2010 Update: I made the decision to bring Say “Alaka‘i” here to Talking Story in late May of 2010 when the Honolulu Advertiser, where the blog previously appeared, was merged with the Star Bulletin (Read more at Say “Alaka‘i” is Returning to the Mothership).

Therefore, the post appearing below is a copy of the one which had originally appeared there on January 8, 2009, so we will be able to reference it in the future when the original url it had been published on is no more…

Milk’s good” Got RISH?

As appears on Say “Alaka‘i” today: Milk’s good” Got RISH?

Sunday’s question (Job-hunting? Don’t apply and fill, create and pitch) and Tuesday’s follow-up (There are 2 Decisions Made with Every Hire) got me thinking that this is as good a time as any to be adding RISH to our Definitions and Context category here. Just as milk makes your teeth and bones stronger, RISH does wonders for the bones of your company ”“ your labor.

RISH stands for Recruitment, Interview, Selection, and Hiring. See all those HR hands shooting up, saying, “I know, I know!”???

Ah, but do they? The game is changing people; we all know that… What does RISH mean to a winning company today?

Consider RISH as a series of questions: They are the questions every business needs to answer in a manner congruent with the value-alignment which best engenders the organizational culture they thrive upon.

RISHy Questions

I would say that the questions each of these steps of Recruitment, Interview, Selection and Hiring seek to answer haven’t changed all that much. However the answers are not necessarily the same as they were a few years ago, or as recently as in the past six months:

• Your answers should shift, adapt and change each time workforce demographics change —and most HR professionals will tell you that workforce demographics change constantly.
• Your answers should shift, adapt and change each time there is a shift in your business model —and there are a lot of business models changing right now in order to survive” Leaders don’t wait for any cycle.

RISH answers can also fluctuate wildly from company to company, for not every business shares the same values, even when within the same industry. When your answers are known by job applicants, they can brand your desirability as a prospective employer, or as one to steer clear of. After all, a business is a collection of people in-company: Their reputation is one a prospective candidate is fully aware of inheriting, gaining it by association.
So, what are the questions?

For Recruitment:

Who are you seeking?

• What does “the best possible person” for a position mean to you?
• What combination of talent, skills and knowledge and industry/position competencies is most desirable, and what values are you hiring for?
• What do you consider “ready to hit the ground running” to mean? Conversely, how much training are you willing to give someone, or might you even prefer to give them?

Interview:

How will you know when you’ve found them?

• What must you cover to learn if the candidate you are interviewing IS that “best possible person” you have defined via answering your Recruitment questions?

Selection:

What choice is made in each possible Interview outcome?

• What happens if you cannot find your best possible person? Do you hire the best available, or do you wait and outsource meantime?
• What happens when you have more than one person to choose from? How is your choice made, and what is done to ensure those you do not select remain your fans?
• What happens when “the best possible person” becomes available, but there is no job vacancy for them? Is there another way you can ‘employ’ what they potentially can offer you?

Hiring:

How does someone start working with you in the best possible way?

• What is involved when an offer is made? What is the crucial up-front knowledge that must be covered for both the candidate and the company?
• What must happen during a new employee’s 90-day orientation and at-will period, and how might this differ based upon a specific position? Why?
• What happens if you discover your Selection decision erred in some way?

Collaborate on your answers!

If it’s time that you sit with these answers, consider how you can optimize the process. Get your team together and tackle them as a collaborative exercise, for doing so is an excellent way to reexamine the values which contribute to several key structure and stress points within your organizational culture. You are likely to find the exercise one where both training and recommitment happen to the values you hold dear.

Your people truly are your greatest asset, and your RISHy processes should not be risky business. Are you due for some newly revealed answers?