The Cost of the Wrong Hire – Part I

Have you ever made the wrong hire?

Do you realize the real costs to your organization?

To name a few, there are the sunk costs of the hire, plus the cost to re-start the process, potential litigation in dismissing the employee, diversion of time & resources and the organizational fatigue to start the hiring process again, and finally, the negative impact on your company’s morale and reputation. You can’t afford to make another poor hire.

Even before the organization accepts that they have made the wrong hire, it can absorb up to 17% of a Manager’s time to manage a poor performing employee. That could amount to anywhere between $10,000 or more per year, not including lost productivity of the Manager.  Add all this up and the real cost of the wrong hire could be in the tens to hundreds of thousands of dollars, excluding intangibles such as company reputation, morale and lost productivity.

How to Avoid the Wrong Hire…

Competition for top talent is fierce. Hiring Managers say with consistency, “I need smart, motivated and resourceful people.” The question is, how does one uncover these traits?

While the resumes list all the candidate’s accomplishments, these are self-reported and a retrospective view of past performance within a different company. Will this new hire be successful in the new company with its unique management styles, culture, challenges, systems, goals and expectations?

A key predictor of a candidate’s success, we have found, is their attitude. To succeed in today’s ambiguous workplace, candidates must bring a high-degree of resourcefulness and ability to quickly adapt to change. Every company knows, no matter the size or industry, it needs to be agile in this ever-changing economy. Attracting top talent doesn’t always mean the smartest, but those with outstanding attitudes, high-degree of resourcefulness and adaptiveness.

The interview is not only to verify the accomplishments listed on the resume, but to access the candidates’ attitude toward their future and their career within the company seeking to hire them. This is one way experienced recruiters find the stars in the new and evolving workplace!

James F. Lynch   PhD, MBA, CSP

President

James F. Lynch PhD, MBA – Regional Personnel Services ©2017