It’s hard to hire good people. Unfortunately most people make it even harder by looking for someone great at what they do. By having vague criteria, with vague questions, and subjective decisions making, you end up making costly hiring mistakes.

An easier approach is to identify what roles you need to fill. Then look for someone that can fit that role. The roles you need to run your company are stable and consistent. Don’t create the perfect role for someone find someone that fits a function you will always need.

When it comes to evaluating people, start with values, then character, and finally skills. This forces you to evaluate the least malleable aspects of the person first. You can always teach someone a new skill, but it can be impossible to change someone’s values. Someone with the right skills but a bad character will do more damage to the moral of the company than leaving the role vacant until you find the right fit.

Principles

Book: Principles