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Hiring for Fit – Finding the Pattern to Match

To use the word fit by itself means nothing. It goes without saying that if something is to be a good fit then there must be some sort of defined pattern that the fitted thing must match. In the context of hiring people for fit, the matching pattern is the group of people that are already part of the organization. Hiring indiscriminately will almost always insure a misfit. Hiring clones to match the existing body of employees may ease the stress of introducing something different, but if you continue to do the things you have always done, nothing will change. Sometimes the goals of an organization need to be altered in order to change course, but change will almost always be met with resistance. Newton’s First Law of Motion states that a physical object either is at rest or moves at a constant velocity unless acted upon by an outside force. In the non-physical realm, management provides the outside force.

It is usually not advisable to force a square peg into a round hole. If you really need for the square peg to fit, there are only two alternatives: alter the shape of the peg or change the shape of the hole. For a company to move in a different direction requires that someone in a management position plans for change and introduces non-clones using a structured approach. There are two ways to drastically change the work environment and the method selected depends on the urgency for change. In order to fit people with different experiences and potential into the organization there must either be an awareness of the non-clones that they are implements of change or there must be a gradual change to the workforce to accept the new direction. Either way requires detailed communication so that all involved know the desired direction.

There is another interesting side effect of broadcasting that change is on the horizon. It may not be necessary to go outside to find the right person for the job. Searching internally may reap unsuspected rewards. A good leader will allow employees to grow and provide challenges that will allow them to rise to the occasion. In a culture that encourages personal career growth there will always be new ideas that are the result of removing any obstacles to intellectual growth. If there is a close internal match to the desired growth direction, providing training that offers new opportunities will show a greater ROI than hiring externally and paying for a learning curve to acclimate to the culture. Also soliciting referrals from employees will usually discover external candidates with a better fit than traditional sourcing techniques.

The key to insuring that the company is hiring candidates that are a good fit is to have everyone engaged toward one goal: hire for tomorrow and not just for today. Once management has decided on the proper direction, planned the necessary steps to get there, and communicated this plan to the workforce, it should only be necessary to occasionally check results to insure everything is on track. Once placed in motion Newtonian physics takes over again and it is necessary for management to be ready to step in if a course correction is needed… as a last resort. This emphasizes again the necessity for prior planning in order to prevent having to undo the undoable.

 

Image credit: chianim8r / 123RF Stock Photo

 

1 thought on “Hiring for Fit – Finding the Pattern to Match”

  1. Pingback: Hiring for Fit – Send In the Clones » Make HR Happen by Tom Bolt

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