Background:
In a recent search for the perfect candidate for their sales team, an OSR client seemingly found precisely that. A fantastic interviewer with a sparkling resume, this particular candidate clearly stood out from the field with their impressive knowledge of the MSP world, and ability to communicate in industry terms. Talking up their experience, the candidate even offered, unprompted, to do their MSP sales presentation on the spot during the interview process. With an apparent perfect fit in front of them claiming that any former employer would attest to them being a model employee, the client heavily weighed not doing the background check and simply declaring their search over. But as soon as the investigation portion of the hiring process began, a checkered history emerged. The candidate’s adamant assertions that their driving record was clean were valid, but upon reaching out to multiple former employers, they all insisted that the individual in question was not re-hirable. Upon further inquiry, it was also revealed that the candidate had lied on their resume and left out multiple companies that they had also worked for in the past to hide their disastrous track record.
Analysis:
Because hiring a new employee can be a tedious and stressful process, many companies risk making the mistake of placing inordinate importance on the interview process. They become enamored with candidates that display attractive personality traits and impressive communication skills and underestimate the effectiveness of references and referrals. But getting the full picture of a candidate can reveal aspects of their job performance and work ethic that interviews are ineffective at highlighting. This misstep is potentially costly. When you combine recruitment and training costs, the disruption to workflow, and possible litigation or severance fees, a bad hire can cost a company as much as $50,000. In a recent interview, Zappo’s CEO Tony Hsieh estimated that bad hires cost his company “well over $100 million” over the years. This means hiring the wrong person isn’t just a minor inconvenience; it’s a threat to business.
Conclusion:
In assessing whether a candidate is a great fit, it’s important to trust but verify. By ignoring the value of references and referrals, employers risk damaging the company’s reputation and bottom line. Contacting former employers and doing a thorough background check gives companies a clear picture of the candidate as a whole and provides an outside opinion on actual job performance and day-to-day effectiveness as an employee rather than just a snapshot of their ability to interview effectively. Ultimately, this process saves the company time and money. In this case, a company made the correct choice and protected their organization by resisting the urge to cut short the due diligence process and conducting a proper investigation of the candidate’s work history and personal background.
With OSR Coaching, we can assist you with your hiring process to make sure you get the full picture of every candidate you consider. Our thorough approach to finding the right hire will help you build a team that is as passionate and dedicated as you are to achieving your ambitious growth goals.