When we talk with clients, one exercise we always do is get them to define their “3 keys”. The 3 key attributes they believe a candidate needs to have to be successful in the role they’re hiring for.
The 3 keys can be things like industry experience, technical skills, education or certification requirements, certain personality traits, or even practical details like whether they have a car or live in the area. Picking those 3 keys is a great way to narrow down what is truly essential, and what are just “nice-to-haves”.
One of the most common mistakes when hiring is having an unrealistic list of candidate requirements.
Often, hiring managers can get too caught up thinking that a person needs the whole alphabet in order to be successful, but really they only need X,Y, Z. You can end up discarding some truly remarkable candidates by being too rigid on requirements that really aren’t that important to the bigger picture.
Next time you’re hiring, sit down and really evaluate what you need from a new hire. If it’s a replacement hire, don’t just fall into the trap of using the same old job description and search for an exact copy cat. Set out your 3 keys and constantly remind yourself of them as you go through each stage of the hiring process to make sure you’re still on track.
Hiring isn’t about putting bodies in seats, it’s about building a strong and successful team that can grow the business.
