Honesty is the best Policy

by | Dec 8, 2017 | Blog | 132 comments

Honesty is the best policy.  This adage is very popular in the Philippines.  It is taught even in my early years in school.    It is said that a person who is honest always wins his battles.

A few  years  ago,  I  was  tasked  to  handle  the  recruitment  of  technical  professionals  in  a manufacturing company.   The production manager called early to inform me that six engineers were shortlisted from an initial interview.   He relayed that they are ready to go to the next stage of the hiring process, which was the panel interview.

After the panel interview, management will choose two applicants to employ.    One will be assigned as an Electrical Engineer and the other will be assigned as a Mechanical Engineer. 

The panel interview was set and all six engineers attended.   In the panel were the Production Manager, Production Vice President, and the Vice President for Quality Assurance.   Each of the applicants answered well.    However, there was one particular candidate, whose credentials included graduated from a top university, being a good communicator in both English and Filipino, and being skilled in relating technical concepts in layman terms.    He was even presentable and had excellent social skills.

He was almost perfect for the Electrical Engineer position that the company needed.   Except for one problem.    When asked why he left his former job, the applicant was so honest that he admitted that it was due to his excessive tardiness.   Contrary to what most applicants would do, he did not hide the reason.

The panel members set a meeting to assess the applicants.    Each interviewer wrote their assessment.   They were in agreement until it came to the applicant being eyed for the Electrical Engineering job.   The panel could not agree because at a quick glance, excessive tardiness is always a bad habit that every employer disliked to hear from incoming employees.

Thus, it became an issue for the panel if they would hire him.

If you were part of the panel, what would you recommend? Should the company take the risk of hiring the skilled but tardy engineer?

Another meeting was held to finalize the decision. This time, Human Resources  (HR) was invited to present an informed opinion.  After considerable analysis of the overall credentials and skills of the Engineer as well as the talent pool available, HR recommended that he be hired. HR made the decision based on what was best for the company.   From its assessment, the company needed the applicant’s expertise and unique skill sets. HR believed that there is always a room for improvement and the engineer could be coached to become punctual in reporting for work. 

In  view  of  the  hiring  scenario  above,  job  seekers  are  advised  to  always  tell  the  truth  about themselves.   This is because employers also want to assess the applicant’s critical thinking skills in making decisions.

Remember, it pays to be honest.

Do you want to successfully achieve your #CareerGoals? 

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