Hire Power Radio Show

Latest Episodes:

Why do You Need to Hire a Leader? with Ed Tyson of PerSynergy Consulting Jun 04, 2020

Show notes

Will a subject matter expert be a better solution to hiring a leader for your company? We can all agree that there are different types of leaders. I am going to contend that the wiring of the leader you are hiring is more important than the pedigree that is brought to the table.

Our guest today: Ed Tyson, CEO of PerSynergy Consulting.

Ed Tyson is the chief executive officer of PerSynergy Consulting, architect of LeadershipSOPs, author of From Expert to Executive: Mastering the ABCs SOPS of Leading, and executive coach and consultant to both small niche brands and Fortune 500 companies. With a mastery of leadership refined throughout his years as a Marine, executive, coach and consultant, Ed guides executives, to key findings he has learned through intimate connections with a diverse array of leaders.

Today we are discussing

How to identify the right leader for your startup
What steps you should take to build the right job description to find the best candidate to fill this position
What questions you should ask to ensure your candidate is the best fit for the job

Why not hire a leader in your startup?

I think we can all agree…

...leaders have a tremendous impact on your culture and process. The smaller the team, the larger the impact of each individual but particularly each leader.
Deciding to add your next leader could either be that decision which propels you forward or sets you back.
Leaders are more expensive and more capable of damaging your culture than individual contributors - so be certain it’s a leader you need, that you are clear about the challenge you need answered, and you are confident your candidate can indeed answer it.
- For example, there is a start-up client I am working with right now, just north of here in LA county. They are in the biotech space and have hired several key leaders from a much larger, global entity in the broader pharma space.
- The leaders they have brought on were extremely competent and well-positioned to lead the functions which they were hired to run. HOWEVER, they were not prepared to engage in both the breath of strategy and depth of tactics the job requires. Further, they are struggling with the lack of defined processes and support from other functions. Consequently, project timelines are being missed and their time-to-market will be impacted.
- Going the other direction on the 5, I have a client in San Diego county in the manufacturing business who is just reaching beyond the start-up phase. They have a relatively small corporate staff but almost a third of them are leaders with big titles but very small teams (with one or two subordinates a piece). Additionally, almost every leader is an internal promotion with no professional leadership experience – this founder has placed a lot of bets on continuing to cultivate raw talent but does not have the time to do it – which is admirable but making it difficult to grow beyond his current book of business or empower these leaders to really lead.
At the end of the day, the team is too big and too inexperienced to comprehend and reach decisions without its leader (keeping the CEOs nose in the very parts of the business he has to escape to hit his growth targets).
Both of these companies made the same mistakes (just differently). They both failed to clarify and challenge what they needed and ensure they got it.
- So again, my first tip is don’t hire a leader in the first place… unless and until you are confident you absolutely need a full-time person whose primary role is to structure, operate and perfect a community of effort.
- If that thought makes you nervous, if you're worried who will do the work, you might need someone to lead the work, not the people. Don’t fall into the trap of mistaking a technical lead, a senior subject-matter expert for a leader.

Rick’s Input

Focus on correctly positioned talent
Avoid vanity hires

How do we hire leaders then?

Purpose of a Leader
- The purpose of adding a leader to your growing team is not to add to your subject-matter expertise, it is to ensure someone other than yourself wakes up every day focused on cultivating a willing, capable and sustainable community of effort. Leaders are no longer obsessed with their craft because every step a leader takes on the career ladder is away from their craft.
- Leaders are not obsessed with technical puzzles. They are obsessed with people puzzles. Their primary work functions are to structure, operate and perfect powerful communities of effort.
- Do they need to understand the work? You bet. But their work is different from the team’s work. And the better you understand that work, the work of a leader, the more likely you are to find the type of leader you need.
Defining Your SCOPE
- For me, it all starts with understanding the SCOPE of the community of effort you need.
- SCOPE is an acronym which helps leaders remember the five most important architectural components of a community of effort. It stands for Strategy, Culture, Objectives, Purpose and Ecosystem. You can think of it as a replacement for the old mission / vision / values mantra which still permeates business schools today. In fact, Culture, Objectives and Purpose stand for exactly those same three components. The different being, the full SCOPE acronym adds the importance of understanding the players and interactions within your ecosystem and the strategies you craft by considering that ecosystem, how you deliver value to it (i.e. your purpose), the objectives you set (from both a visionary and near-term perspective) as well as the culture you have and the culture you’d like to have.
- Your best shot at getting the leader you need is taking your best shot at defining the company SCOPE and the departmental SCOPE for the team you want this leader to lead (and do it with your existing team if you can).
- Your clarity here will allow you to differential the team’s work from the work the leader must do to be successful. This will result in a rich, leadership-focused job description based on the real work of leading.
- Then you can use the interview to pressure test key concepts in your company and departmental SCOPEs across a broad set of applicants (think of it as free consultation) and dig into the how.
Process Not Outcomes
- Don’t fall into the trap of listening to canned lists of outcomes your candidates come prepared to throw at you. Ask about the how, the process. How did they refine the SCOPE at their last job? How will they do it here? How will they stay in alignment with the departments to their right and left? How will they stay aligned with you? How will they translate it into clear work methods, roles and responsibilities, how will they structure rewards and recognition; how will they secure the knowledge and capabilities you need to succeed? What repeatable processes do they use to inspire and engage people, drive accountability, evolve the team, etc.?
- I think the most important thing is to gain insight into their own personal LeadershipSOPs – in other words, what are their standard operating procedures for structuring, operating and perfecting communities of effort?

