Before hiring anyone, Duolingo CEO calls their taxi driver — here’s why
He was highly impressed by one CV, until a taxi driver revealed how they had behaved on the ride.
Luis von Ahn, CEO of Duolingo, a language-learning platform, has been paying taxi drivers to see if a candidate is worth joining his venture. Yes, that's right! It apparently helps him understand how the candidates, if hired, would treat their juniors at work, and so far, it's been foolproof. Ahn shared his unique hiring technique and the reason behind it in an exclusive interview with The Burnouts (@theburnouts).
Ahn explained the incident that forced him to pay taxi drivers to give their honest opinion about the candidates. He said his company had been looking for a chief financial officer for a year. Somehow, they found a candidate that everyone liked; they had a strong resume, but for Ahn, that wasn't the only criterion for hiring. His perception of the candidate changed when he found out that they were pretty mean to the taxi driver. Ahn spent time talking to the taxi driver, asking questions like whether the person treated them well. And when the taxi driver shared their honest interaction with the rude, well-qualified candidate, the CEO immediately decided to turn down the person everyone at his office loved. "From the airport to the office... and that made us not hire them," Ahn confessed. He explained that the incident made him think that candidates who aren't polite to their drivers would also treat their juniors the same way. Other than that, the co-founder said he looks for candidates who believe in his mission and who are good at the craft.
Ahn is also very particular about five other non-negotiables while hiring. He said those without these five key factors shouldn't consider applying to Duolingo. First, the candidate needs to be patient and "take the long view," too, Ahn told Fortune. Instead of taking shortcuts to make money, he said he wants employees to work efficiently with a future perspective. Secondly, Ahn explained he prioritizes employees who don't waste time talking about the efforts to solve a problem; instead, they show real results. Every year, Ahn said, employees must work on improving their craft and learn new things. Next, he wants people who can act with urgency, and lastly, Ahn wants fun-loving employees. "We're looking for people who have fun working. That really matters [because] we want both our products and our company culture to be fun," he explained. The CEO added, "Our unofficial rule: it’s better to have a hole than an a**hole."
Treating your peers well is an extremely important aspect of a healthy and productive work environment. A Monster survey of U.S. workers found respectful communication as the most important workplace manner. In fact, 50% of respondents ranked it as the most important aspect. And 69% would even leave their job if their employer didn't promote policies around respectful behavior in the office. But despite expectations, 31% of them said they don't feel respected at their workplace. Some (81%) cited coworkers gossiping about them, while others (78% and 77%) reported using inappropriate language and being unresponsive to messages as "rudest workplace behaviors" they commonly face.
You can follow The Burnouts (@theburnouts) on Instagram for more interviews.
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