Originally published on LinkedIn
We all recognize the name Bill Gates.
Yet, lost in the story of Bill Gates is how he and several of his friends using an exploit in a firm’s operating system to get free computer time. When caught and banned, Gates and his three friends who were also banned, Paul Allen, Ric Weiland, and Kent Evans, offered to find code bugs. Gates worked at the firm’s offices examining source code for the firm until they eventually closed their doors.
Steve Wozniak of Apple fame was known to build blue boxes to get around telecom firm’s switches to make long distance calls at a time when that was an expensive separately billed item on a bill.
Would your firm have interviewed either man?
Seriously, does your firm have a way of identifying and connecting with brilliant teens and make them feel at home?
We’ve all heard the story of the attempted terrorist attack on a train bound for France where two US soldiers and their friend thwarted a determined gunman from committing mass murder.
Does your firm only look at the skills military men and women arrive at your door with and ignore their heart?
I recently read a quote that I was stunned by.
“As our organization undergoes major organizational changes, we always seek to cure the wounded. But, we will shoot the dissenters!”
Really!
An organization that discourages input that could avoid catastrophic failure with threats of termination or offers no opportunity for employees to express concern even though most of them will be affected by the change will be shot as traitors instead of explaining again the idea to be implemented.
How does your firm express its vision to employees and the public.
We help organization hire talent and people find work with extraordinary information and conducting effective search assignments.
Does your firm have policies that eliminate superior talent with great heart?
Do you creatively plan for your future by reaching out to at risk youth and offering them a way with mentorship to serve?
Does your firm seek out unusual teens and have them work part time for your firm?
Does your firm pay lip service to hiring veterans or have you gone out of the way to understand the military experience and how service men and women can fulfill your organizational needs.
Many staffing problems in organizations are self-inflicted wounds caused by narrow thinking and lack of preparedness.
An organization I recruited for interviewed someone for one year, said they were extending an offer and two hours later decided differently.
Another organization elected to not interview a cyber security specialist because he lacked a college degree even though he was a lead cyber authority for a US government agency for 6 years.
The solutions are out there but it starts with recognizing that the problem is you in corporate and your rules of engagement. In your desire to standardize hiring, you’ve created a monstrosity.
© The Big Game Hunter, Inc. Asheville, NC 2015
Jeff Altman, The Big Game Hunter has been a recruiter for more than 40 years.
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