Contrarian Hiring Advice to Find Your Next Superstar

"To succeed, surround yourself with great talent." Like most platitudes, sounds great.
Also sounds expensive.

Facebook has the resources to buy companies in order to get excellent people. Most businesses do not.

So how can you surround yourself with Ferraris when you have a Hyundai budget? Start by thinking in stock market terms: People, just like stocks, are often underappreciated and undervalued.

Who is typically undervalued? People who are skilled but inexperienced. People with extensive education in the "wrong" field. People whose current job lacks sufficient "status." People who suffer from negative social stereotypes.

The key to finding great talent at a price you can afford is to be a hiring contrarian. Go against the grain and against conventional wisdom. Then you can find your next superstar -- and give someone a chance to show what they can really do in the process.

Here are some examples of talent hiding in plain view:

Career switchers. Take teachers. Many love to teach but hate the pay. (Can't blame 'em.) Teachers are excellent trainers, understand how to manage different personalities, and are great at motivating, encouraging, and nurturing other people. While you can train skills, do you have the time and resources to "train" qualities like those? Where career switchers are concerned, the key is to ignore their industry and look at the qualities the person possesses: A firefighter works well under pressure. A salesperson is a self-starter. A mechanic is an excellent troubleshooter. Toss an outstanding person out a plane and she will probably excel no matter where she lands.

Athletes. Granted I might be biased, but sports are an excellent training ground for business. A recent graduate who played a sport is self-disciplined, motivated, great at multitasking, able to overcome adversity, understands the value of teamwork... all qualities you can definitely use. Every year approximately 400,000 college student-athletes enter the job market. Snag one.

Ex-convicts. This category probably ranks highest on the "give someone a chance" scale. Celebrity chef Jamie Oliver's FIFTEEN restaurant hires 18 unemployed people a year, providing education, training... a chance. Seventy-five percent of the program's graduates go on to successful careers. Many companies routinely reject anyone with a criminal record; do that many of your new hires -- all of whom at one point you felt were sure things -- turn out to be excellent employees? Probably not.

Crappy current job. You glance at a resume: The current job is telemarketing, or fast food, or stocking shelves. What is your first thought? Admit it. You think, "Well, if that's all they're doing now..." It's easy to assume a person who currently has a less than wonderful job is only "worth" a job like that. (I have to admit this stereotype bugs me; I started as an entry-level material handler and eventually ran all manufacturing operations.) The fast food kid has more customer service experience than you do, and the warehouse worker may possess the attention to detail and work ethic of an accountant on PEDs.

Military. This time I'm definitely biased. I hired hundreds of people and definitely made mistakes, but I never regretted a single ex-military hire. Not one. Need a leader? The military is probably the only organization that puts as much or more emphasis on leadership training as it does on skill training. Need someone to see a task through, or to be able to follow as well as lead, or to be able to make smart decisions on the fly -- and stand behind those decisions? Go with a vet. Every time.

Youth. Of course they don't have any experience. How could they? You and I were young once too. Someone gave us a chance -- and we worked hard to show that person they made the right decision. Some percentage of your new hires should be kids just entering the workforce. You get energy, ideas, enthusiasm -- and the chance to truly grow your own.

I realize undervalued assets tend to appreciate as their true value is recognized. Someday the teacher you hired to run your customer service department may be a hot commodity and leave for better pay. That's how it works; eventually the market recognizes the value of a superstar. And that's also okay; wish him well and be glad you had him while you could afford him.

In the meantime, keep unearthing gems so your talent pool stays stocked.

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