents, employers should focus on crafting a hiring process that uses multiple evaluation methods — for example, interviews and personality tests. When interviews are used as the primary hiring method, incompetent hires are less likely to be detected. An objective measure of personality, though, can provide insights that cannot be gleaned from interviews.

The Consequences of High-Stakes Hiring

So, what behaviours might indicate incompetence for a high-stakes hire? Our database of global personality research shows that individuals who are prone to fail in high-risk occupations tend to be described as inattentive to detail, unreliable at rule following, susceptible to stress, ineffective at working with others, and overly concerned with being the centre of attention. When a candidate exhibits one or more of these behaviours, safety should be a concern. Lives may even be at risk.

The Costa Concordia cruise ship accident is just one regrettable example of lethal misalignment between role and individual. On January 13, 2012, Captain Francesco Schettino turned off the ship’s warning systems because he felt confident that he knew the Italian coast well enough. Captain Schettino overestimated his capabilities. A coastal reef tore a 50-meter gash in the ship’s side, tragically killing 32 passengers. Captain Schettino was later convicted of manslaughter, and it is a shame that his negligent behaviours were not flagged during his former organisation’s hiring process.

Hiring processes should prioritise candidates who are trainable, compliant, strong, poised, vigilant, and cautious. Well-validated personality tests can identify these qualities, so hiring managers can weigh them against an individual’s weaknesses. Captain Chesley B. Sullenberger III, also known as Sully, is an example of a successful high-stakes hire. On January 15, 2009, Captain Sullenberger was piloting U.S. Airways flight 1549 when both of the engines ceased to work. Captain Sullenberger was able to save the day by safely manoeuvring the plane to land on the Hudson River near New York City.

Captain Sullenberger’s disposition played a big role in averting disaster. His subordinates described him as calm, cool, and collected during the ordeal. Hiring managers who are seeking to fill positions with a high risk of accidents should focus on finding people with qualities like those of Captain Sullenberger — people who can competently stand at the helm if (or when) catastrophe strikes.

Personality and Accident Prevention

Research shows that making hiring processes longer will not safeguard against bad hires. Incorporating well-validated personality tests, however, can make interview processes more comprehensive while shortening their length.

At Hogan, we’ve seen this firsthand. We once worked with a large metropolitan transportation company with the objective of using personality to reduce bus accidents. Employees hired using Hogan’s Safety solution were more safety-conscious. They had 40% fewer rule violations, 25% fewer workers’ compensation claims, and 20% fewer accidents.

In another instance, we worked with a U.S. plastic tube manufacturing company that was struggling with an increasing number of accidents and injuries. After the company introduced personality tests into its selection efforts, the accident rate was reduced to zero within two years, and the company received the maximum reduction in fines from past OSHA audits.

In some industries, the quality of the talent acquisition process can literally decide the fate of others’ lives. In more mundane circumstances, it can decide who fills key roles that are responsible for keeping the organisation afloat. Regardless, no employer can afford to let bad hires spoil their organisation.

*This post originally appeared on Hogan Assessments

The post High-Stakes Hiring: The Cost of Bad Hires Can Be Fatal appeared first on Peter Berry Consultancy.

Not so fast.

Unless they’re the sole person you brought to the interview stage, chances are that there are a few (maybe even several) other candidates who didn’t quite make the cut. To avoid joining the ranks of companies that leave their applicants with a negative opinion (rejections are one of the biggest factors that lead to this), consider this option: the rejection letter.

To be clear, the purpose of the rejection letter is to deliver bad news, so you shouldn’t expect cheers of joy from the recipient. But that doesn’t mean that the letter can’t serve a constructive purpose.

How to Write a Rejection Letter to a Job Applicant

The key to a good job candidate rejection letter is being honest, kind, and compassionate. Your letter should build the candidate up and let them know that, even though they may not be eligible for this role, they will find more opportunities. Remember that this rejection reflects on you and the organisation as a whole. The tone you set will determine if the candidate will consider applying again in the future, and it also impacts your organisation’s reputation and employer brand.

Here are the four steps to write a job interview rejection letter that will send the right message.

Step 1: Thank Them

It should be self-explanatory, but thanking the candidate is a good idea. Studies show that saying “thank you” has ripple effects that directly and indirectly benefit the health and happiness of those who experience it. Remember that the applicant has given their time and effort to apply, take personality assessments, and interview for the role. Acknowledging this and showing your gratitude for their candidacy will cast your organisation in a more positive light.