Rick’s Nuggets

Job descriptions
- Person type (builder, improver, maintainer)
- Performance metrics
Evidence of past performance
Performance tied to process

Key Takeaways:

Don’t Hire a Leader in the First Place!
Throw Away Your Job Description!
Ignore Candidate Stories about Outcomes!

Your IT Challenges with Off-Boarding Start with Improper On-Boarding with David DeFrancis of IT Proactive May 29, 2020

Show notes

The vast majority of companies still do not have any policy in place to support work from home. As the majority of companies have switched to remote work and plan to implement this new system going forward - companies need to understand how to make an effective switch that will align with their company goals and business development strategy.

Our guest today: David DeFrancis, CEO of IT Proactive

David started his first computer consulting business in 1998 and launched IT Proactive in 2015. He noticed a need for security and process in small to medium sized businesses was completely under-served. IT Proactive is an outsourced IT Support firm that you can trust. We offer fully managed IT solutions that are simple, affordable and all-inclusive.

Today we are going to discuss

On boarding and Off boarding Employees
Remote work policies
BYOD policies

What are today’s challenges when successfully onboarding and offboarding terminations?

No on boarding or off boarding checklist (Directory Service Accounts, email, application permissions, devices)
1 off policies
Personal devices accessing the corporate network, not having a separate vLAN (Internet Only) for employees (What is acceptable in the organization)

What policies need to be in place

Acceptable use for company equipment
BYOD - where most companies fail
Remote Access Policy- work from home
Personal Device v. Corporate Device
Its all about data integrity and security
Equipment reimbursement
Internet access/ security (remote location)
VPN
Firewall with Security Services
BYOD- allow employees to access data
- Failure point
  - - Written policy on what they can & cannot access
  - - MDM- mobile device management software
When people leave they can put their phone on airplane mode to access shared company files (locally synced data)

Rick’s Input

On boarding is a continuation of your interview process. This determines your ability to retain your strongest people

How do we create an effective internal policy around remote access?

Questions need to be asked first
Can company data be accessed on personal devices?
Can data be accessed remotely via web browser. (Email, Sharepoint etc)
- Protocol in place for a security breach
  - If a breach is detected, who to contact, plan to notify customers / vendors
Are remote computers encrypted
Are computers connected to a directory service?
Mobile device management policy in place?
- Security protocol in place to wipe data (MDM)

Now Create Acceptable use policy for Company Devices (template)

Taylor to specific company (Questions to ask)
Outline what applications are acceptable to use on device
Can the employee access personal email, social, banking, etc… for company owned device
Websites that are acceptable to access on a work device (Personal Banking, Social Media etc)

Create a mobile device management policy

Dependent upon server location
Dependent upon BYOD or company owned devices
- On prem, cloud, hybrid

What needs to happen when a person starts?

On boarding process
- Recommend providing company owned devices first!

