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Mel Kleiman is the founder of Humetric, Inc - a company focused on helping employers with recruiting, hiring and retention. He says the biggest mistakes employers make in their hiring efforts happens in the first 14 seconds of an interview. Kleiman references a study done by the University of Chicago which determined that interviewers make a decision on whether they like a candidate within 14 seconds. Kleiman says this internal opinion within the first 14 seconds may not be done intentionally - but once the opinion or impression is formed, the interviewer mostly likely will ask questions to confirm their initial impression.
All employers desire to find employees that will help their company soar to new heights - yet often times they end up hiring waddling turkeys! Why? Kleiman says turkeys can dress themselves up to look like soaring eagles. The people who make great applicants but poor employees interview well because they get a lot of practice. He gives 3 areas where employers can change their hiring biases:
1. Desperation and mediocrity: Many times employers hire out of desperation so they settle for a mediocre employee because they need a warm body in a position.
2. Nobody is perfect: Kleiman says, "there is no perfect fit, everybody comes with flaws." Employers can use interview questions to help them gain valuable information in finding the best employee.
3. Keeping Control: The interviewer needs to keep control of the interview. By relying too heavily on the applicant's resume during an interview, the interviewer allows the applicant to highlight the areas they want to highlight. Kleiman says, "You're not interested in what they did on the resume. You're interested in what happened off the resume."