Deck from LAUNCH conf Sydney 2018 Hire, Fire, Reward, Repeat.

1. Hire, Fire,
Reward, Repeat.
Maren Kate Donovan | maren@avratalent.com | @marenkate

2. Reward

3. Decide what you’re going to reward,
then create a culture of extreme
ownership around it.

4. 28%
32%
40%
Reward
f
L
$
Reward
Learning from
Failure
Reward What
Ma6ers Most
Reward Extreme
Ownership
Aligning
Incentives
Life<me Value?
New User Growth?
Topline Revenue?
Innova<on?
Client Happiness?
Tap into each person’s full
poten<al by crea<ng an
environment of radical
responsibility

5. Resources
by Ray Dalio
by Liz Wiseman and Greg Mckeown
Principles
Mul<pliers
V
h6ps://hbr.org/2005/07/learning-­‐in-­‐
the-­‐thick-­‐of-­‐it
AMer Ac<on
Report

6. Hire

7. Want to Hire Well? Follow the
process, every time.

8. Beware of Biases
Confirma<on Bias
Without meaning to, we oMen
create an image of what our ideal
candidate looks like, then seek
confirma<on of our preconceived
no<on. This could be anything
from what a candidate physically
looks like to what school they
a6ended, or even how their name
is spelled.
“Harvard MBA. 1 of the first 10
people at [hot startup]. Managed a
team during explosive growth of X
Co.” These snippets can create an
expecta<on anchor that will oMen
lead to them bypassing a proper
inves<ga<on of the candidate’s
background, references, and skills.
This oMen comes from someone
looking, smelling, or sounding a
certain way that makes us
posi<vely associate them with our
mental framework of what success
looks like. This leads to bias in
hiring both the right people, and
diverse talent, because our
intui<on is shaped only by our
personal life experiences.
5 ;?
Anchoring Intui<on

9. Develop Objective
Outcomes
Don’t look think of “who” you want, think of “what”
outcomes a successful hire will achieve
Operations
Assistant
Crea4ng Dossiers
for Execu4ve’s final screens
20/100
Processing bill.com
to keep cash flow up to date
10/100
Preparing invoices
15/100
Researching vendors
and reques4ng propos
25/100
Crea4ng Contracts for 1099 Workers
25/100
Coordina4ng Travel to free up Execu4ves 4me
5/100

10. Create a Compelling Job Description
Y
Q
A good job <tle should give a nod to what the
role consists of, peak the interest poten<al
candidates and give a sense of what type of
experience is required.
A Descrip<ve Job Title
Professional skills and competencies, or
specialized knowledge a person must. Quali<es
are personal and help you understand the
candidate as a culture fit.
Required skills + quali<es
o
z
Part of a job descrip<ons job is to sell a poten<al
candidate on not only the why of the role, but the
why of the company.
Compelling Company Mission
Who is this person repor<ng to? Clarify the high-­‐
level mission for a par<cular role and develop no
more than a paragraph that describes WHY that
role exists.
Why this role exists

11. Build out Your Recruiting Funnel
Zip Recruiter
Angel List
Behance/Dribbble
Craiglist
Filling the Funnel
Cast a wide net when you post your job descrip<on. Though
depending on the level of hire, pay, area you’re located in,
etc. you may need to do outbound recrui<ng as well.
College Job Boards
K
K
K
K
K

12. The Interview Process
Test Project
or Working
Session
Sometimes paid,
or in person.
In-person
Interview
Ideally with 2-3
people in a row,
who are working of
a job scorecard.
Initial Phone
Screen
Follow a script of
questions for this.
Test Task
Depending on role,
try to keep it under
an hour or two.
Application
• Cover Letter
• Resume
• Profile links
• Written Screen
Questions

13. Always Check References!
Reference Check
Speaking to seven references is the
ideal amount. 3 Past bosses, 2 past
peers, 2 past subordinates or
customers.
Decision
Don’t doddle when it comes to
making a decision.
Past Bosses
Past Peers
Past Subordinates

14. Resources for Hiring
(Chapters on hiring specifically)
Who: The A Method for Hiring
From Impossible to Inevitable
h6ps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_cogni<ve_biases
h6ps://www.eeoc.gov/laws/types/
List of Cogni<ve Biases
Equal Employment Opportunity Laws
V
hNp://geoffsmart.com/smarNools/
h6p://geoffsmart.com/smar6ools/

15. Fire

16. Knowing how to fire well, is just as
important as knowing how to hire
well.

17. The Termination Playbook
a
Give them a heads up. Explain to the employee where they are falling short and
how they can improve. Be as specific as possible.
a
Don’t fire on Fridays. It takes away the opPon for the, now former, employee to
immediately start looking for a new role by reaching out to their network during
the workweek.
a
Be human. Remembering the golden rule in this stage of firing well is vital. How
would you want to be treated if the tables were turned?
a
Be more generous than necessary. Remember a terminated employees will tell
others about their experience, via social media, word of mouth, or Glassdoor.
a
Review past feedback. If the employee has only received posiPve reviews, you
need to outline, in wriPng, how they’re not meePng expectaPons and what they
can do to change.

18. Hire slow, fire fast. Especially with
vendors + external firms.

19. Resources
by Jim Collins
h6ps://goo.gl/PMcQv7
Good to Great
SHRM: How to Fire Someone
without gemng SuedV

20. Conclusion
3 Steps to People-­‐Powered Competitive Advantage
a
Decide on what you’re going to reward, then create a culture of
extreme ownership around it.
a
Want to Hire Well? a the process, every 4me.
a
Knowing how to fire well, is just as important as knowing how to hire
well.

21. Hire, Fire,
Reward, Repeat.