Tips for Hiring Seasonal Employees

The holiday season is nearly upon us, and many companies are in full swing advertising, interviewing and hiring seasonal employees. If you have a seasonal business, here are some valuable tips to consider when investing in seasonal employees.

  • Evaluate – While some businesses, such as retail stores at Christmas or ski resorts in the winter, rely on hiring seasonal employees, it is best to evaluate the current staff before hiring additional employees. Analyze past trends and learn when you need to have seasonal employees start.
  • Comply – Comply with all country or state requirements for seasonal employees., which includes minimum wage, pay regulations for nights, weekends or overtime, health insurance requirements and labor regulations for teenagers between the ages of 14 and 17.

Here are some additional tips to follow when interviewing and hiring seasonal employees:

  1. Job Descriptions – Write specific job descriptions and clearly state that you are only recruiting for a seasonal position. In some cases, be sure to put the title of the job and then “Winter Seasonal” next to it in parenthesis. Also clearly state any requirements for the job, such as prior cashier experience, necessary ski instructor training, etc. If the position requires heavy lifting, clearly indicate the physical demands of the job. Being upfront will help you attract more qualified candidates’ resumes that clearly understand the requirements of the position.
  2. Advertise – There are a variety of job boards that have more seasonal job postings than others. For example, make sure to post the position on your company’s website and social media pages, but also explore Indeed, Monster, CareerBuilder and Snagajob. Other websites that are dedicated to seasonal employment postings include: CoolWorks, SeasonalJobs and BackdoorJobs.
  3. Evaluating Candidates – Consider evaluating candidates in groups initially, which will help if companies receive a lot of qualified resumes. Even though the position is seasonal, hire for both the cultural fit and qualifications, not solely based on skills.
  4. Retaining Employees – Something seasonal companies understand is that if an employee quits mid peak season, they have a significant gap in their workforce and it’s difficult to train someone for a job that only has a matter of weeks or months remaining. To help detour employees from leaving jobs early, consider offering end-of-season bonuses for employees that stayed on the entire season. Additionally, consider offering loyalty bonuses to returning staff to help offset training expenses the following year.
  5. Creative Benefits and Perks – Offering creative benefits, such as flexible schedules, can be desirable to prospective candidates.

Ninja Gig specializes in offering custom online job applications, which are ideal for seasonal employers this holiday season. These employment applications can highlight areas for candidates’ specific skills and qualifications, as well as having candidates acknowledge or answer any necessary questions. Additionally, employers can easily save resumes and applications to comply with all state and federal document retention regulations. Sign up for our 30-day free trial and find those seasonal candidates immediately!

Five Tips for Hiring the Right Employee

Whether you’re a seasonal company gearing up for the winter holiday rush or you have some current positions open in your organization, hiring the right employee is critical to your success.

While you can’t please everyone in your company, you can do your best to mitigate poor hiring decisions and focus on deciphering what employee traits are valuable to your company so you can better facilitate the interview process.

Here are the top five things to consider when interviewing candidates:

  1. Career Commitment – If someone is committed to his or her career, this may signify loyalty. Employees that switch jobs or careers frequently in pursuits of higher salaries may not be the long-term employee your business desires. Heavily weigh the candidate’s previous job duration and make inquiries about why they keep switching jobs. It could be something out of their control – like layoffs – but if they’re always looking for something better that pays more, it may be best to consider another qualified candidate.
  2. Test Learning and Analytical Skills – Keep in mind that a resume may be impressive, but there are also a lot of companies and freelancers that specialize in writing resumes. Because resumes can contain lies, it’s best to use a variety of methodologies to analyze candidates’ skills.
  3. Compatibility Match – You may find an impressive, brilliant applicant, but if they aren’t compatible with your company’s culture, you’ll have personality clashes, which can lead to an unproductive, unhealthy work environment. If a candidate expresses that they have difficulty getting along with co-workers or bosses, it may be a red flag that they are not a good fit for your company.
  4. Improve Your Hiring Process – Companies that follow these hiring steps have more success with finding long-term employees:
    a. Avoid magic bullet or irrelevant questions and focus on the candidates’ knowledge, capabilities, confidence, skills and attitude.
    b. When advertising available positions, make sure to list all job requirements to minimize unqualified candidates applying for the job. For example, list specific responsibilities, experience, skills, knowledge and required education.
    c. Involve several people in the hiring evaluation process, because the more people that participate, the better chance your company can hire a good fit.
  5. Review Social Media – Looking at a candidates’ social media page may have some legal complications, but companies can weigh the pros and cons. Today, nearly 90% of companies recruit through social media platforms because having an online presence is so important in our business world.

