Finding That Elusive Chemistry

Information technology executives are only as good as their staffs. That's why Gary Cooper, vice president of information systems at Tyson Foods Inc. in Springdale, Ark., says he looks for "smart, adaptable, self-starters" when hiring for his 275-person IT department. And Manoj Tripathi, CIO at Jamba Juice Co. in San Francisco, says he looks less at skills and more at "underlying traits, indicating a willingness and ability to learn." IT executives are all looking for that elusive "perfect IT hire." And, as you might imagine, finding that perfect employee isn't easy, especially in today's tight labor market. So these and other IT executives use a variety of methods to attract and find the right combination of skills and attributes. Some hire from local colleges. Others rely on employee referrals. Others recruit from inside their corporations. Still others hire professional recruiters.
Take Tripathi, for example. With 12 IT workers, the company is bringing Jamba Juice, a popular Bay Area vegetable and fruit-juice outlet, into the 21st century. His staff is developing Web applications, a telecommunications infrastructure, and back- office and supply-chain systems. Typical of most smaller companies, Jamba Juice can't afford to hire people with specific development and networking skills, so Tripathi hires those with some basic knowledge and then trains them.
"This may sound like heresy, but I'm not that concerned about the technical skills," Tripathi explains. "It's more difficult for us to find the skills we need, so we look for a couple of attributes. Can the person work at learning and delivering? We're in a learning mode here all the time."
Such attributes aren't usually spelled out on a resume, so Tripathi likes to talk with candidates so he can spot the characteristics firsthand. For example, he recalls a time last year when he was hiring a systems developer. "We had a candidate who didn't have a proven track record for the particular skill sets we were looking for. So we had to make sure the person could grow," says Tripathi. "She had worked with several different programming languages, so that told me she is adaptable to different tools."
Still, he says, finding the right underlying attributes - "a person who's not only smart, (but is also) a little bit wise, willing to learn everything" - is difficult. So in addition to checking experience, Tripathi probes to see if the candidate is more interested in money (not so good) or a career path (good).
He drills the candidates until he's clear on what they're looking for. "Do they