On boarding Checklist:
1. Typically IT Managed
2. Directory Services Account
3. Email Account / O365 / Sharepoint
4. LOB Applications
5. Permissions for LOB and File Share(s) / Sharepoint
6. VPN in applicable
7. Mobile Device (Email, Sharepoint, Supervised v. Managed Mode MDM)
8. Company Policies, delivered and signed by employee

Off boarding
- 1. Typically IT Managed
  - Remove Access to all devices during exit interview
  - Force Sign Out of any BYOD devices.
  - Directory Services, LOB applications, File Shares etc
  - Archive devices
- 2. Do not tamper with user date until its archived
  - Point in time archive- home folder, desktop image, email
- Off boarding checklist for HR & IT
Signed document that all company owned devices are returned

Key Takeaways:

Start Policies (even if it has 2-3 items in it)
- Acceptable Use Policy
- Remote Access Policy
- BYOD Policy
Create and On boarding and Off boarding Checklist
Be in sync with HR and the members of your team when exiting an employee

Guest Contact: david@itproactive.com

How to Manage Remote Teams with Shiran Yaroslavsky of Cassiopeia Tech May 22, 2020

Show notes

A remote workforce has proven to be challenging to a lot of companies who have traditionally run operations from a centralized location. Aside from the technical issues (ie:security and connectivity) productivity, engagement and mental health become more difficult to manage. Today we take a dive into how we can utilize policies, tools and data to create a more engaged remote workforce.

Our guest today: Shiran Yaroslavsky, Co-Founder & CEO of Cassiopeia Tech

A startup that empowers managers that lead fully or partially remote teams to maximize workplace experience. Our solution delivers actionable insights to boost team collaboration, belonging, and mental health by analyzing communications patterns (not content) within and among teams. Shiran is an expert in all things related to data driven products and people analytics and was featured in 2019 Forbes 30 Under30 list.

In this episode we cover

The problems of managing a remote workforce
Providing direction on how to fix it

What are the remote work challenges are companies facing today?

77% Managers feel it is harder for them to manage their team remotely
Don't have visibility, water cooler talk
Creating a sense of belonging becomes more difficult (more than third were affected)
- Needs not being met.
- Need more empathy (fear, uncertainty) (36% of employees would like their managers to be more empathetic to their challenges at home to improve their work experience.).
- Lead with an open approach
- Be more sensitive to employees’ needs and how we interact.

Why is this important?

Managers need to constantly asses the team pulse
Remote teams are the future (GitLab report. 86% of respondents believe remote is the future)
New skills and tools that help to adapt to the new environment
Challenge with surveys
People are fearing for their job

Rick’s Input

Leaders must adapt, or parish
Changes operational efficiency and the need for more hands on management
Cuts the need for layers of management

What needs to happen for a company to be successful in managing a remote workforce?

There are 3 main domains companies should adjust in order to be successful in managing remote teams:

Establish Remote Work policies & culture that are suitable for remote work. There are 3 things we need to pay attention to.
- Rules - We need to establish new rules for gaining clarity
  Will we pay people for overtime if they work off-hours? How do we manage security and passwords?
- Norms - When do we email, text, or message people? Are cameras always on for online meetings? How do we run and manage meetings?
- Design our broader company DNA -
How do we communicate when we aren’t satisfied with something? How can we stay connected while working remotely?
Establishing the right culture will help us to foster trust
Training for managers
- My interview with Amy Cappellanti-Wolf. Today the new leader is more about empathy. It’s still about driving for results but in a more collaborative way. Much more listening and a lot more guiding rather than directing.
  The new leader also needs to be more flexible and innovative to adapt to the new challenges as the world is changing very fast.
- Training can help to gain these new skills.
Tools needed
Working remotely is not just working from the office only with Zoom. Working remotely creates new challenges for leaders. According to our data - 77% of managers indicate it’s harder for them to manage their team remotely. There is a workplace experience gap that technology can help in closing.
- Team Insights tools.
  It is more challenging to use Surveys for feedback tools (employees are busy and insecure while as a manager you need fast real-time insights to act on).
Communication shifted to online - people analytics can empower remote managers.
- Examples from Cassiopeia - We analyze communication patterns to provide actionable insights to improve collaboration, belonging and mental health.
- For example - create a healthy workday balance. Experience of new employees
- Communication platforms (zoom, Slack etc)
- Collaboration tools - to share documents, thoughts, goals.

Rick’s Nuggets

Your policies need to start with your interview process and carry through to onboarding and tenure. Not just when the person is already working for you
Implement the same management tools in the hiring process. It provides a real life picture of how you work.

Key Takeaways:

Be Aware of the workplace experience gap created by the shift to remote work
Design the right policies and company culture to allow your company to prosper while working remotely.
Use the right tools to boost your teams’ collaboration, communication, and employee experience.

