Narrow the field
Once the job is posted, the key tool for narrowing the field of candidates is the resume. Boone considers resumes to be career blueprints, devoting much more time to them than cover letters.
“Obviously, no one’s going to write a resume that’s detrimental to them,” he says. “So you’re looking at what, in this person’s view, is their best face. So that right there tells you something. If you see a resume that’s inconsistent or it’s incomplete, then you’re going, ‘Wow, if this is their best presentation skills, I wonder what their worst is.’ Likewise, if you see a resume that is concise, logical, demonstrates the person’s responsibilities and achievements and it really strikes home the essence of what this person brings to the table, then this is someone I want to meet.”
Look for resumes that are complete and thorough and don’t skip over early positions.
“If they’ve had several years of experience, they start deleting their early years,” Boone says. “I want to see what those formative years were like because that period when people get out of college really is the foundation for the rest of their careers. That’s where they’re going to experience, hopefully, some of their larger errors.”
For example, people’s first several years in the job field can cement their work ethic and their preferences for corporate culture. Seeing their early responsibilities and achievements can reveal those hits and misses.
For a resume to be thorough, it also must be factual. Technology has also made this process easier by providing access to backgrounds for double-checking claims.
“It’s amazing to me how many people will fudge on resumes and somehow don’t think they’ll be caught,” Boone says. “But in this day and age with technology … there’s very little excuse not to catch someone if they’ve lied about a degree or if they have fabricated a position. It’s just all there in the public domain.”
Boone also requests releases from candidates so he can confirm through references as well as civil and criminal background checks.
Showing that level of particularity can also set the stage for honesty through the rest of the process.
“That gives people a good comfort that you’re very serious about their role in the company,” Boone says. “It sends a clear message about the expectations you’re setting for them when they’re interviewing.”
