Drive Your Career: Bias in Interview
Holly Scott
Senior Partner at The Mullings Group | Global Medical Device & Life Sciences | Executive Search-Building Companies and Careers
Our team met with an individual recently interviewing for a position at our firm. He was professional, friendly, and possessed a lot of the attributes we typically see in our successful hires. With a solid education, demonstrated track record of success in a competitive setting, and reasonable IQ, he seemed to have the right mix.
As we debriefed as a team, I couldn’t bring myself to support moving forward. I could see the future in front of me. He would do well in the beginning, but he wouldn’t be on the team a year later. I know the road as a search consultant for that first year, and there were some glaring gaps I couldn’t ignore. We reluctantly decided to pass as a team, as each of the other members shared similar concerns. As we attempt to grow our team, we walk away disappointed that this individual wasn’t “The One”.
I reflected deeply the situation later. Leaders in effective companies owe it to themselves, and their teams, to have awareness of any bias in process. Am I making a rapid decision based on years of experience and watching the success and pitfalls of budding recruiters, or I am falling victim of a seeded bias? Did he remind me of someone, and unfairly cloud my judgement? Was I objectively looking for the right qualifications?
My mind goes to comments that he shared as he spoke candidly about his approach to work and his goals. He spoke of interests he had outside of work and his aspirations. Based on his priorities and mindset, I can see serious hurdles to his success. This young man has a lot of potential. However, it is clear his mark on the world will not be made through executive search.
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As we interview, we recommend an approach that helps keep biases in check. Do not make up your mind on whether you “like” someone or not within the first five minutes. Those early flags, whether green or red, can often mask your ability to uncover valuable information through the interview. With a few minutes of preparation, you can review credentials and have three to five meaningful questions prepared to ask that will give you insight into the candidate’s ability to solve your team’s problem. If at conclusion you still have an unfavorable opinion of the fit, your intuition may lean less towards bias and more towards abductive reasoning.
As you have discussions regarding career, as the candidate or the client interviewing, hold judgement early and ask targeted questions through discovery. After the meeting, reflect on the “likeability” as another data point. On my busiest and most exhausting day, what will it be like to be in a meeting with this person? Skills and accomplishments are important, as well as the individuals ability to engage with the team. Ensure your decisions are based in sound judgement and awareness.
Vice President - Global Med Device Leader Building Companies and Careers at TMG
3y“On my busiest and most exhausting day, what will it be like to be in a meeting with this person?” Such an important question to ask yourself after interviewing a candidate.
IT Manager / CyberSecurity / Software Dev / IT Engineering Manager: Science, Engineering and Manufacturing
3yThe word No is unbelievably powerful in our minds as individuals and within a team Holly Scott, we are literally showing ourselves respect and projecting how we expect to be treated by the community that we work in :} Had I not used that word at several stages of my life, I would have found myself in years of struggle that everyone else chose to endure, because they felt that saying yes, was their only option. While struggle provides character building exercises and life lessons of magnitude, there is expounding expansion to be had in building our minds, when you decide to say no, and instead create a path that you've never walked. What's even more exciting is when you find that you've catapulted yourself into a working arena that makes parts of you surface; that not only aligns with who you truly are, you begin to take charge and exceed in a manner that is noticed. Answers, literally "come to you"and your mind grows with independence of thought, which enables both yourself and many teams to move forward. No, is not an end to a story, it's an invitation to mature yourself and grasp onto experiences that you haven't dealt with before, enabling the understanding and deep appreciation of learning the skills that you needed to achieve, in being successful. In essence you set yourself an adventure to engage in the process that answers why you didn't get the job. That kind of experience is life-affirming. For many years I felt that I needed to take a course on hiring people, in order to answer the inevitable post question: How did it go? This however suggested that there is one way of hiring, and that's impossible, given the human condition :} In order to challenge your mind, you need to be giving it what it wants. You've mentioned your inner voice on many occasions and that is the source of the answer to that question. While we are challenged by outside sources, we need to fulfill a reaction to our gut instinct, to be able to link up our own understanding. with the processes that give us, well rounded "Theory of Application" :}