How to effectively screen applicants to ensure employee retention with Shawn Sheikh of Pivot CMO May 14, 2020

Show notes

There is a flood of great talent on the market and the competition for those limited positions is heating up. With this rise in the talent pool the ability to properly access applications is a major challenge. The bar has been raised! Are you leaving good people on the table?

Our guest today: Shawn Sheikh, Co-Founder & Managing Partner of Pivot CMO

Shawn is a Silicon Valley & Beach serial entrepreneur and Y Combinator alumni. His specialty is helping companies scale from $0 to multi-millions in revenue, through both conventional paid acquisition and non-conventional growth hacks.

Apart from Pivot CMO, Shawn loves to work with founders to find creative ways to scale their businesses and owns and invests in a portfolio of small to medium sized businesses

Today we are discussing

The challenges in a heavy applicant reply market
How to effectively screen applicants to avoid false positives

What are the issues you are finding in screening applicants

Quality
Response rate
Don't want to do the case study

Right Approach?

Reply with application (google form)

Phone Screening

Report to person call screen

Rick’s Input

Job description- performance metrics and call to action
CTA: 3 questions for submittal - to be completed for all applications
Timing of the event…. ie: when to do a test
Phone screen for Purpose

Current process that works

Application process does work (cuts from 3k to 300)
20-30 people are qualified (phone screen)
75-80% show up for phone screen
6-8 to interview
1-2 to offer

Referrals- from employees

4 all hires
One referral from a person they

Process

Applicant review/application
Phone screen -50% technical/ 50% fit
Walk through assignment
Test
Interview
Offer

Rick’s Nuggets

Interview Structure & process tied to your Company values
“What are you capable of achieving?”
Make the call based on the person’s answers rather than the resume

Key Takeaways:

Better screening questions during the process
Addressing people’s needs before money
Owning who you are!

IT Infrastructure in a Remote Work Environment with Greg Keller of JumpCloud May 07, 2020

Show notes

The remote work mandate is still proving to be challenging for a lot of companies. Work from home is here to stay and we have to embrace the changes - there’s more to it than just making sure your employees are getting the job done. Today we are discussing how to get your IT infrastructure dialed in to increase performance in your business.

Our guest today: Greg Keller, CTO of JumpCloud

Greg Keller is the Chief Technology Officer at JumpCloud. He was responsible for productizing and launching the company’s initial directory service product offering to market in 2014. Greg is a career product visionary and executive management leader with over two decades of product management, product marketing, and corporate development experience ranging from startups to global organizations.

Today we discuss

The challenges of IT in our new ‘corporate’ normal
Some of IT related Hiring challenges
How you can get your company ahead of the curve

What are the IT challenges companies are facing right now?

The brittle on prem It workforce is now forced to move to the cloud
Security when outside the ‘brick and mortar’ offices
For those that still *can* hire, interviewing and onboarding is challenging

IT challenges in the hiring process?

Obvious - you’re not physically with them
Video Interviewing
Time demands required over Hangout/Zoom
- Panel, with follow up 1 on 1
- Typically done in 1 day in person
- COVID = smaller chunks over 2 or 3 days if needed

What IT structure needs to be in place?

DIY
- A patchwork of tools and write own automation
- Access control- active directory
- Be able to manage remote machines
- Governess to maintain compliance- devices
- Remote to on prem servers (VPN)
- Get clients on the machines
Jumpcloud - onboarding through productivity
- All in one access control software

Hiring process?

Onboarding
HR systems (bamboo, workday, etc)
Manage access to systems relevant to your role
Formats the computer direct from the vendor

Key Takeaways:

For IT in the new normal: Think ‘forever remote’ - Consolidating vendors will be key, as will ensuring the tooling will provide an ability for the employee to have zero dependencies to a brick and mortar office.
For hiring remotely: Think ‘Culture must shine through a Zoom meeting’ - Engineering managers and those responsible for engaging the candidate beyond ensuring their skills match or exceed the job need, must ensure they understand that employees motivations, behaviors, etc, in the context of not being physically near a team
For the state of employee mental health: Think ‘We owe our workers latitude and empathy to balance their new realities’ - Two adults at home - screaming kids, at home schooling, work pressures all add up to a degraded and intense life experience. The place of employment should do its part to assist the employee with getting through this.

