This post is the final post in the series of “The ultimate guide to hiring PM’s”. Post #1, #2 and #3.
This post is all about the close. What are the key areas you should focus on to make the hire?
Open access to the management team
Once you have decided to hire a candidate, open up access to the entire management team. A good practice to follow as the hiring manager is to call the candidate personally and have an open conversation about what you liked about her and why you think she would be a perfect fit for your organization. Use this opportunity to alleviate any concerns she may have about joining the company/organization. Do not outsource this to other parts of your organization, do this yourself! Having the direct hiring manager call signifies a commitment and transparency to working together.
In addition, open up access to the entire management team all the way up to the CEO. Arrange for calls/in person meetings if she needs to chat with anyone in the organization.
The interview is a very formal process — schedule an onsite social gathering so that she can meet the team in a more relaxed setting and really get to know the team.
Personal touch
Surprise the candidate with a gift. Not some random gift, send them something that they are passionate about. This personal touch goes a long way in establishing a rapport with the candidate, it shows that you care. I’ve sent passes to the zoo, photography books, board games — make it very personal.
To make this work, you have to really talk to the candidate in the interview process and find out what she likes to do for fun, what is she passionate about when she is not at work. This small tweak has had a 100% success rate for me.
References
Run the right amount of references. A lot has been written about this topic — see here.
Hope this helps and jumpstarts your hiring process! Please provide feedback and comments to make this better
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