Egregious interviews

When you run a company, you are the company.

Here’s a quick story to explain what I mean.

My friend Tighe Burke finds CEOs and GMs for a living.

A few years back, he was screening a candidate to run a 10-store grocery chain in California. It was a solid job and a normal interview. They were walking through his career history.

He loves his work, he says. But on the weekends, he loves to get drunk and… well, as Tighe put it: “It was the most egregious language I’ve ever heard in an interview.”

Tighe ended the call. They haven’t spoken since.

His theory is, the guy figured he was talking to a fellow “bro” who would appreciate “locker-room talk”.

And he might have been genuinely good at his job. But clearly, he had no idea how to be a public face for a business.

And it comes back to one of the more nuanced things Tighe screens for: executive presence.

Because when you’re hiring a leader, appearances matter. How do you present internally? How do you present externally?

It comes out in the details. Stuff like:

Are you succinct in your answers, or do you ramble for 22 minutes on a single question?

Do you have a hat on?

Are you on time?

When you talk about the company, are you saying “I did xyz” or “we did xyz”?

So whether you’re hiring or trying to get hired, it’s worth remembering:

The leader is the company.

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At last year’s Compound Conference, Tighe gave a talk called How to pay your operator.

People loved it so much, I’m having him do it again, online, for you, for free.

It’s an insanely valuable talk for anyone who’s hiring senior positions, because there are so many unknowns: pay too much, and you’re kicking yourself. Pay too little, you don’t get the caliber of person who will actually do well. It’s a delicate balance of pay, incentives, and structure.

Come on out.

How to pay your operator: a talk for business owners
Thursday, Oct 22 at 1PM ET
RSVP for free.

Join us live and ask questions, or just sign up and get the recording after the event.

See you then,

Michael

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