| Every single member of your
Association staff, no matter what the job description, is a member of
your Public Relations department. Just one unhappy or bad attitude
employee could do terrible things to your public image. Your customers are your association
members. Not only are other groups and situations demanding their time
and money, most of your members have to be constantly 'resold' on the
value of their membership fees, to say nothing of the importance of
attending Association meetings and events. Your staff, especially the
front line and membership contact positions, have to be staffed with the
right person, in the right job that is matched to their skills and your
goals and service standards. As a busy association executive, you
want to create a productive environment while protecting your investment
in their training. Good
employees turn up, not by magic, but through good hiring practices, and
smart hiring starts with smart interviewing. After you've asked the
usual "resume" questions -- job history, education, salary
expectations, etc. -- probe your prospect with questions that will
illuminate their hopes, goals, inclinations, and reservations.
1. "Tell me about yourself. All
the exciting and interesting things." People offer revealing replies to that
question. So many people, even some top executives, say, "Oh,
there's nothing exciting about me." You learn a lot about people's
self-esteem when they answer that question. 2. "If you could wave a magic wand
and create a perfect environment to work in, what would it be
like?" Suppose the potential employee answers,
"I don't like to have someone breathing down my neck. I like to be
left on my own, to make up my mind how to do things." You know
immediately that this is the wrong person for a job that's heavily
supervised. (Choose someone who says, "I enjoy a lot of
feedback" instead.) Consider both the demands of the job
and the working environment. If a quiet, personable individual replies,
"I love working with people, but I'd like to have my own
space," be sure that's possible. Work areas quickly become private
domains, and rightly so or people wouldn't take pride in them. But if
the job requires sharing a table with the coffee machine, your employee
may not last or do the job well. 3. "Describe the best boss you
ever had. What made him or her so special? Describe the worst
boss." If the description of the worst boss
sounds anything like you, you know that person won't be happy working
with you. 4. "What's your hobby?" There are many questions the law does
not allow an employer to ask -- whether a person is married for
instance. But you may want to know something about a person's private
life to determine if the hours or job demands are going to stressful.
For instance, if you need an employee who is bright and alert at an
early hour and his hobby will keep him up late on weeknights, you both
may have a problem. Or if her hobby requires occasional time off to
participate, the time to discuss the appropriateness of this is now. Some
Questions to Ask Yourself Before you sit down with a potential
employee, ask yourself: 5. "What am I offering this person
besides money?" What opportunities for growth,
excitement, achievement, and fulfillment go along with the paycheck?
Enthusiasm, motivation, and persistence are rarely proportional to
salary. Often they are in inverse ratio. (Why else would anyone choose
to be an artist, performer, teacher, or writer?) Self- motivated
employees are great, but it never hurts to spotlight some incentives. But once you've got the right people in
the right jobs, your own job still isn't over. Ask yourself: 6. "How do I keep my team highly
motivated, productive, and eager to come to work in the morning?" Your answers can be critical to a
happy, productive, low-turnover organization. Here are some suggestions.
Start by making the job fun whenever
possible to keep employees from getting stale. Share the big picture
with them, so they realize their contribution is part of an important
whole. Solicit their feedback and act on it to prove to them that they
are really making a difference. Then watch your people respond with hard
work, loyalty, and enthusiasm. |
