Courtney Kakebeen’s Post

🤣 Top 5 Hiring Mistakes (And How to Avoid Them) 🚫 Let’s be real—recruiting can feel like an episode of Survivor. You’re out here dodging red flags, deciphering resumes that read like mystery novels, and trying to find the one perfect hire. And sometimes… we slip up! Here are the top 5 hiring mistakes we’ve all made (don’t lie, you’ve been there too 😉) and how to avoid them: 1️⃣ Relying Too Much on the Resume: That shiny resume looks great… until you realize “Excel Wizard” means they can bold text. 🛠️ Pro Tip: Test their skills with real-world challenges. Make sure they can do more than format cells. 2️⃣ Falling for the ‘Charm Offensive’: The candidate’s jokes are better than your favorite comedian’s, but can they actually do the job? 🛠️ Pro Tip: Dig into their skills, not their punchlines (but hey, a little humor in the office never hurts). 3️⃣ Overlooking Cultural Fit: Sure, they’re a coding genius, but if they’re going to walk around the office wearing noise-canceling headphones 24/7… that’s a cultural miss. 🛠️ Pro Tip: Throw in some culture-based questions and see if their vibe matches your tribe. 4️⃣ The “They’ll Learn It” Trap: “If they don’t know the software, we’ll train them!” said no HR manager ever after onboarding nightmares. 🛠️ Pro Tip: Hire for the skills they need today, not the ones you hope they’ll pick up later. 5️⃣ Rushing the Process: The panic hire—“We need someone NOW!”—and suddenly, you’re stuck with a bad fit who surprises everyone by quitting after 2 weeks. 🛠️ Pro Tip: Slow down, take a breath, and find the right candidate. Patience pays off! Hiring is tough, but we can laugh about the mistakes and do better next time! 😄 💬 What’s the funniest hiring mistake you’ve made? Share in the comments—let’s laugh (and learn) together! #RecruitmentFails #HRHumor #HiringMistakes #HRTips #LaughAndLearn #TopTalent

In last week's Hiring Handbook, I offered some tips on using storytelling to make great hires. Here's a quick recap of the key ideas 📝 1. Start your story with why the organization you're hiring for matters. Without context, attachment to the mission/vision, a pitch about your role will fall flat. 2. Convince your great prospect that you're also great. Do this by showcasing the great work you've done so far to achieve your mission/vision. You're selling progress, not completion. 3. Describe your role in terms of good vs great performance. Show that you know greatness when you see it. 4. Make the great prospect feel important and talk about why the timing is great for their impact. Here's the full piece if you'd like more context: https://lnkd.in/gj2BMhWV

✨ A wondering... ✨ When we're in a position to hire—whether it's a new contractor, a team member, or a partner—are we truly creating spaces where people can show up as their best selves? Are we centering the learning/accessibility needs of people in our processes? *** Recently, I experienced a situation that made me reflect deeply on this. (Unfortunately, this is the 3rd time something similar has happened this year). During a video phone screen, I couldn’t hear the other person clearly because they were on audio-only, and the connection wasn’t great. I wear hearing aids in both ears and made adjustments on my end, but it still didn’t help. They kindly suggested turning on closed captions, but I shared that I find live captions distracting because they’re often incorrect. I was feeling thrown off and super vulnerable. To make it harder, I was asked multi-part questions that I couldn’t track (I am a visual learner) and I started feeling like I had failed. I finally shared that I wasn’t prepared for these types of questions and asked if I could have them in advance to reschedule the call. I share this not to shame...I think it's an opportunity. This experience left me wondering 🤔 💡 Are we asking candidates what they need to fully access an interview? 💡 Are we designing with empathy and flexibility so people can thrive? 💡 Are we unintentionally creating processes that exclude or overwhelm? It’s easy to focus solely on evaluating candidates, but what if we also asked ourselves: 💥 How can we design an inclusive process that invites people to thrive? I’d love to hear your thoughts. #InclusiveHiring #Accessibility #EquityInAction #Leadership #accommodations #modifications

"If we're hired as a diversity hire, will we just remain a checkbox?" -- an audience member asked, during a recent event. This question struck a chord with me because it reflects a concern many people share. The truth is, we all start as a number. The hiring manager or talent acquisition team looks for a number to fill the role, a designation to match the job. But once you join, your name is added to that list. That’s when the real story begins. You’re no lon ger just a number or a designation—you’re a name. But it doesn’t stop there. You have to add value to that name. You have the opportunity to make sure you’re not just another someone who holds a title. With time, effort, and dedication, you can become more than just "the coder, designer, salesperson, marketer, diversity hire." You become a person whose contributions are recognized, whose presence is felt beyond the metrics. I am Sonali—like many, I started as just a "Talent" or "Prospective Employee." Then, I became my designation: a "Sr. Program Manager," a "Sr. Trainer." But I’m not defined by those titles alone. I’m also an empath, a passionate public speaker, a teacher at heart, a fun-loving person, a supportive colleague, a patient listener, someone who's impatient at times, an avid traveler who loves exploring through work, and so much more. The list goes on because we’re all more than just our job titles. Through consistent effort, I’ve become known not just for what I do but for who I am. Same with someone's identity and orientation. It might stand out in the beginning, but don't let that define you. It takes focus and intention to transcend being a checkbox, to become someone who is valued for their unique contributions and humanity. So, when you enter a new role, remember: you may start as a number, but it’s up to you to turn that into a name that matters. 🔁 REPOST if you agree (thank you in advance) P.S. How do you define yourself? Cheers! Sonali

