Caroline Wants a Job — Tip of the Week

It’s no secret. Caroline Kennedy, the daughter of President John F. Kennedy, wants New York’s Governor David Paterson to appoint her to the U.S. Senate seat now held by Hillary Clinton.

For someone who was 16 when Kennedy was assassinated, I’ve always felt close to Caroline and, before his death, John John. I don’t know her, of course, but watching the national tragedy that centered on Caroline and her family created a bond. I’ve admired her adult life, particularly her refreshing insistence on a relatively private life.

But things change. She is a Kennedy, after all. And the scrutiny has begun. Her qualifications are thin. She uses “you know” too much. There are more substantial New Yorkers to consider. This is amusing for a state that elected to the Senate Caroline’s late uncle Robert (with his Boston accent) and Hillary (with her Midwestern, sometimes fake Southern, accent). New York values fame, so Caroline would be a perfect fit.

Qualifications are elusive. There are job descriptions. There is experience. There are hiring metrics.

Then there are intangibles. Presence. Interviewing skills. Who the candidate is or knows. In the world of work, the objective and subjective are mixed when hiring decisions are made. As an HR professional, you’re the chef who mixes the ingredients to discover the perfect dish of an employee.

In this difficult year, you will, at times, have to choose between Caroline Kennedy and someone else. It seems to me it’s ok to make hiring decisions based on objective criteria and intuition, as long as you’re being honest with yourself and those making the decisions with you. My inaugural tip for ’09 is to do your job with honesty and a good, educated guess.