How To Hire Superstars

Can a person's behavior and values really determine if they will be a future SuperStar for your company? If you knew the formula for hiring SuperStars and could cut your recruiting costs in half, would you start today? This article outlines three simple but critical steps for adding structure to your hiring process and raising your level of success.

Strengthening the interview process: Prepare a consistent written interview game plan, to be used by each person conducting the interviewing for your company. Prior to the first interview, carefully review each resume looking for any gaps or red flags that need to be resolved in the interview. Then, identify the values and behaviors of the SuperStars currently employed by your company and use this important data to develop your interview questions to probe for these special attributes. Next, prepare a list of questions to be asked by each person in the interview process, as these questions should focus on the key success factors at your company. For example, if your company is "performance driven", then the behaviors or critical success factors you want to listen for must be consistent with these characteristics. Lastly, make sure your interview plan includes how to do effective reference checks.

Tip From The Coach: Remember, the single best predictor of future behavior is past behavior and what people have done is less important than who they are. Be certain to conduct multiple interviews as few people reveal enough about themselves in one session. In addition, spend only 20 percent of the interview talking, so you can spend the rest of the interview "listening" for behavior and critical success factors.

Recruiting close to home: It takes a special kind of person to be a SuperStar and the people who are, tend to spend time (personally and professionally) with people like them. So, consider your current employees as your best recruiting source, as they understand the soul and spirit of your company. Some of our clients hire 50 percent of all new employees from employee referrals and it makes for very cost effective recruiting.

Tip From The Coach: Consider some form of cash incentive or special award to those who refer new employees to your company. Your appreciation will go a long way in helping to find future SuperStars and will enhance team spirit. However, just because a current employee recommends a person, doesn't change your employment process.

Using powerful assessment tools: In addition to the traditional interview steps, use written assessment(s) to validate your interview process. This kind of tool can be custom-built for your company and will "benchmark" the behavior and values of your current SuperStars for each key position within your company. By using this benchmark you will be able to compare the behavior and values of each new hire to your current SuperStars and numerically be able to compare any variances, before you finalize your hiring decisions.

Tip From The Coach: Once a benchmark has been developed for your company, the accuracy of your hiring will greatly improve. This benchmark will also help to reduce employee turnover, increase morale and solidify your company's position as a market leader. While there are many types of assessments, it is critical to use validated instruments in your hiring process.

Want to learn more about using assessment tools in the hiring process? Fax a note on your letterhead to 435-615-8670 and The Coach will fax you a two-page behavior and values assessment form which can be completed in ten minutes or less. Complete both pages and fax your assessment forms back to our office at 435-615-8670. In return, you will be confidentially sent an 18 page assessment* (a $150 value) outlining your unique behavior styles/values. In addition, once you receive your assessment we will schedule a 45-minute call (a $250 value) to review your results and to explain how this tool will help you hire SuperStars. In summary, hiring SuperStars is vital to the success of your company?why not do it right the first time? [* A small processing/analysis fee of $25 will be assessed, limit one per company]

Author's note: Ernest F. Oriente, The Coach, is the founder of PowerHourŽ a professional business coaching/recruiting service and the author of SmartMatch Alliances?. He has spent 17,500 hours [since 1995] delivering customized training, by telephone, in leadership, traditional/Internet marketing and sales for fast growing sales companies and entrepreneurial businesses worldwide. PowerHourŽ specializes in global distance learning by telephone, using their state-of-the-art conference call system for interactive and dynamic TeleForums. Twice-monthly TeleForums link 10-100 executives/professionals/individuals who are geographically dispersed, in a time efficient and profitable format.

PowerHourŽ is based in Olympic-town?Park City, Utah, at 435-615-8486, by E-mail ernest@powerhour.com or visit their TeleForum website: http://www.powerhour.com. To receive a FREE success newsletter, with subscribers in 74 countries, send an E-mail to: ernest@powerhour.com. Recent PowerHourŽ articles have appeared in 4000+ business/trade publications and websites.