Here are four green flags that are good indicators of a candidate suited to a job. The first pair deals with the applicant’s past while the second gives insight into their mindset for the future. Taken together, these flags can help you hire the right person for the right role, every time.
Value in Past Roles
Virtually every recruitment and resume website teaches job seekers to quantify their achievements, for example, “Improved sales from $12 million to $14 million over eight months”. Such information is undeniably insightful but the green flag you should seek here is the candidate’s proven ability to work with others to achieve those objectives.
So, look for the interviewee who tells you how they worked with different departments successfully. It is an insight into their style of working, their mentality and, most importantly, their EQ (emotional quotient).
Success From Failure Almost all of us see the interview process as a chance to shine and showcase our greatest successes. That aspect is certainly a major component but the backstory matters, too. It isn’t too impressive an achievement if an executive increased sales when parachuted into a role at a company already prospering.
Seek the green flag of the phoenix here, the candidate who suffered failure, learned from the experience and turned things around. It is rare to find a self-deprecatory contender for a job but it is one of the surest signs you can get that they will be an asset to your company.
Knowledge of the Job and its Future
The right candidate will have already familiarized themselves with more than the basics of the role. They would achieve this from the job description, communication during the first round of contact with your HR department as well as an understanding of the industry.
Your green flag will be their answer to where they believe the job will lead them, what challenges they expect to face in performing the role, and how what they learn will help them prepare for the next role in which they envision themselves.
As an additional indicator, you can ask them how they expect the role to change in the face of industry challenges.
Ask the Right Questions
Some candidates understand that questions are looked upon in a positive light and may try to ask questions simply for the sake of doing so. A good tactic to discern a good query from a forced one is to ask the candidate how your answer will help them if they were to be hired.
Someone who asked with the right motivation will be able to tell you right away why they believe the answer is pertinent. This will be your green flag. Conversely, an interviewee who made up a question will struggle to justify their query and usually return a shallow answer.
Even the most experienced candidates can underperform when dealing with the stress of an interview. Just as it is with red flags, green flags should not be taken as absolutes but as strong indicators of particular desirable traits. Contact me today to learn how to spot candidates with the green flags you need.
