Friday, March 18, 2011

A few years ago I was invited by a non-profit's senior leader to help the new CEO create a strategy since he had just been hired. The CEO bragged that he'd hired a coach to help him get the job – which he was hired for. To my horror, it became clear the CEO had blatantly lied during the hiring process, posing as the perfect candidate. New to the city, he thought this position would provide a springboard to for-profit positions. I realized the whole scheme and alerted the senior executive predicting that the CEO would leave soon. He stayed for about nine months and left for a for-profit position.

How could the non-profit have become aware of the candidates' true intentions? Could they have figured out his underlying motives prior to hiring? Should the coach have mentored the candidate differently?

Here are some lessons learned for organizations in the process of hiring top talent:

1. Have several interviewers interview the candidate: The best hiring processes involve a series of interviews with an opportunity to discuss each candidate by the end of the interviews. Standardize questions for all interviewers and, at the same time, provide interviewing time so as to have an opportunity to learn more about the candidate first-hand. If you are at lunch and the candidate smiles at you but has an arrogant attitude toward the waiter, see the flags for what they are, even if the candidate looks great on paper.

2. Beware standardized tests: Savvy candidates will know how to answer poignant questions out of experience. It will be difficult for them to hide their true nature in direct interaction. Interviewing is an art: some interviewers will be able to read between the lines, whereas others will take what the candidate says point blank. In the case of this CEO, if this candidate had a history of being a leader in the for-profit world, it would had been appropriate to challenge an answer such as: "I am really interested in exploring non-profit opportunities." Inquire about underlying reasons for significant change.

3. Coaching or not coaching a candidate: Good coaches can help people improve and have good interviews. Great coaches will help candidates be themselves and not pretend to be someone that they are not during interviews. Great therapists avoid doing therapy to psychopaths: they get better at deceiving others. Many leadership coaches have had situations of making tough decisions with their paying clients. By the end of the day, though, those consultants who will always do what's right will be able to best help their client and the company to which they are applying.

4. Avoid hiring someone exactly like the outgoing leader: The skills and talents of a leader who has been within an organization for decades may have been great during the years that they led the company. Analyze what the company needs today with an eye on the future and picture the best or ideal candidate based on the skills you believe to be significant now. Look at the candidate's past experience and their well of knowledge to do the job. Do you currently need someone to maintain what has been achieved or do you need someone to grow the company right away? Do you need to keep the status quo or do you need to bring in significant change to the organization?

5. Look at their past as a blueprint for the future: Although the past does not always predict the future, it can give us a good idea of the trend. If someone has always taken positions in finance and they suddenly want to go into sales, inquire about this sudden change. A talented singer may be going into finance because she always liked numbers (music and number areas are very similar in our brains) but try to ensure that your understanding of the candidate and his and her decisions make sense to you.

Gabriela Cora, MD, MBA. Dr. Gaby Cora is a leadership and well-being consultant to corporations in critical situations and to transitioning leaders of multi-million dollar family businesses. Some of her clients include the Coca-Cola Company, Pfizer Pharmaceuticals, Blue Bunny, Home Financing Center, and Universal Group. She's the author of ExecutiveHealth.com's Leading Under Pressure (Career Press, 2010).