Who: The A Method for Hiring

The book that turned hiring from a gut-feel gamble into a repeatable process. Geoff Smart and Randy Street distill more than 1,300 hours of interviews with billionaires and CEOs into a clear, step-by-step method for getting the right people into the right roles.

Why Start Here

Most hiring books overwhelm you with theory or drown you in checklists. “Who” does the opposite. Smart and Street present one method, the A Method, and walk you through it from start to finish. The framework has four steps: create a scorecard that defines what success looks like in the role, source candidates through a systematic pipeline, conduct four structured interviews designed to separate strong performers from smooth talkers, and sell the opportunity to the person you want to hire.

The book is built on research, not opinion. The A Method came out of the largest study of hiring ever conducted, and the authors report a 90 percent success rate among organizations that adopt it. The examples are drawn from real leaders at companies of every size, from startups to Fortune 500 firms. You finish the book knowing exactly what to do differently in your next hire.

What to Expect

A brisk 208-page read that wastes no time on filler. Smart and Street write in plain, direct language. Each chapter ends with actionable takeaways. No prior HR knowledge is needed. Whether you are a founder making your first hire or a senior executive building an entire team, this book gives you a framework you can start using immediately.