Are You A Victim of Confirmation Bias?

Most hiring processes are not effective due to a concept known as "confirmation bias".  Most people who interview prospects for a position in their firm make a determination of a candidate's fit within five minutes of the start of the interview and then spend the rest of the time affirming what they want to believe based on those first impressions. 

 

That's why most job interviews are not really effective ways to determine if the candidate sitting in front of you can do the job that you are offering, will work with your team and/or will be a good fit with your culture.

 

So how do do you bypass the challenges posed by confirmation bias?   Look to Google for the answer.  The company has its pick of best-in-class talent who want to be associated with a technology superstar.  To avoid confirmation bias, Google uses an extremely structured process that allows apples-to-apples comparisons based on strict criteria that predicts whether or not a candidate will succeed at the company.

 

The main criteria Google uses to determine if a candidate is a fit are:

• General cognitive ability:  Google asks candidates how they solve problems and challenges they might be asked to solve in their position at the company. For a decorative showroom, ask what approach you would take when your client calls and says the plumber says the product does not work.  Ask questions about real life challenges that your team members face every day.

• Leadership:  Google does not have a hierarchy nor do they want team members who are impressed by titles.  They look for team members who can lead at times, but don't have to be the leader all of the time.  They want leaders who also are comfortable being followers.

• Fit within the culture:  Google looks for people who enjoy having fun (who doesn't, after all), a certain amount of intellectual humility (it's hard to learn this if your can't admit you might be wrong), comfort with ambiguity and evidence that the candidate has taken some risks or performed some courageous acts in their life.

Using these criteria will help you overcome the confirmation bias and attract and retain candidates that are the best fit with your showroom.