Hiring for Talent Optimization with Mike Zani of The Predictive Index

“There is work that needs to be done and I just need someone good to do the work”

*** sigh ***

This is what we tell ourselves when we decide to hire someone. But it is so much deeper than just getting a butt in the seat!

Growth is the most important factor here. So, we must start with the end in mind to avoid making HUGE hiring mistakes!

Yes, we need to get the work done but will this person really help your company grow? And more importantly, can your company provide the growth that the person you want to hire desperately desires?

Our guest today: Mike Zani, CEO of The Predictive Index.

Mike Zani, the Wall Street Journal best selling author of The Science of Dream Teams, is CEO of The Predictive Index, the leader in talent optimization. Prior to The Predictive Index, Mike served as president of LEDCO, a manufacturer of rugged computer peripherals. It was at LEDCO where Mike, a customer of The Predictive Index, developed his passion for the company’s vital management tools.

An avid sailor, Mike began his career in marketing and sales with Vanguard Sailboats and was a coach for the 1996 U.S. Olympic Sailing Team. He holds a B.S. from Brown University and an MBA from Harvard.

Today we discuss:

Hiring for Talent optimization

• What is talent optimization
• How to hire for it

Challenge today?

How to you hire well within the context of time & risk

• What risk are you willing to take on bad hires?
• Systems in place to support the risk
  • 30, 60, 90 day check ins to support
• Do you just want t body in a seat
• Persona
• A talent optimized system allows you to train & develop
• Need to develop the programs to support

Why is this important to the company?

• We are 30 years behind sport in bringing analytics for hiring
• What is sport doing now?
  • TA is the single most important function in the organization
  • Need to take a maniacal approach to hiring.
  • Fantasy league hiring takes more time than hiring to companies
• Data drives success
• Performance measurement

Rick’s Nuggets

• Getting the right person the the bus is FAR more important than getting work done
  • If the work is that important, hire a contractor
• The mistake made is the optimism of the founder
  • Assumptions
  • Hire on their potential (assumed), bias (assumed) & need (get it off my plate)
  • Zero time is taken to understand what the other person desires, other than a paycheck
• Consider this: The cost for every bad hire is $2M

How do we solve the problem?

• Top of funnel strategy
  • Clear mission
  • Hiring brand that attracts talent
  • Palpable culture - Strong enough that it disqualifies people
  • Great referral strategy - cash after 6 months,
• Bottom of funnel strategy
  • Hiring systems
  • Strong assessments -behavioral , cognitive, analytics
  • Hiring process, structured interviewing
  • Training- especially on cultural interview aspects
  • interviewer grading, scoring, developing
  • Remove people who are bad interviewers
• Post hire Strategy
  • Benchmarks
  • Performance systems - 30,60,90 day
• Hire for buoyancy!

Rick’s Nuggets

Mid Funnel Strategy

• The Interview
  • Structured & timed
  • Values aligned
  • Challenging
  • Does the interview produce evidence to support the decision
    • Is the evidence supported by the assessment?

Key Takeaways -Value:

• Need a post-hire system!
• Can take more risk
• Need to have a feedback loop to add/subtract people from the interviewing process.

Guest Links:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikezani/

Company: https://www.predictiveindex.com/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/predictiveindex?lang=en

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/predictiveindex/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thepredictiveindex/?hl=en

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCexehrVsBrP9SiNeBm4pY7Q

This show is proudly sponsored by Criteria Corp: https://www.criteriacorp.com/