Too Many Competencies = Too Many Hiring Mistakes

"Smart." "Results-oriented." "Team player." "Strong leadership skills." "Good communicator."

Sound familiar? You'll find these items on just about every company's competency list, across industries, functions and levels. We recommend you get rid of them—all of them.

"But, Jordan, we really need good communicators in this role.” Yes, you need good communicators in most roles. You are already hard-wired to detect when a candidate is a poor communicator. Trust that you and your team will identify those issues. Don’t waste precious space on your competency list!

“Actually, we need a truly brilliant, artful and concise communicator in this VP Marketing role.” OK, now that sounds like something that belongs on your short list! And it's far more specific and nuanced than “good communicator.”

Time is short. You can’t orient a hiring process around 30 or even 15 competencies. By trying to cover that many items, you will fail to go deep on the ones that matter most. And you will end up making costly hiring mistakes.

We recommend a very short list of competencies that are uniquely important (1) for your company’s culture and (2) for the role in question. Give each one a short, memorable title, and a precise definition. Aim for 5-8 items, not 10+.

Here is an example from a particularly innovative/disruptive client, regarding a critical aspect of their company’s culture: “Perpetual Skeptic: takes nothing at face value, proactively invites questions and challenges from others.”

This is a company that knows itself, and knows what mistakes to avoid. If they had simply thrown “skeptical” on a list of 25 competencies, they would be far more likely to talk themselves into hiring the wrong candidates.

How did they get there? They did it by asking themselves a very powerful question: “What kind of people would do well at other companies, but would not thrive here?” This distinction is key.

You can safely exclude competencies that are “no brainers” for any company/role—again, you are already programmed to detect those issues. Focus your short-list on the standout qualities that matter most.