There’s a quote that has been circulating recently about hiring that couldn’t be more true…
“Nothing we do is more important than hiring and developing people. At the end of the day, you bet on people, not on strategies.” Lawrence Bossidy, who is the former CEO of Honeywell International, said this. If you are familiar with Honeywell International, you know that this CEO knows what he’s talking about.
Hiring the right people is crucial for your business. Here are 6 tips that will lead you in the right direction.
1. DEFINE THE JOB CORRECTLY
You can do this by creating a job description that is a true reflection of the day-to-day tasks that the person who fills the role will be doing. The more thorough the job description is, the clearer the expectations you are setting. This will result in a more narrow candidate list, as only those who believe they qualify for the position will apply.
2. USE A PRE-SCREENING PROCESS
While you don’t want to overly extend the interview process, hiring the wrong candidate can cost you a lot of time, energy, and money. Thus, adding a pre-screening step is a great way to do an initial triage through the candidates who applied. This ensures you’re only moving forward with those who seem to likely be the best fit for your organization.
This is sometimes done through a form that candidates can fill out in their own time or can be done through a brief telephone interview. Asking questions that stick to discovering their interest in the role or company, their relevant experience, and their salary expectations is a good start.
3. TEST YOUR CANDIDATES
Another way to make sure you’re hiring the right person is to test them on very specific criteria. If culture fit is more important than qualifications at your organization because you believe anyone can learn the technical skills, then a personality test might be a good thing to hand out to candidates.
But if the technical skills are more important for you here, then giving them an assignment that they can complete (and that you won’t use for business purposes as they aren’t compensated for it) will allow you to properly assess their skills.
Overall, these tests will ensure the candidates can meet your standards.
4. CONDUCT A BACKGROUND CHECK
As disappointing as this is — not everything that people put on their resume is true. That’s why conducting a background check and checking in on some of their references is important (with their permission, of course). This will allow you to confirm that everything that is written on their resume is a true representation of their career history. It also allows you to get a different perspective from their past employers from what type of employee they are.
5. NOTICE THE RED FLAGS
If you already spot any red flags this early on in the hiring process from candidates, you should look into them. Common red flags include: showing up late to interviews, seeming unprepared, and bad-mouthing past bosses and colleagues.
People are usually trying their absolute best to come off as the right person for the job at this stage, so if something feels off, don’t sweep it under the rug. No matter how good that candidate may look on paper, you don’t want to invest time and money into someone who just doesn’t seem 100% right.
6. INVITE OTHER OPINIONS
Lastly, involving other colleagues or managers during the interview process can help you make the best final decision. Your colleagues may be able to identify things you may have missed or simply provide a fresh perspective. Together, you can run through a list of the pros and cons of every candidate and ensure you’re selecting a candidate that meets everyone’s standards.
If you follow all of these tips, we promise you will be a lot happier with the person you hire to fill the position. And try to keep this in mind: If the candidate ends up being wrong for the job, you are partly to blame. It’s important that you work hard to set clear, correct expectations and standards for the role. Everyone is more likely to succeed that way.