Why You Need A Signed Candidate Risk Waiver

A signed candidate risk waiver = accountability.

The purpose of a defined sales hiring process is to create predictably good sales hiring outcomes. Unfortunately not everyone follows the defined sales hiring process. Use_a_candidate_risk_waiver_to_avoid_sales_hiring_mistakes

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And that is a serious cost to the bottom line.

The solution to the problem is a "candidate risk waiver". A candidate risk waiver is a document signed by the person(s) making the final sales hiring decision that acknowledges that the sales candidate being hired is an unacceptable risk of becoming a low performer.

Ideally the candidate risk waiver is signed by the the CEO, VP of Sales, HR and the sales hiring manager.

The autopsy of a typical bad sales hire.

Recently a bad sales hire made it through your supposed hiring guantlet. The defined sales hiring process was not followed. Now the poor performer is sucking up valuable time and energy. Worse yet, this low performer is losing sales and their fellow salespeople can smell a loser.

The autopsy of a bad sales hire often sounds something like the following...

"So what happened?" asks Mary, the VP of Sales.

"Oh, you know. Good help is hard to find. Fred (a top performer) knew this candidate and while their job fit score wasn't great, Fred thought he could work with him so we thought it would be a good risk..." says Bob, the sales manager who hired the low performer.

Mary interrupts, "What was their job fit score?"

"2.7."

Mary smells blood and wades in.

"2.7? The cutoff is 7.0. How on earth did this happen? We have a defined sales hiring process that I expect to be followed."

The same conversation recurs several weeks later.

Until you require adherence to your defined sales hiring process, the problem will recur.

Common sense is definitely not common.

A defined sales hiring process is only as effective as it is followed. For some, it would seem to be common sense to follow a sales hiring process that yields an increased potential for success.

Common sense is definitely not common. Regardless of how compelling the evidence provided, there are those who will simply avoid adhering to a data-driven sales hiring process.

There was a time long ago when I believed others shared the same perspective that I have about data-driven sales hiring. I have always believed it was simple common sense to seek objective data evidence; to look for data patterns that consistently win and then repeat them. I thought it was simple common sense to standardize best sales hiring practices accordingly.

Few people are data-driven, few are accountable, and fewer yet have business common sense. Despite the availability of powerful data, way too many sales hiring mistakes occur due to the lack of accountability in following the defined sales hiring process.

The solution is to immediately implement a signed candidate risk waiver.

Use your candidate risk waiver or make your own. The key is to make it real. Until you require adherence to your defined sales hiring process, some will circumvent it.

The fear of looking dumb in the eyes of the CEO is enough to serve as a deterrent to straying from the defined sales hiring process.

Decide.

Until you create real accountability in your sales hiring process, bad sales hiring decisions will continue to be made.