Six Tips to Help You Hire the Right Employees

A recent survey found that poor hiring costs small business owners roughly $10,000 per wrong hire.  We also learn that just under half of all new hires fail within their first 18 months of the job.  This happens so frequently because flaws are often overlooked during the hiring process.  Wondering how hiring managers can identify the qualities that make happy and driven employees in order to avoid hiring mistakes? These six tips are key to hire the right employee:

Assess the work ethic.

Ask your candidates to elaborate on their work experience.  Listen for details and keep your ears open for signs of excitement and motivation.  If you’re interviewing recent graduates who may lack in the experience department, see what extra curricular activities they took

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part in. 

“Listen” to their resume.

Resumes are simply a story about their author.  Check for jobs and activities that coincide – an indication of a strong work ethic and the ability to commit multiple activities simultaneously.  Look for patterns in previous positions such as length of employment or job structures they gravitate towards.  Make a note of gaps between jobs and have the candidate tell you about them.

Determine integrity.

Ask the candidate about his or her biggest failure or disappointment.  Have them tell you more and it and pay close attention to see if they took the right level of responsibility for it.  Were there moral conflicts in their decision-making process?  If so, how was it handled?

Evaluate maturity.

Have the candidate share where he or she hopes to be in five or ten years to get an idea of their career drive.  Also have them share one of their biggest regrets.  As they reflect on their regret, listen for maturity about it instead of bitterness and whining.

Throw them for a loop.

Instead of shaking hands and sending your candidate off at the end of the interview, invite them to join you on a tour of the building or in the cafeteria.  Watch how they act and converse in a more casual setting.  The new setting will really illuminate his or her personality traits and give you idea who they really are.

Heed your gut.

Candidates need to have strong examples of how they handle situations.  If they give weak answers, make sure to ask targeted questions during their next interview.  If you have any doubts, don’t ignore them.  If your gut is telling you something isn’t right, listen.  You don’t want to hire someone who gives lots of  “right” answers if you simply don’t feel they’ll be a good hire.

Hiring the right employee is a challenging process.  Hiring the wrong one is costly and time consuming.  Take the time to find a candidate who will mesh well with your team and you’ll reap the benefits of a positive impact on your total work environment.