How can you know that someone is results-oriented before you get to know them? I have friends and colleagues I’ve known for years and can understand who is results-oriented and who is not.
The answer to this, and many other things, is asking smart questions and observing the answers. Jason Cohen, an entrepreneur, has provided the solution to how you find out if someone is results-oriented, and I have used his advice ever since. Let’s assume you want to hire an event planner. You ask them: could you tell me about the last great event you put together?
An action-oriented candidate will say something like this:
We had great up-lights, and great food, got a discount on the food we offered, everybody seemed to have fun, and it was really good.
This candidate is talking about the stuff they did.
A results-oriented candidate will say something like this:
The goal was for 200 people to come. We had 200 reservations, and 160 people came, which we were proud of. We got 12 sales leads, and 2 of them have already been closed; the rest seem good. Based on this info, we have decided to do 3 of them next year in more countries.
This candidate is talking about results.
I have found this type of questioning useful when hiring anyone. I transform the question every time, but the beginning starts with Could you tell me about the last time you worked on X? and I observe how much of their answer is about stuff they do versus the results they accomplished.
