Richard Branson on Hiring

Founder at Virgin

17 insights8 categories

Founder of the Virgin Group who has started over 400 companies across dozens of industries. Famous for hiring on personality over CV, believing that skills can be taught but character cannot, and building a culture where employees come first.

“The first thing I look for when I meet someone is whether they smile and whether they are warm and have enthusiasm. You can train people in most skills. You can't train someone to be a warm, friendly human being.”

Richard Branson has started over 400 companies, and his hiring philosophy has stayed the same across all of them: personality first, skills second. He believes you can train almost any competency, but you cannot teach someone to be a genuinely warm, caring human being. So he hires for character and trains for everything else.

"The first thing I look for when I meet someone is whether they smile and whether they are warm and have enthusiasm. You can't train someone to be a warm, friendly human being."

His approach runs counter to most corporate hiring, which starts with credentials and treats culture fit as a secondary concern. Branson inverts it. He looks for people who are naturally warm, who treat the receptionist the same way they treat the CEO, who have a sense of humor, and who are genuinely passionate about something. The technical stuff can be taught.

"Train people well enough so they can leave, treat them well enough so they don't want to."

Branson's broader philosophy ties it together: employees come first, customers come second, shareholders come third. If you take care of your people, they take care of the customers. If you take care of the customers, the shareholders take care of themselves. This means hiring decisions are really about finding people who will thrive in a culture built around that priority.

"Clients do not come first. Employees come first. If you take care of your employees, they will take care of the clients."

His interview style is more conversational than interrogative. He prefers informal settings, pays attention to how people behave when they think they are not being evaluated, and trusts his instinct about whether someone will add to the culture or subtract from it. At Virgin, the formal process matters, but the character evaluation matters more.

Philosophy

Core beliefs about hiring and talent

Branson has built over 400 companies on a single hiring principle: personality and attitude matter more than skills and experience. Skills can be taught. Character cannot. He puts employees first, believing that happy employees create happy customers, and happy customers create a thriving business.

The first thing I look for when I meet someone is whether they smile and whether they are warm and have enthusiasm. You can train people in most skills. You can't train someone to be a warm, friendly human being.

Branson has repeated this principle across decades of interviews and in his books.

Train people well enough so they can leave, treat them well enough so they don't want to.

One of Branson's most famous quotes. It captures his belief that investing in people is the highest-return activity a company can do.

Clients do not come first. Employees come first. If you take care of your employees, they will take care of the clients.

Branson's foundational business philosophy, which directly shapes who he hires. He wants people who will thrive in a culture that puts employees first.

I have always believed that the way you treat your employees is the way they will treat your customers, and that people flourish when they are praised.

Hiring Process

How they structure interviews and evaluations

Branson's hiring process at Virgin is deliberately informal. He values face-to-face interaction over credentials, looks for how people treat others in casual settings, and trusts his instinct about whether someone will fit the culture. Formal processes exist but the cultural evaluation is paramount.

Branson's hiring process at Virgin emphasizes face-to-face interaction and informal evaluation. He trusts his instinct about cultural fit and pays as much attention to how candidates behave in casual settings as in formal interviews.

At Virgin, Branson has been known to spend time with candidates in social settings, at dinners, or during group activities before making hiring decisions. He believes people reveal their true character when they are relaxed.

Interview Questions

Questions they ask candidates

Branson's interview style is more conversational than interrogative. He listens for passion, watches for warmth and humor, and pays attention to whether candidates ask good questions rather than just giving good answers.

What do you love doing? What gets you out of bed in the morning?

Branson listens for genuine passion. He wants to hear about what people care about, not just what they are good at.

Tell me about a time something went completely wrong. What happened and what did you do?

Branson values resilience and a positive attitude in the face of adversity. He is listening for how candidates frame setbacks and whether they bounce back.

What would you do differently if you ran this company?

Tests entrepreneurial thinking and whether candidates have opinions they are willing to share. Branson respects people who have ideas and the confidence to voice them.

What They Look For

Traits and signals that excite them

Branson looks for people who smile, who are genuinely warm, who have a sense of humor, and who treat everyone with equal respect. Passion for what they do and a positive attitude are his non-negotiables.

People who are naturally warm, who smile genuinely, who have a sense of humor, and who treat everyone with equal respect regardless of their position.

Genuine passion for their work and a positive, resilient attitude. Branson wants people who bounce back from setbacks with energy rather than excuses.

Dealbreakers

Warning signs that concern them

People who are brilliant but cold, who treat junior staff differently than senior staff, or who cannot show genuine warmth and enthusiasm. Branson would rather train a warm person than tolerate a skilled one who poisons the culture.

People who are brilliant but cold, or who treat junior staff differently than senior staff. Branson would rather have a warm person he needs to train than a skilled person who poisons the culture.

Candidates who are overly formal, who cannot relax, or who fail to show genuine enthusiasm. In Branson's experience, people who cannot be themselves in an interview will struggle in a culture built on authenticity.

Signals to Watch

Subtle cues they pay attention to

How candidates treat the receptionist, the driver, the person who brings the coffee. Branson pays as much attention to these interactions as to the formal interview. Consistent warmth across all interactions is the signal he trusts most.

How candidates treat the receptionist, the driver, the person who brings coffee. Branson pays as much attention to these interactions as to the formal interview. Consistent warmth is the signal. Selective warmth is the warning.

Frameworks

Mental models and structured approaches

Employees first, customers second, shareholders third. This ordering is Branson's foundational business philosophy. It means hiring for the kind of people who will create a great employee experience, because everything else follows from there.

Employees first, customers second, shareholders third. Hire people who will thrive in a culture that puts employees first. If you take care of your people, they will take care of everything else.

Branson's foundational framework, which shapes both who he hires and how he runs every Virgin company.

Interviewer Tips

Practical advice for running interviews

Look for people who smile and who are naturally warm. You can teach almost any skill, but you cannot teach someone to genuinely care about other people. Hire for character first and train for competence.

Hire for personality and train for skill. You can teach almost any technical competency, but you cannot teach warmth, enthusiasm, or a genuine care for other people. Get the character right first.

Spend time with candidates outside the formal interview setting. Dinners, social events, casual conversations. People reveal their true character when they are relaxed, not when they are performing.

Frequently Asked: Richard Branson on Hiring

Interview questions Richard Branson is known for asking candidates.

What do you love doing? What gets you out of bed in the morning?+

Branson listens for genuine passion. He wants to hear about what people care about, not just what they are good at.

Tell me about a time something went completely wrong. What happened and what did you do?+

Branson values resilience and a positive attitude in the face of adversity. He is listening for how candidates frame setbacks and whether they bounce back.

What would you do differently if you ran this company?+

Tests entrepreneurial thinking and whether candidates have opinions they are willing to share. Branson respects people who have ideas and the confidence to voice them.

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