Hire right the first time: 3 mistakes to avoid
Hiring the wrong person costs money. And wastes time. So whether you own a business or manage the hiring for an organization, making the wrong decision is a huge hassle. Get it right the first time and avoid these three incredibly common hiring blunders.
1) Don’t get backed into a corner.
This might be the situation we see most in small businesses. You need to find someone fast, but you can’t find the candidate who is quite right. So you settle for someone because of the pressure to find someone quickly. Big mistake. Even if a candidate is ‘ok’ in a number of areas, ten “just ok’s” does not make one overall “excellent”. Hiring someone because you need to find someone now often leads to a higher turnover rate. Take the time to find the ideal candidate, and you won’t have to do it again six months later.
2) Forgoing skill testing.
It seems logical that if someone says they have expert level skills in something they would actually have them, right? Sometimes, sure. But actions speak louder than words. It can be beneficial to do some on-the-spot skill testing to verify a candidates claims – be it editing, coding, or using any kind of software program. This is a standard practice in some professions. An editor, for example, will likely be given a written test before they are ever hired. Same with many IT jobs. But strategic business owners and hiring managers are wise to take this one step further. If hiring a sales rep, set up a time to see how they fare with cold calling. For a marketing position, ask for them to prepare creative ideas on how they would increase a metric of interest for your business. There’s nothing wrong with asking people to show you what they’ve got.
3) Not meeting the team.
Not everyone will agree with this one. More and more, however, Team interviews are becoming part of the hiring process, particularly in situations where members work together very closely. “This is especially useful when the job is very technical,” explains HR manager Sarah Paul, “Each team member has the opportunity to ask questions or engage in dialogue that relates to his/her particular area or function.” This can serve as a great opportunity to observe how a candidate would fit into their prospective new team by soliciting feedback from each team member. Sure, the decision is ultimately yours, but this is a great way to catch any red flags before you hire someone who doesn't mesh.
Category: Hiring Advice, Management, Recruitment Challenges, Small Business