A tech company’s president left after two years of poor results—the third person to exit in five years. The CEO stepped in temporarily, but soon demanded of his management team, “Get that new person hired immediately and have them start tomorrow.”
Instead of using a strategic job fit process, the CEO let a committee of the president’s former reports choose the candidate—without using validated assessments, multiple interviews, or stakeholder alignment. Several weeks later, they picked someone they liked. The CEO rubberstamped the hire to relieve his stress.
In their haste, they rehired a well-liked former president with the same leadership gaps: weak strategy, poor accountability, and a focus on being liked. The CEO’s stress would soon return—and ripple through employees and customers.
Sadly, when companies need to hire now, many find themselves relying on excuses for why their selection failed instead of implementing a valid hiring process. They ignore the fact that taking the time to hire the right person the first-time costs far less—in time, money, and morale—than repeating the cycle of hire, train, and replace.
By implementing and following a strategic job fit system, the hiring process becomes not only easier but far more effective.
Why Expedient Hiring Usually Backfires
- Missing Soft Skills: Quick hires often focus on technical qualifications, overlooking traits like empathy, adaptability, and communication—qualities that shape team dynamics and customer interactions. Many job candidates are well versed in talking around a subject and don’t know how to talk straight.
- Cultural Misalignment: Without thorough vetting, you risk onboarding someone who clashes with your company’s values or work style, which can erode morale and productivity.
- Customer Experience: Employees who lack emotional intelligence or problem-solving skills may struggle to deliver the kind of service that builds loyalty.
- Financial Impact: A bad hire can lead to turnover, retraining costs, and lost productivity—ultimately hurting your bottom line. Worse yet, customers often leave.
What Strategic Job Fit Hiring Looks Like
- Structured Interviews: Go beyond resumes—use structured behavioral questions to uncover how candidates handle real-world challenges. Don’t be afraid to deep dive into their responses – asking three questions that ultimately reveal the truth (SEE “Hire Amazing Employees,” Chapter 12) (e.g., Tell me more about ….).
- Job Fit Assessments: Most assessments do not meet legal and scientific requirements for selection use (e.g., hiring and promotions). Use those that assess fit with the job responsibilities and reflect the true whole person: core behavior, thinking style, and occupational interests.
- Team Involvement: Let multiple team members weigh in to assess fit from different angles.
Don’t overlook issues noted by objective data:
- Job fit concerns
- Interest in key job responsibilities (e.g., low interest in financials when hiring for CFO, controller, financial planner, or accountant positions)
- Issues when conducting due diligence
- Unable (or unwilling) to answer, “Tell me about your most recent mistake and what you did to correct it?”
- Patience Pays Off: Waiting for the right candidate feels like it will take too long, but it’s often more sustainable than fixing the fallout from a rushed decision. When you follow a well-designed strategic job fit system, you will find qualified candidates that don’t always make it through an “expedited process.”
Note that using a strategic job fit selection system does NOT lengthen the process. It uncovers those areas of concern before you hire them, which saves you a lot of money, time, and customers! The added bonus … you will keep your top talent too.
©Jeannette Seibly 2025 All Rights Reserved
Jeannette Seibly, an award-winning Talent Advisor, Leadership Results Coach, and Business Author, has guided thousands of executives and business leaders to achieve remarkable success over the past 33 years. Her specialty is delivering innovative solutions for hiring, coaching, and leadership challenges—with excellence and accountability at the core.