Q: What do you think is the most common mistake hiring managers and leaders make when recruiting people?
Joseba: A common mistake companies often make is overlooking their existing organizational culture and the profiles of their current team members. This oversight frequently leads to new hires struggling to fit in—not due to a lack of attitude or aptitude, but simply because they aren’t attuned to the company’s way of working.
Additionally, recruiters tend to place excessive emphasis on technical skills and experience. This is something I see in our own company, where I often remind them that a proactive, eager-to-learn candidate brings far more value than one who is simply highly experienced. Skills, knowledge, and even complex strategies can be taught over time. However, attitude, commitment, and team compatibility are much harder to cultivate if they aren’t naturally present in a new team member from the start.
Q: Have you ever chosen someone who turned out not to be the right fit? Why do you think that happened?
Joseba: Yes, there have been times when we’ve made decisions that didn’t yield the best outcomes. For instance, we once hired someone who, during interviews, appeared highly competent and aligned with the travel agent profile we sought. However, after a few months, it became clear that they did not fully embody some of our core values—specifically, a 100% commitment to our company’s goals. This isn’t about extra hours or an overwhelming workload; rather, it’s about achieving total alignment with the team and their manager, something we couldn’t quite nurture in them, ultimately impacting both their performance and team integration.
I believe these situations arise when not enough emphasis is placed on assessing a candidate’s adaptability to our company culture and dynamics. Important aspects, like their past performance, can sometimes be overlooked in interviews because they’re harder to gauge. We’re continuously improving in this area by thoroughly contacting former employers of potential candidates and asking focused, targeted questions to gain a clearer understanding of their previous experience and values.
Q: AI has sped up recruiting, but some say it makes the process less human and might mean strong candidates are overlooked. It’s even been said that a CEO once applied to a role at their own company and was screened out by AI! How do you, as a leader, balance the need for speed in hiring with keeping the process fair and personal for everyone?
Joseba: While technology—and particularly AI—has undoubtedly streamlined the recruitment process, the human element remains essential. For me, the ideal approach is to leverage AI as a tool to quickly filter and rank candidates based on objective criteria, such as language proficiency in English and German or the minimum years of experience required for each role. However, what we never overlook is the importance of that first conversation between the candidate and the future manager, as it’s only through this interaction that we can truly gauge the candidate’s motivation, adaptability, and passion for the role.
To keep our process as personal as possible, I encourage managers to go beyond the insights provided by recruitment tools, which offer a preliminary view of potential fits. Instead, they should focus on connecting directly with the candidate and envisioning what daily collaboration would be like. This way, technology serves as a valuable complement that enhances efficiency but never replaces the crucial human connection.
Q: If you could hire anyone in the world as an employee for your company, who would it be and why?
Joseba: Only a proactive, curious, and driven person can truly give their all in a role. If I could choose anyone to join our team, it would be someone with qualities similar to Elon Musk—not just for his groundbreaking vision and transformative impact on industries, but for his relentless drive to tackle complex challenges. While his leadership style may be polarizing, I deeply admire his willingness to question the status quo, think creatively, and pioneer technologies that redefine the future. Moreover, his dedication to global causes like sustainability and space exploration shows a commitment to goals that transcend pure profit. This long-term, risk-embracing mindset would bring invaluable depth and perspective to any organization.
