If you’re around my age, you may have seen Monty Hall’s game show, “Let’s Make a Deal.”
If you’ve not experienced the show, the format of Let’s Make a Deal involves selected members of the studio audience, referred to as “traders,” making deals with Monty.
In most cases, a trader will be offered something of value and choose whether to keep it or exchange it for a different item.
The format would include a choice of what’s behind door number 1, 2, or 3, with a new car often featured.
However, if the contestant chose the wrong door, they might end up with a lame prize – like a donkey or a pig!
Recruiting and hiring bears a striking resemblance to Let’s Make a Deal.
In the end, we’re left with one candidate – the hire. Along the recruitment path, however, we’re constantly tempted to see if there may be a better candidate behind door number 2.
One of the challenges in recruitment that is very different from Let’s Make a Deal is that the candidate also knows about our pre-disposition to interview alternative prospects and may be in the process of multiple interviews themselves.
What if Monty opened door number 2 to reveal the new car you’ve dreamed of, and the car said, “Thank you for your time and interest, but I’ve selected a different owner.”?
Furthermore, the clock is always ticking. While a contestant often got some time to contemplate trading in a year’s supply of Sue Bee honey for what was behind door #2 or #3, once a candidate has engaged in the interviewing process, they won’t wait several weeks before making an affirmative decision with another employer.
It’s human nature to want to see what’s behind #2. So when faced with an exceptional candidate and a ticking clock, we should consider the candidate and the skills needed to do the work in question. Then, we should see what gaps (if any) may exist and take steps to validate our assumptions with additional interviews, questions, references, and background checks.
If things add up, we should then extend a fair offer promptly.
If you’d like some help with this or understanding how you can overcome some of these issues, please contact us.