Sunday morning musings: I keep hearing stories from former colleagues and friends being ghosted during the interview process - nothing new here, but as a brand marketer - let alone a human - it infuriates me. Every time a recruiter ghosts, that ghosted candidate tells their trusted friends, and all the equity the brand has accumulated with those individuals evaporates, and that reputation quickly spreads. How hard is it to copy and paste a generic "thank you but we have decided to proceed with other candidates email?" Apparently very. I can't help but think this new normal reflects the emergence of EOS one metric culture - and if my metric is filling roles, suddenly my responsibility for the brand evaporates. We all own brand, and if we can't follow up with a candidate out of a basic sense of human decency, at least do it to stop killing your brand and the hand that ultimately feeds you - and if we have to align incentives to this end, so be it.

Creating a remarkable first-hand story is one of the best ways to show off what people can expect from joining your company. Done right, they can demonstrate who you are, what you do, and the diverse range of people who represent you. But how do we turn a 30-minute conversation into a 5-minute blog? We show how to craft stories with a strong theme, a naturally flowing structure, and a narrative that’s as compelling as your employment opportunities. https://lnkd.in/e4R95sRc #recruitmentmarketing #talentacquisition #employerbranding

Continuing on the theme of my last post, I’m not the most technical EM that you’ll find, I’m not going to architect a system or even probably write any code ( and believe me I’ve been discounted quite a bit because of it in interviews, etc ) will I guide and provide counsel as to technical direction? Absolutely! When I don’t know the answers will I find the people who do? Yes, but also part of my job is to hire the amazing folks around me who actually execute on that work and to LISTEN them. The way I see my role is to help people do their jobs, get where they want in their careers and be where the buck stops. My teams have never been blamed for a missed deadline, a production bug, etc, that’s on me plain and simple. In engineering orgs too much rolls downhill currently, we spend obscene amounts of money on engagement surveys but we never get to the rank and file and actually listen to them. (Side note: People have a fear of engagement surveys regardless of how much you swear the results are anonymous, guess what, as a people manager here’s a secret. They don’t believe you. Also we can call HR any of the “softened” names like Business Partners, etc but at the end of the day they exist only to cover the company interests) Get out of your office, cancel your 5000th meeting of the day and go talk to ICs. Hell do some code reviews and teach some of the younger engineers how to write outstanding code, you’re CTO or VP of Eng for a reason, stop for a second and remember what got you here and pass on that knowledge. Don’t blindly schedule a skip level that is likely worrying the IC to death because you actually only talk to them once a quarter. We can’t talk about core values and people first all we want but if we don’t show by our actions it’s just empty words. Empathetic leadership is the key. At its core every single organization is a people originzation and when you lose sight of that not only can your people tell, but your customers can too.

If you're not asking this *type* of question. Your team won't give you their best answers. Starting today, try this in your next meeting. Start asking follow-up questions instead of giving your 2 cents. Here are some good ones to try: → "How might we?" → "Tell me more" → "Say more" → "What if?" → "How so?" Why should you ask follow-up questions? 1. Your team will know their voice matters 2. Your team will share what they're thinking. 3. You'll come up with better ideas than before. And 4.... You hired your team for their thinking. You didn't hire them to just follow yours.

3 people you meet as a new hire: (Part 2!) 👀 "The Lurker": The lurker likes to walk past your new desk, stare you down, and seems confused at your presence -- but never actually acknowledges you. You even catch them in the hall later and say hi, but they immediately look down and keep walking… 😩 "The Curmudgeon": They hate it here. According to them, everything's horrible. They're holding onto the "glory days" of the company. And they’ll try to bring everyone down with them. Avoid at all costs. 🍵 "The Overly Friendly Talker": While they seem nice at first, the word “boundaries” doesn’t exist in their vocabulary. You’ll have to sneak past their desk or else they’ll engage you in lengthy details about your new coworkers. You know how the saying goes: if they’re saying things about everyone else… ↓ The point? Your new team member isn’t just learning from you. They’re soaking up the company culture, too - whatever that looks like. P.S. Which of these (1-3) have you experienced first hand? 🤓 --- In case you missed it: I'm posting 100 times and tracking as I go. You should try it too -- and tag me so we can support each other! 36/100

Bye bye static job descriptions and impersonal applications! 👋🏻 Flipping through job descriptions can feel like déjà vu. Despite looking at two different roles in entirely different industries, 90% of what you read seems indistinguishably similar. Yet, we all know that the reality of these roles—encompassing the work environment, ethics, colleagues, and beyond—differs vastly. That's precisely why transforming the application process to make it more personal and engaging is not just beneficial—it's essential. The 3-DEE tours showcase to applicants exactly what they are stepping into by allowing them to get to know their future colleagues by listening to their testimonials and experience at the company, watch behind the scenes videos, read fun 'did-you-knows' about the company, etc. which give them a transparent overview of what they can expect at the job and increase the chances that the employees will stay for a longer time at the company since they knew what they could expect.