Ninja Gig can help companies simplify their online job application process. Our fully customizable online employment applications are ideal for companies to use on their direct websites or social media pages. Sign up today for a free trial of our highly reviewed applicant tracking system!

Using Assessments to Hire Better Employees

One popular trend is using assessments during the interview process to find the best employee for the position and work environment. Applicants can look impressive on paper, but hiring someone that is the right fit for the job is essential to reducing overhead costs associated with advertising and turnover. Companies also want to find employees that are a positive, beneficial influence on the overall work environment.

Assessments are an excellent way to assess applicants’ abilities and personalities. While traditional high school ACT and SAT tests examine intellect, today’s workplace assessments are designed to measure soft skills, intelligence and even personality traits.

Some employers give assessments before interviews, while others narrow down the applicant pool and conduct evaluations after the initial interviews, focusing on just a few candidates that may be a good fit for the position.

There are dozens of different assessments online, and it is best to select the right one for the particular skill set your company needs. Here are some things to consider when choosing an assessment tool:

  • What do you want to test? If you’re going to screen candidates for personality, intelligence and reasoning, most recruiting assessment tools will work well. However, if you want to test applicants for particular roles or skills, you need to look into a specialized assessment, such as typing tests or code evaluation platforms.
  • Select designs that appeal to candidates. Select the right style of test that reflects your employer brand. Tests that are long, tedious and difficult to understand can undermine the positive impression you want for your company.
  • Look for assessments that offer the right types of reports. Think about what your company wants from an assessment. Do you want something that will test candidates, evaluate their answers and then present the results, or do you need something that has more extensive reporting, analytics and career recommendations?

Consider your companies’ needs when selecting an assessment company, so you don’t waste potential employee’s time, and your HR department can focus on hiring the best candidates for the job.

Ninja Gig offers online job applications, which makes it convenient and easy for employers to advertise open positions online. Most job seekers prefer to complete online employment applications, whether it’s from a desktop, tablet or smartphone. Sign up today for a 30-day free trial!

Fall Employment Trends

Mid-August through October is the best season for hiring qualified employees. Once Thanksgiving hits, it is harder to hire employees during the winter months, unless you are only looking to fill seasonal positions.

Here are the five hottest jobs that are in demand this fall. If your company is looking to hire any of these positions in these categories, make sure they set themselves out from the crowd to attract the brightest talent.

  1. Fitness Trainer – Fitness is a booming industry trend. Health and wellness are hot-button topics and trainers can help people get back in shape, lose weight and also serve to educate clients about exercise and physical fitness. The U.S. Bureau of Labor and Statistics anticipants that the need for fitness trainers will increase by 8% by 2022.
  2. Occupational Therapist Assistant – Healthcare is a growing field, especially as Baby Boomers begin to age. Occupational Therapists work with licensed therapists to help patients recover from injury or illness. These assistants teach everyday skills, such as moving, eating, dressing, traveling and personal hygiene. Reports anticipant this profession will grow by 40% over the next four years.
  3. Personal Financial Advisor – For people with math skills, being a personal financial advisor may be just the career they want. Finance professionals help clients manage their money, advise them about their investments and help them plan their long-term retirement. This field is expected to increase by 30% by 2020.
  4. Computer Software Engineer – Both big companies and startups are looking for highly trained, qualified software engineers. Software engineers and developers design and refine computer programs, which is why their demand is expected to grow more than 17% in the next four years.
  5. Registered Nurse – There’s a major shortage of qualified nurses in the U.S. right now, and with a growing healthcare field, this is an excellent career for people that enjoy science and have the necessary empathy to work with ailing patients. The demand for this field will increase by 16% by 2020 and it won’t just stop at hospitals but will carry over into doctors’ offices, schools, agencies and clinics.

Ninja Gig offers fully customizable online employment applications, which can help to simplify the hiring process. No matter the position that is open in your company, you can easily tailor these online job applications for websites and social media. Sign up now for your free trial and take care of all your hiring needs.

