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"A traditional resume (or a LinkedIn profile) may be necessary for anyone who\u2019s looking for a job, but in my 10 years as a business owner, I\u2019ve never relied on either one to hire.\nHonestly, I think resumes are a waste of time.\nPart of the problem is that it\u2019s human nature to exaggerate or even glorify a simple role. But the bigger issue is that there are a lot of things resumes can\u2019t tell you about a candidate \u2014 like whether he\u2019s the type of person you want to work with\u00A0or whether she\u2019ll fit in with your company\u2019s style.\nInstead, I\u2019ve used a few non-traditional techniques that help me look beyond the resume to find great employees. Here are some tips for finding the best hires for your business without relying solely on a piece of paper or virtual profile.\nPay Extra Attention to the Application\nThe first step in the hiring process often involves an application. In the tech industry, where an ad for a job usually results in a high volume of applications, I play close attention to how people handle this initial interaction. Do applicants craft a personalized, interesting cover letter and follow up with an email or phone call a week later? Or do they simply fire off their resume without taking the time to interact beyond that? Someone who doesn\u2019t take the time to be \u201Cremembered\u201D not only seems less eager, but is most likely not a serious candidate.\nOne sneaky way to weed out the candidates who are just blasting out their cover letters is to add a special code or a hashtag to your application. I\u2019ve been known to say something like \u201Cbe sure to include #iactuallyreadthis on your cover letter.\u201D I know immediately that the people who don\u2019t put my special code in their letter aren\u2019t paying attention to detail. And that fact alone tells me they probably aren\u2019t right for us.\nDo More Than Ask Questions at the Interview\nWhen you bring your narrowed-down bunch of candidates in for interviews, you\u2019ll definitely want to sit down with them and ask the standard questions, including soliciting specific examples from their previous work experience. But I also like to see how people perform on the job, rather than just have them tell me.\nFor example, if you\u2019re hiring someone to answer phones, have candidates answer a mock phone call and see how they do. If you\u2019re looking for developers, have them refactor some code. Even if you\u2019re looking for something less task-based, like a project manager, you can have the candidate look at a current project outline and see what kind of questions or suggestions he or she might have.\nYou\u2019ll also want to look beyond the skills and experience to make sure the candidate fits well with your company culture. At my company ShortStack, we don\u2019t want to see a candidate on her \u201Cbest behavior\u201D \u2014 we want to see how she\u2019ll be to hang out with during lunch or maybe even over a beer, because that\u2019s part of our culture. Every Friday, our whole teams goes out to lunch together. It\u2019s meant to be a fun outing, so I will invite prospective employees to make sure they can relax with us \u2014 or at least try to relax!\nUse References Right\nYou probably already ask your applicants to provide references (and if you don\u2019t, you should), but you want to make sure you\u2019re using these contacts to their fullest potential to get the information you want.\nFor example, I\u2019ll ask references about the candidate\u2019s work performance, but I\u2019ll also ask\u00A0what the person\u2019s sense of humor is like. This can tell you a lot, and as far as I know, won\u2019t get you into legal trouble. (Ask your legal counsel to be sure \u2014 HR laws vary from state to state.) If the person\u2019s more of a serious type \u2014 or on the other end of the spectrum, the office joker \u2014 he or she might not be a good fit for your organization.\nI also like to ask if a candidate\u2019s work area was clean or messy, how he or she interacted with the rest of the staff, and if he or she participated in any external activities, such as softball or volunteering. Think of what matters to you and your company culture, and use that as a guide for questions.\nUse Trial Periods\nI know this isn\u2019t possible with all positions, but if possible, take the potential employee for a test drive before hiring full-time. Trial periods are almost like internships, but better paid and more serious. They can last for a few weeks or a few months, but can give you a good idea of whether the person is the right fit for your office.\nFor example, we give potential graphic designers and developers a few (paid) freelance projects to start with and then see if they have the skills we\u2019re looking for. Look at it from an investment standpoint: If the salary is $60,000 and you invest $1,000 in a freelance project and discover that the person isn\u2019t the right fit, you\u2019re not out $1,000 \u2014 you just saved yourself $59,000!\nIt\u2019s also important to pay from a legal standpoint. The person could have a great idea that you want to move forward with, but if he or she wasn\u2019t paid and you don\u2019t end up making a full-time offer, you could run into legal issues if you end up using the idea.\nIf you do go down this path, try not to mention the possibility of a full-time position so if the person doesn\u2019t work out, it\u2019s easier to move on to the next candidate. Make sure to clearly state that the period of work-for-hire is for a certain number of weeks and includes specific responsibilities.\nThe next time you\u2019re looking to hire, think beyond the resume. Resumes are great for providing a list of (potentially exaggerated) skills, but building a successful team requires more than a list of traits on paper.\nMashable composite: image via iStockphoto, bubaone"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://mashable.com/2013/07/07/resume-best-candidates/>