Two Ways to Hire Effective Innovators - Pete Maulik - The Conversation. By Pete Maulik | 9:05 AM December 10, 2010 These days, you’re as likely to see “innovative” on any given job description as you are to see “strong communication skills” or “team player.”
But how do you hire innovators? What exactly are you looking for, and more importantly, how do you identify the ability to innovate? Take this anecdote: Our innovation consultancy recently played host to a rather unusual job interview when a candidate came to us after selling his company, a premium brand of Cachaça (the Brazilian liquor). While still in college, the candidate conceived the brand, sourced it, packaged it, imported it, and distributed it. We hired him on the spot, and not because we were tipsy. Jeffrey Dyer, Hal Gregersen, and Clayton Christensen identify five “discovery skills” that make for innovative mindsets: associating, questioning, observing, experimenting, and networking. From Discovery to Invention: Try an exercise in applied invention I like to call “You in a Bottle.” Use the Two-question Whole-Brain Interview to Assess Everything. I’m just a recruiter, not some Ph.D., OD guru, or stat-type, but over the years I’ve developed a theory about interviewing that seems to work 84.27% of time.
Using it for the past 25 years, more than 84.27% percent of my candidates have been called back for second round interviews. Ninety percent of these pass whatever “questionnaire” is thrown at them ranging from the Gallup intense and expensive assessment to the Profile’s International all-in-one, and everything in between. Even better, one gets hired for each job. So based on this, I’m going to continue to rely on an interviewing approach I call the Two-question Performance-based Whole-Brain Interview (2QPbWBI, for short). Note: I’ve been assigned a back room at the ERE Spring Expo if anyone would like to discuss or challenge these statistics. Whole Brain Interviewing Here’s the not-so-scientific (aka wrong and superficial) explanation of the Two-question Performance-based Whole-Brain Interview. Games and Simulations for Recruiting Success. Maybe all you need for an attraction and sourcing strategy is a good game.
The U.S. Army was one of the first organizations to pioneer video games for attracting potential recruits. A couple of years ago the Army launched its highly successful recruiting game called America’s Army, which has significantly helped raise recruitments. The Army has also created a multi-million dollar U.S. Army Experience Center located in Philadelphia where potential recruits, using computers and Xbox 360 controllers, explore different army bases and occupations using video games. L’Oreal has launched Brandstorm, which is a competition across national boundaries to help candidates determine their marketing skills. Realistic job previews, video tours, and game-like activities are becoming standard on leading recruiting sites because more candidates come and stay longer when the process of learning about your organization and your open positions is fun and engaging.