Toxic Leaders Can Infiltrate Any Company. The Warning Signs Often Appear During Hiring
Technical brilliance can mask serious leadership risk unless you know what to look for.
EXPERT OPINION BY MARCEL SCHWANTES, INC. CONTRIBUTING EDITOR, EXECUTIVE COACH, SPEAKER, AND AUTHOR @MARCELSCHWANTES
What if the candidate who impresses you most in the interview is the person you should be watching most carefully?
Leaders with destructive interpersonal behaviors can make excellent first impressions. They may be charismatic, articulate, confident, and technically accomplished, all qualities that can seduce an interview panel.
That is an unsettling prospect, if you’re identifying your future leaders. That is precisely why hiring leaders based on instinct or first impression is dangerous.
There’s a better way to vet candidates
There’s a better way to vet candidates and protect your company from toxic leadership behaviors. The goal is always to evaluate the interpersonal capabilities of leadership candidates, not merely their experience and technical competence.
Refreshed leadership advice from CEO Stephanie Mehta
An Inc.com Featured Presentation
Here are my three recommendations:
1. Define how this person must lead
In a Harvard Business Review article titled “How to Spot a Toxic Leader—Before Hiring Them,” researchers advise identifying the interpersonal requirements of the role. In other words, you should get very specific about what good leadership looks like in the role. Don’t settle for vague qualities such as “strong leader,” “good communicator,” or “culture fit.” Define observable behaviors. For example:
- How should this leader respond when someone challenges their decision?
- How should they handle an employee mistake?
- How should they deliver difficult feedback?
- How should they react when their own idea fails?
- How should they treat people who have less organizational power?
Then build your interview around those behaviors. Too many companies have detailed job competencies but vague expectations about how someone should treat people while doing the job. We got it backward. If a leader will influence the working lives of 50, 500, or 5,000 people, interpersonal competence belongs in the job description.
Source: www.inc.com