Step 2: Break the Bad News

This is it — the hardest part of the entire letter. While it may not be possible to alter the essence of your message, the words you use to let the candidate know that they did not get the position are important. Of these two examples of a rejection, which do you think would be better received?

1. I regret to inform you that we have chosen a different applicant for the position.
2. After careful review and a difficult decision, we’ve decided to move forward with another candidate for the role.

If you chose 2, congratulations: you’re correct. The key here is that we’ve let the candidate know that it was a challenging decision and that their application was legitimately considered. Additionally, note the subtle difference between the phrasing, “chosen a different applicant” versus “decided to move forward with another candidate.” The latter gets the point across more gently.

Step 3: Explain Why

Still with us? Good. Now that you’ve broached the subject, it’s time to explain why they didn’t get the job. In most cases, it’s a best practice to be open and honest, but this should be determined by how your interactions with them went.

Good interview – As great as they are as a candidate, it’s possible that some factor meant that they just didn’t make the cut. Was it insufficient experience that made the difference? Let them know gently (follow a similar methodology to Step 2).

Bad interview – If the candidate made a negative impression during the interview, you shouldn’t call them out on it. Instead, say nothing and skip to Step 4.

Step 4: End on a High Note

We’re in the home stretch. After you’ve thanked the candidate, broken the news, and explained your decision, end the message positively. Ideally, you should highlight strengths that stood out in the interview and/or their personality assessment results, point out their valuable qualifications, and express your interest (if you have any) in keeping their application on file for consideration for future roles. Positivity in your closing note will establish a good foundation for any future conversations you have with them.

And that’s it. With those four steps, you will have a thoughtful, constructive rejection letter for a job applicant that may leave them disappointed but thankful for the experience and hopeful for future opportunities.

Contact us for more information Learn about the Hogan 360

The post New Year, New Hire, Part 6: How to Write a Rejection Letter appeared first on Peter Berry Consultancy.

1. Leveraging Different Skills

   In the words of Marshall Goldsmith, “What got you here won’t get you there.” Recognise that the strengths that have enabled your success and the derailers that have hindered your effectiveness thus far are probably not the ones that will be important for a new manager. Your Hogan personality test reports are an ideal place to start on this analysis. Think through what strengths your new position requires and what derailers might get you into trouble. How will you alter your behaviours to accommodate these? Remember the importance of situational context (role, culture, manager, and team).

2. Becoming More Visible

   What you say and do matters more now. Because your position has changed, you are under greater scrutiny, and your words and actions have a greater impact. You might say the same thing in the same situation, but it carries more weight by virtue of your position.

3. Managing Former Peers (and Even Friends)

   Being promoted to a management position often means managing people who used to be your peers and, in some cases, your friends. Realise that your relationships with them have been inextricably altered. It’s OK to directly acknowledge this change — they are your direct reports. No matter how much you like them, you are now their manager, and the relationship between managers and reports is different from relationships between peers or friends. You can support them, advocate for them, develop them, provide advice and counsel, etc., but these need to be done from a manager perspective, not a peer or friend perspective. This may mean you’ll need to get out of the loop to some degree. Remember that you’ll also need to provide them with constructive feedback, performance reviews and salary treatment, and perhaps even discipline. These are managerial activities, not friend or peer activities.

4. Taking the Party Line

   Unless you’re being asked to do something illegal or immoral, you need to take the party line, even if you don’t agree with it. It’s fine to express disagreement when you’re discussing decisions with fellow managers, but once a decision is reached, the managers need to be a united front. You can’t say, “Well, I didn’t agree with this, but I was outvoted.”

5. Liaising Between Organisational Levels

   As part of management, you need to provide a buffer between your direct reports and senior managers when your direct reports don’t like a decision or question a policy. Typically, the decision-makers have more information, which influenced their decision, than the people questioning the decision. In other words, you need to be part of the solution and avoid fuelling discontent or conflict. Don’t justify your desire to disagree by telling yourself that you’re not being authentic if you’re supporting a decision you don’t completely agree with. Reframe it as something you need to support because of your role.

6. Using Team Input Effectively

   You need to gather input and gain buy-in, but don’t let this result in “management by consensus.” With too much compromise, you can end up with a decision that no one supports. At some point, you might need to make the decision yourself, and it might not be popular with everyone, but at least it will be supported by some. As a manager, you are accountable for the success of the team, and as a result, you are also responsible for the decisions being made.

