8 Mistakes Infosec Managers make while Hiring

Hiring and adding new members to the team is always a mixed feeling. Will this person work out? Should we keep looking for a back up candidate, If What? And so many other unanswered questions plague our mind. To ensure this mixed feeling is minimal and ends in positive results we need to give emphasis to the requirements of an effective interview. Conducting good interviews requires a balance of instinct, insight, and solid preparation. Managers need to prepare themselves in advance for an interview and avoid common interview blunders such as monopolizing the conversation, asking personal questions or taking too much time.

1. Talking too much
When providing information on company background, job role and responsibilities. Managers should watch out for the tendency to go about their own job, personal feelings about the company, or any other unrelated story. At the end of the conversation, manager's will beam with self-satisfaction, and will happen to see the candidate in a rosy light -- but still will not know anything about the candidate's ability to do the job.

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2. Afraid to put the candidate on "the spotlight"
Few managers tend to over-empathize with a nervous candidate and ask easy questions about the candidate's background and experience being afraid to put the candidate on the spot and ask challenging questions. It is a good practice to keep the same set of challenging questions which can be thrown at different potential candidates during interviews; this will also reveal very interesting responses which can lead to an objective comparison.

3. Gossiping
Managers need to control themselves from talking about candidates past employers, or gossiping about people within the industry, company etc. This reflects badly on both the manager and the company image.

4. Asking personal questions
Managers should curb their desire to delve too deep into personal lives of candidates during an interview. Few examples of personal questions- "Do you have children?" "Are you a house owner?" "What nationality are you?" "Are you married?" These kinds of inquiries are illegal and should be avoided completely.

5. Answering for the Candidate
Often managers ask questions and answer it themselves not giving the candidate a chance to respond or elaborate on his past experience. For example "You are familiar with SOX section 404, aren't you? In this case the response to the candidate is almost evident and the applicant has no choice but to favorably answer or second the manager's response.

6. Admit: Say "No" to not qualified
Managers need to assess candidates honestly and fairly. If everyone you talk to feels like a "maybe," that probably means you are not getting enough useful information or most "maybes" are really "no, thank yous!" Likewise, if you think the person might be good for some role at some point in the future, he or she is really a "no." Managers should admit that these candidates are probably not qualified for the current position.

7. Make your interview brief and to the point
Have an agenda for your interviews. Prepare questions in advance, read the candidate's profile and resume thoroughly acquainting yourself and making note of key points. Try and keep the interviews for 45 minutes- to an hour. This should be sufficient in getting to know and understand your candidate.

8. Falling victim to the seemingly "perfect" candidate
If a candidate arrives dressed perfectly, gives a firm handshake, has good body language and answers the first question flawlessly, managers might be tempted to check the imaginary "Hired!" box in your mind. But ensure you pay attention to all the answers and are not swayed by a first impression. The same goes for the reverse: The rather quiet and shy candidate may have the super powers fit for the job that go undetected at first glance.





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