E-Tip 273 - How to Hire the Right Employee (Part 1 of 2)

One of the biggest challenges businesses today face is recruiting top talent. Sure, finding someone who is interested in working for you may be easy, but finding the right employee for your company is easier said than done. To help facilitate the hiring process, many companies employ a number of tactics such as personality tests, competence tests and a variety of interviewing techniques. We would like to share some of these tactics with you.

Look At The Interview Process From Different Angles.

Approaching an interview from several different angles is the key to finding your ideal candidate - a step often overlooked by the busy employer. Interviewing is a two-way street. Just as you are exploring how well a potential candidate will fit into your company, they are exploring whether they wish to be working for you. If you are looking to bring your A-game to the interview process, then prepare by following the five steps below:

5 Steps For Preparing To Hire The Right Employee.

1. Organize Yourself - You expect your candidates to prepare extensively for their interviews, right? So why shouldn't you? If you truly want the best candidate to work for you, you need to put aside time to create a checklist of the qualities and skills you hope to find in such an employee.

2. Speak With The Recruiting Firm - If you are using a recruiting firm to find someone, you need to ask the recruiter why they are recommending a particular candidate. Presumably, the recruiter has interviewed the candidate themselves, so interview the interviewer. Ask the recruiter about the candidate's strengths and weaknesses. If your recruiter is unable to provide satisfactory answers, you may want to reconsider using them in the hiring process.

3. Use Multiple People To Interview The Candidate - Interviewers bring with them unique perspectives shaped by personal experiences; and this is why we recommended the use of different people (who would be affected by this person's hiring) to interview the candidates. Plus, having someone else interview this person will give you several different perspectives, which are invaluable in the hiring process.

4. Do Not Give Your Answer Away To The Interviewee - One of the most common mistakes made by interviewers is giving away too much information about what they want and need in a person. Typically, many employers start an interview with a brief overview of their company, its history, their operation, what the job opening entails and what they are looking for in an employee. Unfortunately, this provides the interviewee with clues as to how they should tailor their responses. Focus on learning all that you can in the first half of the interview and then answer his or her questions in the latter part of the interview.

5. Read The Candidate's Résumé In Detail - Prior to the interview, you need to read and reread a potential candidate's résumé and cover letter. Both can speak volumes of a person's skill sets and how well they communicate.

Summary: When looking to hire the right employee, first be sure you know exactly what skills and qualities the ideal candidate should have. Second, explore the final round of candidates from every angle available. Doing so will produce a more accurate portrait of who they are, not only as a worker but also as a person. Next week, we will discuss the interview, itself, in depth.

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