7. Making Challenging Decisions

   Sometimes you have to decide between right and right. It’s easy to decide between right and wrong, but it’s hard to decide between right and right. On occasion, you’ll be faced with several alternatives, all of which are right. You will need to decide among them and communicate the decision. Sometimes it may feel like there is not a right answer, so try thinking about these two things: First, what is the right answer for the business? Second, what is right for the customer? When these areas align, the tough decisions are easier to make.

8. Adapting Management Style to Employee Needs

   All direct reports are not created equal, and fair treatment does not mean identical treatment. An experienced veteran requires a very different management style from you than a new hire fresh out of college. As long as there’s no hint of favouritism, different treatment can be effective. Keep in mind that the way you previously communicated with someone on your team might need to be altered (that is, if you were formerly peers).

9. Providing Useful and Timely Feedback

   The longer you wait to give someone feedback, the more difficult it will be. When feedback is provided close to the time the coachable behaviour was exhibited, everyone involved recalls more details, making it easier to provide coaching and change behaviour. Also, it is far easier and more comfortable to receive one small piece of feedback than a lot of feedback that has accumulated over weeks or months. Practice daily (and balanced) feedback.

10. Keeping the Pace of Work

    Speed is your friend. Work will always expand to fill the time available, for both you and your team. Set aggressive deadlines, do the tough tasks first, and follow through consistently.

11. Asking for Help

    Don’t forget you have resources available. You don’t have to make this transition on your own. Utilise other managers and HR for support when you meet a challenge, regardless of how small or large the issue may seem. Your success is measured on the success of your team, so ask for help when you need it.

Congratulations on rising to meet these challenges! Leadership is not for the faint of heart, and some days it may feel like you are running in circles, but what you are doing is important work. Every seemingly minute conversation with a team member helps build trust and provides an opportunity for deeper connection, development opportunities, and growth.

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The post Becoming a Manager: 11 Most Difficult Challenges appeared first on Peter Berry Consultancy.

A job interview goes both ways. While the employer is gauging the applicant’s qualifications and their potential alignment with the organisation’s objectives and culture, the interviewee is trying to get a feel for the type of working environment they might expect and the personality and working style of the hiring manager.

Wondering how to interview someone for a job while making a good first impression? We’ve compiled a list of tips that interviewers can use to win candidates over.

Tips for a Good Job Interview in Person

Choose a Good Location

Location, location, location — its benefit isn’t reserved only for real estate. The location of the interview sets the tone and should be chosen thoughtfully and carefully. A quiet, well-lit space that is free from distractions — without feeling sterile — is the best environment for a constructive interview.

Be Relatable and Relaxed

As serious as an interview’s outcome may be, the language you use and the direction in which you drive the conversation should always be relaxed and conversational. It’s easy to sound too direct as the interviewer, so don’t skip the small talk and informalities. Intimidation isn’t going to win anyone over, so be personable.

Come Prepared

Just as you would expect the candidate to come prepared for the interview, your level of preparedness will speak volumes to your organisation’s culture and your level of interest. Here is a short checklist of essentials:

• Your list of questions
• A copy of the candidate’s résumé and (if applicable) cover letter
• A pen and notepad for taking notes
• A copy of the job description to reference

Virtual Job Interview Tips

If you’re interviewing a remote candidate, a couple of considerations can make a big difference.

Be Prepared

Preparedness, as it relates to virtual interviews, is based largely on one thing: making sure your video-call technology is working properly. Whether you’re using Zoom, Microsoft Teams, or any other conferencing platform, there’s no faster way to set a bad example than by running into technical difficulties when trying to connect to the call. Take the time to test the process so that you run the smallest risk of incident, while also being considerate of any issues the candidate may run into when connecting.

Don’t Get Distracted

It’s easy to get distracted when working from home. Whether your phone notifications are sounding or a team member is messaging you, the candidate will assume you lack interest and commitment if you allow yourself to be distracted. To be respectful, turn off any secondary monitors and set your phone to Do Not Disturb.

Conclusion

The interview is a vital part of the hiring process, and it’s a chance for both the interviewer and interviewee to distinguish themselves from their respective competition. These are just a few tips to get you started in considering how to prepare for interviews to convince top talent that your organisation’s open position is worth their time, investment, and loyalty.

