How to Decrease the Risk in Hiring

There is a lot of risk that goes into hiring someone and it sure gets frustrating and expensive when they don’t work out.   Here is a tip:     Past behavior is the best predictor of future performance.     Therefore, behavioral interviewing is one of several good ways to decrease your risk in hiring. It’s a direct way to ask someone how they behaved in the past which can uncover clues as to how they can perform at your business moving forward.   Effective behavioral interviewing is based off the “S.A.R” (Situation, Action, and Result) acronym. By creating behavioral questions based off S.A.R, you will be more successful in evaluating your candidates.  

Using S.A.R

The process starts with the hiring manager determining what skills or behaviors the role they are hiring for needs. After this is decided, they can use S.A.R. to outline their questions. In the example below, the hiring manager is looking for a supply chain person who would help increase inventory turns.  

S: Situation– The hiring manager will ask the candidate about a situation where they have demonstrated a specific skill or behavior. This skill of behavior is the one the manager is looking for from the candidate.

A: Action- This is where the hiring manager asks what actions the candidate took in light of the situation.

R: Result- Here, the hiring manager asks the candidate to describe what happened because of the action. The hiring manager should look for what the candidate learned and what they did differently moving forward considering the result.

  After it is outlined, all three parts can be combined to create the final question:

Tell me about a time where you drove increasing inventory turns. (S) What was the situation, (A) what did you do, and (R) what was the result?

  Simple and effective.  

Why It’s Crucial

When candidates recognize their past behavior, and can speak to it, they are much more likely to demonstrate it again. Think of it as a preview as to how they will behave if they worked for your company. This simple process takes some of the risk out of your hiring.   Want more tips? Follow STUCK Coaching on LinkedIn, Twitter, and YouTube.