MightyRecruiterThe first thing you should keep in mind is that both you and a job candidate may be unaware he or she is a performance saboteur. The reason for this is over the years we develop mindsets and mental patterns that can both help us and hurt us. This is why you should include a special assessment as part of the hiring process in order that you have advance warning of who could perform poorly on the job.
Positive Intelligence Quotient
Positive Intelligence Quotient assessments are available online and are a great means of spotting candidates for performance saboteurs. What the test does is determine how likely an individual’s ingrained mindsets are to serve as assets and how likely they are to be detrimental. Ideally, you’ll want candidates to score at least a 76.
Use the Interview to Determine Potential Performance Saboteurs
By asking the right questions and determining what a candidate considers a strength, you can learn more about the disadvantages of those perceived strengths. For instance, if someone says he or she has an eye for detail, it might also mean he or she is a bit of a perfectionist, which can erode productivity. While you want work to be done according to certain guidelines, employees need to realize there’s only so much time that can be spent on one task before they have to move on to another. Another way to weed out candidates for performance saboteurs is to keep an eye out for confident leaders who could also be a bit more controlling than you’d like. These individuals might rub some of your employees the wrong way and be perceived as bullies.
Pick Through the Resume
Rather than waiting a few seconds before interviewing an applicant to look at his or her resume, give yourself more time. Don’t just note the level of education, past jobs and positions held, read between the lines of the information you’ve been given. For instance, does the applicant seem to go through jobs like tissue paper, or does he or she remain with a company for several years? Candidates for performance saboteurs may also go for long periods of time without employment and not have a good reason for the gap. You should also look for signs of upward career growth and indications that the candidate may be content with lower level positions. Yet another reason to give yourself plenty of time to look over a resume is so that you can follow up and ask questions if necessary.
Develop Detective Skills
It’s best that you refrain from the ïtell me about yourselfï approach to interviewing candidates, because doing so gives most of the control to the person being interviewed, which is unlikely to give you the results you need. You’ll also want to steer clear of asking interviewees how they handle stressful situations, mainly because this may only reveal how combative a candidate is. To better determine candidates for performance saboteurs, you and your company will be better off with an interview that is both relaxed and focused more on details. The way to do this is to focus on specific situations in the workplace rather than concentrate on the applicant’s work as a whole. While learning more about the individual, be sure to note any resume inconsistencies. Consider how forthright or evasive responses are, whether the person still seems to hold a grudge over past grievances and if he or she has positive things to say about old jobs.
Be Honest on Your End
You can’t blame a person for not performing as expected if you aren’t forthright and honest about the job she or he will be performing. While you want to accentuate the positive aspects of your company, you want to make sure you do so honestly. Specifically, you’ll want to make sure you’re upfront about how long employees are expected to work on a day-to-day basis and whether your company is laid back or high pressure. For more tips on separating great candidates from performance saboteurs and finding all-star hires, check out the articles and tools offered by Mighty Recruiter.