By BLR Founder and CEO Bob Brady
BLR founder and CEO Bob Brady’s epinion in last Friday’s Advisor generated a flood of responses. A surprising number of readers jumped at the chance to put their interviewing chops to work, questioning the presidential candidates.
In last Friday’s e-pinion, I suggested that if we took a standard HR look at the three major candidates for president the way we’d evaluate a potential CEO, we’d probably decide none of them were qualified, and I asked readers to submit interview questions they’d ask. Well, you did submit questions, in droves. Here are representative examples:
Can You Convince and Compromise?
Several readers’ questions concerned how the candidates would deal with the need to convince, cooperate, and compromise. Here are two examples:
“What experiences have you had that indicate an ability to negotiate resolutions among opposing points of view?” (You cannot use the phrase “Working across the aisle!”)
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“Those who will make the final decision on this position are sharply divided in opinion. This means that, right from the start, about half will oppose everything you do. How do you plan to address that from day one?”
How Will You Recruit Your Staff?
Several readers saw recruiting as a key skill for the new president:
“How would you select your chief assistants when their jobs require expertise in areas with which you are not familiar? What selection criteria will you use? Have you identified candidates for those positions?”
Variations of Standard Interview Questions
Many readers sent in presidential variations of their favorite interview questions:
“What past experience will prepare you for the ‘middle of the night call’ concerning an immediate threat to our national security?”
“Tell me about a time when your organizations financials were ‘in the red.’ What did you do to turn the organization around? What processes did you put into place to ensure [this] wasn’t repeated in the future?”
“Why should we hire you? Give specific examples of successes you have achieved that make you the best choice. These must be proven successes, not ideas that you think will work.“
Political Policy Questions
Many readers wanted to grill the candidates on policy issues. A sampling:
“I am concerned that my children and grandchildren will look at our generation as the one that exercised no restraint, pinning the cost of our largesse on their generation. If elected president, will you commit to balance the budget?”
“This organization is facing crises including war, housing, economic instability, immigration, health care, and ongoing allegations of deception. How would you prioritize these issues and what would be the first three steps you would take to address each?”
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“Tell me how you would institute a performance management and pay-for-performance system for all branches of our government.”
“What is the permanent solution to the illegal immigrant problem?”
“Please tell us what ‘… preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States, against all enemies, foreign and domestic…’ means for your presidency. How is the way that YOU plan to uphold your oath of office better than your opponents’ plans?”
“What absolute limits would you place on yourself with respect to the use of presidential powers … in matters of war … in matters of privacy … in matters of taxes and in matters of ownership rights?”
Here’s What Matters to My Company
Some readers asked questions specific to the challenges their companies face:
“My industry (recycling) is loaded with employers who hire illegal help. I have been diligent in our hiring. As such, I am paying 45% more per hour. As president, how will you level the playing field and ensure that we are all following the same rules?”
“The rising cost of health care has caused us to not be able to cover many of our employees. This is not acceptable to either them or to us; how will you propose to solve this problem?”
Do a ‘360’ … and Test for Drugs
Some respondents suggested we use classic HR tools to pick our president:
“Let’s have the pollsters poll the constituents of each candidate, and maybe even do a 360 review on each. Then we can set up an elaborate matrix and grade each one!”
“I think skills testing should be mandatory (Constitution, accounting, problem solving …) as well as random alcohol and drug testing.”
We had one reader who was annoyed:
“My e-pinion? HR people do not pick CEOs. This is a ludicrous article to see in an HR publication.”
But more than one who found some new perspective:
“I will now take another look at our candidates from the CEO perspective before I make final decisions.”
As always, thank you for responding … and remember to vote in the real election process!