By popular definition, The Doer is the guy that gets things done, he/she is fast, efficient and self-appointed to the task at hand. There are legends created around individuals within the HR community who can spot and enrol future Doers, they have magical-like abilities to detect the doer character within candidates right from the interview process, they are considered “talent whisperers”. But is it magic?
Well, if we all agree that magic is just science not yet explained, then here’s the science behind the magic of hiring The Doers right from the start, without the hassle, costs, time and painful process needed to realise after a few months that your new employee is not what you thought he/she would be.
BEFORE
When going through applications, look for the “I” factor in your reading. Doers often use proactive terms and verbs when communicating, both verbally and in writing. So terms like “create”, “produce”, “accomplish”, “lead”, “influence” should pop up like the lights on a Christmas tree. In the opposite way you should avoid candidates with a passive language who use words like “assist”, “help”, “aid”. Usually when candidates impress in writing, they tend to impress you in reality also. And while the CV forms the basis of your general assessment, you uncover The Doers while reading their cover letters, portfolio presentation and even the social media.
Looking for track record of success is important, as Doers have typically already had success before, in more than one of their previous positions. No matter what the job is, you should look for people with over-developed sense of responsibility, as they are the ones who are more likely to continue making a big impact.
Doers never sit still. Aside the regular job, they’re often enrolled in extracurricular activities within industry organisations, volunteers groups and more.
THE INTERVIEW
Almost every Doer, as an “over-achiever”, has samples, detailed examples and description of their best work, as a way to showcase their abilities. If the interviewee has nothing to give and show for, then there’s a very slim chance he/she is an action-oriented person.
A great way to uncover Doers is by asking the right questions. You may include in your interview some like: “What is your biggest professional / personal accomplishment to date?” or “Is there a time when you created overwhelming value for your company?”, “What are the skills you are most passionate about?”. These are the type of questions that tend to dig into what drives someone to do things. You should look for the candidates that give multiple examples of hitting their goals and explain how they did it.
Make a test as realistic as possible. As part of the formal interview process, after the question-and-answer session, set up a situation, a goal and time for the candidate to develop a short presentation in reaching that goal. For example: for a social media position, ask a 15 minutes presentation of a strategy, execution and tactical plan on how they would increase the outcome of a campaign for a specific product or service. Evaluating the effort and passion people put forth during the exercise will give you a glimpse into what they can really do if they come work with you.
AFTER
Hire “the Follow-Up”. The candidate that feels commitment to your company and has a real sense of urgency would use a fantastic follow-up email, within 48 hours, as a way to confirm his/her interest and attention dedicated to the interview. The candidate you’re looking for should send you a creative response, one written passionately, but specific to what you discussed during your meeting.
With all of the above pretty wrapped up, there is one more thing to do, and that is to check references. Aside from references on social media for professionals, like LinkedIn, you should check at least three live references: two past managers and one peer. Asking comparable questions to those formerly addressed to the candidate should be a good start, as you should look for similar answers. While open questions like “times when the candidate over exceeded expectations”, should form the basis for passionate and positive answers, otherwise it’s not a good sign at all. Anybody gives references who will speak favourably of them, and if unattached is the best that they can show about your candidate, then… no great things really happened with him/her being there.
In reality, when you start on the quest for hiring The Doers you need science as much as you need practice. The more you find them, the easier it gets to spot in a glance a Doer. And as a starters’ tip: look for the people who excite and impress you the most throughout the process. Those who will go above and beyond before they’re hired, are likely to bring some of their “magic” once they’re there.
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