By Steven B. McKinney

McKinney Consulting, Inc.

Hiring managers have fears too.

Few job seekers realize or recognize that the fear that they feel when they go for an interview is mirrored by a fear the interviewer feels as well. The interviewer’s fear is one experienced by all hiring managers; it is the fear that comes with the hiring process.

Few job seekers, themselves worried about being up to the task at hand, are aware of the fear and enormous pressure felt by a hiring manager for exactly the same reasons. Even fewer job seekers are aware that there are steps they can take to put the hiring manager at ease and therefore increase their own  chances of success. The logic is simple - minimize the pressure the hirer feels, minimize the fear, and maximize your chances of being liked, accepted, and hired. So how does the candidate do it? Well…Read on 

Realize that there is fear on the part of the hiring party.

Hiring is not something that is done easily. It represents both an opportunity and a crisis of sorts. If it is done well, success will follow, often in ways no one imagined. If it is done poorly, the seeds of problems may be sown throughout the organization. It is the least scientific thing a company can do.  Managers used to dealing with concrete numbers, solid objectives, and well-defined targets are asked to go out and make a ‘soft’ decision.  They must find the right person or people to fill a vacancy with often little or none of the ‘hard’ guidance they are used to. Numbers won’t help. Well-defined objectives, forget about it. At a loss for more scientific reasoning, hiring managers fall back on tried and true methods.

How the decisions are made
“The person who used to sit there” Managers often seek to hire someone who will be successful by hiring someone who is ‘like’ someone who was successful. Martha was good, get someone like Martha.

“Someone like me” Managers often seek to hire someone like themselves. These are the qualities I’m good at and I think they are important, therefore, I think they are important in the candidate also.

“Someone like us” We’re all from the same college. We’re all from the same high school. We’re all men. We’re all married. We’re all of the same religion. We’re all ex-IBM.

“Someone we can trust” I know a guy. He’s a friend of a friend. He comes highly recommended. I’ll hire my cousin; he’d never do me wrong.

While these and other methods are not optimal, they may not immediately bring ruin. They just aren’t going to bring great success either. The impact of the hiring culture history has long term affects on the business.  Bad hiring habits are costly and decrease the value of the human capital. Hiring managers that limit the scope of their searches minimize the talent pool.  Also, focusing on existing personnel as a benchmark falls short when there might be brighter talent worth considering.

When looking at the methods, some underlying causes of them can be discerned. In fact, they are all caused by fears and anxieties. Even when better criteria for hiring are available, it may be ignored due to fear of failure, causing the hiring manager to fall back to the above methods.  Unless you are the hiring manager’s cousin or fall somewhere else in the realm of those favored above, this is not good news for you.

How can you compete?

Learn what that fear is.  Learn all about it.

To become a Fear Eraser one must first understand what fears the hiring managers have. Hiring managers’ careers are made or broken largely on their ability to find and attract talent for their company. 

Fears of the Hiring Manager

• They are going to be no good. I am concerned that after all this searching, evaluating, interviews and assessments that this candidate is going to be no good. There is the real danger that he or she will not be any good at all. I'm going to get stuck with someone I don't want.

• I'm going to look like an idiot for hiring a loser. I am afraid that after I hire her that I will look like an idiot from my peers, subordinate and boss for hiring an under performer or even an outright loser. I will feel like an idiot for making this hiring choice. How do I know that she will make me look bad? My neck is on the line, not to mention my pride.

• Other people in the company are going to say, "You hired that guy over promoting me?!" My hiring decision will be brought into question. My judgment will be scrutinized. Others will make comparisons between the new hire and the existing employees, especially those who could have been promoted into this slot. I have to justify my decision and that is not easy, it is more work for me.

• They are NOT going to be a loser - ie. they are going to be better than me. Or, on the other hand these candidates are too good! They look better than me so if I hire them they will make me look bad. I could actually jeopardize my own job by hiring someone better than me. This is not right. This is a problem. Once again I’ll look like an idiot, but for a different reason.

• They will never fit in with our culture. Our corporate culture is so unique. I don’t know how they are going to fit in to the organization. They might be really good. Highly qualified. Yet, they just might not function well in this environment. It is not right for everyone. You have to have the right mentality, the right mindset or it will be like stirring peanut butter with a feather. It will not work.

• They will realize how much WE lack as a company, as a team, as a boss, etc. Once hired they will find out the truth about us. They will find out our secrets that we are not as good as outsiders perceive us to be. We have real problems and they will blame me for not revealing this to them. If I tell them the whole truth about our situation they will never come. This is a real headache and a fear that I face.

• They are going to leave in a hurry. Abandon me. After all of this work there is a real danger that they will leave the company sooner rather than later. This does not help the company and is catastrophic for me. What does this say about me and my ability as a hiring manager? I found a great person and they immediately ditched me. It’s not good and I am left alone to pick up the pieces.

