Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/276151
[ 52 ] HRO TODAY MAGAZINE | MARCH 2014 Is Anyone Perfect? Training potential leaders trumps enduring the endless search for perfection. By Rob Romaine Until a few years ago, prospective Google employees had to endure a hiring process that could involve more than 10 interviews. The length of the hiring process created an ordeal for hiring managers, frequently causing the company to lose top talent to its competitors. The longer that the candidates were on hold, the more time they had to get another job offer or accept a counteroffer. Two years ago, Google overhauled its process. The company now has a very data-driven interviewing process. After reviewing their analytics, Google found that they didn't feel more confident about whether a candidate was a good fit for a position after four interviews. Five interviews is their max, but four interviews is their sweet spot. The process now takes on average about 45 days to hire. While Google's previous 10-interview process is extreme, many companies employ a multi-step interviewing and hiring process. Reasons include: • To avoid hiring mistakes • To ensure candidates have every quality in job description; • The need for specific, specialized skillsets; and • Old hiring habits die hard. Organizations need to realize that lengthy interviewing processes are no longer effective in today's executive, managerial, and professional job market. This space is largely candidate driven with a small talent pool. Top candidates tend to be courted by multiple companies at once, giving them many options at their disposal. Because the supply of top candidates is small and highly sought after, employers have to act quickly to ensure attaining in top picks and avoid losing them to competitors. Perfect Doesn't Exist Organizations that insist candidates perfectly match all the job requirements and wait for that "perfect" candidate often overlook talented individuals who, with a little coaching and training, might be the best fit for the job and become a leader within the company in the long term. Employers can qualify a candidate's leadership potential by inquiring about: Talent Acquisition