If a new hire doesn’t have integrity, you’d better hope they’re ‘dumb and lazy,’ according to Warren Buffett.
Warren Buffett is a firm believer in hiring the right people. He famously stated, “Somebody once said that in looking for people to hire, you look for three qualities: integrity, intelligence, and energy. And if you don’t have the first, the other two will kill you. You think about it, it’s true. If you hire somebody without [integrity], you really want them to be dumb and lazy.”
That’s a great quote worth dissecting further. The Oracle of Omaha places the highest value on integrity because he believes that without it, intelligence and energy can be misguided and even harmful.
Sure, skills, IQ, and expertise for the job are important and necessary. However, prospective hires must also demonstrate ethical behavior and honesty in their work. This approach aligns with Buffett’s long-term investment strategy, where he seeks to build companies with strong ethical cultures and trustworthy leadership.
Walking the talk
A person who talks the talk and walks the walk of integrity will naturally command respect and exercise influence. You should desire and want to interview and hire these types of people and promote them to leadership and management roles. So why don’t we interview for integrity more often?
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A few reasons. Not all hiring authorities hold the belief that assessing someone’s integrity brings as much value as screening for the other, more tangible, results-oriented traits and skills essential for a company’s productivity and success. Measuring competency during a performance evaluation process is also far easier and more reliable than estimating integrity.
If you’re still unsure of the value that interviewing for integrity brings to your hiring decisions, here are a few reasons why it’s so important:
Trustworthiness: Integrity is about being honest and trustworthy. Asking the right questions helps you gauge whether a candidate has a history of honesty and reliability.
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Ethical Decision Making: Assessing a candidate’s integrity through interview questions can reveal how they approach moral challenges. Their responses can give insight into whether or not they can be trusted to make the right decisions when the rubber meets the road.
Cultural Fit: Hiring individuals with strong integrity ensures they align with the company’s values and norms. This alignment reduces the likelihood of conflicts.
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Reducing Risks: Employees with low integrity can pose significant risks to an organization, including fraud, misconduct, and reputational damage. You can identify potential red flags and mitigate these risks by asking the right questions.
Team Dynamics: A team with members who demonstrate integrity tends to collaborate better, communicate effectively, and achieve common goals.
Ask four questions to rule out the impostors
Now we arrive at asking the right questions to gauge someone’s integrity. So much time and energy is wasted in job interviews because managers don’t know what questions to ask that will get to the core of a person’s character. But first, whoever is in the interviewer’s seat must be skilled in the science of behavioral interviewing.
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Behavioral interviews are a foolproof method to validate skills, strengths, and job fit on the basis of fact, not theory or vagueness. They give hiring managers a clear edge because job candidates may be unable to deliver any prepared stories or scripted answers when faced with behavioral interview questions.
Here are four questions I have used in the past:
1. What do you believe compromises the ethical workplace?
As a good lead-off question to set the stage for a discussion on ethics, you want to listen for examples of your candidate having clearly demonstrated the values and desired behaviors that define a high-trust culture.
2. Describe how being an ethical employee differs from being an ethical company.
It’s really a trick question because the answer should always be, “There is no difference.” An individual contributor’s integrity and values should always align with the company’s values and ethical standards of conduct. If it doesn’t, you can bet that the employee will begin to show signs of discontent and disengage from his or her work and work colleagues soon after getting hired. Ultimately, you may lose that person if they realize they’re not a good long-term fit.
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3. Tell me about an instance that challenged you ethically.
Here’s what you don’t want to hear: “Oh, I’ve never faced an ethical challenge.” It’s a given that most of us have faced an ethical challenge at one point or another in our careers. For more seasoned candidates operating with integrity, you’ll most likely hear them clearly describe how they avoided misconduct or how they called out someone acting unethically. Don’t trust a candidate who says she’s never faced an ethical challenge.
4. If the situation called for it, would you ever lie on my behalf or for the sake of our company?
This is a tough one. If a manager’s tendency is to cut corners, stretch the truth, or sweep things under the rug to gain an edge, an occasional lie may not be that big of a deal. So you’d think. But here’s the thing: If a manager encourages lying on the job, you better believe the company may have other unethical wrongdoing and corporate shenanigans. So, to a job candidate walking the talk of integrity being interviewed by a manager who believes and behaves the same, there’s only one answer to this question. The job candidate should look you straight in the eye without hesitation and respond, “I would never lie for you.” If this person won’t lie for you, you can bet that they won’t lie to you.
