Natasha,  a sales manager from a renowned  hotel in Goa interviewed a candidate called Moin,  a B.Com graduate for the post of a trainee sales executive. Moin was a tall, fair and handsome guy who  spoke fluently during the interview. Natasha felt he was an ideal candidate for sales. When asked about his strength, Moin  replied his strength was manipulation. Save for this ‘minor’ aberration he looked OK on other fronts.

He was shortlisted  for the next interview, where he repeated the same answer when asked by the GM. The considerate GM said, “young man, please go home and refer the dictionary and check the meaning of the word manipulation. You should not give such answers. Elsewhere you would have been rejected straight away.”

After joining, Moin started throwing tantrums . When asked to usher a guest in the restaurant, he said, “I am graduate, I do not do such things.”  Natasha once asked him to follow up for payment from one of the regular guests of the hotel.  Moin fired the guest saying that if the latter does not pay immediately, he may have to face dire consequences. Luckily Natasha, the manager overheard the telephonic talk, seized the receiver and apologized to the guest. Within two months, Moin resigned without giving any reasons.

The manager had spent her precious time of hers as well as of others including the GM. It is very rare for someone to contribute significantly during the first six months. Precious time and money of the organization were wasted.  Some of the mistakes managers  make while recruiting are:

1. Selection Bias for common traits: The candidate revealed his interest in being a DJ which was a common interest for the manager too.
2. Emphasis on external appearance: Selection of candidates is based on appearance, personality as well the hearing the expected responses. For example when asked why would you like to join our company, the typical response from candidates is: “I would like to take challenges and grow with a growing organization.”
3. Ignoring the Obvious: Listen to what the candidate says and also what he does not want to tell. Here Moin went on harping his manipulation skills which was ignored.
4. Mistaken Competencies of a Job Role: Most of us feel that a good talker is a good salesman. It may be true for low-value sales. However for high-value product or service like premium hospitality,  the converse is true. It is not the glib talker but the effective listener who fits the bill for a good salesperson.

For more details please refer the chapter,  Why do Salesmen Love to Talk in my book Contextual Selling (for more details http://www.paradigm-info.com)