Why More People Are Hiring House Cleaners

Fall is here, and the kids are back in school. There are a lot of stay-at-home moms that enter the workforce every fall when their kids are old enough to attend school.  Whether they find they need a house cleaner to keep up with their children’s after-school messes or they want to have a stable part-time house-cleaning job, the house cleaning industry is on the rise.

House cleaners are no longer for the wealthy or just for commercial office spaces. Today, house cleaning services are affordable, but to keep a good clientele, you’ll want to hire the best house cleaners.

Here are some great, basic interview questions:

  1. How long have you been cleaning houses?
  2. How many homes do you currently clean?
  3. Do you have any references?
  4. Will you supply your own cleaning supplies or will you use the ones we supply?
  5. Would you be willing to do a trial period of two to three cleanings so we can review your work?

Be upfront about the hourly salary you offer and detail your expectations for the position. If some people want their laundry cleaned, including sheets, towels, clothing, etc., make sure to offer your housekeepers more money for these tasks.

Additionally, make sure to get a background check on applicants before hiring them. Remember that you are responsible for placing people in your clients’ homes.

Ninja Gig can help your cleaning company attract the brightest talent. Our customizable employment applications make it simple to advertise your job openings online, through social media and even on job posting websites. You can easily review applications and sort through them to find qualified candidates.  Whether you are hiring for your cleaning company, or any other company, sign up now for a 30-day free trial and simplify your hiring processes!

How to Write Job Descriptions for Small Businesses

Many small businesses don’t have fully operational or staffed human resources departments. Hiring the wrong person for the job can be a very costly mistake and often, it’s one that small businesses just can’t afford.

Here’s how to successfully tackle writing job descriptions for small companies.

Do

  • Be Specific – Clearly state job requirements, qualifications and necessary skills, such as education, certifications and experience. If you’re not clear, you will attract unqualified candidates, and that also means that top talent will think you don’t have your act together and move on to greener job pastures.
  • Use Known Job Titles – If your company embraces creative titles, don’t list these in your advertising for new positions. Keep things simple and straightforward, so they’re understandable and easy to search for online. Use industry-specific job titles, such as keywords that people use when searching.
  • Simple Language – Avoid organization-specific terminology or industry jargon that can make job descriptions challenging to read and understand. Use headings, subheadings and bullet points to make things easier to read.
  • Market Your Company – Job descriptions should include something about your company, the industry, the job and the incentives you offer. Think of job postings as a marketing tool for your company. Additionally, since you’re a smaller employer, highlight the benefits of working for you. For example, if you have a great location that is within walking distance of public transportation and eateries, flaunt it! If you offer flex time, vacation time, profit sharing or stock options, advertise it! Unusual perks and benefits can make small companies very attractive to qualified candidates that want to leave the grind of conglomerate mega-giants.

Don’t

  • Feature Lengthy Requirements – If your job description reads like you’re in need of an advanced research scientist with an overwhelming array of credentials, chances are you’ll have a lot of qualified candidates view this as pretentious and nix applying for your job application altogether. (However, if you do need a research scientist, feel free to add in the lengthy requirements!)
  • Be Too Vague – Job postings should be both detailed and informative. If you don’t quite understand the position, seek out information to write a thorough and comprehensive job description, so everyone is on the same page. Having a detailed description will maximize everyone’s time – both yours and candidates – when trying to attract the right talent for the position.
  • Avoid Salary – To avoid a barrage of unqualified candidates, list the salary range for the job so you can weed out people that aren’t interested now.
  • Forget to Spell and Grammar Check – Nothing says unprofessional more than a typo. If you plan to critique applicants’ resumes for their spelling and grammar during the application process, hold yourself to the same standard.

Ninja Gig works with a variety of large and small businesses to create custom employment applications, which makes it easy to attract qualified candidates. These job applications are easy to customize, which means that you can advertise for open positions on your website, via email and on your social media channels. Interested in trying out our software for free?  Sign up now and see how great using Ninja Gig can be!

How to Improve Your Hiring Process

Hiring bright, new talent is an essential task for any successful company. HR professionals know that finding good employees is more complicated than placing ads, reviewing resumes and conducting interviews.

Here are some ways your company can help to improve their hiring process.

