Archive for Controlling Bias

Filling Generic Jobs with Generic People is a Recipe for Disappointment

Filling Generic Jobs with Generic People is a Recipe for Disappointment

It turns out that hiring outstanding talent on a consistent basis has little to do with your ATS, which job boards you use or the quality of your competency model. The process shown in the image below (PDF version) will give you consistent great results as long as you do these four things first:

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Posted in: Controlling Bias, Current Articles, Passive Candidate Recruiting, Rethinking the Job Description

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Without an EVP a Job Is Just a Job

Without an EVP a Job Is Just a Job

 If you want to hire a great person, you need to offer a great job, not a laundry-list of skills, experiences and competencies that at best is no more than an ill-defined lateral transfer surrounded by some generic boilerplate. This is even more important today with candidates leaving within 90 days after starting if the new job turns out to be more promise than substance (Fortune, May 2022).

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Posted in: Assessing Soft Skills, Controlling Bias, Current Articles, Diversity Hiring

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The ROI of Most Job Postings is Below Zero!

The ROI of Most Job Postings is Below Zero!

Few companies calculate the ROI of the effectiveness of their different sourcing channels but those that do discover referrals are the best with job boards generating more mistakes. And the cost of these mistakes is staggering wiping away the benefits of lower cost and speedier hiring.

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Posted in: Controlling Bias, Current Articles, Passive Candidate Recruiting

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Managerial Fit is the Key to Achieving More Win-Win Hiring Outcomes

Managerial Fit is the Key to Achieving More Win-Win Hiring Outcomes

It doesn’t take much research to figure out that for candidates who are hired primarily for their hard skills when they underperform it’s most often due either to their lack of soft skills, team skills or an inability to work with their hiring manager. These problems can be avoided by changing how candidates are assessed with more focus on the context of the job and the fit factors, not just their technical competency. The “how to do this properly” is fully covered in the 4th edition of Hire with Your Head (Wiley & Sons, September 2021) but the theme of hiring for the anniversary date, rather than the start date, is the real purpose of the book. This is called Win-Win Hiring.

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Posted in: Assessing Soft Skills, Controlling Bias

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Chapter 4 - Developing a Bias-Free Hiring Process

Chapter 4 - Developing a Bias-Free Hiring Process

This chapter is about controlling interviewer bias. It is the most important chapter in the book since more hiring mistakes are made due to bias than any other cause. In fact, if you read only this chapter before conducting another interview and use these techniques for overcoming bias, you'll reduce you're hiring mistakes by at least 50%. (See graphic below.)

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Posted in: Assessing Soft Skills, Controlling Bias

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Performance-based Hiring is Win-Win Hiring

Performance-based Hiring is Win-Win Hiring

As part of the fourth edition of Hire with Your Head (Wiley, September 2021) we’re starting a unique book club for those who pre-order the book. Over the next several weeks I’ll be highlighting different themes from the book. This week focuses on the idea of hiring for the long-term rather than the start date in order to achieve consistent Win-Win Hiring outcomes.

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Posted in: Controlling Bias, Current Articles, Diversity Hiring

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8 Clues You're Interviewing an Exceptional Person

8 Clues You

On September 22, 2021, the 4th edition of Hire with Your Head will be published by John Wiley & Sons. As part of the totally revised edition, I reviewed some of my favorite posts from the past few years and incorporated them in the new book. The following is a slight rewrite of one that appeared on LinkedIn’s Talent Blog a few years ago. 

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Posted in: Assessing Soft Skills, Controlling Bias, Current Articles

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Avoid This Career Limiting Mistake When Changing Jobs

Avoid This Career Limiting Mistake When Changing Jobs

Make sure you read “15 Ways to Hack-a-Job” if you’re starting to think about changing jobs. Here are 107 other job posts for job seekers that will guide you step-by-step through ensuring you compare offers properly especially how to negotiate compensation. You’ll find the condensed version in The Essential Guide for Hiring & Getting Hired.

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Posted in: Controlling Bias, Current Articles, Rethinking the Job Description

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5 Steps to Eliminate First Impression Bias and Hire the Right Candidate

5 Steps to Eliminate First Impression Bias and Hire the Right Candidate

First impression bias is the primary cause of most hiring mistakes. Why? Because when we feel good about someone right away, we tend to ask easier questions. And when we feel negative right away, we ask more difficult questions. In other words, we look (often subconsciously) to confirm our first impression.

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Posted in: Controlling Bias, Diversity Hiring

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10 Ways to Reduce Interviewer Bias

10 Ways to Reduce Interviewer Bias

In my 45+ years as a recruiter, one of the many things I’ve learned is that strangers get a bad deal when it comes to being accurately assessed during interviews. While people who are known to the hiring manager are assessed on their past performance, strangers are judged on their motivation to get the job, a bunch of generic competencies, the depth of their technical knowledge and the quality of their presentation skills. Worse, all of these factors are viewed through a biased lens filled with misconceptions and flawed logic.

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Posted in: Controlling Bias, Diversity Hiring

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5 Steps to Eliminate First Impression Bias and Hire the Right Candidate

5 Steps to Eliminate First Impression Bias and Hire the Right Candidate

First impression bias is the primary cause of most hiring mistakes. Why? Because when we feel good about someone right away, we tend to ask easier question. And, when we feel negative right way, we ask more difficult questions. In other words, we (often subconsciously) look to confirm our first impression.

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Posted in: Controlling Bias

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