Melina Murray

Managers and HR Pros.

Do you ever arrive at work with fresh bagels or muffins for your team/company “just because”?  

Have you ever surprised a hard-working team at 2:00 with tickets to a movie for all?

Perhaps you have just surprised them with a “It’s 2 pm, time to go home today.  Thanks for all your amazing work.”

As a manager, have you shared 24/7 duties with staff during the holidays so they can have family time too?

As an HR person, do you wander the office and talk to people?  Ask questions, learn about what they do, what they want?  (In a friendly way?)

Do you sometimes do things just to make someone’s day a little brighter?

This was news to me recently.  It has been a long time since I worked with a company with less than 10 people, so recently, when I needed to find health insurance for such a company, I was not too optimistic.

Then I got a surprise.  Some insurance companies are now offering affordable (yes, I said affordable) coverage to companies with 1+ employees.  

And- the cost is much less than COBRA.  Cool.  

I am finally back in the blogging world!  After a (too) long break due to extensive travel, I realized that not only have I neglected my blog, I have a lot to say.  So, I will start with non-compete agreements.  

I don’t like non-compete agreements. 

While I understand the premise behind them, I find them to be controlling, restrictive and detrimental to a person’s professional growth.  Companies come and go, they grow and shrink- especially in technology (and, well, banking these days).  Using the threat of not being able to get a job in the same industry to retain an employee is the worst kind of retention.  

In addition, many non-competes are written so broadly, it is almost impossible to figure out what kind of job with what kind of company is possible. And while very broad non-competes are generally thrown out in some states, the fact a person would have to sue (and pay for the suit) to find a comparable job is astounding.  And then there is the idea of enforcing a non-compete with a laid off employee.  I don’t get it.

While I am not in favor of non-competes in general, I do understand and appreciate the need to protect a company’s intellectual property.  There are other ways to protect the information, and there are ways to write a non-compete that doesn’t prevent a person from making a living doing what they do best in a place they can grow, enjoy their work and contribute to the company’s success (assuming that is not with their current company).

Do you stick to the standard interview questions? 

Do you read through someone’s resume asking questions about past jobs?

Do you sit across from them at a desk or conference room table?

Do you interview alone, or with multiple people in the room?

On average, how many interviews does someone go through before you make them an offer?

IDEAS

Ask Non-Standard Questions

I am a firm believer (and practitioner) of going outside the standard/norm.  Asking questions that throw off the interviewee gives me a glimpse into the real person.  And, in general, I rarely go over their resume in the first interview.  It got them in the door, but I want to learn more about the actual person who wants to join the team. Fit is so important, especially when working on a team.  

Ask Questions That Test Qualities You Desire

One manager I worked with tended to challenge candidates during the interview to see how they handled conflict.  He would make an obviously wrong statement, then see if they would respond or tell him he was wrong.  (Only about 50% did so.)  The purpose behind this approach was specific to the team- it was a problem solving team, so any hires would need to be able to debate, challenge and engage their peers and manager.

Gauge Actual Interest

One of the most important questions I ask in an interview is “Tell me what you know about this company”.  If the person is serious in their interest, I expect them to have at least a general understanding of the company, to have looked through the website and be able to tell me some basic facts. Although I continue the interview beyond that question, those who say “I don’t know” or get it completely wrong usually don’t make it to a second.  The interest, passion and desire to learn are just not present.

Find Out What Motivates Them

I will often ask what about a job makes the candidate excited to go to work everyday. Some give answers relating to contributing, learning, making a difference.  Sadly, I also hear “getting a paycheck”. (yes, people are sometimes that honest) If a person’s prime motivator is simply a paycheck, do you want them on your team? 

Make Sure More Than One Person Interviews a Candidate

Some people are better at gauging a candidate’s fit, some are better at uncovering job-specific skills. Making sure at least 2 different people interview a candidate during the process ensures a broader scope of skills and fit are covered.  

The other day, I called UPS’s customer service to ask about a package I was expecting.  The website said delivery was attempted, but no one rang my doorbell or left a notice.  It seems UPS has an escalation unit for issues like this.  They take your information and someone calls within an hour.

My call came 15 minutes later.  The woman on the phone was incredibly friendly and started the conversation with “Hi hon”.  Then proceeded to call me “hon” throughout the call as she explained how she was making sure my package would be delivered in 30 minutes.    

I felt like I was talking to the owner of a small business who wanted to make sure her client was fully satisfied. This was a new and different experience in dealing with a huge corporation.  For some reason, the genuine use of “hon” made all the difference.

And, my package was delivered as she promised.

I can’t imagine she was trained to use terms of endearment on strangers, but this woman’s natural people skills made all the difference to me that day.