  • Brand – Building a strong employer brand can help attract candidates that may not be actively looking for jobs, but are open to new, better opportunities. Some reports show that nearly 75 percent of people classify themselves as “passive candidates,” which means they fall into this category. Additionally, if employers respond to reviews, this gives potential employees a better impression of them, making them more apt to want to apply.
  • Take Action – The best candidates are only on the market fewer than 10 days, which means that if someone applies for a position and they’re perfect for the job, don’t drag your feet. Take action and make them an offer! If you’re still processing data in your application process, update the qualified candidate often, so you remain on their radar.
  • Job Descriptions – Having a well-written job description is key to attracting qualified candidates. Traditionally, employers have taken the Demands-Abilities ad approach, but the new wave of applicants prefers the Needs-Supplies job listing, which focuses on what companies can do for candidates.
  • Go Digital – Embrace the latest social media trends and go digital when it comes to checking on candidates. Be aware that you have to be very careful when doing this, but sometimes social media profiles can offer information about candidates, such as if they bad mouth their previous employer, if they are accurately portraying their skill set, etc. Just be careful not to discriminate based on information you may view or uncover while looking through social media profiles.
  • Personality – You may only be looking at people’s skill set, and while that is important, skills are teachable. However, someone having a good personality and willingness to learn are very valuable traits. Personality traits align with daily tasks. For example, employees with empathy may be better in the healthcare or social services fields than working as computer programmers or tax attorneys. Keep this in mind when interviewing candidates.
  • Interviews – Instead of only focusing on the traditional interview skills, employers are better off broadening their scope and looking for potential red flags. When interviewing, look for other skills, such as emotional intelligence, coachability, motivation and temperament.
  • Reviews – Online reviews can make or break your company, and the same is true when good applicants are looking at your company for employment. If your company has a bad, negative reputation, you won’t attract the best and brightest talent.

Ninja Gig can help companies create custom job applications. These employment applications are easy to link to websites, social media posts, newsletters, mass mailings and much more, making it easier to target qualified candidates for your organization. Sign up today for a 30-day free trial and make your hiring process tons easier!

How Fast Food Restaurants Can Decrease Turnover Rates

You may think that fast food restaurants and high turnover rates are synonymous with one another, which is usually right. However, a few fast food restaurants are bucking this trend and changing their company cultures to ensure that they retain good talent longer.

Hire for Attitude, Train for Skill

Fast food restaurants can take a valuable tip from successful companies, such as Google, and hire employees with good attitudes. Employees that have good attitudes will help improve customers’ experiences, and they are more likely to be happy with themselves, which directly transfers over to work performance.

The primary demographic for fast-food restaurant employees are part-time people and teenagers. It’s easier to groom young employees that have an excellent attitude and train them with the skills they need to succeed in their jobs than it is to try to teach someone that is negative and doesn’t have the desire to succeed.

Opportunities for Improvement

It’s important that fast food restaurants train their employees, retrain them, provide them with certifications and then re-certification. For example, the most successful fast food restaurants that have low employee turnover invest in 100 to 120 hours of training and require certifications for each specific job before employees go on the line. Re-certification is essential – and easy to institute via random drawings and pop quizzes – because people get rusty and can get stuck in ruts. It’s best to keep people on their toes, so their knowledge is up-to-date.

Leaders are Teachers

It may seem silly, but there’s a lot of truth in having good leaders that are teachers. Some companies organize management to read a range of books each month. Management then meets to discuss these books, whether it’s classic literature or the latest business self-help guide. Leaders are teachers, and when a company recognizes them as coaches for the staff, they feel more motivated to do their jobs, and those under them feel and share that same enthusiasm.

Having a culture that treats management well will also help employees aspire to work their way up in a company and become management too.

Some companies wonder if it’s worth training fast food employees and investing valuable time, resources and money in them when most of them will not make a life-long career in the industry. However, consider this point. If you don’t invest in your employees, you will have a high turnover rate, which directly impacts customers’ and their experience with your restaurant.

 

Ninja Gig offers online job applications, which makes it easy for fast food restaurants to reach their target demographic – teens and young adults online and on social media channels. Most of today’s Millennials apply for jobs directly from their smartphones, which is why having customizable online employment applications is necessary for restaurants. Sign up now for a 30-day free trial of our software and make hiring painless!

