Earlier in my career, I tried to explain my fascination with work to people. I started working at 14 and had more jobs by 22 than most people have their entire lives. I blame my parents, partly. They made the mistake of teaching me the value of hard work. What I started to understand--as I moved from lifeguard to customer service representative to telemarketer--that the success of the work we do is based on how we behave and interact with each other. 'Where Business Meets Behavior' became my personal tagline but I've been struggling to describe why I live at that intersection for many years. Purzue recently gave me the chance to share my obsession with all things talent. Here's an excerpt:

Purzue: Many businesses search for the perfect candidate. How important is workforce diversification?

Susan: Once you know a candidate can fit the role and is a fit for the culture you want to consider the differences they bring. This is my perspective on diversity–what uniquenesses can a candidate add to the company, the workforce and the team once they demonstrate fit. Specifically, companies should focus on diversity of thought and perspective, diversity in behaviors–how a candidate gets work done, and a diversity of experience across industries. Some companies are so focused on hiring from competitors rather than recognizing they can often learn more and diversify the thought process by thinking outside their industry and competitive set. There’s no perfect candidate. It’s who is right at this point in time and how can we find those people.

You can read the full interview here.