Red flags to look for during interviews!

The Economist claims that“the single biggest problem in business today is unsuccessful hiring.”  

Furthermore, the average hiring success of managers is only 50% (ghSmart).

As nonprofit leaders, we need to get hiring right in order to advance our important missions, because it’s all about WHO.

Our team at Mission Advantage recently finished reading Who, a hiring method for leaders to recruit, interview, and select A players. If you are responsible for hiring and have yet to read this book, I would highly recommend it! While the book outlines a very specific and intensive process to hire the right people, it also shares very practical tips to incorporate in your interview process to improve your success immediately. An example of this is the list of red flags (see below) to look for during interviews that indicate great potential risks. Enjoy!

·       Candidate does not mention past failures

·       Candidate exaggerates his or her answers

·       Candidate takes credit for the work of others

·       Candidate speaks poorly of past bosses

·       Candidate cannot explain job moves

·       People most important to candidate are unsupportive of change

·       Candidate has never had to hire or fire anybody

·       Candidate seems more interested in compensation and benefits than in the job itself

·       Candidate tries too hard to look like an expert

·       Candidate is self-absorbed