Using Assessments to Eliminate the Resume with Josh Millet of Criteria Corp Apr 30, 2020

Show notes

The key to successful hiring is in uncovering evidence in a person's ability to align culturally and professionally with your unique company. … None of this evidence is on a resume! How do we gather evidence? First, not short cutting the interview process. Focusing on deep behavioral questions then confirming your conclusions with data through assessments.

Our guest today: Josh Millet, Founder & CEO of Criteria Corp

Josh started the Criteria Corp in 2006 with a vision to create a SaaS-based pre-employment testing service that would make the highest quality employee assessment tools accessible to companies of all sizes.

Criteria has over 4,000 customers in more than 40 countries across the globe. Their pre-employment tests are an efficient and reliable means of gaining insights into the abilities and tendencies of potential employees.

Today we discuss

Assessments
Why and how to use them effectively
A process to properly assess the person you want to hire

Why are assessments important?

With all the advances in HR tech in the last ten years that have transformed talent acquisition, we aren’t getting better at hiring when you look at results. 46% of all new hires are unsuccessful. The problem is we are relying on 70-year old tools, resumes and unstructured interviews, to gather info on applicants and make hiring decisions. These tools are letting us down. Why is it important? Immense bottom line implications.

Problem with Resumes

Poor, incomplete, unreliable information that in the end does not predict much
85% of resumes contain falsehoods or inaccurate information
Inject unconscious bias into the hiring process
- Boston & Chicago study

Unstructured interviews don’t work much better. Highly subjective, most interviewees make decision about applicants in first 5 minutes, based on highly subjective Criteria

Evaluating for good data - using objective data to reinforce your decision
When you think about how to gather data to make good decisions on candidates you should be focusing on:
- Accurate, reliable info
- Objective data not subjective impressions
- Removing bias from decision-making
- Being forward-looking data: how can this person learn, evolve as job does, rather than just past experience

Why are assessments the answer to resume

Focus on good reliable data
Things that are relevant to the job. Data that is not subjective and predicts job performance
Ie cognitive ability (best predictor or job performance, critical thinking, attention to detail learning ability, problem solving)
Behavioral or personality assessments - Interaction driven roles
EQ/EI- overlapping

Rick’s Input

Confirmation of data gathered minimizes bias

How to do it?

Moving past the resume
Use assessments early in the process (high applicant to hire ratio)
- Right after the application
- Resume submittal
- Link to assessment in the job post
Most common after the application has been accepted
Passive searches (a bit later in the process)
- Assessment become a resume substitute

Process for Active

Choose assessments that are job related
- Measuring things important to the role
- 30-40 minutes of assessment
- Tailor the testing for the role
Run at the Application stage or just after (automated)
Use results to prioritize the people that are more likely to succeed
Interview
- Assessment can generate further behavioral interview questions tailored to the individual based off their results

Process for Passive (recruits)

Smaller number of people
- Lower number of people interviewing
- Use later in the process when the candidate is more engaged
- Assessment after the phone screen
- During the interview or just before

Rick’s Nuggets

Must gain a personal buy in BEFORE giving tests or assessments
People perform better when they want something

Key Takeaways:

Do things in your hiring process to get good data
Make sure everything you are using has a purpose that measures outcomes related to it

The Most Effective Video Interview Structure: Phone/Video Screen! Part II with John Driscoll of Naked Development Apr 24, 2020

Show notes

How can you tell if someone is good just through a phone screen?

A BIG thanks to our guest today: John Driscoll, Co-Founder & CEO of Naked Development.

Part 1: Outlining Key Points for Episode:

Phone Screening: From reviewing the application to proceed to scheduling a call should be between 2-4 days (MAX)
Ideal timing for phone call: 45-60 minutes

Part 2: 3 components of the phone screen (understanding the person) Why, What & How

*PAIN (Why):

Discussion part 1:
Pain is the person's reason for talking to you
Types of PAIN to be aware of from an employer prospective:

LEGITIMATE PAIN
- Lack of Growth
- Work Content/Technical Exposure
- Leadership Issues
  - Unappreciated, Under challenged, Underutilized & Underwater
- Commute
SELF-INFLICTED PAIN
- More Money
- Personality conflicts
- Always open

John’s role “Hiring Manager”

*DESIRE (What): What is the environment that this person will THRIVE

(This is the part where the employer should look into whether or not the candidate is a cultural fit)

Things to consider when taking a deep dive into their desire:
- Their Vision for where they will thrive
- Fit to your company
Important note for employers:
- Cultural fit and Attitude are far more important than skills. Yes, More important than skills! Skills can be taught and acquired. Attitude and cultural fit are often woven into the fiber of who this person really is at their core.

