Should We Hire for Character and Fit? with Mike Lyons

In episode 223, Coffey talks with Mike Lyons about why hiring for character and behavior often predicts success better than relying on experience or technical skills.

They discuss how HR leaders can define and hire for the right character traits by first understanding business strategy (for example, Walmart vs. Nordstrom models); aligning hiring with authentic, observable core values; identifying the specific attitudes and behaviors that make top performers successful in each role; using structured behavioral interviews to identify values; conducting reference checks as investigative conversations rather than formalities; designing realistic job previews to reduce turnover; and maintaining objectivity by keeping character assessments job-related and bias-free.

You can access Mike’s free library of free downloads to elevate your healthcare clinic from merely OK to excellent here: https://www.seasoned-advice.com/signup-for-free-downloads

Good Morning, HR is brought to you by Imperative—Bulletproof Background Checks. For more information about our commitment to quality and excellent customer service, visit us at https://imperativeinfo.com.

If you are an HRCI or SHRM-certified professional, this episode of Good Morning, HR has been pre-approved for three quarters of recertification credit. To obtain the recertification information for this episode, visit https://goodmorninghr.com.

About our Guest:

Mike Lyons is the Chief Consultant for Seasoned Advice HR Services, which helps highly motivated healthcare clinics with HR support. He is a frequent presenter at healthcare conferences on the topics of leadership, culture, and employee engagement. He is a graduate of LSU and the University of Illinois and resides in Austin, TX with his wife and kids.

Mike Lyons can be reached at https://www.seasoned-advice.com https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikelyonshr https://www.instagram.com/seasonedadvice

About Mike Coffey:

Mike Coffey is an entrepreneur, licensed private investigator, business strategist, HR consultant, and registered yoga teacher. In 1999, he founded Imperative, a background investigations and due diligence firm helping risk-averse clients make well-informed decisions about the people they involve in their business.

Imperative delivers in-depth employment background investigations, know-your-customer and anti-money laundering compliance, and due diligence investigations to more than 300 risk-averse corporate clients across the US, and, through its PFC Caregiver & Household Screening brand, many more private estates, family offices, and personal service agencies. Imperative has been named a Best Places to Work, the Texas Association of Business’ small business of the year, and is accredited by the Professional Background Screening Association. Mike shares his insight from 25+ years of HR-entrepreneurship on the Good Morning, HR podcast, where each week he talks to business leaders about bringing people together to create value for customers, shareholders, and community.

Mike has been recognized as an Entrepreneur of Excellence by FW, Inc. and has twice been recognized as the North Texas HR Professional of the Year. Mike serves as a board member of a number of organizations, including the Texas State Council, where he serves Texas’ 31 SHRM chapters as State Director-Elect; Workforce Solutions for Tarrant County; the Texas Association of Business; and the Fort Worth Chamber of Commerce, where he is chair of the Talent Committee. Mike is a certified Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR) through the HR Certification Institute and a SHRM Senior Certified Professional (SHRM-SCP). He is also a Yoga Alliance registered yoga teacher (RYT-200) and teaches multiple times each week.

Mike and his very patient wife of 28 years are empty nesters in Fort Worth.

Learning Objectives:

1. Recognize how strategic alignment clarifies which behavioral traits drive business results.

2. Define authentic organizational and role-specific values based on top-performer analysis.

3. Apply structured interviews, probing, and reference checks to assess character without bias.