You always hear the saying "good help is hard to find," and it is true now more than ever. We screen nearly 100 applicants for each new Better Life Maid that we hire. We use our core values to look for great traits when hiring new team members. It is amazing when you find just the right candidate who possesses most if not all of these values and demonstrates them during the screening process. These future Better Life Maids are rock stars of our company. They understand that Better Life Maids success depends on these values.
1. DELIVER WOW! It may sound cliché, but our best team members are concerned with going above and beyond. During the interview process we ask them about a time they have gone above and beyond for a customer. Most people can't cite a specific example because they only do the bare minimum. However those can distinctly recall a time that they delivered an exceptional customer experience make great candidate. The best candidates have extremely high personal standards, and all we need to do is set them loose with the stated goal of doing whatever it takes to make a client happy.
2. BELIEVE. Great employees have a strong developed sense of self. They believe in themselves and their ability to be great. They also believe that their work matters and they are part of building something.
3. CREATE FUN. We like to have fun at Better Life Maids and look for people who have fun or interesting hobbies to join our team. We also look for people that exude positive energy and can use that do deal with stressful situations. So much of any employee's success with us comes down to a fun mindset.
4. INTEGRITY MATTERS. Integrity is not something we are willing to train for. In fact we do a lot of screening and testing to see if a candidate meets our rigorous standards. You can't take any short cuts here. Better Life Maids team members have to be able to tell it like it is. It hurts our team if we have to find out they made a mistake from a client. One thing we teach our staff is that integrity is our lasting legacy. When we are gone, no one will care how much money we had, or the car we drove, but our integrity will be remembered.
5. SERVING. Being a service minded person seems like a pretty obvious trait to look for when hiring in the service industry, but what I really am looking for is people that donate their time and talent in service to others. Some of our very best people work on relief efforts when natural disasters strike, have a long-term commitment to a cause such as Haiti, or give their time to local causes. Someone who knows how to serve others when they have nothing to give in return understands how to give great customer service.
6. DEPENDABLE. Being dependable is a trait that is not always obvious during the screening process. It helps if they make the effort to show up on time or early. However, I can't remember a candidate who hasn't told us how reliable and hard working they are. References sometimes help here, but there really is no way to know if you can depend on someone, until you have to depend on them. People that are truly dependable find ways to make it to work, they are on time or early every day, and you have to spend little if any time coaching them on tardiness or attendance. They do what they are supposed to do, because it's the right thing to do.
7. LEARN & GROW. Truly great team members are dedicated to growing as people and they inspire others around them to do the same. They read great books, they share ideas, and they want to learn new things each day. You can find out a lot about your candidates by asking them what their ideal future looks like. Tell them to be honest and listen without judgment. I promise you might even hear some ideas you'll learn and grow from. We also encourage this trait with all of our employees with a company lending library. I know what your thinking, company values and now a company lending library. Yes we did read Tony Hsieh's book Delivering Happiness (and you should as well).
8. PASSIONATE: Life is too short to live without passion. It's hard to be passionate about cleaning toilets, but great employees are passionate about their job. When you are interviewing them, see how they feel about their current and past jobs. Most of them can relate some aspect of it that they loved. How about hobbies or activities that make them light up with joy when they tell you about them. Passionate people are fun, and their energy is contagious.
9. KIND. It go's without saying that we want kind employees, but in our fast paced, social media world, many of us have forgotten how to slow down and smell the roses. In fact many of us have lost basic manners altogether. We really look hard for people who have great customer service skills and kindness. These team members tend to be some of the most beloved colleagues. As the old saying goes, kill them with kindness.
10. BE GREEN! We look for team members who are interested in being good stewards for the planet. Many volunteer in organizations dedicated to green initiatives like organic farming, or community gardens. It is not a make or break characteristic, but we find that employees who tend to embrace ideas on environmental stewardship and care about the community and the world as a whole make the best team members for us.
What works for us, may not work for your team. Yet knowing what the values shape your organization can only give you better insight into finding team members who will mirror those values.