IMPACT (How?) (Identify Level of performance)

Evidence of Success
- IMPACT - Do they go above and beyond (This should be demonstrated by example they give you of their past success and how they work with others)
- Commitment to Personal Growth
Phone Screen Script:
*PAIN (Locate a solid PAIN) …. Dig, dig, dig!!!
- What is happening with your current role that is making you open to exploring something potentially stronger?(Very important one to begin with)
*DESIRE:
- If you could create your next company, what would that look like for you?
- What is your vision of your next role?
- What type of environment do you flourish? Culture, Size, Role, & Domain?
*IMPACT:
- Tell me about the most significant impact you had in your current role?
*SKILLS:
- What are your core Strengths?
COMMUTE:
- Where are you willing to commute on a daily basis? (push limits)
INTERVIEWING: Currently: Interested:
- To properly pace out the process, where are you in the interview process?
CITIZENSHIP:
- What is your current work authorization status?
SALARY: Looking to make $
- What are your minimum salary requirements?
AVAILABILITY:
- What is your availability to interview this week? (dates/times)
***OFFER ACCEPTANCE MAIN CRITERIA: 1: 2: 3: 4:
- What are 3 or 4 “Main Criteria” that you would need to see in a company for you to accept an offer with them?

Final Step: Connecting the Dots

Embracing the Change of Your Remote Workforce with Rod Trujillo of International Rubber Products Apr 23, 2020

Show notes

We are now living the new normal.....And that normal is a mostly remote workforce, work/life/self balance and a heavy reliance on technology to lead the business. It is not about keeping what you have but changing who you are to adapt your business to the new world. Companies who will thrive are those who are embracing the change and committing to disrupting their own business. Not holding on to what was. Today is all about embracing the opportunity that has been given to us during this pandemic.

“We are never going back to normal. Too much has been exposed in the inefficiencies of expensive office buildings, amenities, drive time and personal time.” - Rod Trujillo

Our guest today: Rod Trujillo, Founder & CEO of International Rubber Products

A company founded in 1999 with the sale of all personal assets including savings and retirement accounts. IRPG is comprised of three distinct facilities in Southern California focused on the Medical Device industry, Aerospace/Defense industry and the Coating and Laminating industry.

The cornerstone and key component of our success as a business is the principal that regardless of macro and microeconomic changes, the company will be run as a God honoring business that seeks to bless everyone it encounters. As a result, IRPG has been adding 25-40 employees annually the past five years and has an annual five-year compounded annual growth rate of 23%.

Today we discuss:

Why this forced change is a blessing to your business
Where to focus
How to implement change

Why the change is a good thing?

Efficiency!
- We are not as efficient as we think we are… but more is getting done under the current environment and the company is more productive… we are finding that you don't need as many people… realizing how inefficient they have been
Realization
- People like coming to work and appear to be more social than we thought. Along with technology we are able to touch each employee daily and track projects which we are seeing projects getting done much faster.
Question
- Assess what you really need?
- Now that people are isolated, you really start to see how productive people can be especially when you add a little fear of the economy as well as being confined to the home.

Where do we need to focus?

figure out the technology tools and track productivity.
Realize we weren't managing efficiently and were over staffed.
Understand you can do more with less
Realize that the office has really been used for social interaction
- easier to manage people through the lock down than it was

Rick’s Input

Deep evaluation into what the business REALLY needs
Upgrade in Performance mentality

How do we get ahead of the curve and thrive Now?

Pro-activity
- Get ahead of what is being shown. Be proactive and being to embrace the video conferencing technology along with project and daily touching of employees.
- Encourage this change to make the workforce more healthy by having a workout as part of the daily routine for attendance etc. Establish benchmarks and data everyone can become excited about.
Tools
- Using Zoom- and other technologies we are improving with has really changed how we think about our administration moving forward post covid-19.
Data
- Read up to get ahead of the curve. Gobs of information.
- Transparency and pro-activity
- Do more with less while selling a new vision of a healthier work balance experience driven by results and care for each employee.

