It’s hard to forget that big moment in City Slickers where Billy Crystal’s character Mitch Robbins reaches that mid-life crisis moment (yes, he’s a radio advertising sales rep). He goes on a cattle drive and learns a lot about life – especially from an old cowhand – Curly – played by the late, great Jack Palance.
In the scene below, Mitch’s search for the secret to life reaches a conclusion, thanks to a life lesson from Curly:
>EMAIL RECIPIENTS: CLICK HERE TO WATCH JACK PALANCE AND BILLY CRYSTAL<
So is there really one thing? Especially when it comes to ascertaining who to hire at that critical moment when the organization cannot afford a mistake?
Well, we all struggle with that, especially when interviewing and evaluating job applicants. Try as we might, we continue to make mistakes about the quality, veracity, and long-term success of candidates. You can ask a lot of questions, give them a personality test, check their references, and ask about their ratings history – but somehow, good prospects often don’t get hired while disappointments and epic fails abound.
Executive recruiter, Lou Adler, recently wrote a piece for Inc. where he claims to have found “the one thing” in the form of a question. Adler claims that after 36 years of vetting, interviewing, and evaluating, this one question shows the true colors of job interviewees and their ability to excel in a new position:
What single project or task would you consider your most significant accomplishment in your career to date?
Just like the Curly story, it’s more complicated than just that single question. Adler believes in a battery of follow-up questions that go into a much deeper dive into “The Question.”
This includes a walk-through of that project or task, the environment in which it was accomplished, the resources it required, the length of time it took to show results, and the three or four biggest challenges faced along the way.
But it’s a telling question that speaks to innovation, leadership, and how a job candidate – whether in sales, programming, or on the air – can take something and run with it.
Maybe the radio broadcasting version of this question is more along these lines:
What single project or task would your consider your most significant accomplishment that truly improved and enhanced the station or company you were working for at the time?
And these follow-ups…
As a result, how did this initiative (event, campaign) impact your station and your community?
Did it affect ratings, sales, and/or the station’s brand equity in your market?
What did it teach you about radio?
What did it teach you about your constituents – listeners and advertisers?
How did it impact others on the staff?
Did you do it again – and was it better the second (or third) time – and why?
Why kind of effect did it have on you personally and would you try it again (here)?
At this point of time in radio, it’s abundantly clear that we need to hire people in all departments who do more than their jobs. The “factory mentality” that is so common to so many stations worked well in past decades, but comes up short today when new, different, buzz-worthy, and innovative are the valued characteristics.
Its starts with bringing in the right people and making smart hiring decisions.
As both a business owner and an advisor, I’ve made my share of mistakes and also hit more than a few home runs.
“The question” may be a smart starting point.
What’s your one thing?
Jacobs Media has consistently walked the walk in the digital space, providing insights and guidance through its well-read national Techsurveys.
In 2008, jacapps was launched - a mobile apps company that has designed and built more than 1,300 apps for both the Apple and Android platforms. In 2013, the DASH Conference was created - a mashup of radio and automotive, designed to foster better understanding of the "connected car" and its impact.
Along with providing the creative and intellectual direction for the company, Fred consults many of Jacobs Media's commercial and public radio clients, in addition to media brands looking to thrive in the rapidly changing tech environment.
Fred was inducted into the Radio Hall of Fame in 2018.
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“…new, different, buzz-worthy, and innovative are the valued characteristics.”
Really…in radio? Using the “what they do not what they say screen”, it would seem that the ideal radio programming hiring question should be: “What single project or task did you initiate that allowed your cluster to eliminate expense and/or resources with minimal impact on ratings or sales?” Follow up questions might be: Are the savings measurable – can you quantify them in reduced expense or elimination of a position(s)? Can this project be applied anywhere else in the cluster or company? If so, what are the total savings that can be realized? (F or public companies) If this was applied company-wide, could it increase EBITDA enough to raise our stock price? What was in the design to that kept listeners/clients from perceiving it? Did you do it again? If so, were you able to fine tune it to create additional savings without impacting ratings or sales? Were you able to create a centralization opportunity?
If we’re honest, we have to acknowledge that Fred’s value metrics aren’t really aligned with those of most radio companies. His questions are framed around building brands, creating value and monetizing that increased value, while for that past 20 years, radio has been almost exclusively focused on cost cutting. I’m all for increasing EBITA and I am, in the parlance, squarely in the all about the money camp. But I believe that you can increase EBITDA by cutting expense and by adding/enhancing value, while (based on behavior) radio’s head honchos apparently don’t share the second belief. Radio is almost exclusively focused on status quo maintenance at reduced cost.
The problem with that is that nasty 1/3 revenue drop in 2008-2009 that has never been close to recovered. There just aren’t enough savings possible to offset that much lost revenue, so radio’s only hope to reach its past profitability is create value and monetize it. Is anyone but Jerry Lee (its Thursday already and he hasn’t been mentioned in this blog yet :-))ready to climb aboard that train?
