Experience is Overrated: 3 Reasons Why

Hiring a new employee?

If that’s the case, make sure you aren’t making decisions based on experience alone.

Don’t get me wrong, experience is important – it’s just overrated. 

Employers hire candidates based on their previous experience for the same reason they might continue to use marketing tactics from the 40’s; it’s easy, obvious, and familiar. They just don’t know of any other way.

Here are 3 reasons why experience is overrated:

1. Working does not mean succeeding

Just because someone has worked a job in the past doesn’t mean they were good at it. Too often employers make this assumption. They read a resume, see a list of experience, and assume the applicant was successful at their past jobs. The reality is that many people aren’t successful in the jobs they work. Instead, they coast along under the radar, and cost their employers boatloads of money.

2. Your workplace is unique

Your workplace is unique, and so are the jobs in it. That means many employee’s previous experience just won’t translate to the needs of your specific job opening. For example, some businesses might call for ridged structure, while others are open and ambiguous. As an employer, you need to know your unique culture, and hire someone who fits it, not just someone with experience in the role you’re looking to fill.

3. The workplace is changing

New technology means new ways to get the job done. Also, social and economic changes alter the needs of the consumers that businesses sell to. Experience is great, but it does not predict whether or not an employee can succeed in a modern, dynamic, and changing workplace.