How to Hire the Best Customer Service Representatives

One job that has one of the highest turnover rates is customer service representatives. Hiring an excellent customer service representative is not hard, but typically, someone who makes a good representative is born and not taught. This makes it critical for companies to have the necessary interview skills to spot an awesome employee in the making or a future dud that needs polite escorting to the door.

Here are some common traits that excellent customer service representative’s share.

  • Eye Contact – Customer service representatives sell the experience of a product or the company. No one wants to buy from someone that doesn’t maintain eye contact. Maintaining eye contact is a common sign of courtesy. This position fields complaints and concerns and customers need to have their feelings validated by having someone give them eye contact. If someone doesn’t maintain good eye contact during an interview, they won’t make a long-lasting customer service representative.
  • Upbeat Energy – Customer service representatives need to be upbeat and have positive energy. If customers are filing complaints, having someone that is upbeat and polite makes a significant difference. If you hire a customer service employee that is down on life and complains to customers, this will translate into bad experiences for customers. Good customer service representatives have a can-do attitude that lets customers know that no matter how bad their problem may seem, it’s fixable.
  • Empathy – Good customer service reps have one thing in common: they have empathetic voices. If someone has empathy and can diffuse customers by making them feel good, it will be a huge benefit to any corporation.
  • Smiling – Whether in person or over the phone, customer service reps need a smile in their voices. To hear whether a candidate has the skills it takes to shine over the phone, make sure to conduct a telephone interview as a hiring prerequisite.
  • Previous Experience – If someone has held several different short-term customer service representative jobs over the years, they may not be a good fit. Studies show that people that love working in a customer service environment will stick with a position for longer, which shows on resumes.

If companies hire the right customer service representative for their organization, they’ll have less turnover, which translates into substantial cost savings for employers.

Ninja Gig offers custom online job applications. These applications are ideal for companies that need to hire customer service representatives but don’t want to deal with the hassle of creating applications. Ninja Gig’s easy to use online employment applications are simple to customize, easy to save and archive, ensuring federal and state paperwork compliance. Sign up today for a 30-day free trial of our software and see how easy hiring can be!

Hiring the Right Nurse for Your Practice

Nurses are on the front line of providing medical care and are often the first and last points of contact. This is why it is important that medical practices and facilities hire the right nurse to ensure quality patient care.

Here are essential tips to ensure that your facility hires the right nurse.

Hire the nurse that is the right fit for your team. Consider the dynamics of the current nursing staff. If you already have several big personalities, consider balancing this with someone who is quieter and more reserved. If you have a team of serious nurses, a bubbly or lighthearted personality might clash with this personality type. You want your nursing staff to work together, but also nurses that bring unique perspectives to their jobs.

Determine nurses character using behavioral questions. While it’s necessary to hire nurses that are highly skilled and educated on paper, it’s equally important to hire nurses that are quick-thinking, collaborative and compassionate towards patients. Using behavioral interview questions, ask prospective nurses how they handled their most recent emergency situation or even how they have dealt with co-worker conflict in the past.

Let nursing candidates ask questions. You want to make sure that the nursing position is a good fit for both the nurse and practice. Make sure that nursing candidates get enough time to ask their questions about the job. If candidates leave interviews feeling overwhelmed, they may not remain interested in the position. On the flip side, if a nurse asks more questions about specific skills for the job rather than focusing on patient load, this may be because he/she needs more experience.

Hire candidates that share the practice’s values. Despite a candidate’s certifications and experience, you need to ensure that a nurse shares your practice’s values. If a nurse is more concerned about promotions and being a supervisor rather than the position she is applying for, this may indicate that he/she is not a good team player and is only looking out for self-promotion.

Hire based on facility needs. Rural and urban area hospitals have very different needs. Urban hospitals typically offer more high-stress situations, requiring nursing staff to be quick and resourceful. Some nurses prefer a high volume caseload, while others prefer to take more time with individual patients. Assess what nursing candidates are looking for because sometimes jobs just aren’t good fits.

When hiring for your practice, it’s important to take your time interviewing qualified applicants to find the right nurse for the position. A qualified nurse is well-rounded and can handle difficult personalities and take charge when needed, but also excels at being a team player.

Ninja Gig offers online job applications. These custom employment applications make it easy for medical facilities to tailor applications to nurses, which in turn helps attract more qualified nursing candidates. Sign up today for a 30-day free trial!