Taking the surprise out of hiring: she wore a business suit to the interview and a sleeveless dress yielding tattoo-covered arms her second day of work. He seemed kind and mild-mannered at first meeting, but later was found to have anger-management issues. What do you do to prevent such outcomes?

• Author: Curry, Lynne
• Position: ABM Quarterly Feature

We've all hired the disaster employee. Perhaps you hired the man who interviewed like an ace yet fumbled every project you handed him. Or the well-dressed interviewee who traded the business suit she wore for tight, sleeveless blouses that revealed dragon tattoos her first week. Possibly you hired a seemingly humble and easy-going accounting supervisor who swallowed arrogance pills once hired. If you've hired your share of these types of employees--those who interviewed wonderfully yet bombed on the job--try these strategies for preventing future disasters.

INTERVIEW TO THE SECOND LEVEL OF KNOWLEDGE

Most employers interview applicants well enough to gain a general impression of each applicant. If you want to hire the right employee, you need more than an impression; you need an accurate assessment of what the applicant can do (in terms of skills) and will do (motivation and work ethic).

To search out a prospective applicant's true abilities during the interview, ask at least seven hypothetical questions to test for job-related competencies. For example, you might ask a prospective customer service employee, "How would you handle a customer who feels he hasn't been well handled by our parts department?" If you're interviewing supervisory candidates, you can ask, "How would you handle a somewhat sullen but technically skilled employee who needs to improve his people skills?"

To gain an assessment of how the applicant might behave in intangible areas, ask questions that ferret out who the applicant is and how he behaves, even under pressure, such as:

* "If you were offered two different jobs, what criteria would you use to choose one job over the other?"

* "If you had to choose between a job in which there was a good team and a job that offered $2 more per-hour, which would you choose?"

* "If you chose our job thinking it would be an 'A' job and six months from now began to realize it was really an A- or a B+ job, what would it be that was missing?"

* "When I call your current supervisor, what will she tell me about you?"

* "In work sense, what's your Achilles' heel?"

* "Are you more of an optimist or more of a realist?"

* "How do you take criticism?"

* "Give an example of how a past supervisor has asked for flexibility on your part and how you've responded."

* "What kinds of people push your buttons?"

* "Please tell me about your work ethic."

SPEND AS MUCH TIME ON REFERENCE CHECKS AS YOU SPEND ON YOUR FINAL APPLICANT INTERVIEW

Employees who...