How to Improve Your Talent Hiring Process
Teams that are trained to interview and work together can save your company hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Business is risky. We as systems integrators get it. I have started two companies and worked in the Fortune 100 world in my two careers over the past 40+ years, as well as physical security business consulting.
Papa, mama or baby bear doesn’t matter. Finding the “just right hiring process” takes some experience and time in trying different business fits to get it “just right.” So what is “just right” for you and your company?
First is looking in the collective mirror and recognizing your team needs a haircut, facelift or lipstick. Taking a hard and objective look in that mirror is both eye-opening and instructive, if you pay attention.
Look at your warts and make sure the talent you plan to date will have a favorable first impression. Otherwise, they will run away screaming. Is there a lifeline out there?
Yep, there is. Acquiring our security industry’s greatest asset takes some serious elbow grease, discipline and most importantly a trusted process your entire team can internalize. Got talent hiring process? Don’t despair. Industry associations are looking out for you.
Pretty much all of them care, including, National Systems Contractors Association (NSCA), PSA Security Network, Electronic Security Association (ESA), ASIS and Security Industry Association (SIA). Specifically, SIA took this issue by the horns early in 2016.
Don Erickson, CEO of SIA, reached out and we had an interesting conversation about challenges the industry was having attracting, efficiently hiring and most importantly, retaining strong, new talent to fuel growth. That conversation resulted in a content development project we began in 2017 to deliver to SIA.
This was a 12 step-by-step process to show you the way. Did you know a study cited nearly 42% of new employees leave after six months? A LeadershipIQ.com survey states that 46% of new hires will fail within 18 months, while only 19% will achieve unequivocal success.
The three-year study included 5,247 hiring managers from 312 organizations that hired 20,000 people. Strong enough of a sample to pay attention to the results. Reasons for failure from hiring managers included:
- 26% did not receive feedback well
- 23% couldn’t manage or understand their emotions
- 17% just didn’t have the motivation or work ethic
- 15% did not have the right temperament for the job
- 11% lacked the necessary technical skills to do the job
What did hiring managers learn in hindsight from these startling numbers? They admitted they could have done a better job and they simply did not have time to look more carefully at the tea leaves in the cup. I get that, and have walked in those shoes … you?
The gaps of an effective interviewing process, urgency and pressure for quickly filling company resource needs, lack of qualified available candidates, and frankly the realities of running a business are daily challenges.
Is there a better way to do this and avoid the costs and pain of a poor hiring choice? There is if you are a SIA member and attending ISC West in 2020. My wife and consulting partner, Jayne, and I will be providing a session at ISC West of how to the implement the 12-step talent hiring process we designed for SIA.
This process is free to SIA members, and if you are not a SIA member this is a darn good reason to consider joining in 2020. I have found in my long career that participating with worthy industry associations through volunteer participation and leadership separates those that are in the game versus those on the sidelines. Your team has thought leaders, get them in the game!
The good news is those company thought leaders that lead by their work ethic and example make excellent recruiters, interviewers (with some training) and potentially mentors. They can intuitively recognize candidates that fit the culture, work ethic and pace your company needs to grow.
If they are not sure or if they have a bias, share concerns with an interview team. Teams that are trained to interview and work together can save your company hundreds of thousands of dollars and more importantly, protect your company brand from “pretenders” that will hurt it without you ever knowing it happened. Very scary indeed.
Join us for our session at ISC West 2020. We welcome the opportunity to meet you, share our thoughts, and gain your feedback and experiences. Get involved in our security industry to make it better.
[Ed. note: Educational sessions for the rescheduled ISC West have not yet been confirmed.]
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About the Author
Paul Boucherle, SSI Contributor
Paul C. Boucherle, Certified Protection Professional (CPP) and Certified Sherpa Coach (CSC), is Security Sales & Integration’s “Business Fitness” columnist. A principal of Matterhorn Consulting, he has more than 30 years of diverse security and safety industry experience including UL central station operations, risk-vulnerability assessments, strategic security program design and management of industry convergence challenges. Boucherle has successfully guided top-tier companies in achieving enhanced ROI resulting from improved sales and operational management techniques. He is a charismatic speaker and educator on a wide range of critical topics relating to the security industry of today and an accomplished corporate strategist and marketer whose vision and expertise in business performance have driven notable enterprise growth in the security industry sector.
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