Hire On a WHIM
The Four Qualities That Make for Great Employees
By: Garrett Miller, with Jim Thrasher
Published: August 23, 2010
Format: Paperback, 130 pages
ISBN-10: 1608445410
ISBN-13: 978-1608445417
Publisher: Dog Ear Publishing, LLC
"It can be a daunting process with many unknowns, and if the candidate or job doesn't work out, the results can be painful and expensive in more than financial terms", writes speaker, workplace productivity coach, and President and CEO of CoTria, Garrett Miller, in the refreshing and ethics based book Hire On a WHIM: The Four Qualities That Make for Great Employees. The author describes the four part WHIM hiring technique, based on selecting employees who display the most positive character traits.
Garrett Miller understands that regardless of the amount of experience, from a recent graduate to a person with decades on the job, that the qualities that make for an excellent employee don't change over time. With this knowledge in hand, the author presents a book that provides value to a person seeking their first job, workers with many years of experience, and the person preparing to attend a job interview. Garrett Miller emphasizes that the hiring principles presented in the WHIM process are universal for all employers and employees. The author believes that the timeless WHIM character traits are critical for both the employee and the organization:
* W - work ethic
* H - humility
* I - integrity
* M - maturity
Garrett Miller (photo left) recognizes that the interview isn't the only key to uncovering hidden information about a prospective employee. The author shows the hiring manager how to spot valuable information in a resume, even for recent graduates who lack on the job working experience. The techniques offered in the book for the actual interview are designed to prevent unexpected hiring mistakes. These errors can arise from the failure or the hiring manager to notice potential warning signs, or through the biases and preconceived ideas of the person conducting the interview. The author also presents concepts for using second interview to reaffirm or refute the information gleaned from the initial interview. Through the application of the WHIM interviewing techniques, the human resources department becomes an integral part of the organization's talent discovery planning process. At the same time, the hiring managers are able to develop relationships with college career centers and at job fairs, with clear WHIM hiring objectives in mind for selecting the right people to receive invitations for interviews.
For me, the power of the book is how Garrett Miller presents the WHIM hiring concepts in a very approachable format through the medium of a narrative. The use of the story to illustrate the WHIM principles in several different hiring situations helps the reader gain familiarity with the WHIM personal qualities. The WHIM characteristics are what employers are seeking, far more than than they require experience. The WHIM candidate is exceptional in their ethics and as such are not negotiable from the point of view of the hiring person.
A recent graduate possessing the WHIM character traits is much more valuable to the organization than a person with experience, but is lacking the WHIM principles. For people seeking their very first job, this book presents excellent insights into the real qualities sought by the best employers. When a company makes the decision to base its hiring practices on WHIM, that business is placing the emphasis on being an ethical organization. The hiring of WHIM candidates becomes second nature for that company, strengthening that ethical commitment.
I highly recommend the hiring process improving book Hire On a WHIM: The Four Qualities That Make for Great Employees by Garret Miller, with Jim Thrasher, to anyone seeking a proven hiring process that helps uncover the most ethical and exceptional employees, regardless of their experience level. The book presents the concepts in a readable business fable format combined with ready to use tips after each chapter.
Read the positive and insightful book Hire On a WHIM: The Four Qualities That Make for Great Employees by Garret Miller, with Jim Thrasher, and transform your recruiting, interviewing, and hiring process into a WHIM system. You will be able to uncover the best candidates for each job, while being alerted in advance to those people who might not be the ideal fit for your organization. The WHIM concept builds an ethical organization, staffed by individuals who possess the ideal personal character for the job.
