You feel like you did everything right.   You followed him on social media and in his professional endeavors. You looked at people who gave them referrals on LinkedIn.  You looked at people you know in common. After much time and money spent on finding high-quality candidates, you managed to have him for good. You welcomed him as a star for surely after everything you’ve done you are confident that is who you hired.

His on-boarding went perfectly well. Everybody met him, and he met everybody. He got a great office, the best computer, the warmest welcome to our company possible.  You gave him enough time to catch up, so he could start positively, bravely and hard.

And, now, you are waiting for your best talent to start performing. Well, he just needs more time. And, so, you are waiting. And waiting. And he does not move. He does not run. He does not fly. Nothing. He does work, but mediocre. What he does, everybody could do. Especially somebody easier to find and employ. Especially, somebody cheaper.

Parents taught us that money spoils children. Later on, we learned ourselves, that money has the same negative impact on adults.

One of the possible reasons why your best talent does not shine is exactly this – he himself believes that he is a star.

And why wouldn’t he? You made so much effort, you gave him benefits, salary and bonuses that would make everybody dizzy.

Choosing the perfect fit candidate

Next time, be smarter and more careful with offers.  Hire slow and fire fast.  Money should be the last thing they are interested in and the last thing you offer.

Real stars live for challenges,  they are driven by their own and their team’s success.  This is when they more forward with lightening speed.  Money is just a random tool they use for other things in their lives.

If our first move was an amateur move of waving with banknotes (just so that they do not run away), it is likely that the rest of the battle would be just bargaining for a better offer. The bargaining itself should be a clear alarming sign. At that point, we should have understood that the candidate is not the perfect fit for us, and we should have given up on him. But, ok, we will do smarter next time.

We had no alternative solutions. The focus was only on him because he was perfect – as we taught back then. We had no bench with substitute players who would be ready to jump in upon his first “no”.

It is especially true when recruiting for top positions. We really need to make sure that we have a minimum of three stars, three candidates who are the subject of our desires, three stars to focus our time, effort and energy on. At the end of the game, there is only one winner. The other two give up or we give up on them. At least we know that we have got the right man.

Identifying candidate persona helps to find the best talent

All of us, sooner or later, come across a wall and we feel hopeless and desperate to find that perfect fit. Mistakes will always be there. We are all human beings. However, learn from your mistakes, and follow examples from others that have been following practices that work.  Learn how Hospitality Recruitment Agencies can be your friend.

Unsuccessful new hires will always happen. However, there is a way to reduce these mistakes to the very minimum!