Hiring on your gut..

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I am sure that HR managers would hate me saying this, but I have had a very successful recruitment record based on my gut read of people.

For me, the most important thing I am looking for in the interview stage is PASSION and DESIRE. Show me passion, show me a desire to learn and succeed, and I'm far more likely to give you the role.

Don't get me wrong, I believe there is a real science to recruiting the right candidate, and by no means do I encourage you to hire on your gut feel alone, especially if you’re hiring sales people (the good ones tend to be pretty convincing!). You need to uncover the specific competencies and capabilities required for the role through questioning, role playing and even physiological testing if you have it available. You should also consider how the candidate is going fit with the team's and businesses culture (this is something that I feel is often over looked). Having said that, I have seen some of the best candidates on paper fail and the worst succeed, and from my experience the deciding factors have been their passion and desire. 

The way I see it, most of the people who make it through to the interview round, especially the second round, for a particular role will have similar skills, experience, and competencies.

So I want to know is: who wants the opportunity more, who is going to put in the hours and work to make themselves successful, who is going to jump over the desk and say give me the job, I'm your Man/Woman.

I have always said "I only want to work with two types of people: those who want my job, and are going to work their ass off to get it; or those who want to be the BEST at what they do".  The rest of them can earn your money elsewhere.

So what’s the most important thing YOU look for in interviews? Has hiring on your gut worked out for you?