Tag Archives: King Nebuchadnezzar

day 2891: The Perfect Employee?

“…“Make sure they are well versed in every branch of learning, are gifted with knowledge and good judgment, and are suited to serve in the royal palace.”

We seek the perfect employee with every hire.  We should, but let’s remember no one is perfect. I was explaining to a friend that most hiring managers or recruiters are not much more than “short order cooks”; needing to fill the job as fast as they can and to the minimum specifications.  If the candidate turns out to be more than the requirements, then that is a bonus but the minimum qualifications become the judgement bar.  We’d be better if our hiring managers and recruiters were more like “chefs” using their creativity, knowledge and experience to put together raw talent/ingredients and materials to make something “special”.  It begs the question as you consider your recent hires.  Do they feel more like the delivery and completion of an “order” or do they embody that someone put more thought and care into the decision? If the answer is more of the former, then it’s time to consider the source.

King Nebuchadnezzar was a smart hiring manager.  When he put out the call for new “talent” he thought broadly about what the needs were and sent out those who were sourcing to find those who were “well-versed in every branch of learning”.  He looked for the generalists with strong judgement who were intelligent and trainable (the next verse says they would teach them the language and ways of Babylon, so he was willing to train them up). There is no guarantee we will ever be the perfect hire for a job for which we are interested. But, if we come to the table being well-versed in knowledge and judgement, we might just be who the smart hiring person is looking to have join the team.

Reference:  Daniel 1:4 (New Living Translation)