Picking a good employee via resume

Ms_Shepard

Do any of you know how to spot a good employee by their resume? We have been through some real losers lately, both in the interview stage, (I could write a book about this subject) and employees who have been hired.

Some of the hired employees include a person who assumed another person's identity so as to claim their credentials, a person who was moonlighting as an escort at night who kept falling asleep on the job, a person who did nothing but socialized all day and then claimed sexual harrassment when made to work, a person who came up with every excuse in the book not to come to work (such as I accidentally shot my neighbor's dog with a bow and arrow and need to tend to it), and various others who just could not or would not follow directions. All of these people had excellent resumes, did beautifully in interviews, passed any competency tests, and had great responses from their references.

I am puzzled as this is the only company I have worked for that finding good people has been a problem. I would think that with unemployment being so high, this would not be as much of an issue. Could it just be bad luck?

Input anyone?

Don D

I'm not sure what your question is.

Cinderella

You cannot spot 'em from their resume. Interviews are key. We do a phone interview first and ask some basic questions (are you working now, why are you leaving, what is your experience with xyz, what is your desired salary, etc). After that we cull the herd and go for first in person interviews. During those we ask a lot of job specific questions, motivational/behavioral type questions, and we also ask for A LOT of specific examples to support their answers (the past is a good predictor of the future...of course some people WILL lie but what can you do?). The herd is further culled after that to take the top 3 or so for second interviews. During those we ask things like what would you do if xyz occurred, what is the first thing you will do in this position, etc.
THEN we check their background (credit, criminal, civil and tenant history), three professional references and a drug test (ALL employees, no matter the level go through the same process). We usually get to know people pretty well through all of that and if we're not absolutely sure about who we're hiring, then we keep looking.
What kind of positions are you hiring for? Where are you advertising? What is the company's reputation? Who makes the final hiring decision? The answers to these questions may help pin point the goings on.

Cinderella

HS

I've found some of our best employees, don't always have the best resumes...and vice versa that the best resumes aren't always indicative of the best employees.

Sorry to say, but this is an impossibility. There's nothing like a good face to face interview, but even then sometimes...

ritaanz

There is NO way on this earth to spot a good individual from a resume. All the resume tells you is what the person did to earn a living (maybe). The face to face interview is the key. When you get right down to it, you follow your gut instinct. Then you do the background checks.

pecohr

I think the key here is a good reference check. People with current bad behaviors probably exhibited them in the past for former employers. You might want to consider farming this function out to a service that does this function in depth, they can be pretty tenatious and usually will get you quality info.

just my .02

pecohr

I also meant to ask if you use behavioral interviewing techniques? If not search on the web "behavioral interviewing" for information on this process. I've found it to be pretty successful in rooting out behavioral issues.

good luck,

AprilShowers

"All of these people had excellent resumes, did beautifully in interviews,
passed any competency tests, and had great responses from their
references."


You know the saying... "If it looks too good to be true... "

When I go through resumes I look for the basics-
Gaps in employment history
Spelling and grammar mistakes
experience in field
e-mail address (hehe)

Are you requesting cover letters with your resumes? I find that the cover letter reveals a lot more about the candidate than the actual resume sometimes. It gives the person a chance to introduce themselves in a less formal way.

April