Hire for Business Strategy, Not the Job Title

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Photo by Yan Krukov: https://www.pexels.com/photo/man-and-woman-sitting-at-table-7794079/

The shortsightedness of many organizations leads to poor hiring decisions. The right staff can be the difference between a thriving business and one that stagnates. Hiring is more than just filling empty seats. Often, companies ignore the business strategies that distinguish them in a competitive market.

Almost every organization strives to generate revenue, boost profitability, increase market share, etc. They achieve those goals in many ways, but the methods – product innovation, process efficiency, cost-cutting, entering new geographic markets, or adjusting pricing differ. 

Organizations should use their hiring strategy in accordance with their overarching strategy. Almost all job descriptions and processes focus almost exclusively on job characteristics. Companies are looking for people who possess the skills necessary to carry out these strategies.

The most efficient way to manage a location is to fine-tune and squeeze out every last drop of efficiency. It is the responsibility of department leaders to live and breathe these strategies, implementing them across their teams. It is also essential that team members act consistently according to these strategies.

The Business Strategy Model for Hiring

Because HR leaders are the best positioned to influence a business’s success, they must partner with organizational leaders. Business strategies should lead to a discussion of the required roles – and the qualities people need to be in those roles in order to carry out those strategies.

Are you looking to increase repeat business? Ensure that call center employees always put customer service ahead of upselling. As a business partner, does your marketing strategy position you as a trusted source? Focus on hiring consultants rather than transactional salespeople. As soon as you consider aligning positions and the characteristics essential to executing business strategy you will see examples like these everywhere.

An effective position identification process should follow a business strategy and identify the qualities that lead to success. To determine whether candidates have the capability to execute these strategies relative to their roles, we need to choose the appropriate diagnostics – tests and interviews. Assessment findings then serve as a guide to identify strengths to capitalize on and development gaps to fill.

Quick, engaging online tests are necessary for high-volume roles. An assessment can reduce hiring time, increase hiring quality, and increase tenure. New hires can benefit from using tests to identify their strengths and areas for growth. This method reduces learning curves and positions new hires in roles that complement their natural talents.

The interview is an excellent and natural way of building a relationship and assessing your fit for the job. Many hiring managers and candidates want to meet the people they’ll be working with. You can learn more about a candidate’s strengths and motivations by exploring their interview in detail.

Companies often miss out on an opportunity by hiring based on someone’s aptitude for executing business strategy instead of a job title. This may seem obvious in retrospect, but companies make this mistake all the time. Does your company make this mistake? It may be time to change.