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Description:
Candidates with non-traditional backgrounds often get the short-end of the stick when it comes to applying for job positions. How often have we seen a company require 3-plus years of experience for an entry-level position? Does it really need to be that way? The hiring process is broken, and biased, and our co-hosts share why searching for those ‘unicorns’ or someone that checks all the boxes isn’t the best approach. Candidates have a lot more options now that everything is remote, and high-quality talent is slipping through the cracks. Here’s how you can think differently about the hiring process and adapt to this new world.
Key Takeaways
The hiring process is badly broken!
Companies are looking for ‘unicorns’ and aren’t always realistic about their requirements.
Does someone really need 10 years of experience to be considered quality talent?
By being too senior-focused with your talent, you end up with a very top-heavy organization that doesn’t want to take on the smaller ‘boring’ tasks.
You can’t have a team composed fully of senior unicorns if you want your organization to run effectively.
One of the ways the hiring process is broken is because recruiters are looking for things you’ve already done and are not necessary looking for the right soft skills (curiosity, growth mindset, etc) that actually gets the job done.
Larry has seen companies that have wanted all of their talent to have innovator mindsets. No, you don’t. Products have different life cycles and you need stability to maintain those.
Anna has struggled with applying for jobs the ‘traditional’ way because she doesn’t check the right boxes and the automated system rejects her.
Some of Larry’s best talent didn’t have a formal education. They were self-taught and they took on initiatives by themselves.
The moment you have to upload a resume or CV onto a website, you are already going to be blocked out.
A manager is there to be in charge and to help everyone be accountable, but one of the things companies have lost sight of is that a manager is also there to develop talent.
Some of the dumbest people Trip has ever worked with have gone to Harvard. They were book smart but they couldn’t work well with others.
Larry told his team to always look for intelligence, adaptability, and attitude. If you have those, a good candidate can do almost anything.
The hiring process doesn’t stop when the employee starts. You have to court them for the long haul if you want them to stay.
Why is the hiring system so broken?
Why did Trip enjoy Amazon’s hiring process? He was on close to 300 interview loops at Amazon.
How can managers better hire excellent talent, remotely?
You also need to sell the candidate on why you’re a good company to work for.
Candidates have more power than they realize! You can be picky now that working digitally has opened up.
Trip has never regretted a job he didn’t get, but he has regretted a few he has gotten. He ignored the red flags.
Hiring isn’t easy. It’s one of the riskiest things you can do in the business.
Resources
Thebraveworkforce.com
Bravenewcompanies.com
Quotes
“10 years of experience doesn’t get you a 10X better candidate. There's a top out where you don’t get that much better at the core skill set.” — Trip
“We’re not actually looking at whether a candidate has the right systems, like resilience, growth mindset, and curiosity. That’s who you want to hire. We have a tendency to filter those people out because they don’t check boxes.” — Trip
“When it comes to the educational piece, if you don’t have it, it’s not a death sentence.” — Anna
“You can be choosy, you don’t need to be forced through a very toxic environment just because you feel like this is the only place in your area that will hire you. As we open up into remote, there are so many more options you can pick from that will treat you well.” — Anna
“We need a full spectrum of people. We want entry-level folks coming in fresh out of college, we want people who don’t have college degrees, more diversity of thought, and we want senior people.” — Larry
“Some of my best talent that I ever hired did not have a formal education. They were self-taught, they bootstrapped themselves.” — Larry

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