Employees with Growth Potential and the Looming Talent Crisis
This blog focuses on interview questions that can help you tangibly determine the growth potential of a candidate. Why are these questions so fundamental? Our organizations, according to Workforce 2020, are in a talent crisis. With the rate of change increasing, employee skills are deteriorating or become obsolete every 2 – 2.5 years. In IT, this ‘skills obsolescence’ is actually accelerating, given:
- all the change stressors IT is experiencing in general
- the increased demands being placed on IT’s human resources
When employees were surveyed, 60% responded that they fear becoming obsolete and irrelevant given the future workplace demands.
Given that we are now working in a continuously changing and dynamic environment, we need to address the organizational need for employees with growth potential who can align with and stay relevant to rapidly changing work demands.
Cost of Hiring or Keeping the Wrong Person
In addition, did you know that if an employee leaves an organization, it can cost as much as 1.5 times more to replace that employee? This means that hiring people who have the potential to grow with your company not only saves you the time and resources of replacing them but also saves the organization money.
Top 5 Growth Potential Questions
If your company is in growth mode—and what company isn’t in today's world—it’s critical that you hire the right person in the right role with the right assessment of their growth potential.
To help determine if your candidates have the potential to grow with your organization, here are the top 5 growth potential questions to ask during your next candidate interview:
- Recall a time when your manager was unavailable when a problem arose. How did you handle the situation? With whom did you consult? What was the outcome? What did you learn?
- Describe a time when you volunteered to expand your knowledge at work instead of being directed to do so. What caused you to volunteer? What was the outcome? What did you learn?
- What would motivate you to move from your current role?
- When was the last occasion you asked for direct feedback from a superior? Why?
- What was the most significant career goal you have ever achieved? What did it take for you to be successful? What did you learn?
If you want to learn more behavioral interview questions to ask your candidates, we invite you to sign up for our blog to stay updated on our ‘soft skills’ series.
Are you looking to build the IT department of the future? Download the IT Competency Checklist to help determine if your team is ready to perform at sustainable peak levels for your organization.
