The wrong hire can cost up to 15x their annual salary, and only 14% of leaders are good at making hiring decisions. Learn why traditional interviewing doesn't work, and Praxent's proven 5-Step Process for Hiring A-Players.
2. Your digital advantage
Tim Hamilton
Founder & CEO Praxent
• Web
• Mobile
• Desktop
• IoT
Background:
Originally from South Africa
Studied Economics & MIS at
UT Austin
Interviewed ~500 since 2009
Hired 50
Software products
& platforms for
aggressive growth.
3. Your digital advantage tim@praxent.com | @TimMarkHamilon
Why talk about hiring?
• 50% - 75% of hiring decisions are
mistakes according to Brad Smart and
Peter Drucker
• Only 14% of leaders are good at
making hiring decisions
• The wrong hire can cost upwards of
15X their annual salary
4. Your digital advantage tim@praxent.com | @TimMarkHamilon
“According to 4,000 studies [and over
15,000 data points] we’ve examined,
traditional interviewing is not predictive
of job performance.”
– Geoff Smart & Randy Street
Traditional Interviewing Doesn’t Work
5. Your digital advantage tim@praxent.com | @TimMarkHamilon
SCORECARD (1-2+ hours)1
2
3
5
4
PHONE SCREENING INTERVIEW (30 min)
BIOGRAPHICAL INTERVIEW (1-2 hours)
FOCUSED INTERVIEW (1-2 hours)
REFERENCE CHECK INTERVIEW (10 min per)
Five Steps to Hiring A-Players
6. Your digital advantage tim@praxent.com | @TimMarkHamilton
Scorecard Phone Screen Bio Interview Focused Interview Reference Check
Scorecard
• Mission Statement
• 3-8 Outcomes (in order)
• Competencies
• Required Skills
• Strengths & Risks
Hire the specialist, not the
generalist.
7. Your digital advantage tim@praxent.com | @TimMarkHamilton
Scorecard Phone Screen Bio Interview Focused Interview Reference Check
“Learning beats
knowing in the new
world of work.”
– Liz Wiseman
Scorecard
• Cultural fit > skill fit
• Learning > knowing
8. Your digital advantage tim@praxent.com | @TimMarkHamilton
Scorecard Phone Screen Bio Interview Focused Interview Reference Check
Clients First
Always Deliver
Never Settle
Do It Together
Own the Outcome
Scorecard
Built around your culture: core
values and brand promise
9. Your digital advantage tim@praxent.com | @TimMarkHamilton
Scorecard Phone Screen Bio Interview Focused Interview Reference Check
Intellectual
• Intelligence
• Analysis Skills
• Judgment /
Decision Making
• Conceptual Ability
• Creativity
• Strategic Skills
• Pragmatism
• Risk Taking
• Leading Edge
• Education
• Experience
Personal
• Integrity
• Resourcefulness
• Organization /
Planning
• Excellence
• Independence
• Stress
Management
• Self-Awareness
• Adaptability
• First Impression
• Self Confidence
Interpersonal
• Likability
• Persuasion
• Assertiveness
• Communications –
Oral
• Communication –
Written
• Political Savvy
• Team Player
• Interpersonal
Awareness
Behavioral Competencies
Motivational
• Energy
• Passion
• Ambition
• Compatibility of
Needs
• Balance in Life
• Tenacity
Management
• Selecting A Players
• Training /
Development
• Goal Setting
• Empowerment
• Accountability
• Redeploying B/C
Players
• Team Building
• Diversity
• Running Meetings
10. Your digital advantage tim@praxent.com | @TimMarkHamilton
Scorecard Phone Screen Bio Interview Focused Interview Reference Check
Envision: What would a
resounding success look
like after 12 months?
Sample scorecard
11. Your digital advantage tim@praxent.com | @TimMarkHamilon
Scorecard Phone Screen Bio Interview Focused Interview Reference Check
Phone
screening
interview
• Filter out non-fit
candidates
• 20 min for your
questions, 10 min for
theirs
• 15-30-minutes total
• Trust your gut
12. Your digital advantage tim@praxent.com | @TimMarkHamilon
Scorecard Phone Screen Bio Interview Focused Interview Reference Check
What are your
career goals?
• Candidate goes first so you don’t
influence their response
• Look for authenticity, not a
regurgitation of content from your site
• Do their passions and energy align
with your company
• Are you looking for a manager or
individual contributor? What are they
looking for?
13. Your digital advantage tim@praxent.com | @TimMarkHamilon
Scorecard Phone Screen Bio Interview Focused Interview Reference Check
What are you
really good at?
• Look for at least 5 to start but
• Push for 8-12 so you can build a
complete picture of their aptitude
• Technical strengths or personal
strengths?
• Get examples to put strengths into
context
• Look for strengths that match your
scorecard
14. Your digital advantage tim@praxent.com | @TimMarkHamilon
Scorecard Phone Screen Bio Interview Focused Interview Reference Check
What are you
not good at or
not interested
in?
