Simplified Recruitment

We all know that hiring the right candidate is critical but how do you do this?

With the currently high levels of unemployment and a large number of employees feeling disengaged from their current roles in theory, you have access to the largest talent pool in years ……but you still have to select the right person; hiring the wrong person is destructive and expensive.

Some suggestions follow that may help to keep your recruitment process on track:

• Before there is a Vacancy:

What are you doing to make people want to work for your company?  How does your organization present itself to both active and passive candidates?  Are the best and brightest excited and trying to come to work for you? What shape is your online brand in? In today’s recruitment milieu candidates choose you and you need to take steps to attract them.

• When there is a Vacancy:

Every vacancy presents an opportunity to take stock, re-evaluate the purpose and function of the vacant role.  Do you still need it?  Is there an opportunity to streamline?  Should the role be changed to better suit the needs of the business?  Refresh the role profile and if you decide to continue and fill the position it will also help you to focus on the right skill set.

• Interviews:

Be prepared.  Candidates that have chosen you may think again when they find the interviewer has not read their resume.  Use that time to get to the heart of the role you want to fill, examine how candidates will relate to the positions stakeholders and they will deal with the challenges and pressures.  Identify up front what skills, experiences and attributes you want the right candidate to possess and identify how will you go about determining this through the interview process.

• The Right Candidate:

Your interview preparation will have identified the key areas that need to be explored. If something occurs later arrange a second meeting. Have peers and subordinates also meet with the identified shortlist – it will strengthen your organization and help spot any technical or relationship short comings.

Hiring the right person isn’t rocket science, although there are many advisers out there that will happily make it so if you allow them to, but equally it doesn’t happen by luck.  With focus and preparation you WILL hire better candidates.