How do you hire quality people? We hire B2B sales lead generation experts and other staff year-round. As most experienced managers know, hiring is as much art as science. This posting provides some tips to improve your hiring "batting average".

In addition to integrity, intelligence and maturity, Jack Welch applies what he refers to as the "4-E (And 1-P) Framework'' for hiring. He states that he has found this method of evaluating candidates to be "consistently effective, year after year, across businesses and borders".

• The first E is positive energy. It means the ability to go-go-go-to thrive on action and relish change.
• The second E is the ability to energize others, and inspire them to take on the impossible.
• The third is edge, the courage to make tough yes-or-no decisions.
• The fourth E is execute—the ability to get the job done.
• Then he looks for that final P, passion—a heartfelt, deep and authentic excitement about work.

Source: Jack Welch: On Hiring, Inspiring:

My guess is that while I have heard a lot about Jack Welch, he has not heard all that much about me. Maybe one day we will get together and talk about business. Well, OK, maybe one day I will just read another of his books...

We do, however, share some of the same hiring philosophies. Mine might even be a little simpler. Around here the staff calls my framework "Dan's Big Hand Theory". It has that name because I put up my big hand and tell candidates that we are looking for associates who are:

• Nice
• Smart
• Curious
• Hardworking
• Ethical

The funny thing is that we do not assess candidates on these five characteristics (of course we do testing, role plays and have other tools to get a baseline on skills, intelligence, personality and knowledge). After the interview, we ask candidates to go home and ask themselves: "Am I nice, smart, curious, hardworking and ethical?" I can't tell you how many times I would have hired someone on the basis of skill, intelligence, personality and knowledge only to find that they didn't think they measured up.

Of course, they don't say, "I am not nice" or "I am not curious, I'm lazy", but I do think they leave here with a sense for what we are all about and whether or not they fit. The five characteristics we discuss help them assess their fit better than we ever could.

I would be interested in comments on this and any other suggestions you might have.

By Dan McDade