Hiring the right people

Here is a funny material credited to anonymity and which I got from the Web.

Have you ever had your application for a job rejected? Don’t ever let that happen again. And the next time another nasty, old rejection letter comes your way, respond with your own:

Dear [Interviewer’s Name]:

Thank you for your letter of rejection. After careful consideration, I regret to inform you that I am unable to accept your refusal to offer me employment with your firm. This year, I have been particularly fortunate in receiving an unusually large number of rejection letters. With such a varied and promising field of candidates it is impossible for me to accept all refusals.

Despite your company’s outstanding qualifications and previous experience in rejecting applicants, I find that your rejection does not meet with my needs at this time. Therefore, I will initiate employment with your firm from here on. I look forward to seeing you then.

Best of luck in rejecting future candidates.

Sincerely,

[Your Name]

“Hey HR people, what are you doing? I need help here. We are critically short of people. Couldn’t you find an applicant we can use?”

Isn’t this the typical cry of executives that HR practitioners face all the time?

And to fill up the need, an applicant is quickly interviewed, or the one the headhunter recommended is hired since his or her resume seems to indicate a lot of experience, skills and accomplishments. And in a few months, the same executives complain, “Hey HR, what are you doing? How come you gave me a loser? Don’t you know how to hire people?”

Do you know that the success of a business enterprise starts not only with the vision, passion, skills and ability of the top dog, but also in putting the right people in place?

Leadership is impossible without vision, and while a leader is both defined and limited by his or her character and competencies, leadership is ultimately a people game.

May I make a suggestion? You need to be almost religious about hiring well. Hire people for attitude, and train them for skills.

Every resume is a snapshot of the subject with makeup on. Lots of makeup, I would say. Some even say that the resume one makes is the closest thing to a fairy tale. This is why hiring people needs a lot of good and diligent work.

If you want to win by being the best customer service-oriented enterprise, you need to look for caring, fun-loving and high-spirited people who have the passion for delivering customer service. The schools your applicants come from have very little bearing in this.

Tell your applicants you are not in retail, you are not in the food business, you are not in consultancy, but you are in the customer service business. And the customer may not be right all the time, and may even be unreasonable sometimes. The question is, do they have the stomach for it?

Attitude counts. Never underestimate it.

Hiring people to fill in leadership roles is even more crucial. Attitude is important, but character is essential. Never hire somebody because of one interview or a set of references or a 360-degree review, etc. Again, those are snapshots of the subject with makeup on. Character comes out through a process.

Meet the applicant’s families. Go and see the applicant’s friends. Don’t just interview the applicant, interview the people associated with him or her, especially those who are not in the reference list.

Study the applicant under stress. How does he respond? How is his language pattern? How does he treat the people he leads?

As you do these you are no longer looking at snapshots; you are going for the video.

This is still no guarantee that you will be able to get a winner, but at least it minimizes your chances of winding up with a loser.

And what about those that are already with you? Give them attitude training. Equip them with leadership skills. Invest in their personal growth. As these people grow, they will grow your business.

Remember: a resume is a photo of the subject with makeup on, lots of it. So go for the video. And one last piece of advice: never hire people you cannot fire.

“Francis, does that include family?”

Why don’t you tell me?

(You can now receive daily inspirational quotes and thoughts from me. Text “Inspire” to 288 for Smart or Sun subscribers, and 2889 for Globe subscribers. Or visit facebook.com/franciskong 2 for more details.)