A Hire Gone Wrong
by Miki SaxonI read an interesting post in CSO online called Don’t Ignore the Warning Signs detailing what happened to a security chief who says he ignored his gut when he hired. (Not unusual, most managers have been there at one time or another) But with all the red flags showing, not just in the interview, but also in the performance from the beginning, was it really a case of “not trusting his gut” or was something else going on?
I think the problem was summed up in the comment, “Typical of one ex-cop interviewing another ex-cop, we exchanged war stories and forged a common bond.” As explained in The number one reason for “bad hires and People like me, it wasn’t that he didn’t trust his gut, it’s more that he couldn’t hear it and wouldn’t have listened anyway.
Moreover, it’s sure not because it was “a couple of ex-cops”. It’s any two people who find shared experiences/beliefs/ attitudes/whatever—whether at work or at home—while interviewing.
Once that connection is made it takes conscious effort to hear past it.
