Beware Of Hiring And Training Employees Who Have Enough Intelligence, But No Common Sense

Each job in each company requires certain levels of brainpower or cognitive aptitudes

It always amazes me when I deal with a company’s employee who might have some intelligence, but shows no common sense. Why did that company waste a lot of funds and time hiring and training such employees?

1. A food store allowed a diabetes research fund-raiser to set-up a booth in the store.  A store supervisor donated cakes and cookies to the diabetes research fund-raiser! Since diabetics should not eat sweets, that would be like American Heart Association holding a fund-raiser selling cigarettes!! That store supervisor showed no common sense.

2. While standing in line at a cashier, the cashier asked a customer “How are you today?” The customer looked upset and answered, “I’m in terrible pain. I just came from my appointment with a pain management physician.” The cashier laughed uncontrollably. I felt bad for the customer, so I spoke up. I said, “Why are you laughing?  Being in pain is not funny.” The cashier showed no common sense, and continued laughing at the customer’s pain!

3. I phoned my cable TV company to arrange certain services. The customer service representative I talked to sounded OK. But when I received an e-mail confirming my requests, the customer service representative had written (a) incorrect address, (b) listed services I did not request, and (c) added fees I was told I did not owe. That person’s lack of intelligence and/or common sense may result in me changing my cable provider. 

4. I stay in hotels when I travel to deliver speeches and seminars. I frequently walk past guest rooms when a housekeeper is making a bed. In almost every hotel, I see the housekeeper putting bedding on the [dirty] carpeted floor. Then, the housekeeper makes the bed using bedding from the [dirty] carpet. As such, guests who expect clean bedding actually sleep on bedding that was lying on the floor!  

5. I saw a delivery driver for a wine distribution company pay no attention to how he wheeled boxes of wine down the ramp from his delivery truck to the liquor store. He wheeled it off the ramp. Dozens of wine bottles broke, in effect, painting the sidewalk red in front of that liquor store. His lack of common sense destroyed his company’s products and upset the store’s manager and customers.  

6. I bet you can give many examples of employees who show no common sense.  

 

All employees described above acted like they had out-patient brain surgery – and the scalpel slipped!

Their behavior showed no common sense.  

And they alienated customers. Alienating customers is a sure way to lose customers and generate a lousy reputation for your company.  

In my research of custom-tailor pre-employment tests, I test a company’s best employees to quantify benchmark test scores in each job. These terrific employees are each company’s superstars or best-of-the-best.  

From my pre-employment test research, I find certain test scores of the best, benchmark employees who possess both (a) enough intelligence to do the job plus (b) common sense.

On intelligence or mental aptitude tests, each job in each company requires certain levels of brainpower or cognitive aptitudes. In fact, a book entitled “The Bell Curve” presented hundreds of studies proving that each job requires certain levels of intelligence. Some jobs require high levels of intelligence, some moderate levels, and some jobs require low levels.  

So, your applicant assessments should include job-related intelligence or mental aptitude tests on relevant job-related factors, such as  

If job-related, also give applicants technical skills tests.  

If an applicant has the same level of intelligence as your company’s best employees in a specific job, then also test for work-related behaviors.  Use a personality test that assesses factors related to common sense at work, e.g., 

First, see if the applicant gets the same intelligence pre-hire test scores as your company’s best employees in a specific job. That assures you the applicant has the mental aptitude level needed to both

Second, examine personality pre-employment test scores.  You may prefer applicants who have personality traits similar to your best employees.  

By doing these two pre-employment assessments, you can focus on considering job applicants who have the intelligence and personality of your employees who are highly productive superstars who have enough brains to learn the job and also use common sense.  

© Copyright 2020 Michael Mercer, Ph.D.