“Hire for attitude, train for skill” I’ve heard this quote so many times and from so many sources, I could not associate it with anyone anymore.
I completely agree with this. I’m sure you do too. Very few people get fired for their lack of knowledge or skill, it’s often due to lack of proper attitude for work. If you think about it, attitude seems to factor in on people knowledge or skill or the lack of them. But we don’t really hire for attitude. We hire for knowledge, skills, and experience. More for experience really and less on knowledge and skills… or we’re not really sure.
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Here’s a job post for a Java Programmer that I copied from an ad that I consider typical of how we hire. I dissected it so we can take a look at how we can ensure that we will be able to tick off all the important boxes.
To be successful in this role you will be degree qualified in IT or Computer Sciences, preferably with an Oracle/Sun java developer certificate. Your technical skills should include:
- Java / Frameworks
o Java concurrency and multi thread;
o JSP/Servlets, JDBC and XML APIs
o Java Security (e.g. PKI, digital signing and encryption)
o Tomcat
o Spring and Hibernate
· XML, DOM vs SAX, XML Namespaces, XML Schema
· Schema design, implementation, queries, DBA duties for MySQL/SQL Server, application interfacing
· Eclipse development environment
· DBMS
· Tools
· Over 4 year experience
Your experience should include standalone Java applications, Servlets, JSP and various XMLAPIs. Experience with multi-threaded programming is considered essential. We will also value your database experience with MySQL and SQL Server and experience in writing technical documentation.
Well-developed English language skills are essential. We are looking for a team player with strong problem-solving skills and a can-do attitude.
Here’s the breakdown:
Knowledge and Skills: Almost everything written in the post
Experience: College degree, 4 years of relevant experience
Aptitude: Problem Solving
Attitude: Can-do attitude, Team player
This is typical. When we post ads, we make it clear what kind of knowledge, skills, experience and aptitude we are looking for and very little on attitude.
Another point I want to make is, outside of attitude, the other requirements are easily determinable. You may quiz the candidate, and you will be able to find out if they have knowledge, skills, aptitude that you are looking for. Attitude on the other hand is hard to determine. Especially because your candidates are trying to put their best foot forward and are very careful about what they say. If you ask a candidate if he is a team player, he’d be a fool to say no!
It is for this reason that recruitment professionals including those who are responsible for making hiring decisions need to learn how to spot the necessary attitude in candidates.
Hiring for attitude is easier said than done. You have to start with figuring out what attitude you are looking for. In fact, you have to start with recognizing you can’t go all out on attitude. There are some knowledge, skills and aptitudes that should be non-negotiable. You have to recognize what they are and what kind of attitude is necessary for their effective application. For example:
Knowledge – Familiarity with Quality Control Process
Skill: – Ability to apply a quality control method
Attitude: Quality or detail-orientation
When a candidate has the right attitude towards quality, they may be able to continually grow their capabilities.
Now, the next question is, how do you identify them. When you put, knowledge, skills and attitude together, they manifest in a person’s behaviors or habits. When you investigate these habits, you will discover not just the knowledge and the skill but the attitude that drives them. They’re called competencies. It takes a skillful, interviewer or assessor to spot them. It also requires a clear description of what competencies you are looking for. It helps to learn this technique. If you are hearing this for the first time, I recommend that you look up, behavioral event interviewing or competency-based recruitment.
If you agree that you need to hire for attitude and train for skill and you don’t know where to start, call us. Let’s talk about competency modeling, competency, based recruitment, and if you wish to train for skill, competency-based learning and development.
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