Hiring for Success

Hiring someone new to work in your business is one of the most critical decisions a business owner makes, although it is not always given the justice it deserves. If a position is vacant, or additional staff are needed, recruitment decisions are often driven by the pressure to get someone in quickly, rather than waiting for the best person to fill the job. Lack of proper and systematic recruitment process can also result in a high cost to the business.

The direct and indirect costs of this recruitment process are many, and have been estimated to be at least 30% of the new person's salary on average:

Recruitment costs ? include advertising and agency fees (if used), travel

Cost of time ? for everyone involved in the interview process

Cost of having the job unfilled -if the process is lengthy

Cost of lost productivity ? "the show must go on!" Co-workers are picking up extra workload and completing unfinished projects. The reduced productivity of managers who lose key staff can be a big issue

Cost of training ? on average it takes 20 weeks for new employees to become fully productive. Consider also the costs of orientation, learning materials and lost productivity of the manager overseeing the new employee

Costs of person filling in ? this may be a current employee, in which case their own job suffers, or a temporary person.

Further costs are incurred when the process is inefficient and time-consuming, and when the process does not result in the best person for the job being hired.

So the incentive to hire the right people and keep them for as long as possible should be a focus for all businesses.

So what approach to recruitment gives the best chance of long-term success?

Job Definition

You need to have a clear understanding of what the job involves in terms of activities, responsibilities and priorities. Once the nature of the job has been clearly defined, we can begin to specify the attributes (education, skills, experience, competencies) of a person who is likely to do the job successfully. It is these, particularly the qualitative skills, that make the biggest difference to job fit.

Attracting and Assessing Applicants

There are numerous sources for finding applicants for a job. Some of these include traditional newspaper advertising, approaching people directly, use of agencies, job groups, unemployment agencies and so on. The one you use will vary depending on the job and industry. When it comes to assessing applicants, most people make the same mistake ? we all believe we are good judges of character, and trust our gut when it comes to making hiring decisions. Sometimes this will work, often it will not. A sound recruitment process works to take as much of the subjectivity out of the process as possible.

To achieve this you need to be organized in your approach to hiring. There are all sorts of assessments and "psychological" testing available now to make more objective hiring decisions. This is not practical for many business owners, so at the very minimum you should include the following steps in your process:

·Have a written definition of what the job involves

·Decide what skills are essential for the position ? this can include technical skills and qualitative skills such as communication, negotiation etc.

·Develop a list of questions to get an understanding of each applicant's experience in each essential skill. There are numerous resources available on behavioural questioning techniques to help with question design

·If possible try to interview with 2 people present to ensure you are not being biased in a particular direction

·Ask every applicant exactly the same questions, and note down their answers so you can compare them afterwards

·Make your selection based on each applicant's fit to the essential criteria ? only use the responses they gave you during the interview, don't let your "instinct" take over.

One of the major benefits of using sound recruitment and selection practices is that they increase the likelihood of selecting successful employees. The hiring decision is an important one with many consequences. A good choice results in an effective employee who will help your business meet its goals and objectives. A poor decision will lead to reduced productivity and increased costs.

Megan Tough is a published author, coach, facilitator and speaker. Her business, Action Plus, works with professionals to create sustainable and profitable income streams. Make more money and have less stress! To learn more and to sign up for more FREE tips and articles like these, visit http://www.megantough.com

---

Increase Productivity: Five Powerful Actions

How can you make the best use of your energy... Read More

Effective Meetings by Phone - Part 1, How to Plan a Teleconference

Teleconferences can be a boon or a bust. On the... Read More

Cultural Awareness - an HR Perspective

The use of cultural awareness training has increased rapidly in... Read More

Transform Any Business into a Go-Getting Power House by Working SMART

Probably as well known as SWOT, SMART turns goals, objectives... Read More

Magnificent Meetings - 5 Tips for Success

Your impact at meetings will determine in a big way... Read More

Unlock the Hidden Creativity of Your Employees

To release creativity in employees, managers must get involved in... Read More

The Ins and Outs of Internal and External Relations

INTERNAL PUBLIC RELATIONS: Never overlook an opportunity to do internal... Read More

Does Your Management Style Remind People Of Something They Read In Dilbert?

With thanks to Jeff Foxworthy, the comedian who does the... Read More

What Consultants Want You to Know (But You Never Ask)

I've been both a CEO and a consultant, so I've... Read More

Knowledge Mapping

This module focuses on the basics of Knowledge Mapping, its... Read More

Tales from the Corporate Frontlines: The Organizational Structure of Our Growing Business

This article relates to the organizational structure competency, commonly evaluated... Read More

Business Intelligence & Data Warehousing in a Business Perspective

Business IntelligenceBusiness Intelligence has become a very important activity in... Read More

Organizational Culture and Creative Blocks ? the Similarities

Few Decision makers see the link between between creativity and... Read More

A Renewed View of the Modern Business Culture

Life can sometimes be unexciting if not refreshed by the... Read More

The Boss Didn?t Understand Why His Staff Wasn?t Reading His Mind

Many people believe that everyone sees the world exactly the... Read More

What Every Manager Should Know About How to Conduct Successful Meetings

Do you announce a meeting and find either no one... Read More

Importance of Just-In-Time Inventory System

In today's competitive world shorter product life cycles, customers rapid... Read More

Quality Standards with ISO 9001

Standardizing Quality SystemsThe ISO, or International Organization for Standardization, was... Read More

Human Resource Communication Pays Off

Human Resource Communications and Corporate Communications ? are they one... Read More

The Ten Keys to Maximizing Employee Performance

1. Let people know what you expect. If people know... Read More

Profits and Business Success - 5 Profit Traps to Watch Out For

The old saying 'You have to spend money to make... Read More

Hiring Great People And How to Be One Yourself: Five Secrets

Bad news.Your senior vice-president, your marketing director or your accounting... Read More

Overcoming Resistance

Virtually any type of organizational change involves role transitions of... Read More

Doing More With Less

This is a bottom-line environment.Decreasing the downtime of revenue producing... Read More

Appraisal Interviews: What To Say & How To Say It

STEPS TOWARDS A GOOD APPRAISAL INTERVIEW:Don't say: "You just don't... Read More

Got A Meeting Planned? Ask This Question

Meetings ? they are a fact of our business lives.... Read More

Contract Management Software: the Solution to the Problem of Coordination

Charles Petrie, from Stanford, released a short article entitled "The... Read More

Difficult Staff - It Pays To Get To Know Them Better

It's very easy for a business owner or manager to... Read More

Managing After Downsizing

So, you survived the downsizing. Your company did something that... Read More

Communicating with Offsite Workers

How do you, or would you, communicate with employees who... Read More

Muggers in Our Midst - When Rumour and Gossip Pay You a Visit

'I heard it on the grapevine' the old song goes.... Read More

Creating Your Own Business Upturn - Powering Business Development

We all see it . . . business markets are... Read More

Creativity and Innovation Management in Conservative, Staid Organisations

Conservative and staid organisations generally have a harder time implementing... Read More