Recently, I was interviewed by business coach Charrise McCrorey. Below is an excerpt of the interview, I thought you may enjoy:
Charrise McCrorey: What is the process for finding and hiring people that are a cultural fit when you have a new position available?
Ryan Poterack: My first thought is I’ve got to have a good feeling in my gut. Some may think that’s not transferrable, I think it is absolutely transferrable. Every single person on the planet gets a gut visceral reaction when they come into contact with another individual in some fashion – phone, in-person, whatever –and if that gut reaction really has any negativity to it, I believe you should probably just turn the page and say next.
In most cases though, gut reaction is a neutral or a positive. Personally, I have a vision, mission, and core values that guide me…they are the basis for all of my hiring decisions. Being very straightforward with people in a first interview about those core values - particularly in the area of candor and personal responsibility - and challenging them on those values, is very important. I also ask many question that don’t turn up on typical interviews. It’s not the answer that I’m focused on; it’s how quickly and how sincerely they answer the question. Their reaction more than their actual answer means a lot to me.
If a person answers my question with a question of their own….well, that gains a little more of my respect! Not only is answering a question with a question a way to validate the understanding, but, if done properly, it complements the person asking the question. It can also buy the person time to formulate their decision –and that can be done in an instant, in 5 to 7 seconds and tells me that this person knows how to communicate and interact in a way that I would define as thinking correctly. I pay attention to confidence and eye contact and all that stuff but in the end, it comes down to – really – can they handle surprise and chaos? If so, we may have a winner.
Ryan Poterack is a business owner located in Charlotte, NC.