• Push for real weaknesses
• Say “that sounds like a strength to
me” if you get cookie-cutter
responses
• Look for 5-8 weaknesses
• How much self-awareness do you
need in the ideal candidate?
15. Your digital advantage tim@praxent.com | @TimMarkHamilon
Scorecard Phone Screen Bio Interview Focused Interview Reference Check
Who were your last five
bosses and how they
rate your performance?
• Threat of Reference Check (TORC) ask
“when” not “if”
• Ask for the spelling; this unlocks the truth
• Ask for details. “Why a 7?”
• 8’s, 9’s, 10’s positive,
• 7’s neutral
• 6 and below are bad
• What about the current boss?
16. Your digital advantage tim@praxent.com | @TimMarkHamilon
Scorecard Phone Screen Bio Interview Focused Interview Reference Check
What are your
salary expectations?
• Are we in the same ballpark?
• Remember: this step is all about
saving time by selecting the
candidates you’ll move to the next
step
17. Your digital advantage tim@praxent.com | @TimMarkHamilon
Scorecard Phone Screen Bio Interview Focused Interview Reference Check
Do you have any
questions for me?
• Look out for me-centered questions
first.
• What would the ideal candidate ask
about the company? About the role?
• The questions they ask are as telling
as their answers.
18. Your digital advantage tim@praxent.com | @TimMarkHamilon
Scorecard Phone Screen Bio Interview Focused Interview Reference Check
Kicking off the
phone screen
• 20 min for me, 10 min for you
• Permission to be candid?
• Don’t overshare before you ask the
first question
19. Your digital advantage tim@praxent.com | @TimMarkHamilon
Scorecard Phone Screen Bio Interview Focused Interview Reference Check
Getting curious with
dig deeper questions
• What, How and Tell me more
• What did you do?
• How did you feel?
• What happened next?
20. Your digital advantage tim@praxent.com | @TimMarkHamilon
Scorecard Phone Screen Bio Interview Focused Interview Reference Check
Biographical
interview
• 1-2 hours long
• Face to face or video
• Uncover patterns of the
candidate’s career history
• 15 years worth
• Look for facts and stories
not hypotheses
• Old habits die hard
• Curiosity > judgment
21. Your digital advantage tim@praxent.com | @TimMarkHamilon
Scorecard Phone Screen Bio Interview Focused Interview Reference Check
What accomplishments
are you most proud of?
• Outcomes > activities or learnings
• Do they line up with what they were
hired to do?
• Alignment with your scorecard?
22. Your digital advantage tim@praxent.com | @TimMarkHamilon
Scorecard Phone Screen Bio Interview Focused Interview Reference Check
Real Example:
What accomplishments are you most proud of?
23. Your digital advantage tim@praxent.com | @TimMarkHamilon
Scorecard Phone Screen Bio Interview Focused Interview Reference Check
What were some
low points?
• Could their frustrations from
the past recur in the future?
• Do they externalize blame?
• Do they talk negatively about
others?
24. Your digital advantage tim@praxent.com | @TimMarkHamilon
Scorecard Phone Screen Bio Interview Focused Interview Reference Check
Who were the people
you worked with?
What was it like
working together?
• Do they talk negatively about others?
• What kind of leadership do they
thrive under?
• What kind of leadership do they
struggle under?
• Do they give credit or take credit?
25. Your digital advantage tim@praxent.com | @TimMarkHamilon
Scorecard Phone Screen Bio Interview Focused Interview Reference Check
What will you boss
tell me were your
strengths & areas
for improvement?
• Do the strengths map to your
outcomes and competencies?
• Are the weaknesses create
significant risks?
26. Your digital advantage tim@praxent.com | @TimMarkHamilon
Scorecard Phone Screen Bio Interview Focused Interview Reference Check
Why did you leave
that job?
Caution: if they are thinking of
leaving their current job because
of money (or other hygiene
factor) and they are an “A-
player” they will likely stay when
their current manager gives
them a counter-offer.
27. Your digital advantage tim@praxent.com | @TimMarkHamilon
Scorecard Phone Screen Bio Interview Focused Interview Reference Check
Focused
interview
• Competency-
based questions
• Focused on the
scorecard
• Still focused on
the past
http://bit.ly/2a2eopd
28. Your digital advantage tim@praxent.com | @TimMarkHamilon
Scorecard Phone Screen Bio Interview Focused Interview Reference Check
Scorecard:
Strengths
& Risks
29. Your digital advantage tim@praxent.com | @TimMarkHamilon
Scorecard Phone Screen Bio Interview Focused Interview Reference Check
Reference
checking
interview
• 10-minutes per
reference
• Listen for what they
are not saying
31. Your digital advantage tim@praxent.com | @TimMarkHamilon
Q&A
• How to work with recruiters to source candidates?
• How to stay engaged with A-players in a hectic market like Austin?
• Thoughts on benefits and retention?
32. Your digital advantage tim@praxent.com | @TimMarkHamilon
Thank you!
Slides available at: http://bit.ly/2azSlHo