We heard this quote a long time ago. Simon Sinek mentioned something similar to it recently, and it went by viral. Do I agree? Should we really hire for attitude and train for skill? Yes, I agree! A lot of you would agree too if it’s not so darn difficult to do!
I’ve been a recruitment professional for many years. I’ve facilitated the hiring of entry level people, to key executives for various organizations. How many times was I able to really, really apply hire for attitude, and train for skill? Very few. Very few! It is also hard to sell the idea of having organizational leaders choose people for their attitude, if the skill is not yet there. I dream of a day when this becomes the norm rather than a rarity. I’ll tell you why.
Tons of research and success stories prove that attitude is the main reason for success. We’ve been enthralled with people who beat the odds and beat more capable competitors because of their perseverance and will to win. On the other hand, very few employees get fired because of lack of skills. It’s often because of poor attitude. In fact, lack of knowledge and skills are possibly a manifestation of poor attitude. Why then do companies who probably mouth this phrase can’t do it? They can’t hire for attitude and train for skills. There are two major challenges; they don’t know how to hire for attitude, and they have no system in place for training for skills. The chart below should explain what I mean.
I believe there’s huge benefit to be had with following this hiring mantra. But there’s just so much work to be done to make it happen:
- Companies need to invest in developing HR’s competencies so they can do a more thorough profiling of positions to describe what kind of knowledge, skills, attitude and habits necessary for succeeding on the job
- Companies need to take talent development to the next level by identifying the needed capabilities and establish programs that help people achieve their full potential in the organization.
- Let’s add to the mix the need for the country’s education to shape up in designing character-building programs into our education system.
I fully understand how “hiring for attitude and training for skills” is easier said than done. There is the urgency of the business demands that force us to look for people who are immediately ready to do work. There is also the risk of investing in people and losing them to competition. A Competency-based approach is a good starting point, but a novel strategy is needed to make people with more positive and productive outlook available. Otherwise, we will continue to fight over the rare talents while so many other people linger in mediocrity.
