Leaders lean heavily on the quality of a candidate’s experience to help them make hiring decisions.
The variety of situations a candidate has likely been exposed to over time and their success in navigating them is considered a key to selecting the right candidate for any given role on the team.
The general view is that the more experience a candidate has performing a similar role in another organization, the more likely they will be successful in transferring their skills and knowledge to a new environment.
Leaders like it best when a candidate has encountered similar problems, challenges, and decisions in the past that they will face in the new role.
When other qualities like aptitude, work style, and values line up with great experience, leaders gain confidence that a prospective team member will succeed on their team.
But in the contemporary workplace, a specific kind of experience is beginning to matter more.
Given that many organizations now maintain an incredibly fast pace of change, how much fluidity a prospective candidate has seen in the past is a critical predictor of their ability to adjust to an organization that is in a constant state of movement.
Prospective team members arriving from more stable or traditional workplaces often haven’t experienced the rapid shifts in strategy, processes, and tactics common to a more dynamic workplace.
They show up unprepared to handle the ambiguity and continual change they must embrace to succeed. Evaluating candidates for their experience and comfort with change is often the missing ingredient leaders overlook in assessing prospective talent.
People vary widely regarding their ability to handle impermanence. Some people adapt to constant change, while others get lost in the uncertainty it creates.
Past experience with rapid change is one factor worth considering as the selection team generates a view about how a candidate will fare with the pace in a new workplace.
Experience is a great proof. And experience with change often proves who can thrive with more of it in the future.
Don’t overlook this critical ingredient when assessing who will work best on your team and in your environment.
