(Time to read this Blog is about 3 minutes)

Before we get to the main topic, here are a few things to get you thinking or smiling:

1. My Biz Quote of the week:  
   “There are two ways to elevate ourselves.  One is to do the ongoing work to become a better version of us.  The other is not to do the work but, instead, to put everyone else down so that, by comparison, we elevate ourselves in our own mind…but not in the mind of anyone else.”
   …Donald Cooper.
    
2. Quick Biz Tip:
   Just satisfying your customers won’t ‘cut it’ anymore:   
    
   Many businesses believe that the key to their success is ‘customer satisfaction’.  But just ‘satisfying’ customers won’t cut it anymore.  ‘Satisfied’ is somewhere just slightly north of ‘not satisfied’, but far below ‘thrilled, delighted and amazed’.
    
   ‘Satisfied’ is not where emotional connection, brand loyalty and customer ownership take place. ‘Satisfied’ is not where customers become fans and tweet, text, blog and tell 100s of friends about you.
    
   ‘Satisfied’ is where customers are not unhappy enough to complain, but not thrilled enough to come back for more.  So, rather than just ‘satisfying’ your customers, you need to absolutely delight and amaze them.  And, if you’re not prepared to do the work to make that happen, you should just pack it in right now!
    
   So, what will you commit to do in 2023 to surprise and delight your customers and clearly differentiate your business from your competitors at every touch-point?  What has never been done before?   Then how will you make that part of your corporate DNA?  

3. Travel & tourism are big business. Paris is the #1 tourism money maker in the world.  The city contributes $36 billion (US) to France’s economy.
    
   Beijing is #2 bringing in $33 billion in tourism dollars.
    
   Orlando is #3 at $31 billion. 
    
4. Is your work-from-home policy working? 33% of unionized Canadian federal government employees state that they’re considering leaving their job because of the Government’s return-to-office policies. They want to find a job with more flexibility. 
    
5. Fast food ‘fun fact’. In 2022 dine-in visits to fast food chains fell to just 14% of total sales.  86% of their business is from drive-through, take-out or via food delivery services. 
    
6. If you or your Industry Association have a Conference this Fall, perhaps we should talk. As a thought-leader on management, marketing, staff engagement and profitability, I will bring real bottom-line insight to your Conference.  Our most requested topics are:

1. 1. “Accelerate Your Business…the ‘straight goods’ on how to sell more, manage smarter, grow your bottom line…and have a life.”
   2. “Winning the Talent Wars…8 essential steps to attracting, developing, leading & engaging a top-performing team.”
   3. “Vision Critical…how to manage, innovate and thrive in a very different tomorrow!”
   4. “Succession Planning & Exit Strategies…preparing your business and yourself for the most important financial transaction of your life!

Comment from a recent attendee, “Best, most real, insightful and entertaining management session I’ve attended in 30 years.  Bring this Cooper guy back!”  

I’m happy to chat about possibilities at 416-252-3703 in Toronto. 

Now, to this week’s important topic:

Are you effectively screening job candidates?

47% of Canadian employers state that “the poor quality of candidates” is their #1 problem when it comes to the hiring process.  So, what are you doing to screen out the duds?

Stop hiring anyone who shows up. Thousands of businesses around the world are now hiring anyone who shows up for an interview.  It’s a desperate move and a  huge mistake!  These non-performers will hurt your business while there with you and will cost you a ton of grief and money when you finally decide to pitch them. What is your screening process to make sure that you don’t hire duds? 

Know who you’re looking for.  Do you know what skills, talent, knowledge, experience, education, attitude, values, personality and energy level you’re looking for?  What are the deal breakers?  Finding great people is like looking for a needle in a haystack. But it’s a lot easier to find that needle if you know what a needle looks like. 

What questions, do you ask to find out if candidates have the qualities you need?  Create a script of questions to ask.  Don’t wing it!

For each position create a Job Description that states the outcomes to be delivered and the key activities required to deliver those outcomes.  Most Job Descriptions focus on activities only, rather than outcomes…and that’s a big mistake! 

Don’t just hire people who can do the specific job that you’re recruiting for today.  Hire people who can actually help you get to where you commit to be in 3 to 5 years.                

Ask yourself 3 questions:

1. Can they do the job we’re interviewing for?
2. Are they a great fit with our culture, values and standards?
3. Can they help us grow the business to where we commit to be in 3-5 years?

Get and check references.  Do the work.  Ask specific questions.  Once again, write a script.  Don’t wing it.

What aptitude or attitude screening tests do you use?  Here’s a link to an insightful article on the 7 types of screening tests that you might consider:

https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/career-development/types-of-pre-employment-testing

One of our Biz Coaching clients has great success with the ‘Predictive Success’ screening tool that screens candidates for 7 specific values and characteristics.

So, what will you do to improve your screening process…and specifically when will you start?

That’s it for this week…

Stay safe…live brilliantly!       

Donald Cooper 

Donald Cooper speaks and coaches internationally on management, marketing, and profitability.  He can be reached by email at donald@donaldcooper.com in Toronto, Canada.