“What is the most important thing that you learned in this class?”

One big takeaway for me this term was the concept of the “A-player” and how to recruit and select them. This is two-fold for me, with the first being about the recruitment and selection and the second about myself being that A-player.

Looking at the framework that a company should use to source, select, scorecard, and finally, sell. This framework provides a process that is proactive, reliable and valid. There is lot more to this, but I will keep to the framework.

Source: This is critical, because it is the very first step and it is proactive and intentional. The focus for this part of the framework is to continually network and pinpoint potential candidates before you ever need them. This helps the manager to be aware of what his team needs and what they are looking for. Which helps in the following steps.

Select: This is a series of interviews that not only sifts through candidates, but provides tips and insight into the interview process, allowing the company to mitigate wrong choices, but also picking candidates that might not otherwise have “fit the bill” and go on to become the best choice in the end.

Scorecard: This goes hand-in-hand with the select process that reinforces a standardization of questioning that allows for a reliable and valid method determining who the best candidate is, reducing and/or removing bias and discrimination.

Sell: This is the clincher and is necessary to ensure after all the hard work and resources put into finding a candidate that they are ready, willing and able to join the team and give it their all. This is a great focus on how family and life can play a huge part into an otherwise seemingly quantifiable decision, instead is more complicated.

Going through the book and a deep dive into the process, gives me a greater appreciation for striving to be that A-player and know that I have to decide whether the company is right for me, as much as they are determining if I am right for them.