How Do You Hire? Angie's List Founder Gives Insight.

Angie's List Co-Founder Gives Her Top 4 Traits Every Employee Should Have

We recently did an article related to this subject by Richard Branson. Sir Richard looked at the issue of hiring the right people from a very different perspective than what you or I may be used to. So we thought we would broaden the discussion a bit further with a few more insights from Angie Hicks, the co-founder of Angies List.

Angie, must like Richard Branson, believes the qualities of the people you hire are far more important than what’s written down on a piece of paper. The effectiveness of your team’s success depends greatly on how the new person will integrate into your current team and what ideas and passion they bring to the table.  In Angie’s recent article posted on LinkedIn, Angie reveals the four traits she believes every employee should have.

• Smart, adroit and able to adapt to a fast-paced, entrepreneurial environment.
• Confident enough to try something new and fail; we believe in trying things and tossing what doesn’t work.
• Passionate about what we do, as well as strategic and no-nonsense in their approach.
• Committed to their work, without taking themselves too seriously.

Remember those job interviews where you sat there answering question after question with no feedback or interaction? How on earth can they get to know you, find out what you’re like, and get a good sense of your personality? Of course, there’s the legal implication of asking the wrong questions, but what about having a conversation instead of Q&A session?

Understanding what you are really looking for before you schedule any interviews, will help tremendously in deciding which candidates are the right fit. Where is your team the weakest, what skills do you need to add to the mix to become more successful, how can the new individual round out the team? As Angie puts it, “After all, a great team working on a mediocre idea will do better than a mediocre team working on a great idea. For one thing, you can count on an excellent team to transform the idea itself. And hiring right is the key to it all.”

In the old days, poor or marginal employees could in hide the corporate structure and live out a comfortable life without getting truly found or given the axe. Nowadays, law suits, disgruntled employees, and endless paper work dealing with problematic employees, make the hiring process a much more crucial step in the success of your teams and your businesses success.