In this monthly series, “Ask an Acer,” we invite some of our talented members to share their expertise with you. February’s post comes to you from HR expert, Craig Bissett, a long-time ACE Coworking member and president of Hire Results Ltd. He’s also the creator of the Hiring Assessment Web Enabled Tool which allows organizations to test-drive candidates before hiring them.

Craig has just published a book called My Worst Hire & What I Learned From It, in which he interviews 50 business leaders who relate their stories of hiring mistakes and the lessons they learned along the way. Here Craig shares with us a few vital nuggets from the book – tips that are sure to help you in your next hiring moment!

Beware of Compromises

When hiring at the management level, never ever compromise. If your #1 candidate turns down your offer, resist the temptation to hire your #2 candidate. Instead, you should go back to square one and search for the next #1 candidate. The cost of hiring second-best, if that person is not the right fit, will be multiplied throughout the team.

Culture is Key

If you have a company mission and culture/value statement, don’t leave it hanging on the wall. Rather, take it into the interview process. Assess the candidate based on what your company believes in. Keep in mind what you want to promote in terms of culture at your company, and make sure you address these topics in the interview. A candidate may have all the required skills for the role, but if they don’t fit your company values, you will end up with a major mistake on your hands.

Size Matters

Be extremely careful when hiring someone who is from a different sized operation. For example, if you are a small company and the candidate is coming from a large, well-financed firm, make sure that person is ready to roll up their sleeves and do the grunt work required for your growth plans. Whether they are transitioning from a large operation to a smaller one, or vice versa, it’s your job to ensure new hires know what they are getting into.