Hiring employees is a time consuming process that will have monetary and reputational consequences if you make a bad hire. Taking the time to find the right person – someone who’s not just technically capable but also a good fit for the company – is important.
Companies that are successful in hiring have a process that includes attracting high-quality candidates, evaluating them in several different areas and taking the time to get to know the people in different ways. Here are five tips to build and improve your own hiring process.
1. Align the interview with the job description
Involve the hiring managers in writing job descriptions to ensure the advertisement matches the position’s requirements and manager’s expectations. Go through each bullet point with the manager to ensure the position’s qualifications and responsibilities are accurately described. Don’t go too far in describing the challenging or restrictive aspects of the position just to scare off anyone who’s not the right fit. But don’t oversell the position just to ensure a higher volume of candidates, either. You don't want to attract and hire the wrong candidates.
2. Embrace digital trends and social media
Most people want to work for companies that keep up with the latest tech trends, especially younger applicants. They want to work for digitally enabled organisations, which means businesses will have to stay ahead of the curve in order to retain employees and attract new ones. Another good way to embrace the digital side is to make sure your career site is mobile-friendly. You can even have regular tech-training sessions where you ensure your staff is kept up-to-date with the most recent and relevant digital media trends.
3. Focus on soft skills
Although the right skill set may seem like the most important factor in whether a candidate is a good fit for a particular role, the truth is that skills can be acquired, but personalities can’t. Social intelligence – being able to navigate social situations and work well with others – is very important. Don’t become pigeonholed into thinking the person with the exact necessary experience is the right person for the role. Consider soft skills – like interpersonal skills, communication skills, thought processes and emotional intelligence – because they matter. Someone could have decades of experience, but they may be very difficult to work with. Keep this in mind when evaluating candidates.
4. Improve your interviews
Interviews nowadays are too focused on other issues. You may be too pressed for time or lacking in confidence in your interviewing abilities to pay attention to red flags candidates exhibit during the interview process. This is because the job interview process generally focuses on making sure new hires are technically competent, whereas other factors that are just as important to employee success – like coachability, temperament and motivation – are often overlooked. By doing a HR management course, you’ll learn more in detail about how to improve your interviewing skills.
5. Let candidates interview you, too
Allowing prospective employees to interview you will give you a chance to see what’s important to them. Plus, it’ll give candidates a chance to determine that they want to keep pursuing a job at your company, or to decide that it’s not the right fit for them. Be open and honest about what it’s going to be like to work for your company. Give a realistic preview of the work environment.
If you have a lot of negative reviews from former employees, it may be time to work on your company’s culture before you try to fill any open positions. Doing so can help improve employee retention and lead to more positive reviews that’ll attract quality employees.
Your employees are a direct reflection of your company, so you want to make sure you hire good ones right off the bat, otherwise you may encounter challenges later on.
