• You will hear a discussion between two senior managers, John and Deborah, about an assistant manager, Colin, who has applied f

Man: Well, Deborah, we need to think about the candidates who’ve put in applications for the post of area manager.
Woman: Yes, John, it’s an exciting new role, and it fits in with the strategy development plan.
Man: Quite. It’s part of a logical progression in our approach to management, carefully consolidating our skills base. It should mean a new chain of command, but based on tried and tested methods.., we’ll be stronger as a result.
Woman: Well that’s the idea. Now, the first one that’s come in is from Colin...
Man: The assistant manager for the south-east?
Woman: Yes. Colin’s clearly keen...
Man: But of course, it’s an attractive proposition.
Woman: And I think that’s what’s drawn him. He’s said his current post is demanding - as well he might - but that he’s keen to position himself in the spotlight here. Reading between the lines, I think the alternative, as he sees it, is to move sideways to IT, which is where his background is. It would be a shame to lose someone like him ... he’s hungry.
Man: Yes, it’s a genuine application. He’s a serious contender. I was struck recently... I think it was last month.., by his problem- solving abilities. He was passed a complaint - it wasn’t really his problem at all - but he took it up anyway, about some faulty goods we’d supplied, apparently. I think he saw it as an efficiency issue, and so relevant to any responsible person here. And he reacted really well, so that the customer went away happy after all.
Woman: Right, and that suggests the qualities that are most germane to the job. Ultimately, I suppose, we’re looking for a level of adaptability that it’s fair to say someone in his position may not have had the chance to really demonstrate yet.., but his familiarity with the goods we produce is second-to-none, so I think the signs are there that he may become an astute analyst and problem-solver.
Man: That’s certainly encouraging. And it’s not just in the office that he’s been looking good. I sent him abroad as part of that group a few weeks ago. The basic brief was to secure a continuation of the Asian contract. To be honest, that was a bit of a given, and what I was really hoping for was something extra. And sure enough, he clearly really worked on all our contacts out there, and he came back with some great new insights into how we might be able to develop bulk sales directly through warehouses, rather than through the standard agency channels.
Woman: Oh right, interesting - I missed the debrief on that one. But I do know he went on a training course not so long ago, and clearly reaped the benefits there. The content was mundane enough - ’how to produce effective reports’ or some such - but he identified the points that really mattered, and saw that what it actually addressed was how to order the most pertinent facts for delivery to a team.
Man: So, it’s good news all round?
Woman: Let’s look at what his reference has to say. He does have shortcomings, of course. His confidence is very strong, almost to a fault, you might say, which could lead to difficulties on the patience front.., just because he gets the point quickly doesn’t mean he’s entitled to think everyone else does, that they share the same conclusions.., others may be behind in terms of objectivity, still grappling with issues that impact personally on themselves.
Man: Hmm, that’d certainly be something to watch, I guess. Still, we’re not looking for perfection, are we? And we’re not going to be setting up a lone operator.
Woman: Oh, far from it. Whoever gets the job will be well backed up. I was talking to the consultants the other day, and they were quite critical of our reliance on checking performance through the one-to-one appraisal system, so it’s been decided that this new post will be linked into the cross-departmental advisory group that was set up a few months ago, and benefit from dealing with them and getting their input. That should help quite a bit.
Man: That makes a lot of sense. Well, let’s talk about some of the other candidates...