What You Can Learn from Hollywood on Hiring and Managing Employees

The holidays are a time for family, festivities and award-seeking films. On Friday nights, some of us try to escape the stress of the office by losing ourselves in the best Hollywood has to offer.

3 Keys to Hiring for Growth

Most entrepreneurial businesses start with an idea and one person -- the entrepreneur. Then they hire another person, usually a “jack of all trades” whose job description is anything the entrepreneur doesn’t want to do or can’t get done. As the business grows the team also has to grow. It is expanded to include employees with more specialised skills and more detailed job descriptions.

4 Interview Questions to Identify Trailblazers and Nonconformists

If you own a widget factory, what you need in employees is punctuality, efficiency, and the ability to withstand the boredom of repeatedly following a set procedure. But you're probably not running a widget factory. 

In pretty much any other sort of company, you're going to need some people who can think on their feet, challenge the status quo, and call BS when appropriate. In short, you're going to need what Wharton professor and best-selling author Adam Grantcalls "originals."

"We can't all be nonconformists at every moment, but conformity is dangerous," Grant says, explaining the value of originals and iconoclasts in a fascinating and lengthy recent First Round Review article. "If you don't hire originals, you run the risk of people disagreeing but not voicing their dissent."

How to Make People, Not Résumés, Your Hiring Priority

When I consider acquiring a company, I try to get inside the heart of the person selling -- and allow him (or her) to get inside my own. I try to avoid being overly technical. When it comes to hiring people, on the other hand, there is no magic formula.

Yet it occurs to me that the two tasks are still related. In fact, “hiring” (acquiring) companies has a lot to teach us about how to hire employees.

For decades, companies and hiring managers have experimented with the hiring process, seeking the right sets of questions and qualifications that will guarantee successful hires. But, these days, companies are bucking the traditional trend of favoring education and experience.

How to Interview When You’re Hiring for Soft Skills

When interviewing potential hires for roles that rely on soft skills--such as customer support--you always run the risk of repeating the same questions, receiving the same answers, having the same small talk, and then promptly forgetting all the important details.

The antidote? Think creatively, establish a system, and then stick to it. You won't be left groping for questions, your interactions will be more memorable, and you'll be able to standardize the circumstances under which you assess candidates.

The Evolution of HR

HR is undergoing a major overhaul. Advances in data mining technology and the emergence of mobile workers are creating a tectonic shift in the way companies manage their workforce in the field and the way employees get work done. Not only that, but it is also having a major impact on the way companies are meeting staffing and hiring needs.

Managing a Mobile Workforce

Mobile, on-demand workforce are on the rise and while they provide flexibility for both the employer and employee, with them come a new set of challenges, such as managing where your employees are at any give time. Questions HR managers often ask themselves pertain to productivity and whether their employees are completing the task at hand in a timely manner.