Hiring the wrong person is one of the most expensive mistakes a business can make. So how can you load the dice in your favour when you go out to hire new recruits for your business?
1. Know your company culture
Only you know whether you're a laid-back bunch who take life as it comes, or an intensely driven and ambitious set of high achievers . It's important to acknowledge what kind of business you are, or you risk recruiting someone who will never be happy in the job, even if they are competent.
2. Draw up an accurate job description
Use the job description to draw up a list of business skills and a separate list of personal attributes. You can then assess candidates against these from their CV, application form and interview. Many businesses further separate these requirements into essential and desirable categories, which helps to focus the recruiter's mind on what the applicant absolutely must have in terms of skills and attributes.
3. Ask everyone the same questions
To avoid bias, it helps to ask everyone the same interview questions. Follow-up questions can then take an individual course. When you ask everyone the same questions, it’s easier to see who has performed well and who hasn't. It's a good idea to have a template ready and score the candidates against the questions.
4. Use scenarios to understand the candidates
The recruiter needs to find out how the candidates has behaved or might behave, in situations that arise in your business. So a question might take the form, "Can you think of a situation where you have had to deal with a difficult client?". Or, "How do you cope when you're extremely busy and don't have enough time to do everything ?”
5. Find out why they are changing jobs
This is an opportunity to find out if the person is a serial job-hopper who will stay with you for a year and then move on because they want something new. Similarly, a bit of probing may reveal that they are unhappy in their current job. You can then explore why this is.
6. Test recruits
People can say anything on a CV or in an application form. The interview helps you to find out whether the candidate would fit into the business and whether they actually have the experience they say they have.
The most reliable way to ensure that people have the skills they claim, is to test them. People can copy from the internet and get friends and family to help them with applications. But when asked to sit in an office on their own and do a written or numerical test, it often becomes clear that the person does not have the skills they claim.
7. Always take up references
Even though referees these days often give bare bones references that just state how long the person worked for them, you must take up references in case there is anything lurking there. For example, a referee may reply to your email by asking you to telephone them - this may not be a good sign.
These steps will set you on the right road, and once you have the evidence in place, you'll know that you've filled your vacancy using a process that was fair and transparent.
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