Have you heard the term โpersonality hireโ recently? And does your company specifically look for personality hires to add to the team? Letโs discuss the benefits, risks, and considerations for hiring based on personality.
If youโve never heard of personality hires, this article by the NY Post provides a bit of background, although it doesnโt paint the whole picture. According to the article, a personality hire is not hired for the skills they can bring to the table but for their โfun factorโ or personality. (And if you hop down to the comments section, you can see how people feel about that!)
Examine Why You Feel This is Necessary
If you feel like you need to hire someone for their personality, ask yourself why that is. If your organization needs to hire someone to lighten the mood, itโs like bandaging the hole of a water bucket. The problem lies with the leadership.
Company leadership sets the tone in the office – so if the workplace is too serious, the leadership should set out to make it right. Itโs the job of the leaders in an organization to be receptive to (and understanding of) employeesโ needs and treat them right. A new hire canโt do all of that, nor should they.
Fix the Root of the Problem
Instead of hiring a person to make the workplace fun, find out what the core cultural problem is in the organization. Talk to your employees and find out what challenges theyโre facing. (And if youโre concerned they wonโt feel comfortable talking to leadership, offer the option of filling out anonymous surveys.)
Be sure that your mid-level managers are properly trained to lead teams with empathy and respect, and donโt take their word on everything so seriously that you make major decisions based on what they say. Fact-check to ensure what theyโre telling you is accurate and unbiased.
Simply treat people how you want to be treated. Youโll be surprised how much employees will feel welcome if you listen to their concerns and treat them with kindness and respect.
Here are some practices that can help:
- Regular surveys to find out where employees stand as far as stress levels, feeling included, being energized by work, etc.
- Encouraging time off so that employees can spend time with their family and friends – prioritizing work-life balance is huge for employees.
- Not grilling employees about the time that they want to take off. Instead of saying, โWhy do you need time off?โ as if theyโre doing something wrong, try to grant the time.
- Respond positively to requests for additional help or input, even if youโre busy. Even if theyโve asked at the worst possible time. Being there for your team shows care.
- Trust your people to do their jobs. Few things decrease confidence in a company like micromanagement. You hired them to do their jobs, so let them do their jobs.
- Walk the talk. Companies talk about an abundance mindset and have employees sign โnon-compete agreements,โ which may be banned soon! People see through that.
Leveling Up Your Leadership Skills
Train your team and organize team-building events to help boost morale. If you can show your staff that the job is contributing to society and helping people, they will see their value and bring their A-game to work. (If you support them when they need help, theyโll be grateful and want to help you, too!) Treating people with fairness has a major impact on how people feel about working with you.
Remember: trust has to be built with each employee over time and reinforced during the most critical moments, or itโll be lost. Does your staff feel like it can trust you? If not, you may lose your best workers.
Want more leadership tips? Good to Great by Jim Collins is an awesome resource!
The Double-Edged Sword of Personality Hires
Personality is great – we all have one and should bring them to work. It helps people trust us more because itโs more authentic. That said, if someone lacks the skill to do their job, they shouldnโt be doing it. You canโt skate by on personality alone. (Not even mascots can!)
Did you know? The TikTok influencer who said sheโs a โpersonality hireโ in the NY Post article is actually very good at her job. Contrary to how it sounded in the article, she doesnโt goof off all day – she contributes to her company.
Many commenters seemed concerned that people would consider themselves โpersonality hiresโ and then opt out of putting in the work. In this case, however, itโs not true. She brought hard work and her personality, which is great!
Bottom line: should you hire someone based on personality alone? No! But if youโve got skills and a nice personality, you can make it a lot easier for people to work with you.
For example, if youโre the next Robin Williams and youโre working with the Clear Eyes spokesman Ben Stein, chances are you wonโt have a great working relationship. Every joke you try to tell will be met with a cold, hard stare or a monotone lecture. You wonโt mesh very well.
Want to Work with a Triple Threat?
At Matcha Design, weโre fun, hardworking, and fantastic at what we do. If you need help with your next project, contact us!
We promise we have so much more to offer than just a fun personality.
