INSTANT MBA: Hire People Who Won't Bail When Things Get Tough

Qualtrics Ryan Smith, CEO, Qualtrics

Today's advice comes from Ryan Smith, CEO of Qualtrics, via The New York Times:

"The organization is going to change quickly — we’re not perfect, and we make mistakes. We want to find individuals who align with that, who will add value to the company in whatever role they’re in. Part of that is the disposition to be willing to do whatever it’s going to take, because we feel that if we win as a team, we’re going to win together."

Smith says it's easy to find an employee who is willing to get the job done when things are going well, but it's a lot harder to find those people that will stick around when the going gets tough. The best way to figure out if you're hiring a strong, loyal employee is to ask them about their past experiences and whether they persevered when the odds were against them. Smith says he won't hire someone unless he's certain they'll never give up, even when they face tremendous difficulty or the company hits a rough patch.

"From my standpoint, I’m looking to see if someone’s a “gamer” — that’s what I call it. I want to know the hardest thing they’ve ever done. So if you were in Korea, traveling by yourself, did you go home when things got tough? That’s what I’m trying to figure out because when the ship’s going well, everyone’s good. But when obstacles come up, we’ve got to sit back and rethink, how are we going to navigate these? Will some people want to jump off the ship? Or are they going to be a gamer and want to come in, roll up their sleeves and say, “Hey, this is part of it.”

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