Management Training

The Great Place to Work Institute holds as its core belief that trust-based relationships are at the heart of every great workplace. Trust strengthens as employees feel increasingly respected, proud, and confident that management will be fair and just in their relationships and decisions.

So how do great companies find great people to hire? I asked that question of the Global Human Resources Director at Novozymes, a world leader in innovation for sustainability, and the Chief Executive of Psimitis S.A. whose medical supply company is one of Greece’s, and Europe’s most respected enterprises.

ASK THE HARD QUESTIONS
How does medical device supplier Psimnitis S.A. find and hire people who are intellectually and emotionally right? “I ask indiscreet questions and then I look for crystal clear eyes”, Elina Psimitis, Architectural Engineer and Chief Executive, told me. “That is the gist of it”, she said—and naturally, I asked her to elaborate.

“You ask how we find and hire people who welcome this culture. We want to hire people who trust. Trust allows us to have relationships rather than simply roles and responsibilities. But first, we earn trust among others. We continuously develop our own knowledge and abilities in our field. We work to earn the trust of manufacturers and doctors by providing top-notch training for our customers and their colleagues”.

When they do invite applications, the hiring includes three interviews: one with the HR manager, the second with the manager to whom the person would report, and then the third with Elina. “I want to know how the person uses language, whether the candidate is thoughtful when responding to a surprising or difficult question, whether the candidate blames or explains. So I may ask, ‘Why do you want to leave your job and come to work here?’ If the answer is about what’s wrong with the other company, the interview is over. If the answer is about the person’s interest in what we do, in our culture, in wish for new types of opportunities, I explore the interest.

“I will also say, ‘Please tell me about characteristics that will give added value to your work beyond product knowledge.’ I learn what the candidate values and about the candidate’s individuality. I will also ask the candidate to tell me about points for improvement. If the candidate cannot tell us about—or genuinely is not aware of—development needs, we will reject the candidate, because our organisational life is one of continuous improvement”.

I was surprised to learn that Psimitis does not ask for references and does not use personality tests. Elina explained. “We don’t use personality tests because we have developed reliable ways to identify people who are naturally right for us. And as for references… we already know that for one reason or another, the candidate’s relationship with her or his employer is broken, or the candidate wouldn’t be at our door; but we don’t assume that is a cause for worry. Cultures are so different; characteristics that are anathema in one company may be prized in another. So we rely on own judgment to identify the candidates who will likely be happy here; we consider the image of the candidate in the field as we hope our employees will project themselves in the field; and, we trust the impression we have.

“And here’s the measure I apply when it’s my turn to interview a candidate: I look in a person’s eyes. During the conversation, I see directness or not, honesty or evasiveness; I see depth and connection—or discomfort. I see whether a smile is in the eyes, or pasted on the lips. The eyes and the smile—they tell me a great deal about the person’s emotional maturity, confidence, ability to handle conflict and likely success with teamwork. So, others ensure that the person has the knowledge, talent, and aptitude—and that the personality feels right. I look for gentleness, politeness, positive attitude, respect, courtesy, and ability to express thoughts and ideas—and ultimately I see those, or I don’t, in the candidate’s eyes”.