Product Management Journal

Hiring someone is a little bit like getting married. You're making a long-term commitment to spend a lot of time with him or her, you'll depend on each other in many ways, and it's not easy to end the relationship. So the hiring process is like dating - you want to find out a lot about each other, and like dating, it's not just about technical qualifications. Here are some different approaches to getting to know someone during the hiring process. Interviews usually start with a discussion of the candidate's past experiences. As an interviewer, it's important to press for details, not just hear the rehearsed story. For example, you can ask:   - "Why did you leave a job?" Press for details and ask how to confirm them. Is there someone, not necessarily a supervisor, you could talk to, from the previous job? You can learn a lot from a person's reaction to this, even if you don't follow up. And when you ask about why they left another job, you ...

The recession has done strange things to the hiring process. Few openings, many applicants. Stacks of resumes, many embarrassingly overqualified, some grotesquely underqualified. All too frequently, companies are treating applicants poorly, not following up after interviews and behaving arrogantly. And often people are hired in a hurry, without sufficient scrutiny. Hiring may be the most important process at any company. Everything else depends on having the right people in place, especially when it comes to product managers. But whether you're hiring a product manager, a CEO, or a product support rep, your company's future depends on having the best people in place. You are who you hire. Hiring the right person isn't that difficult if you know what you're looking for, make the effort to get to know applicants well, and are patient. Here's what I look for when I'm hiring, in order of importance: 1. Intelligence . You can't teach this, and if it isn...