Intelligent CIO Middle East Issue 36 | Page 50

CIO OPINION “ EVERYONE HAS THE POTENTIAL TO ACHIEVE GREATNESS IF ONLY GIVEN THE CHANCE. anymore. For this reason, companies should be extending their recruitment opportunities to a wider audience, searching for a balance of not only qualifications, but experience that demonstrates determination, loyalty, ambition and passion. Perseverance in particular is an attribute I have found to be a key to success. I once interviewed a candidate for a sales role – during the interview, she told me she didn’t want a base salary, simply 100% commission. When sifting through CVs, some of the most important things I look for are how long the candidate has spent in their previous role and what interests they have outside of work. A bold statement, but one that demonstrated an extremely high level of confidence in her ability to fulfil the job role requirements. When you find those kinds of people, you need to snap them up quickly before someone else does. Granted, triathlon experience in practice may only pay off on the annual work sports day, but it’s the transferable skills behind that experience – resolve, persistence, hunger – that will go a long way in any business. Another crucial point to consider is that the best candidates don’t always come from the traditional interview-based hiring route. One of my most unusual hires started in a petrol station. 50 INTELLIGENTCIO A young woman who had struggled to get a job due to her background – working-class with minimal education and a lack of qualifications. But when given a chance and left to her own devices, she was able to build things on our platform quicker than any of my existing employees. Traditional recruitment routes just don’t find these gems. We also need to be careful judging the younger generation on their education. If you think back to when you were a teenager, I’m sure you get the same nightmarish flashbacks as me: stress, hormones, peer pressure, girlfriends, boyfriends. Considering all those factors, is it reasonable to write someone off simply based on the www.intelligentcio.com