Hire without losing your head!

You need to hire. You’d rather get a lobotomy. Because you know the process will be kind of complicated. Or maybe you’ve never done it before and you worry about the learning curve. Well, we intend to break the process down into something recognizable before you literally lose your mind. So here goes.

1. Know what you are looking for. Start with a solid job description. A job description will set parameters by listing expectations and tasks that can’t be ignored. To get ideas for the job description, check out companies with similar positions to see how they wrote their descriptions. Hey, imitation is the best form of flattery. And remember, the job description will be useful at the onset as well as in the future. It can be the basis for interviews and ads, as well as a mechanism for assessing job performance and identifying training needs.

2. Don’t hire in a vacuum. Listen to current employees or people who hold jobs similar to the one you will advertise. What do they do? How would they explain their daily routines to someone just coming into the position? Are there requirements that you have not considered? Don’t be afraid to get feedback from the lowest level employee up through management. This will be a crucial part of writing the job description and interviewing. Don’t have employees yet? Try asking other professionals in your field what they think. Talk to your networking partners, mentors, former teachers, parents – anyone who has more experience.

3. Advertise. Get the word out. There are thousands of ways to do this, but you want to target your ads. If you are going to post on job boards, make sure they are industry specific. The more specific the better, since you want to avoid getting bombarded with resumes from interplanetary travelers. Use your professional networks, your social networks and your social media networks. And of course, if you have other employees, make sure they get the word out, too.

4. Create superb interview questions. This will be easier if you have a stellar job description and if you’ve taken notes from other sources. Run your interview questions by professionals in the field (but probably not current employees, especially if they are recommending a candidate). You will want to ask questions not only about experience performing tasks, but about the way candidates interact with each level of employee and client. Remember that soft skills are crucial. Also pay close attention to body language (“Did he really just put his hands there??”) and listen to what’s not being said.

5. Take time to do callbacks. Conducting a second interview is a good way to get a sense of a candidate’s consistency (or lack thereof) and get to know him/her better. It’s also a way to see if the candidate owns more than one suit.

6. Have candidates meet other employees. Ask employees about first impressions. If you don’t have other employees, bring your candidates to a networking meeting or luncheon. See how they interact with other professionals and how they eat in public.

Here’s our pitch. Excelsior Pay Group offers Human Resources solutions. We can make your job easier by finding qualified candidates and screening them for you. And we can do the background work – the credit and criminal history checks. Contact us today.