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Subject:What to look for in an employee - summary From:Bruce Byfield <bbyfield -at- AXIONET -dot- COM> Date:Sat, 15 Nov 1997 21:18:06 -0500
A couple of weeks ago, I posted, asking people what they look for when
hiring an employee.
Now that I've hired an employee (and sent generations of trade unionist
ancestors revolving in their graves), I thought I should summarize the
responses I received:
--Check references,
--Since people rarely give bad references, look for enthusiasm and try
to pin down why the referees are enthusiastic about the candidate.
--Verify that candidate's samples are their own by asking questions
about their roles.
--Look for candidates who can talk to you about their past projects and
are eager to do so. If they can't do so, their writing may be fine, but
they may be hard to work with.
--Be clear in your own mind about how quickly you want the writer to
become effective and how much training you can give them.
--If possible, introduce candidates to some of the people they will be
working with, and see if they'll fit in.
--Ask about their best 3 bosses and worst 3 bosses. The answer may tell
you what their work habits are and what work environments they fit into.
--Test your candidates for flexibility
--Decide whether the writer has empathy with the reader.
What struck me about all the replies is that the things that many
non-writers look for, such as formal certification or tool knowledge,
were barely mentioned.
Also, every reply emphasized personality and ability to work in a team.
Maybe everyone assumed that competence would be checked as a matter of
course, but I think that, in most cases, people were emphasizing what
they thought most important.
Anyway, my thanks to everyone who replied. I learned a few things, had
some vague ideas made clear, and went into the process feeling much more
confident than I would have otherwise, and made, I think, a sound
choice.