Comments like this one make me question whether my values are in-sync with industry standards. I believe that most broadcast executives believe in brand building, but would also tell you that the disruptive events of the past five years have altered many of their game plans. Today’s post and yesterday’s “Groundhog Day” are connected because they speak to the eventual erosion caused by staying the course. I would maintain (and I’m sure this will be questioned) that it is possible to build better radio brands without cutting the place to shreds. If radio recruited and found more people who could pass the “one thing” litmus test question, we might be closer to achieving that. There are some unbelievably strong radio brands in the U.S. – in spite of the recession and its reverberations. And they start with great people. And I have one more day to squeeze Jerry in there somewhere. 🙂
Hmmm. I think your thoughts about “most broadcast executives” was true three years ago but isn’t true now. Back when most radio companies were one missed quarter away from violating their bank covenants and being foreclosed on – they did what they had to do to stay afloat and I applaud them for it. Now, most are on safe financial ground and the reasons for the 2009 decisions no longer apply – yet the vast majority of broadcasters continue to operate on a 2009 footing.
I agree that there are some great radio brands, but disagree that most broadcast executives believe in brand building – if they did they would be building brands, not removing pick up sticks from their existing ones hoping the delicate balance that holds them together doesn’t collapse.
I know that my take here is very cynical, but I also think its more supportable than any other. Given flat revenue, ever increasing competition and comfortably safe leverage, what possible other explanation could there be for continued cost cutting with little to no brand building or line extension.
As for recruiting people that could pass the “one thing” test – my sister likes to say that people almost always end up doing what they want to do. If broadcast execs wanted that type of employee, they would recruit more of them. I think most execs know that their current strategy makes erosion inevitable, but are focused on their own personal 3-5 year financial plans. That calls for more of the type of employee I described than the type that you outlined.
Bob, you’re making me work today. I would seriously love to believe that radio execs are looking beyond their brokerage statements and the 3-5 year time horizon. I think about the value of great brands a lot, and question whether they command the kind of dollars that stations like WJR, KMOX, and KVIL did back in the day. I would ask it this way – does it truly pay to build great brands? Can companies charge more for the privilege of being associated with KROQ, KISW, or WSB?
Not every radio station can reach greatness, just as not every team is the Red Sox. But when you look at great brands, you almost always see great people behind the wheel. I would hope that the captains of industry understand and value that relationship. Again, I hope so.
“What single project or task would you consider your most significant accomplishment that truly improved and enhanced the station or company you were working for at the time?”
I wonder if anyone ever asked Howard Stern this question? What answer would they get…
Getting NBC execs to hire an attorney to operate the dump button, Getting WNBC to fire him, after getting a 5.7? Or maybe it was Butt Bongo Fiesta, or Pig Vomit or Beastiality Dial a Date or Fartman or….
I guess if you’re looking to hire a Traffic Director, Sales Manager or maybe, maybe a PD this question might work. But if I was looking hire the “next star,” this wouldn’t be the question I’d ask. I think I’d rather ask, “what pisses you off” or “what is the funniest thing you’ve ever heard” or “Did you see anything unusual, strange, odd or out of the ordinary driving here today” or “you got a buck so I can buy a soda” and see how they react.
Not the value corporate metric that Fred or Bob (comments above) might be looking for. But it would certainly help what comes out of the speakers.
Just for the record, I really enjoy reading the jacoblog. It’s one of the few places with really good radio op-ed.
John, thanks for the thoughtful comment. It’s contributions like this that makes me feel that we’re on the right track with the blog. Whether you agree, disagree, or end up somewhere in the middle, the journey was worth it. I think you’re right that the DJ version of “the one thing” by definition ought to be different. Maybe “What was your one moment on the air that told you that you were having an impact on people’s lives?” Howard would have been able to answer that question then, at WNBC or KRock, and in his new incarnations today – as would any personality with a degree of impact and respect for his audience and his craft. Thanks for moving the question around and pushing all of us to think it through just a little more.
Hi FRED, I think LOU ADLER’s “Rule of Three”… really hits on areas Radio can have often have trouble meeting or positioning on, given the constraints the industry labors under today managerially, operationally, and creatively.
https://www.linkedin.com/today/post/article/20140213175839-15454-why-you-must-follow-the-rule-of-3-to-hire-great-people?goback=%2Empd2_*1_*1_*1_*1_*1_*1_20140213175839*515454*5why*5you*5must*5follow*5the*5rule*5of*53*5to*5hire*5great*5people&trk=prof-post
Thanks, Lee. This is a great piece that really takes the notion of hiring to a much higher – and smarter level. It’s a great piece, very thought-provoking, and says a lot about the changing nature of the aspirations of job-seekers and the mentality it takes to hire the best. Thanks again for this.
Thanks FRED…thought it of value in line with your post. BUT apologies for the url link… thought it would post as a picture/link. Sorry.