Hire18 Speaker Interview: Andrew Blum

Unconscious bias, inaccurate predispositions, and unquestioned beliefs and a lack of self-awareness: That’s what stands between you and business success according to Trium Group CEO and Managing Partner, Andrew Blum.

A lack of self-awareness is more than blocking the sidewalk while you check your phone, it’s an insidious habit comparable to mental slouching. Just as slouching slowly, but surely, erodes your posture, so unmindfulness gradually weakens your critical thinking and gives prejudice to your information processing.

After over 20 years in consulting and serving as a First Lieutenant in the US Marine Corps, slouching (mental or physical) is something Andrew will not abide.

Andrew’s avant-garde mindfulness practices will on full display at Hiring Succes 18 being held March 12th – 14th. Register here to see Andrew in person and read further for a sneak peek at his session.

Tell us about your session.

It’s called ‘Breaking Free of Unquestioned Beliefs in Leadership and Decision Making’. What I’ll be doing is leveraging the work of Byron Katie to help the audience understand and free themselves from the beliefs that are between us and our ultimate potential as leaders.

Importantly, this work is also a powerful leadership development tool that participants will be able to explore as a powerful approach for broader leadership transformation.

What does the concept of Hiring Success mean to you?

The rare intersection between an individual’s talents and aspirations and the explicit and implicit needs of the system.

Where on your list of priorities is “recruitment”?

Absolutely and unequivocally the first priority. At Trium, we are only as good as our talent, plain and simple.

Who was/is your biggest professional influence and why?

Besides the obvious (Byron Katie), the single biggest influence is Joe Jaworski, author of Synchronicity. Having partnered with him for years, I’ve learned that the role of a leader is not to provide wisdom but rather to uncover the wisdom that’s already present.

In the digital age are face-to-face conferences still important?

Technology has many advantages and can do many wonderful things. What it cannot do is create deep, authentic connections between people. That occurs when people are in each other’s physical presence and are able to see and listen to each other.

Talk about the importance of self-awareness especially when it comes to hiring.

Until one fully understands their own biases, inclinations, and orientations to talent acquisition, their ability to accurately see and hear people is fundamentally compromised. At some level, without self-awareness, we naturally hire into our blind spots. With self-awareness, we’re able to transcend them and make choices that benefit us all.

What’s your favorite interview question and why?

‘If your mother or father had a motto, what would it have been?’ What’s true about all humans is that we are the product of our first experiences, which are necessarily shaped by our parents. Those mindsets, orientations, and ways of seeing the world – both conscious and unconscious – provide an incredible window into who someone is and where their fundamental worldview was shaped.