One of a leader’s key tasks is to surround themselves with people they can work well with - people who are fundamentally good. In every sense of the word.
For a long time, I’ve asked my colleagues involved in the selection process to only let me meet candidates at the very end. By then, the candidate should have received approval from every professional and non-professional decision-maker.
These meetings aren’t interviews - they’re conversations. A mutual exchange to determine if we’re sitting across from a good person.
From my perspective, it’s about deciding if I’m comfortable with them representing my company - which ultimately means representing me. From their perspective, it’s about deciding if they’re comfortable representing my company and, by extension, me.
But who qualifies as a “good person”?
I’ve had colleagues who achieved outstanding professional results in a short time, yet we let them go because their behavior toward coworkers was unacceptable.
Over the years, I developed a simple formula that saves the team a lot of time and energy. It ensures that only genuinely well-intentioned candidates make it to the interview stage. Here’s the formula:
Only bring someone through this door if you would confidently call them, in your absence, and ask them to take your mother to the hospital.
No matter how many resources, funds, or power our company possesses, its true value lies in its people.
