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 so you can focus on hiring on the right employee.
- Career Commitment – If someone is committed to their 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- Improve Your Hiring Process – Companies that follow these hiring steps have more success with finding long-term employees:
- Avoid magic bullet or irrelevant questions and focus on the candidates’ knowledge, capabilities, confidence, skills and attitude.
- 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.
- Involve several people in the hiring evaluation process, because the more people that participate, the better chance your company can hire a good fit.
- 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 percent of companies recruit through social media platforms because having an online presence is so important in our business world.
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