Of course, the questions you ask are important too, and organisations that use personality tests in hiring tend to structure their interviews with better questions. To name just a few benefits, these interviews are a more productive use of everyone’s time, they minimize the potential for unconscious bias, they make a better impression on the candidate, and they lead to more successful hires (and fewer bad hires). Stay tuned for upcoming content on how to conduct a structured interview effectively, as well as Part 6 of our series, which will cover rejection letters!

Contact us for more information Learn about the Hogan 360

The post New Year, New Hire, Part 5: How to Impress Candidates in an Interview appeared first on Peter Berry Consultancy.

How to Get a Pool of Qualified Job Candidates

A good hiring process will lead to a pool of qualified candidates from which you, the employer, can select. While it’s true that the hiring environment is competitive, you can use a few key elements to filter.

The Job Posting

Make no mistake — much of the difficulty finding candidates for a job comes from a poorly written job posting. This introduction of your role to prospective applicants is the face of your company and the first good impression you can make. Beyond this, though, the job posting is key in outlining the exact kind of candidate you want to hire. When writing a job description, be sure to mention specific qualifications, skills, and competencies that the role will require, and avoid vague language that can leave room for misinterpretation. When prospective candidates read your posting, it should be explicitly clear whether their skills align with your criteria.

The Interview

Much like the job posting itself, the interview is an integral step in finding candidates who love their job. Make sure to structure your interview with questions that are specific enough to the nuances of the role while leaving enough room for the interviewee to elaborate on their relevant skills. Be careful — if your questions are too open-ended, you run the risk of either confusing the candidate or receiving answers that won’t illustrate the candidate’s skills.

One way to ensure your interviews will be effective is to incorporate scientifically validated personality tests into the hiring process. This is helpful because interviews, especially when they aren’t structured, are subject to bias and therefore are not very accurate in identifying the best candidates. Using personality tests prior to interviews can help you minimize interviewer bias, target your interview questions to explore candidates’ potential strengths and shortcomings as related to the role, avoid hiring ineffective but charismatic candidates, and even predict which candidates are most likely to be engaged in your organisation.

Put in the Work

Although the methods you use to find qualified job candidates may differ based on the industry you’re working in, the fundamental idea is the same: provide the candidate with detailed information about the role and ask pointed, guiding questions to learn more about them. While these may seem obvious, they’re among many common hiring mistakes that run the risk of scaring off top talent and ineffectively weeding out unqualified candidates.

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The post New Year, New Hire, Part 4: How to Weed Out Unqualified Candidates appeared first on Peter Berry Consultancy.

Combing through an applicant’s résumé is key in gathering an understanding of their work history, contributions, and specific skills. In addition to revealing professional assets, résumés can also reveal warning signs. While there are many potential red flags on a résumé, we’ve chosen the top five you should know.

What Are the Top Résumé Red Flags?

1. Grammatical Errors and Spelling Mistakes

As shocking as it may seem, it’s estimated that more than 50% of adults struggle with spelling even simple words. That means one of the most identifiable red flags that can be found on a résumé is the presence of spelling mistakes or simple grammatical errors. Did the applicant spell the name of a previous employer incorrectly? Has punctuation been misused? Are words capitalised incorrectly?

Mistakes happen, but these kinds of errors can suggest the candidate typed up the résumé hastily and didn’t take time to proofread it to ensure quality.

2. Gaps in Employment History

Another important — and easily spotted — red flag is a gap between jobs on a résumé. A few weeks? It could simply mean they took time off before starting their new role. A few months? It’s worth inquiring about what led to that period away from work. A year-plus? That’s a large amount of time that, unless otherwise explained, should be seen as a legitimate red flag, because it may indicate a detachment from the pulse of the industry.

3. Job-Hopping

Short of contract work, which is becoming more common, employers expect to retain employees for more than a brief stint. While it’s not unlikely or unacceptable to make changes to your career path and job in order to find a more appropriate fit for your skills, a pattern of job-hopping is a red flag. Has the employee spent less than two years at multiple organisations back-to-back? Depending on the industry, that may indicate a lack of commitment. Considering the cost of onboarding a new hire, it’s in your best interest to choose a candidate who will stay long-term.

4. Inconsistent Information Compared to Other Sources

Résumés are no longer the only source of employment history available to the HR professional. Social media, and more specifically platforms such as LinkedIn and Facebook, are popular places to keep up to date on where someone has worked. As a general rule, it’s advisable to cross-reference a résumé with a candidate’s social media to ensure that the dates, contributions, and other important details match up. To put it in perspective, one study found that 75% of HR managers have found a lie on a résumé before.

