Table Of Content‘‘
M
en judge
more from
appearances than
reality. All men have
eyes, but few have
the gift of penetra-
tion. Everyone sees
your exterior, but
few can discern what
’’
you have in
your heart.
—Machiavelli, The Prince, 1532
45 Effective Ways for
HIRING SMART!
How to Predict
Winners and Losers
in the Incredibly Expensive
People-Reading Game
by Dr. Pierre Mornell
Designed by Kit Hinrichs
Illustrations by Regan Dunnick
Ten Speed Press
Berkeley, California
Copyright © 1998 by Pierre Mornell
Illustrations © 1998 by Regan Dunnick
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form, except
brief excerpts for the purpose of review, without written permission of the publisher.
A Kirsty Melville Book
Publisher
Ten Speed Press, P.O. Box 7123, Berkeley, California 94707 www.tenspeed.com
Distributed in Canada by Ten Speed Press Canada, in Australia by Simon & Schuster
Australia, in New Zealand by Tandem Press, in South Africa by Real Books, in Southeast
Asia by Berkeley Books, and in the United Kingdom and Europe by Airlift Books.
Design
Cover and interior design by Kit Hinrichs/Pentagram
Design Associate Kashka Pregowska-Czerw/Pentagram
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Mornell, Pierre.
45 effective ways for hiring smart/how to predict winners and losers in the incredibly
expensive people-reading game/by Pierre Mornell; illustrations by Regan Dunnick.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references.
ISBN 0-89815-972-5
1. Employee selection. 2. Employees-Recruiting. 3. Interviewing. I. Title
HF5549.5.S38M673 1998
658.3’11-dc21 97-40126
CIP
First printing 1998
Printed in Singapore
2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10—02 01 00 99 98
For my family
Contents
Acknowledgments viii
Introduction: A New System for Hiring 3
Chapter 1: Pre-Interview Strategies 13
1. Make Phone Contact with the Candidate 17
2. Ask for a Letter and Resume 21
3. Give an Assignment Before the Interview 26
4. Walk Around the Office When the Candidate Arrives 33
5. Read Resumes in Teams If Possible 37
6. Cast the Widest Net Possible 40
7. Use Caution Around Any Big Changes 43
8. Rethink the Position Before the Interview 44
9. Use Pre-Interview Tips in Combinations 46
10. Conduct a Brief Pre-Interview Interview 49
Chapter 2: Strategies During the Interview 53
11. Trust Your Instincts—Chemistry Is Crucial 57
12. Look for the Passionate Candidate 60
13. Ask All Your Questions at Once 63
14. Have Fun During the Interview 67
15. Assign a Mini-Project to Finalists 71
16. Seek Closure by Announcing the Five-Minute Warning 74
17. Watch for Inappropriate Behavior 77
18. Identify Strengths and Weaknesses 80
19. Pick a Subject Where You Are the Expert 85
20. Take Notes During the Interview 87
21. Interview in Teams for Top Candidates 88
22. Ask for a Legal Release 90
23. Throw a Few Curveballs at the End of the Interview 92
Chapter 3: Strategies After the Interview 97
24. Ask for a Return Call from the Candidate 100
25. Assign a Take-Home Project 101
26. Travel with Finalists for Executive Positions 103
27. Meet the Spouse or Significant Other 105
28. Put Potential Problems on the Table 107
29. Use an Intuitive Person in the Selection Process 110
30. Consider What Psychological Tests Have to Offer 112
31. Experiment with Handwriting Analysis 116
vi H I R I N G S M A R T
Chapter 4: Checking References 119
32. Ask the References to Call You Back 124
33. Network Up the Chain of Command 126
34. Use the Internet as a Resource 130
35. Perform Due Diligence for All Finalists 133
36. Ask the Candidate, “What Will I Hear?” 136
37. Devise a Phone Reference Checklist 140
38. Meet References for the Finalists 144
Chapter 5: Final Strategies 147
39. Invest in People, Not Ideas 150
40. Find Someone You Trust 152
41. Follow These Three Cardinal Rules 155
42. Ask Yourself These Ten Questions 156
43. Use Yourself as a Test Case with Experts 159
44. Suggest a Trial Run When Possible 160
45. Design Your Own Hiring System 162
Conclusion 167
Summary Chart for Hiring Smart 171
Nuts and Bolts 185
The Ten-Step Interview 185
Interview Questions 187
Word Pictures and Puzzles 191
Ten Curveballs 194
Sample Legal Release Forms 196
Pre-Employment Legal Guidelines 202
Ten Unusual Interview Experiences 209
Services 210
Notes 214
Index 219
About the Author, Designer, and Illustrator 225
H I R I N G S M A R T vii
Acknowledgments
I
am deeply grateful to those friends whose wise remarks and
illustrative stories appear in the book. My special thanks to John
Armstrong, Robin Bacci, Sandy Beebe, Jim Bunch, Jack Boland,
Robin Bradford, David Brown, Alan Dachs, Craig Duchossois, Leon
Farley, Warren Hellman, George Hume, Howard Lester, Larry Mindel,
Paul Orfalea, John Osterweis, Harry V. Quadracci, Gary Rogers, Gordon
Segal, Milo Shelly, and Larry Stupski.
I also appreciate the many friends who took time from their
busy schedules to read previous drafts of this manuscript and offer
their suggestions. Any omissions remain mine, but excellent ideas
came from John Davis, Gail Darling, Bob Ferchat, Dan Frederickson,
Max Messmer, Jr., Peri Minnesota, Tom Norton, Larry Pidgeon, Brian
Pidgeon, Bill Sahlman, Jeffrey Stein, Petey Stein, and Ivan Weinberg.
In addition, I am especially indebted to Doris Ober. She read
every draft, every line, every word (many times!), and transformed my
well-intentioned prose into clear, concise, and complete ideas. No small
feat. Doris worked her magic with professional tough-mindedness and
unfailing good cheer. She made it look easy. As did Lynne Morin, who
typed draft after draft after draft.
Thanks also go to Howard Stevenson and Carol Franco who
helped to break a logjam at the perfect time. And to Kirsty Melville at
Ten Speed Press and Kit Hinrichs at Pentagram, who can look around
corners and see the future, special thanks. As my publisher and editor,
viii H I R I N G S M A R T
Kirsty saw the book as it was meant to be. As my collaborator, Kit is not
only one of America’s leading graphic designers, but a good friend, too.
Kit also suggested Regan Dunnick, our extraordinary illustrator.
Extraordinary, too, were Aaron Wehner and Kashka Pregowska-Czerw.
I was lucky to work with them all.
Finally, my family generously contributed their insights to the
book. My wife, Linda, read the manuscript several times, as did my
children. An editor, actor, and young businessman, they grew up know-
ing this prejudice of mine: Nothing you do in life, personally or profes-
sionally, is more fun or important than reading people like a book.
H I R I N G S M A R T ix
