Each month Horticulture Review posts a question to garden centre members via e-mail and prints the responses. We thank those members who responded and encourage others to share their thoughts and venture into this forum.
Even though many of our garden centres are closed this month, owners and managers are starting to think about hiring new staff for the coming season. Hiring and training new staff are costly in many ways, particularly because our industry hits the ground running in the spring. You don’t have time to make hiring mistakes. This month HR is looking for some insight into effective job interviews. The question: “What are your favourite questions to help you get a handle on a candidate in a job interview?”
 

John Drummond, Green Belt Farm, Mitchell

A great deal of the interview gets down to chemistry. I often ask a potential candidate what sort of music they listen to — the bands, style, etc. This for one puts them in their own comfort zone so they are not on edge. Secondly, a person who has no interest in music is probably not right for us. An artistic orientation, whether they like rap, classical, jazz or folk, is a good sign for many of the things we do — create beautiful gardens, set-up creative displays, speak intuitively to customers, etc.
 

Perry Grobe, Grobe Nurseries, Breslau

We try to hire for attitude first. It’s a challenge. Here’s a couple of things that I do to try to ‘weed’ out the chaff. Reviewing documents: if there is no record of previous physical work of any kind, the candidate is ineligible for most positions in our company. The same goes if they have too many previous job placements in a short period of time. A poor, canned cover letter, or worse, a text message e-mail cover letter, is a red flag, as well. If they don’t have time to care enough to prepare to “meet the company,” they are probably going to be too busy to meet scheduled shift times, etc. Also, if their cover letter has the word ‘passion’ anywhere in it, I’m not interested. That word is meant to show they have a keen interest. In most situations, I’ve found it means that they are deeply interested, and would love to do it, but have no clue as to the work requirement. With respect to interview questions:

1. Most people include hobbies or interests on their resume. I will focus on one of them, and ask them about it. If they say they are “into it,” I will pounce a little bit with this question. “So you like to... I don’t know anything about it. Tell me why you like it, and convince me that I should also do it.” In short, if they are faking an interest, then what else are they faking? Also, if they can’t ‘sell me’ on something they love to do, how are they ever going to sell something to a customer when it might be something they know very little about.
2. I ask them what they know about our company. The best interviewees have usually done some homework and know a bit more than the norm. Certainly, if they have been asked in for an interview, they should have done a little prep work.
3. We will accept resumes and cover letters via the Internet. I screen them, and then ask those who look promising to come in for a little chat and to fill out a formal job application. We are in the country, so those who make the trek are certainly preferable to those who are surfing the net for a job position. In addition, the chat gives me (and my key staff) a chance to do a quick evaluation of the prospect without the need for a more involved job interview. I still have the opportunity to invite them in for a more formal one, if required.

 

Brian Cocks, Brian Cocks Nursery and Landscaping, Winona

A driver’s abstract is the best interview tool I have. For $13 I can get a complete transcript of a prospective employee’s driving record. If I’m putting them in one of my company trucks, I want to make sure they are a good driver, with a valid driver’s licence. But more importantly, I’ve found the driver’s abstract a great guide as to how potential employees conduct themselves and look after their own affairs. I’ve had a great interviewee whose abstract showed several unpaid fines – one for excessive speed and another for improperly hooking up a trailer!
 

John van Wissen, John van Wissen Nurseries and Garden Centre, Brampton

Sylvie, my wife, interviews the sales staff and I interview the general labour. We find the interview questions less important than the “vibe.” We’re, in a sense, interviewing for potential family members, not just staff. We chat freely and generally ask ourselves a simple question during the interview, “Does this person fit in with our team?” We don’t always hit a home run, it is after all part-time work, but we strive to create and enhance our family atmosphere. We just came back from attending the marriage of a former employee who started with us when he was 13 years old. When thanking him for the invitation, he said, “How could I not invite two people who had such a huge impact on my life.” He worked with us between the ages of 13 -18. He’s now 28 — we must be doing something right.