Hire with rigor — protect your standards

Every “yes” changes the shape of your team. Every “no” protects it.

The problem isn’t a lack of great people — it’s how we look for them. Too many leaders rely on instinct, charisma, or pedigree. But great hiring isn’t a vibe check. It’s a discipline.

Here’s the five-question system I use to bring structure, fairness, and clarity into every interview:

1️⃣ Distance Traveled — “How far have you traveled?”
You’re not looking for fancy résumés. You’re looking for patterns of ownership.
Who turned limited resources into results? Who carried work, family, and responsibility without losing focus?

2️⃣ Independent Decisions — “What’s the hardest problem you solved with minimal guidance?”
Great hires don’t need hand-holding. They see problems, make calls, and move.
If they can’t show you that thinking process, they’re not ready for autonomy.

3️⃣ Thinker-Doer — “When did you think and execute at the same time?”
Strategy without execution is air. Execution without strategy is noise.
You want someone who can zoom out for clarity, then zoom in to ship.
Ask where they rolled up their sleeves to unblock progress. That’s where you’ll see ownership — not talk.

4️⃣ Learning Drive — “How do you learn?”
Rigor doesn’t just screen for skill. Ask what they’re working on right now, what feedback loop they use, how they measure growth.
If learning isn’t visible, growth won’t happen.
You want someone whose ceiling rises every quarter.

5️⃣ Collaboration — “Who got better because of you?”
The right people make others better.
They document, mentor, and elevate without needing credit.
You can feel maturity in how they talk about others’ success — specifics, not platitudes.

Once you’ve run the five questions, here’s where rigor multiplies its power:

• Use a shared scorecard (0–6 scale per question).
• Ask the same questions to every candidate.
• Score independently before group discussion.
• Add a scoped work sample to validate skill in context.
• Run reference checks that target decisions and collaboration — not fluff like “Would you rehire them?”

This process may take an extra week, but it’ll save you quarters of cleanup.
Rigor isn’t friction. It’s focus.

PS. When you’re hiring in areas outside your expertise, make sure someone more experienced than the candidate is part of the process. If you don’t have that person internally, borrow the expertise—tap your network or hire a senior consultant for a few hours. It’s worth every penny.