5. Embellishment or Résumé Padding

How far back should a résumé go? How many jobs should be on a résumé? What jobs should be included to be industry-relevant? These are subjective questions, to say the least, but they’re important in differentiating a padded résumé from an unpadded résumé. Too few jobs, and an applicant might have a lack of relevant experience. Too many, conversely, may show that the candidate is either making up for a lack of experience with volume or unsure of which roles are most relevant to highlight.

How to Explain Red Flags in a Résumé

To put it plainly, red flags may come up in a résumé for many clear and understandable reasons. Specifically, disruptions related to COVID-19 are extremely common, with hundreds of millions of jobs affected over the course of the pandemic. As a hiring manager or HR specialist, it’s important to factor these nuances in when reviewing someone’s résumé, realizing that life may interrupt career trajectory.

Although certain red flags may point to a need to rule out a candidate, red flags are often just signals that further investigation is needed. Incorporating other evaluation methods into the talent acquisition process can help meet this need. While a résumé can provide an idea of what a candidate has done, well-validated personality tests offer an objective look at who a candidate is — their strengths, weaknesses, values, and unconscious biases. Using personality tests in tandem with a thorough résumé review and a structured interview, it’s even possible to predict how a person is likely to perform in a given role.

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The post New Year, New Hire, Part 3: Top 5 Résumé Red Flags appeared first on Peter Berry Consultancy.

In order to accomplish this, hiring managers often turn to two elements of an application: the resume and cover letter. While it’s hard to debate the value of a good resume, the cover letter is a far more controversial part of the modern application routine. From an employer perspective, it’s not necessarily helpful in providing accurate insight about the candidate. In fact, 68% of recruiters think cover letters are unimportant. From an applicant perspective, it can be a time-consuming step and slow the overall job search.

If both sides dislike cover letters, then why are they used at all? First, it’s important to understand where cover letters came from and why they may or may not be necessary for talent acquisition.

A Brief History of the Cover Letter

The cover letter is believed to have existed for hundreds of years, with speculation that Leonardo da Vinci wrote the first-ever cover letter in the 1480s when he applied to work for the Duke of Milan, Ludovico Sforza. In it, he described his eagerness to work for the Duke and listed his applicable skills and the ideas that he would implement if hired for the role. You can read the full letter here. Not only did his cover letter get him the job, but it also led him to be commissioned by Sforza to paint The Last Supper.

Although the subject matter of da Vinci’s cover letter may not be relevant to today’s workforce, the structure and talking points he includes are still commonly used. This similar format has been present throughout history in one form or another, and for many, it is weighed as heavily as the resume itself in determining a candidate’s worth.

Should You Require a Cover Letter?

While the cover letter worked for Leonardo da Vinci, how necessary are cover letters in 2022? Due to the unique demands of certain job roles, some hiring managers may find them to remain a necessary part of the hiring process. But for most, they’re not needed.

Cover letters are often a barrier for even talented applicants who are legitimately interested in a certain role because of the time and effort they require. Standing out in a competitive job market requires removing as many barriers as possible to allow the prospective employee to apply quickly and easily.

The best litmus test is to consider the job seeker’s perspective: if you were to find similar open roles at two different companies, would you take the time to apply to the one that requires a cover letter or one that does not?

The Alternative

In the absence of a cover letter, how can you measure a candidate’s likelihood of success? The most proven method is through scientifically valid personality tests. Simple to administer and easy to complete for the candidate, personality tests can make the hiring process more efficient and more effective.

By reducing the likelihood of bias and the potential for human error, personality tests make the hiring process more objective and improve the odds of making a successful hire. A well-validated personality test can give hiring managers insight as to how a candidate is likely to perform on an everyday basis — for example, how they will be likely to interact with others or how they will approach organisational and personal objectives.

Cover letters have served their purpose in the workplace for hundreds of years, offering applicants the opportunity to elaborate on their unique skill set beyond the limitations of a resume. However, in today’s fast-paced and competitive hiring landscape, more refined solutions for talent acquisition exist that yield better results, making cover letters a thing of the past.

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The post New Year, New Hire, Part 2: Are Cover Letters Necessary in 2022? appeared first on Peter Berry Consultancy.