This is a generalized list of fears hiring managers have. Not every hiring manager will have all of them. Some may worries not listed here. The interview is a time to gauge what really drives the decision making process in the company. Candidates should seek to find out what the particular fears and motivations of the hirers are.  Using the list above as a guide, a candidate can work on determining what really matters to the interviewers sitting on the other side of the table.

Learn what your own fears are.

Candidates know they are afraid as well. A candidate can take an inventory of what specific fears he himself has and seek to minimize or erase those during the interview as well.

Fears of the Job Seeker

• I am not good enough. They probably won’t like me. They are probably considering several people for the job that are better than me. The other candidates probably have more experience than I do or they may have graduated from a higher ranking school than I did.

• I am going to get stuck somewhere I don’t want to be. What if I don’t like this company? I don’t want to be stuck somewhere that I will not be happy. Am I committing to spend each and every day somewhere I don’t want to be.

• People are going to wonder why I was hired. People inside the company may second guess why I was hired. They may think I am unqualified for the job or was hired for some reason other than merit.

• Some people will think that they deserve my job more than I do. There are always a select few who are jealous if they get passed over for a job. They may try to undermine me later to make me look bad.

• I won’t fit in with their corporate or team culture. I like formal and they are all about business casual. I like freedom and they believe in clocking in and out. I’m big on ownership and they seem to move between roles and responsibilities easily. It may not work out.

• The company may not be any good. Here I am committing my career to a company before I know what the inside really looks like. The company talks big, but what is it really like inside? It is a risk for me to jump from a place I know well and work in an unknown environment.  I guess one can never know until one gets inside.

• My commitment level could be questioned. I know I changed jobs perhaps a little too frequently in the past. I have a good reason for each move and can explain the moves if given a chance. However, they might just look at the dates and dismiss me based upon my resume without giving me a chance to explain my job history. 

Learn to use that knowledge to control your own fear.

Once the job seeker understands the fears of the hiring manager he is in a better position to address his own fears. He’ll realize right away that these are the very same fears he has but in reverse. He can now use the knowledge that the interviewer is not holding all the cards to control his own fear. He can also use the new knowledge he has of the hirer’s fears to minimize them, erase them, and put himself on the shortlist.

• He’s worried I might not be good enough. As a good candidate I will prove to the hiring manager that I am not a loser. I will focus on addressing the specific performance issues that the hirer thinks are important. I will emphasize those key points of concern and avoid wasting time on those things the interviewer doesn’t care about.

• He’s worried he’s going to look like an idiot for hiring me. I will do everything within my power to provide the relevant information about my background and achievements so that the hirer can make a fully informed decision. If this job is the right fit for me I want it. If anyone questions the hire later, there will be plenty of ammunition for justifying why I am the perfect person for the job. He’ll look like a genius.

• Some people will think they were passed over improperly in favor of me. I will do all that I can to prove that bringing me into the organization from outside is the right decision. To do this, I’ll emphasize the experiences I have had that may be different or unique from what the company has had access to in the past. At the same time, I will show that I’m a good listener and can value those team members’ opinions and experience who I will be working with. I will emphasize the breadth of my experience and the diversity of viewpoint that I bring to the table, while showing that I’m coming to learn what has always worked for them.

• He’ll be worried I will outshine him and make him look bad.  I will communicate my short term and long term objectives clearly to the hiring manager. I will emphasize how I am a team player, and don’t always push to get my way. When discussing my own achievements I won’t brag or assert that I achieved ‘despite’ those around me, but rather that I was one among many and a leader. We all went together.

• He’s worried I won’t fit in with their culture.  I will ask questions about this area and make sure that I and the hiring manager are comfortable that I can adapt to this culture and that it works for me. If it is too different or one that I know that I cannot survive and thrive in, I will be honest about that and not take the job if offered.

• He’s worried I’ll think the company is no good once I get in. I know that you don’t really know a company until you have actually worked in it for some time. I also recognize that all companies have their strengths and weaknesses just like people do. I will not be naïve and expect the hiring company to be perfect no matter what is said during the interview. I will discuss at the appropriate time the strengths and weaknesses of the company with the hiring manager in order to better position myself to fit in to the company’s needs. The weaknesses I can work with I’ll consider challenges and let them motivate me.

• I am committed. I am serious about managing my own career and I take any change of employment very serious. I will communicate that to the hiring company early on. I’m looking for someplace to hang my hat for the long term.

Making these principles work for a candidate requires thoughtfulness, diligence, and hard work. Done right, however, it can take a weak candidate and make him stronger, and a strong candidate and make him the first choice. Done perfectly and the hirer will think the candidate has read his mind.

Steven B. McKinney, Certified Master Coach and President of McKinney Consulting, Inc., a retained Executive Search & Coaching firm based in Seoul, South Korea. With over 25 years of experience in Asia, he has a refined expertise in helping multinational companies and leaders succeed in the region. Steve is a member of the International Coaching Council. McKinney Consulting is a member of AESC The Worldwide Association for Retained Executive Search Consulting Firms. This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it