H U M A N R E S O U R C E S
Evert Akkerman
Photo courtesy of Evert Akkerman
a week, saying that the volume was too
high. This is why specifics are important:
Candidate No. 1 may interpret “high vol-ume”
as 25 patients a day, and Candidate
No. 2 may consider it to be 30 to 40, while
the reality was up to 90 patients per day. In
subsequent interviews, the question was
changed to, “Volume here is typically 90
calls and patients per day. What’s it like
in your clinic?” To be even more specific,
this information was incorporated into the
offer of employment and job description.
There are scores of business owners
who consider themselves excellent inter-viewers
and there’s nothing anyone could
possibly teach them. They’re James Bond in
a messy office and have been making split-second
hiring decisions for years because
“they can tell, just by looking at people.”
They know everything there is to know
about HR, and what value does it add
anyway – it’s payroll and birthday cakes,
right? They go through a series of random
conversations moonlighting as interviews
without taking notes and a week later can’t
remember anything about Candidate No. 4
except that they drove a rusty car and didn’t
know the difference between Chardonnay
and Carménère.
Human nature being what it is, peo-ple
find comfort in familiarity and routine.
When it comes to interviewing, employers
cling to outdated, flawed techniques, even
when these haven’t worked before. Most
people have heard of questions like, “If you
could be an animal, which would you want
to be?” and, “Which three things would
you bring to a desert island?” Candidates
may be able to field such questions, but
their answers have no predictive value. If
people want to be a purple squirrel for a
day, good for them, but that doesn’t qualify
them to be a cellar worker, winemaker or
taproom server.
So, for better results, start with
the basics:
1. Create a job description that reflects
what the job needs to do for the
business. This document outlines
key tasks, skills, qualifications
and expectations.
2. Write a job posting that reflects the
key points of the job description, and
post this on the company website and
one or more job boards.
3. Screen applications and short-list
candidates who closely
match the requirements.
4. Conduct structured interviews, which
entail asking each candidate the same
questions based on the requirements
of the job, talking about competencies
and key outcomes that are specific
and measurable, taking detailed notes,
scoring candidates’ answers and then
comparing them.
This approach will greatly increase
the chances of a successful hiring decision,
which should be based on the candidate
with the best score. If choosing candidate
No. 2 or No. 3, a reason for bypassing
No. 1 will be required. In either scenario,
there will be a documented decision. This
enhances the credibility and transparency
of the entire process.
It takes a focused effort to produce
job descriptions, but once these are in
place, recruiting becomes much easier.
Addressing key elements of the job in inter-views
increases the chance of matching
the right person with the job, which will
directly impact a company’s growth and
profitability. Don’t expect to build a great
business and an innovative culture with
nice people who are miscast in their roles
and content with the status quo. There’s a
lot to be gained, and with a bit of help from
HR, it’s entirely feasible.
Evert Akkerman is an HR professional based
out of Newmarket, Ont., and founder of XNL
HR. He can be reached at info@xnlhr.com.
In small and mid-size companies,
it’s rather commonplace to see
a relative of the owner handling
the books, payroll and HR.
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