Hiring the right people is one of the biggest problems facing both small and large businesses alike. And, in a globalised world, in which companies have increased access to talent, knowing that you have chosen the right person is more difficult than ever. Executives and HR departments have created all sorts of evaluation techniques and dozens of metrics against which to score candidates. But these often miss out the most important thing: character. 

In a Forbes article a few years ago, Mike Myatt discussed one survey which noted that when considering a new hire, only two out of 100 senior managers and executives responded with “integrity and character” as the most important characteristics that would influence their hiring decision.

The rest used very vague or "mystifying", as he described them.  

This has not changed today. Evaluations and metrics can be a great way to supplement the hiring process, but alone they are not sufficient in determining whether a candidate is a character match for a business. The best way to assess this is through communication.

When seeking candidates, establishing a candidate’s character is my company's primary focus. Gauging somebody in this way requires having multiple conversations in order to build a complete picture of the individual at different times and in different circumstances. And keeping an eye open for certain little clues helps to establish whether a candidate is both serious and well suited for the role. For example, candidates who fail to respond on time, regularly reschedule, or otherwise stall are unlikely to be a good match.

As well as the screening process, establishing motivation, integrity, and culture fit should be the priority, with experience and knowledge being assessed in the second. When hiring, particularly for a senior role, you are delegating a lot of responsibility, and so it’s imperative that the person you chose not only has the right credentials, but also exhibits the personality traits you need. Even with all of the right qualifications and experience, with the wrong attitude, a person can do more harm to a company than good.

As Dee Hock, ex-president of Visa says,

“Without integrity, motivation is dangerous; without motivation, capacity is impotent; without capacity, understanding is limited; without understanding, knowledge is meaningless; without knowledge, experience is blind.”

Allowing character to lead your hiring process is the right approach for businesses across all industries and sizes. All employers in all industries are looking for the same thing: potential.

And the best way to gauge potential is to assess character. Only then can you be sure that a person will stick around when hard work needs to be done. 

What are your principles when hiring? How do you assess character? 

Email me your thoughts.