A company is only as successful as its employees are productive.
When it comes to hiring, it can be hard to know which candidates will be the ones to put in the work and stick around and which ones aren’t worth your time or money.
Ideally, you’ll pick skilled, experienced, and motivated individuals who are thrilled to accept the job offer. The more hires you bring on to the team that fit these qualifications, the stronger your team will become.
If the company culture is essential to you, it’s critical to select the right employees. Think of it this way: Without the people, there is no company culture.
1. Understand the Role
Before you can hire anyone, you need to understand what the job role entails and what skills and experiences are required to fulfill the expectations.
Did someone else previously hold this role? Exit interviews can record vital information about job roles that can later be used for recruiting purposes. This person may be able to add additional job duties that weren’t on the original job description for an updated version.
Is it a new role? Your hiring team should have a sound vision of the type of person they need for the position and what the ideal functions of the job will be before they consider anyone.
2. Review Credentials Carefully
With every candidate, you should plan to perform a thorough background check. What is a background check? It’s a screening of public information such as educational history, employment history, criminal records, and credit history.
Background checks can tell you a lot about someone, including where on their resume they may have embellished, exaggerated, or outright lied. Is a liar or fabricator someone you want on your team? Probably not.
While it does add an extra step to the process, it’s a worthwhile filter to use when hiring. Prepare for these background checks by contacting a screening agency before you start accepting applications.
3. Create a Strategic Recruiting Strategy
With the job description ready to go and screening company on call, you should set aside time for a recruiting planning meeting to create a strategy to attract the right candidates. You can also begin to execute the plan by creating job postings on popular job boards and adding the listing to the Careers page of your company website.
Think about where your ideal hire is now. What role are they in, and what sites do they spend time on? These are the people you want to see your post.
4. Ask the Right Questions
Do you want to know more about their job history, or do you have enough information on their resume about that? Ask the hard-hitting questions that reveal times when the candidate solved a challenging problem or offer insight into how they might handle a scenario in the new position.
If you waste your time on typical interview questions that don’t serve you, you’re beating around the bush and won’t know for certain who has what it takes.
Intentional Hiring Makes for a Better Workplace
Sure, rounds of interviewing take more time than just one interview, and running a background check may weed out your first and second choice.
But making the small changes above pays off when you want to craft a productive, positive, and successful business.
If the person you hire is going to be a part of your company for a long time (hopefully!), then it’s worth the extra time and energy to recruit the right people, run a background check, and host multiple rounds of interviews with the right questions. Your business will only be better for it.
Create a sharper workforce and see your results increase exponentially by using these four hiring strategies to recruit the most productive workers.