Nonprofit HR’s Blog

Train Luo, Managing Partner, China of CTPartners, has some common sense steps for avoiding your own Yahoo! executive hiring. 

1. First round of due diligence – As a start, conduct initial third-party referencing of candidates prior to their inclusion on a list and discuss with the Board to spot any areas of concern.
2. Second round of due diligence – After the initial board review, include prior business results and additional referencing of short-listed candidates, as well as education verification, before the Search Committee’s first meeting with the candidate.
3. Rigorous competency-based interviews of each candidate – The Search Committee should arrange for interviews designed to draw out specific gaps and potential risks related to the candidate’s background, prior track record, leadership style, etc.
4. Direct candidate questioning of potential due diligence areas of concern – In addition, it is important to check on a candidate’s education credentials and specific accomplishment claims, as measured against outside sourcing, to validate the claims.
5. Final 360-degree candidate referencing – Supplement your due diligence with additional sourcing of people with direct knowledge of the candidate and his/her prior performance, supported by an independent background check by a trusted third party investigative firm.

An organization can only do so much to uncover candidates that have lied about their work and education experience. However, if a thorough process is in place, an organization has not only a better chance of preventing what happened at Yahoo!, but they will most likely also choose a better candidate.