I recently had a conversation with a hiring manager from a client company where we were talking about the costs of hiring mistakes and the importance of selecting the right person for the job. 

 

When I discuss the impacts of a poor hiring decision with a manager they typically think about what it costs to replace a person after they have been let go - severance pay, recruiting costs to source a replacement, training resources etc.  However, the costs are much greater than one typcically expects.

 

Rarely do managers think of the performance  and opportunity costs associated with a hiring mistake.  These costs, while not directly expensed, can be staggering and are represented by the "performance gap" between a top performing employee and a low performing employee. 

 

I also refer to this as the "hiring gap" as it represents the lost revenues and opportunity costs that result from hiring the wrong employee for the job.

 

In this situation we determined that my client was missing out on at least $200,000 in annual bottom line profit for each hiring mistake represented by a low performing team member. 

 

 

Leadership and Personal Accountability During an Organizational Crisis

While it hasn't gotten much media coverage here in the United States, there was a recent food born illness outbreak in Canada that sadly claimed the lives of over a dozen people and hospitalized many others. 

 

The source of the outbreak was traced back to contaminated deli meats distributed by the Maple Leaf Foods company in Toronto Ontario. 

 

In today's blame-ridden society, most would expect the leader of Maple Leaf Foods - Michael McCain - to play the "blame game" and point the finger anywhere he could to avoid responsibility for the  events that had taken place. 

 

Surprisingly, this was not the case at all as McCain took on full personal responsibility for the tragic consequences caused by his organization.  In the aftermath of the outbreak McCain has stood as a shining example of personal accountability and leadership during such a crisis. 

 

As a result, Maple Leaf Foods may just weather this storm and someday regain the trust of its Canadian customers.