Every year, companies lose significant amounts on recruitments that don’t go as planned. A new hire who leaves early costs more than you might think in time, energy, and trust. Colleagues have to take over tasks, projects get delayed, and the team atmosphere is affected. Sometimes this shows in the numbers, sometimes only in the feeling within the team. It’s easy to see recruitment as a routine matter, but in practice, every hire affects the entire organization. And when things go wrong, it costs not just money, but also pace, trust, and focus.
Why does it go wrong so often?
Despite more tests, tools, and processes than ever, the same patterns repeat. Many recruit for what has been, rather than for what is coming.
People look for someone with the right experience, the right education, and who “fits in.” But experience mostly tells you about the past. It says little about how someone will handle the future. The world of work is changing fast. New ways of working, technology, and demands for collaboration mean that what truly matters is not always found on a CV. It is more about attitude, willingness to learn, and sense of responsibility, about the willingness to grow as the environment changes.
Experience explains yesterday.
Learning builds tomorrow.
From the right experience to the right capabilities
Avoiding bad hires is rarely about more tests, but about understanding what truly drives results in your organization. In many companies, traits such as curiosity, collaboration skills, initiative, and a sense of responsibility carry more weight than the number of years in a particular position.
Research and experience point in the same direction:
the ability to learn new things quickly, so-called learning agility, is a stronger indicator of future performance than both experience and formal tests.
Companies that recruit for learning and adaptability also perform better financially over time.
The right person is therefore not always the most experienced,
but the one who learns fastest and helps others grow.
Three steps toward more accurate recruitment
1. Start by discussing what “the right person” actually means.
When the organization shares the same understanding of what drives success, both in results and collaboration, it becomes easier to make thoughtful choices.
2. Recruit for the future, not for the past.
Look at the skills you will need going forward: problem-solving, initiative, collaboration, and the ability to learn quickly. This reduces the risk of getting stuck in old patterns.
3. Keep the process simple but consistent.
Ask the same questions to all candidates, measure what truly matters, and follow up during the first months. Clear onboarding reduces uncertainty, strengthens motivation, and increases retention.
.
From cost to investment
When companies start seeing recruitment as a long-term investment rather than a quick fix, something changes. Costs decrease, engagement increases, and the culture becomes stronger. Bad hires are rarely a matter of luck, more often they result from the wrong focus. By viewing people as capable of learning and development, rather than as static profiles, you build teams that can handle change and want to grow together. The right recruitment is therefore not about filling a position today, but about finding someone who can grow with you tomorrow.
.
🤝 Do you want to reduce the risk of a bad hire this year?
Feel free to get in touch with contact@tmconnect.se, we are happy to share our experiences and show how we work with more accurate recruitment.
English 
Swedish