Surface Ripples

Don’t Hire Skinny People!

This was the advice given to me by a (no doubt) well-meaning person in one of the markets in which try worked.

A little more research on this word of advice informed me that what they really meant was that “skinny” staff were fine, but they were more prone to falling sick or to exhaustion after stressful events in their lives.  This person’s belief was that they lacked the necessary physical stamina to cope which then somehow translated into mental stamina.

Happily, experience shows that it’s not just “skinny” staff who are prone to this.  It can happen to anyone of us. Body shape, height or size don’t matter.  In fact, if the person is “skinny” because they run marathons, etc, then they’re likely to be far fitter and have more stamina than most of their colleagues (as well as eating more healthily, perhaps)!

It got me thinking though, what other inherent or secret biases may people have?  How much can this impact interviews?  What about the "wrong school", "overqualified", "lives too far away", and other such "excuses"?

We’re all prone (unfortunately) to inherent and unconscious biases due to the way we were brought up, our family, our education, our culture, the country we live in and so on.  Being conscious of these is one thing, ensuring they don’t get in the way of hiring effective people is totally another.

I deliver change in markets ranging from the most developed to “emerging” economies. With a wealth of international experience in international financial services around the world running different operations and lending businesses, I started my own Consultancy to provide solutions for improving performance, productivity and risk management.  I work with individuals, small businesses, charities, quoted companies and academic institutions across the world. An international speaker, trainer, author and fund-raiser, I can be contacted by email. 

Labels: Career, Leadership, Social

posted by William Martin @ 09:34