Confessions of a Hiring Fail

I’ve interviewed thousands of people, and while I’ve gotten pretty darn good at assessing and selecting the right person for the job, there have been a handful of times when I completely whiffed on hiring great talent.

In those instances, I’m grateful I wasn’t the only decision-maker and that my colleagues saw what I missed. Those few people went on to become some of the best employees I’ve ever worked with, and my mistake emphasizes the subjectivity of hiring practices.

If you've been passed up for a great opportunity. Don't lose hope! There's so much variability in the interview process.

Take this client case study, for example:

I recently had a quick call with a coaching client who's in the midst of job change, at the interview stage. We've been preparing for a specific role that he’s truly meant for (as far as we can tell from our research, discussions with contacts inside the company, and the job description).

He had passed the initial recruiter screening with flying colors. The recruiter gushed about his background and said they were really excited to present him to the hiring manager, so we were super hopeful.

But, when he got to the interview last Friday afternoon, the hiring manager was EIGHT minutes late for a 30 minute interview. 🙄

When they finally joined, he noticed the hiring manager was extremely distracted. They even mentioned that they were rushing to get out the door for holiday plans, and apologized for any “family noise” in the background as their children were bustling about with packing efforts.

My client remained poised and professional, and the interview commenced. Shortly into questioning, the interviewer asked if he had specific experience with one of the main tools in the tech stack. While he has deep industry knowledge, and has picked up many similar tools over his career, he does not have practical experience with this specific tool, so he just said no.

The interviewer halted questioning and dismissed my client saying that this role was meant for someone very technical. They advised my client to spend some time learning the tool and apply next year.

(I admit, I’ve done this in an interview! Ugh, what a gut-wrenching miss on my part.😬)

Now, I get that sometimes there’s just no way a team can wait for a new hire to come up to speed on a critical piece of the tech stack.

But knowing my client well, I am certain that if the interviewer had continued the call, they would have learned how many times my client has quickly picked up new skills in the past. He’s a shining star when it comes to tenacity, autonomous learning and eagerness to succeed. He’s a go-getter even in his personal life, proving his discipline and diligence in fitness and other personal projects.

Instead of just saying no, he should have said,

“While I don’t have practical experience using that specific tool in a professional setting, I’ve researched the tool on my own outside of work and have exposure to the functionality. In other roles, I have picked up X and Y tools in the past. Because of my ability to learn quickly and autonomously, I’m confident I would come up to speed without the need of formalized training from the team.”

The hiring manager really missed out on someone who would have been an asset to their organization. What my client lacks in tool experience, he makes up for in aptitude and attitude. He would have spent nights and weekends devouring knowledge about this tool, and his desire to contribute at a high level would have resulted in wins for the company.

I share this story simply to demonstrate how the variability of an interview can affect hiring decisions. In this case, time of day (Friday afternoon), a late and distracted interviewer, and a poor answer to an easy question made the difference between landing a dream job and being discarded as unqualified.

So, if you’ve been struggling with interviews, or you’re worried about finding a new role, don't give up!

Take time to debrief with a friend (or a coach??), realign on your goals and get back to your job search strategy.

The right role for you is out there and it's meant for you. ❤️