The next situation happened to a candidate of mine with a former (notice the word "former") client of mine. The candidate was to fly from Cincinnati to Salt Lake City (both major Delta hubs) for an interview. What should have been a non-stop, 8-hour trip out and back turned into an 18-hour ordeal. It seems the company wanted to save a few bucks, so they scheduled a one-stop flight on the way out and a two-stop flight on the way back. That is why they immediately became "former." Folks, this does not provide a good first impression.
I had another former client who continued to blow off interviews, sometimes two and three times with the same candidate. This was in the late '90s when the candidate pool was very tight. After about three of these, I "fired" the client. But first I provided him with a lesson on etiquette and the labor pool.
I am going to pause here to remind anyone in a hiring position that candidates own the market today, not hiring companies. I have reviewed the demographics in prior columns. The bottom line is, if you take too long or continue to display insulting behavior, that candidate is going to go elsewhere.
I did some coaching for a gentleman about three years ago. He had been a vice president of sales with a three-quarter billion-dollar IBM business partner. This gentleman had been in Houston on business, had a heart attack, and flatlined in the airport. While he was in the hospital, the HR person had called him to let him know that because of company finances, he was going to have to take a pay cut. The HR person said he knew this was a bad time, but it was something he could not wait to tell him. Now that's class. Do I really need to make a suggestion on this one?
A recruiter friend of mine once had a candidate out on an interview with one of her better clients. I know this recruiter well, and she only submits "grade A" candidates. This candidate was interviewing for a VP position and interviewed with several executives. They rushed this candidate in as the candidate already had an offer in hand from a top firm. The HR person called back the next day, Friday, and said an offer would be forthcoming on Monday. He was going to write it on Saturday. Everyone, including the president/CEO, loved the candidate. Come Monday, though, no offer. When my friend finally got hold of the HR person on Tuesday, he sheepishly said there would be no offer made to the candidate. It seems that the person the candidate was replacing, who was moving to a different part of the organization, had said no. Everyone was afraid to rock the boat and go ahead with the hiring. So here's a lesson. It is probably not a good idea to have a candidate interview with the incumbent, unless the incumbent is going to be the candidate's new boss. If incumbents do have to be involved in the process, don't give them veto power. There is too great of a chance of ego getting in the way.
Now a couple of non-hiring-related situations.
This first I related to you a while back. I know of a well-known firm that is listed on the most desirable places to work list. They have a GM in one division who is the textbook version of a micro-manager, is rude and arrogant to subordinates, and can't keep subordinate managers for any length of time. And senior management knows this. They have even sent in an HR team to "do an investigation." And yet, this person has been doing this for many years and through many assignments. Why do they keep her? Because she runs great costs. Forget the cost of hiring new people, training them, and losing potentially strong managers. So here's a thought. If a manager is running "great costs" but is running off employees in droves, maybe the costs aren't all that great. In a labor market like we are in today, you can't afford to burn through employees, especially managers. Besides that, she alienated customers, which I would guess is not all that uncommon with this type of individual. Talk about lost opportunity costs.
I once worked for a Fortune 100 company in a start-up division. This division was an entrepreneurial attempt. The person they put in charge of the division was a known axe wielder and cost cutter in the mold of "Chainsaw" Al Dunlap. He was an accountant (nothing against accountants) who had spent years with the company going into operations that were bleeding money and cleaning them up. This is probably not the type of individual you want in this situation. He was also openly prejudiced.
In the words of comedian Bill Engvall, "Here's your sign."
Finally, here are some other no-no's I have seen:
- It is not a good idea to give a candidate your salary range and then expect them to settle for something below the upper level. If they do, I would doubt the quality of the candidate.
- Hiring out of desperation to fill an open slot is prone to be no more successful than a candidate taking a job simply to get away from one they currently dislike. Both situations are generally prone to failure.
- Interviewing over drinks and/or in a "gentleman's club" is not a good idea. I can think of better first impressions to give. (Believe me, though, both still happen and more frequently than you might think.)
- Firing an employee without giving counseling, documentation, etc. (unless it is for something overt like theft, sexual harassment, etc.) is stupid! Let me say it again: stupid! Nothing further needs to be said.
- Delaying reimbursement for interviewing costs to get a little cash float, because it is our policy or because "we lost it" does not leave a good impression. Instead, the hiring manager or HR should personally walk that expense report, reimbursement request, or whatever you use directly over to accounts payable with it stamped with the words "pay immediately."
- And last: I have now said this three times, so it must be important! We have a labor shortage. This is a candidate driven market. Do I make my point?
Here's wishing you terrific hunting,
Bill
About the Author
Bill Gaffney has 17 years of experience as an executive recruiter and a career coach. Bill is changing bad corporate behavior one company at a time. He can be reached at 937-567-5267 or wmgaffney@prodigy.net. For questions to be considered for this column, please e-mail askamaxa@yahoo.com.