Rick’s Nuggets

Zoom for Interviewing
Invest in educational growth (self & company)

Key Takeaways:

The rapid changes in hiring, retention and adjusting to a new normal. Being forced to home quarantine has shown the inefficiencies with our administration systems as well as management of personnel.
We need less and can do more. Corporate offices with amenities are monies that should be invested in the workforce and technology. Eliminating an hour of commuting while people are more efficient without the social interruptions make the execution of projects more robust.
Adding by our estimation a minimum of ten hours a week to either personal time or work time. (AVG drive 5 hours, 5 hours of social interaction)

AI: Solving for Ego Hires that Fail with Neil Sahota of UC Irvine Apr 16, 2020

Show notes

Is AI the future of recruitment? Better yet, will AI replace the need for a resume? Tools are available to utilize AI in improving workflow and screening applicants. The question lies in their accuracy and viability in identifying the strongest people for your unique organization.

Our guest today: Neil Sahota, AI Expert & Author of “Own the AI Revolution”.

Neil Sahota is an IBM Master Inventor, United Nations (UN) Artificial Intelligence (AI) Advisor, Faculty at UC Irvine, and author of Own the A.I. Revolution. He is one of the few people selected for IBM's Corporate Service Corps leadership program that pairs leaders with NGOs to perform community-driven economic development projects.

In addition, Neil partners with entrepreneurs to define their products, establish their target markets, and structure their companies. He is a member of several investor groups like the Tech Coast Angels and assists startups with investor funding. Neil also serves as a mentor in several incubator/accelerator programs.

Today we are going to discuss

All things AI, What is it, how does it help with hiring
Why it is important today
How to implement the effective use of AI into your hiring today

Why is AI important in hiring through today’s landscape?

People looking for work should be looking for more than just a paycheck.
Why is this important?
- People quit when you bring the wrong person onto the team
- Productivity plummets
- Ai can eliminate the need for a resume!

Rick’s Input

Automating workflow
Sourcing/screening
Good at all things transactional

How do we start leveraging AI to optimize hiring in today's landscape?

Using AI to eliminate ego based hiring decisions
Story of Omelveney (law firm)- use pymetrics
Testing for cultural value
Allow you to evaluate for culture and team fit
Ai tools to analyze how well code is written

AI Tools Currently Available:

Pymetrics: https://www.pymetrics.ai/
Paradox.ai: https://www.paradox.ai/
Ayra: https://goarya.com/
Eightfold.ai: https://eightfold.ai/
Xor.ai: https://www.xor.ai/
Pandologic: https://www.pandologic.com/recruiting-with-ai/

Rick’s Nuggets

Add CTA’s into your job postings to allow the cream to rise to the top
Innovation is eliminating the resume

Key Takeaways:

Elimination of resumes
Reduced bias in recruitment
Increased diversity & inclusion (by accessing “non-traditional recruitment pools)
Quantifying cultural/team fit

The Most Effective Video Interview Structure: Timeline & Process! Part I with Rick Girard of Stride Search Inc. Apr 15, 2020

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Special Episode!

Video Interviews are the new necessity. But what is the best way to run an effective process? Today we breakdown the framework to run a strong, evidence based video interview. Through partnerships with fully remote based companies, we are sharing what has proven to produce the strongest hires. RIGHT NOW is your opportunity to elevate your companies productivity by hiring stronger talent.

Key Points for Episode:

Timeline for Interview Process

Startup- 7-10 business days max
Review - 24 hours from submittal
Phone Screen - 48 hours (Day 4 max)
- 45-60 minutes
Video Interviews - 72 hours (Day 8 max)
- 1- 45 minutes
- 2- 45 minutes
- 3- 45 minutes
- 4- 45 - 60 minutes
Decision - 24 hours from Final Interview (Day 10 max)

Interview steps

Phone Screen - Phone / Video conversation
- Your Goal
- Learn about the person!
- Understand: Pain, Desire & Impact
- Not to pitch your company, job or yourself
Video Interviews (Same Day Ideal)
- Ideal to line up back to back
- Schedule back to back or split them up 2/2 or 3/1
- Build a knockout question for each interviewer
Interview 1 - Cultural Value Alignment I
Interview 2 - Skills Screen
- Live working session to evaluate skills/communication
Interview 3 - Cultural Value Alignment II (optional) 24 hours from interview 2
Final Interview - Cultural Confirmation III & Offer preparation (Decision Maker)
Decision / Offer (24 hours max)
- Best to give immediate feedback
- Time kills hires, be decisive

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