Hiring for Values Alignment.

A quiet character test I put a candidate through in an interview.

It was during a high-stakes period in the industry when competition for sales talent was fierce, and we were at the pre-opening stage of our organisation. We had our sights on one standout candidate to fill the Sales Manager role - someone we believed could be instrumental to our new setup.

As the Director of HR, I, along with our Director of Sales & Marketing, invited him for a coffee chat. We came prepared, even bringing a handwritten note from our General Manager to express just how serious we were about having him join our team. However, his salary expectations were well above our budget. The negotiation was a tough one.

While stretching the budget was doable, I knew we needed more than just a top-notch salesperson. We needed someone who would stand with us through the ups and downs, a team player aligned with our values from the very start.

I decided to put him through the test.

I presented two final contracts.
📃 One met his ask.
📄 The other did not, but was a stretch of my original offer. I made sure he knew this as a message of how keen we were on him.

The choice was his - Choose one to sign.

Regardless of which he chose, the job was his; the decision was entirely up to him, but his choice would reveal something vital to us: 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒉𝒆 𝒋𝒐𝒊𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒔𝒐𝒍𝒆𝒍𝒚 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒉𝒊𝒎𝒔𝒆𝒍𝒇, 𝒐𝒓 𝒅𝒊𝒅 𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒆𝒆 𝒂 𝒑𝒂𝒓𝒕𝒏𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒉𝒊𝒑 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒂 𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒓𝒕𝒖𝒑, 𝒃𝒖𝒊𝒍𝒕 𝒐𝒏 𝒔𝒉𝒂𝒓𝒆𝒅 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒎𝒊𝒕𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕?

The next day, he took on the lower offer.

Most importantly, he proved himself during his term with us that he was one of the best in every way.

Sometimes, hiring decisions aren’t just about filling a role. They’re about discovering who’s truly willing to go the distance. It’s about values alignment.

🎖️ The best talent brings not only expertise but also a commitment to the team’s journey, willing to build something bigger than themselves.