Human Resource Management

"Technology skills are great, but an authentic, likeable personality is much more desirable. Tech skills can be taught, authenticity cannot."

I LOVE this quote from Mike Daugherty's book on EdTech Leadership. As teachers it is so important to remember this when we are looking for potential candidates to fill openings in our schools! Although the hiring process is tricky and crucial to school success, it is eminent that we are thoughtful about who we hire. Through Mike Daugherty's book we are provided tools, tips and resources to help us through the process to make the best decisions for our school.

 

Before Hiring:
While reading Daugherty's book, I focused on his beliefs of the importance of communication, professionalism and respect that a tech needs to possess in order to be successful. When looking to hire people in our school system it is important that candidates have an attractive and outgoing personality as well as strong technological knowledge, it is not ideal to have one without the other. If this candidate were to work for you, you want to make sure that they have the ability to get along with other teachers and they are someone that others are going to want to work with. Overall, you want someone who understand that importance of creating relationships to connect with others. This determines how well they will communicate and problem solve as well as respect their peers and collaborate. It is important that you know the candidate inside and out, here are the 10 questions that Daughtery asks his candidates in order to get to know them during an interview.

1. Tell me a little bout yourself and why you feel you would be a good fit for the position.
- want them to connect their skills back to your expectations
2 & 3. What would you consider one of your strengths? What do you feel is your biggest weakness?
4. Where do you see yourself in five years?
-you want someone with a plan- someone with a strategy about their career
5. What do you like to do in your spare time?
6. How comfortable are you with ______?
7. Tell me about a technical issue that was a major problem for your organization and how you solved it?
8. Test the resume BS meter.
9. What do you do when you don't know the answer to a problem?
10. Let's say you are walking in the hall with a list of tickets in your hand. A teacher pops her haed out and says hey, tech guy. Glad you're here. I am having trouble with my laptop. Can you help really quick? The teacher does not have a ticket in the system. What do you do?

In the end, we want our school systems to run like well oiled machines where teachers can work with one another to collaborate about their best practices and learn from one another as well as help each other. Specifically, when hiring a tech leader you want someone who is going to help ease your teacher's  technological issues. This person needs to be confident in their work so that their teachers trust them and in return have confidence in them. Ultimately, when hiring people to work in your school, you need to take into consideration all of their abilities and assess whether you see them joining your community- finding someone who fits well with your teachers and someone you can see having a positive impact in making your school successful.

After Hiring:
In the work place, especially in schools systems. we find a range of different personalities and character faux pas. Conflict is inevitable and it is important that we work to solve these with understanding and respect for our peers. When conflict occurs it is crucial that we do not let the problem sit and get worse. We should not let our peers discuss the topic and let it grow to be bigger than what it is. Instead, we need to direct the individual/conflict directly, listen to what they have to say and work together to find a solution. Lastly, it is important that teachers understand that your school is one team, working toward a common goal of ensuring student success and that cannot be achieved unless everyone works together. 

The hiring process can be a challenge, however, Daugherty provides resources and tips that will aid us when looking for future candidates!