GHDC: Hiring Managers Don’t Always Know What They’re Doing
Misconception #5: Hiring Managers Do NOT Know What They’re Doing!
A majority of the managers I know became managers because they were good at something. That something was not “management.” A lot of the time, in order to “move up the ladder,” they take management roles. But there’s a huge difference between being great at sweeping floors and being great at running a team that sweeps floors.
As such, you can’t assume that hiring managers are objective, fair, or even very good at hiring. You can only hope that the hiring managers know talent when they see it. (Hint: They probably don’t.)
Worse, sometimes hiring managers inherit teams without having a semblance of understanding of the work the teams are doing. You know how I know this? Because I am this! I currently run a team where I barely understand what is happening day to day and I have to trust my team’s judgment that they’re doing things right. Feedback from other teams is essential to inform me of my team’s success.
And if you think I’m being dramatic about this misconception, I’ll point you to Jamie Contino’s thoughts on this section: “Preach!”
What to Do
We don’t normally include the “What to Do” section, but consider this a little bonus for today.
See if you can find out the name of the hiring manager for the position you’re targeting. Look them up on LinkedIn or social media. All of this information is public and can be used to your advantage. You might even try messaging them to get a conversation started. Tell them you’re interested in the position and you want to do everything you can to address all the major concerns of the role.
It’s nearly impossible to determine whether someone is a good hiring manager, but if they write recommendations for their peers and teammates on LinkedIn (or have some written about them), that’s a good sign.
From CTO and sales executive Marquess Lewis:
Unless the company has invested in real recruiting coaching, hiring managers don’t know how to hire. So know and be prepared for both those who don’t and a few who do.
Talk about real situations — the situation and the business context, what YOU did, and you must include the outcome. Not that the code got written, or the bug got fixed, but that a customer was retained, customer satisfaction was increased, or costs were cut. Real outcomes.
Purchase our course “Get Hired During COVID.” If you're unemployed, take advantage of our pay-what-you-can model on our website, or send us an email at hello@edifycontent.com.
