The following is a guest blog from Glenn Shepard, one of the speakers at a recent chamber of commerce conference that I had the opportunity to meet. I know how I would answer the question, do you?
-Beth Trejo, Director of Investor Relations.
Back when unemployment was under 5%, employers had to watch out for applicants that would jump from one job to another, never staying with any company for more than a few months.
Everyone knew to avoid Job Hoppers (or as I prefer to call them, “Serial Employees”).When the unemployment rate got up to double digits, job hopping slowed down. But as the economy continues to show signs of improvement, hiring will increase and the unemployment rate will start to drop again.
One of the most common mistakes employers made back then was assuming that any job applicant who’d been at their previous job for many years must be a good hire.
Don’t make that mistake.
While turnover is expensive and stability is important, there can also be a downside to applicants who’ve been at the same job for many years. One is that they can get stuck in a rut, and may have a harder time adapting to change.
This is why it’s important to see if job applicants are flexible enough to learn and think in new ways – no matter how long they were at their previous jobs.
My favorite example is to say to every applicant, “If I asked you to determine the height of the building across the street and all I gave you to do this with was a barometer, how would you do it?”.
Unless you’re extremely technical, there’s no easy way to measure a building’s height with a barometer. That’s why it’s such a good test of someone’s ability to think on their feet.
One manager who used this had an applicant respond, “I’d find the janitor and tell him I’d give him this really neat barometer if he’ll go find out how tall the building is!”
Now that’s what I call thinking outside the box.
- G.S.
About the Author
Glenn Shepard is the author of “How to Manage Problem Employees” and five other business books. Based in Nashville, Tennessee, he gives over seminars and keynotes each year. Go to www.GlennShepard.com for more free management resources.
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