ESTIMATED READING TIME – 4:00
Learning goals for this activity
– Understand why equipping your leaders to land top talent is important to talent optimization. – Be able to list and describe the four steps associated with using a methodical and analytical approach. – Describe best practices for selecting interview team members and preparing them for the interview process. – Recognize recommended people data to collect to help you make the best hire. – Describe how people data can help you objectively prioritize candidates and create targeted interview questions.Why equipping your leaders to land top talent is important to talent optimization
To win the war for talent, your leaders must be fully invested in driving the hiring process from screening candidates to leading interview teams. When hiring managers place the wrong people in roles, employees are left to languish doing work that’s a poor behavioral or cognitive fit. But when you train your hiring managers to use people data in the hiring process, they’re able to use the resulting strategic insights to make smart and objective hiring decisions. This activity requires taking a methodical and analytical approach, and includes the following four steps:- Assemble the interview team.
- Collect objective data about candidates.
- Prioritize which candidates to interview.
- Conduct candidate interviews.
1. Assemble the interview team.
Think of the interview team members as empowered representatives of your organization, each tasked with evaluating a unique aspect of the applicant’s candidacy. You want a diverse team that’s composed of the hiring manager, people who work closely with this role, maybe someone who currently does the role, and someone who can interview the applicant about culture fit. The hiring manager should create an interview plan that clearly identifies the topics each interview team member should cover to reduce redundancy. This map can be as simple as a Word or Google doc. The goal is to make the interview process as streamlined and organized as possible. The quality of the candidate’s interview experience will greatly influence their decision to accept or reject your offer should you choose to make one.2. Collect objective data about candidates.
Most organizations ask candidates to supply a resume and work history. But to make the best hire, you need to go beyond that minimum requirement. The data you need to collect from each candidate is:
- Knowledge
- Skills
- Education
- Behavioral profile
- Cognitive ability
- Values
1 in 5 execs said their company does not have an effective, repeatable process for hiring candidates.
-State of Talent Optimization Report
As discussed previously, measurement options for collecting this people data range from simple questionnaires to robust platform solutions. Choose the collection method that’s the right fit for your needs.