Like so many other areas of good business management getting the right plan in place for management of your human resources can increase profits dramatically if implemented correctly. Getting the right equipment for the job is accepted as essential and it is with this same philosophy recruiting the right people into your organisation should be viewed.
Person Specification
What type of person are you seeking? Do they need to be innovative, responsible, good with machinery or stock, or self-motivated? How will you test this at the interview?
Advertise
How can you use the advertisement to encourage your existing employees rather than de-motivate them? If you are not formally advertising then develop a statement that explains the sort of person you require and the qualities they must have. This is better than asking around the pub if anyone knows of anyone looking for work!
Interview Project
A way of minimising the risk of a recruitment mistake is to get the final applicants to undertake a project. For example, an applicant for a storeman’s position can demonstrate their skills in the loading docks.
Induction
Don’t throw your new employee into the deep end. Induction maximises the start up performance of a new employee. The key to finding the best person is locating the person with the most appropriate core values. An advertisement in a USA paper for a hotel said “we don’t train our people to be nice – we just hire nice people”.
Solo Recruiting
Too often people recruit on their own. It’s very difficult to manage your own performance, plus watch the reactions of the person you are interviewing. Never recruit on your own.
Lack of Preparation
People never make the time to effectively prepare for their recruitment interview. Part of the reason for this is that they have done so many before, they have tricked themselves into believing they are good at it.
Halo Effect
This occurs when your applicant makes mention of something you feel good about. Perhaps they are a member of a similar sporting club or group to you. As soon as you hear this common ground, then everything they say is biased in your mind. Be careful about the halo effect, it can lead you astray!
People assume that recruitment is an easy process, when in fact, it’s quite difficult to develop the key skills required to be effective in the recruitment process. This is especially hard when you only recruit once in a blue moon. Consider engaging the assistance of a professional to assist you in the process. They will charge a fee but it is usually money well spent.
