Too many agencies have square pegs in round holes…why?
| Our industry has historically identified prior work experience in a particular position as the on-ramp to a series of recurring positions, sometimes with different agencies, sometimes just in different departments within an agency. Yes, sometimes experience is a good indicator of a person’s potential for continued success in that same role, but sometimes it isn’t.
When evaluating a person’s potential for a position an agency manager needs to first evaluate the position, not the person for the position. They need to have a good working knowledge of the type of personality it takes to be successful in that role. Secondly, an understanding of the environmental aspects that make up that position is critical to knowing whether a candidate will be a good fit. Does this position involve working on a team or independently? Does it involve risk? What kinds of decisions and accountability is involved? All these things need to be identified as it relates to the position to be filled and used as a filter in looking for the right person to fill the position. It’s the position that seeks the person, not the other way around. If we don’t have a good grip on what it takes to be a success in a particular position we’ll fall into our industry classic pitfall of cramming a square peg in a round hole. |
