Evaluating talent has
become a lot more complicated, especially since truth became optional. So I’m
taking a new approach.
EXPERT OPINION BY HOWARD TULLMAN, GENERAL MANAGING PARTNER, G2T3V
AND CHICAGO HIGH TECH INVESTORS @HOWARDTULLMAN1
DEC 3, 2024
I’ve been trying to
imagine what kind of productive, informative, and instructive conversation
a recruiter can have with a recent college grad
looking for their first job that would lead to a well-grounded conclusion that
the candidate is likely to succeed within any given organization. In the
insanely judgmental and fragile hiring environment in which we now function, this
is no easy task. You’re walking on eggshells and wandering through uncharted
and perilous territory. That’s especially true if you’re interviewing on college campuses, where you can
trigger a snowflake just as easily with a smile as with a snide remark.
I’m considering this
predicament solely from the employer’s perspective since (a) nothing’s more
critical today than properly identifying and attracting new talent to your
team; (b) it’s become very difficult to ask the obvious questions we once asked
to get some fair idea of a person’s interest, abilities, and attitudes in
working for and with us; and (c) kids have become increasingly adept at telling
grownups exactly what they want to hear in these discussions, whether they mean
it or not.
Don’t Expect Candor and
You Won’t Be Disappointed
They’ve obviously
learned from the congressional testimony of craven Supreme Court nominees that
the truth of your comments means very little as long as you speak “sincerely”
with a smile. And, of course, all of these crafty candidates are also coached by
their college counselors or their senatorial sponsors to say whatever will get
them through the interviews and the day.
As an aside, I’m
assuming that you’ve figured out how to avoid and eliminate those entitled and
deluded wunderkinds who think that they’re doing you a favor by deigning to
speak with you and letting you offer them a position. I’ve concluded that
trying to “sell” any prospect on the good reasons to join your business is a
waste of time.
If they’re not excited
and already interested in the position, if they haven’t done their homework and
learned all about your business, they’re not right for the job anyway, and
you’d be foolish to spend even a moment trying to convince them of anything.
Find the ones who are already inclined, energized, and leaning in your
direction and build your team from that pool of prospects. It’s so much easier
to ride the horse in the direction it’s headed.
College Grads Are Not as
Entitled as They Think They Are
In this context, it also
helps to keep in mind that, in these troubled times and highly competitive
markets, you shouldn’t have to convince anyone that getting a good initial job
with your company makes sense. They really don’t have a lot of choices, whether
they presently understand that or not. And things in that regard are only going
to get worse.
We’ve entered a decade
where millions of entry-level white collar and no-collar jobs are going to be
eliminated by automation and AI while our colleges and universities insist on continuing to turn out generalist graduates in
fluffy and make-believe disciplines whose skill sets—such as they are—do
nothing to differentiate them from the herds of other equally deficient suitors
seeking employment, or offer any particular reason to select them from the
crowd.
My New Plan: The Second
Mouse Gets the Cheese
But try as I might, I’ve
really been unable to figure out any sensible or scalable approach to this
problem, so I’ve decided on an alternative plan, which is based on the simple
idea that the second time is a charm. I’ve decided that I don’t want to be any
newbie’s first employer; I want to be the place they work next—and, hopefully,
that my place is where they will hang their hat for quite a while. I don’t
believe you can be happy until you experience some negative things to
appreciate what you have.
Let the colleges keep
coddling their kids and I’ll find my new hires a little way down the road,
after they’ve learned and lived through a few of life’s real lessons on someone
else’s dime. Experience is what you get when you don’t get what you want. The
early bird may get the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese.
To be clear, I’m not
interested in job hoppers, but I like the idea that the folks we’ll
be bringing on board through this program are likely to be a little more
mature, a lot more focused on sticking around and making things work out, and
grateful for the opportunity to prove themselves. Ignorance is cured by
experience. No one necessarily wants to be first, but everyone wants to be
second.
The good news is that
there are plenty of solid prospects floating around, there are very efficient
and cost-effective online solutions for identifying and contacting them, there
are fewer employers competing head-to-head in the space for the same talent,
the compensation expectations are more realistic and less well-defined, and
there are no officious college administrators minding everyone’s business and
looking over your shoulder.
You’re a lot more likely
to be lucky and successful if you’re not simply continuing to look for your new
people in the same old ways. The reason lightning doesn’t strike twice in the
same place is that the same place isn’t there the second time.