This article summarizes some highlights and thoughts. It's a checklist of sorts. I'm a believer in checklists and use them in virtually every aspect of my life. If veteran airline pilots with thousands of hours of experience consult a checklist every time they fly, I figure one can help me, too.
If you aren't a believer in making lists as memory joggers, then view piece as a simple reminder that retaining good people demands hiring smart in the first place, the implementation of tried-and-true practices, and, above all, the determination to make it work.
Six Ways to Find Good Employees
- Seek personal recommendations. Ask present employees, former employees, and business associates for referrals. Remember to be cautious. No matter what the source of a candidate, check references thoroughly. Don't "pre-hire."
- Recruit from within. The best candidate for a job might already be working for you or your company. The best part is that you already know their work habits and attitude.
- Offer referral bonuses to current employees. In a tightening skills market, offering such bonuses will increase the chance of locating qualified applicants.
- Don't hesitate to rehire former employees. Keep in touch with the good ones; even if they don't return to your company, they may have excellent colleagues to recommend. Also, don't rule out family members of persons already employed.
- Make effective use of personnel services firms. Especially use those that specialize in candidates in the particular disciplines you need.
- Be creative in your help-wanted advertising, not only in preparing it but in choosing the appropriate media as well.
- Accurately define the jobs you're looking to fill.
- Don't immediately fill a vacancy created when an employee leaves. It may not have to be filled at all; perhaps it can be combined with another position, or handled by two existing employees with the use of qualified temporary help for peak workloads.
- Assume that if you don't see clear indications of particular attributes on a resume, the applicant probably doesn't possess them.
- Start at the end. Most candidates put the least flattering information there.
- Be wary of functional resumes that describe experience and qualifications without corresponding dates of employment.
- Look for profit-mindedness. Does the candidate appreciate the fact that companies exist to make money? How many times does the candidate point to accomplishments that directly benefitted the employer?
- Glean actual work experience from superfluous information. A puffed-up resume often contains excessive personal trivia (sports interests, children's accomplishments, hobbies, etc.) that may indicate that the candidate lacks substantive experience and skills.
There are dozens of questions to be asked of candidates, depending on the job to be filled and the interviewer's personal style and needs. However, here are eight basic questions to be asked of job candidates, prefaced by, "Please answer my questions the way you think your references will answer them when they're contacted." This makes it clear that you will really check references. It may cause the job candidate to withdraw, but that will be a blessing in disguise.
- "Why are you looking to change jobs?" If the candidate bad-mouths a current or past employer, think twice.
- "What did you like best about your last job?" A candidate who can't give you a thoughtful answer might not think beyond the basic mechanics of a job.
- "If you could have made improvements in your last job, what would they have been?" The answer can be a useful barometer of a candidate's creativity.
- "Who was the most interesting customer or client you dealt with in your last job?" (Or, "What has been the most interesting job or project so far in your career?") The reasons given are more important than the nature of the project and can provide valuable insight into the candidate's motivations.
- "Describe the best person who ever worked for or with you." Answers can uncover something about the candidate's personality as well as the qualities he or she admires.
- "What kind of people annoy you the most?" Frequently, annoying traits that candidates mention do not apply to themselves.
- "Describe emergencies or unexpected assignments that forced you to reschedule your work time." This will elicit more productive answers than the yes-or-no question, "Are you willing to work extra hours when the situation calls for it?"
- "What assistance would you need from us to help you get off to a good start?" Look for balance in the answers. A candidate who comes up with a reasons list demonstrates a good sense of planning and organization. Needing too much help or, at the other extreme, no help at all doesn't strike the desired balance.
- Set a time limit at the beginning. Have a clock visible and let the candidate know at the start roughly how long you'll be together.
- Cue the candidate when the interview is nearing its end. If you're using pencil and paper, put the pencil down and push the paper aside, or look at your watch and refer to another appointment.
- End on the appropriate note, depending on whether the candidate is a definite contender, a "maybe," or out of the running.
A final tip on interviewing: Have leading job candidates come into contact with several levels of management, but don't hire by committee. Committees often end up hiring a "compromise candidate," one who neither completely pleases nor offends anyone on the committee. In most cases, this will not be the best person for the job.
Check References
There are basically two ways to handle references: thoroughly or not at all. Here are five points worth bearing in mind for those who'll take the thorough approach:
- Check the references of candidates who will report directly to you. Other managers should do the same.
- Don't delay. Begin your investigation as soon as the candidate has given you permission. The longer you wait to hire, the greater the risk of losing the candidate.
- Pay little attention to written references given to you by the candidate, but by all means use them as springboards for additional reference checking.
- Seek references not provided by the candidate. Call the candidate's previous employer and ask for somebody other than the individual whose name you've been given, or ask that person to suggest someone else who knows the candidate and his or her work. Network references this way until a clear picture of the person has emerged.
- For high-level jobs, conduct as many reference checks in person as possible. Use the phone as a second approach. The mail is rarely productive when checking references.
The better the candidate, the more in demand he or she is likely to be. When you believe you've found the right person, take immediate action.
- Don't delay the offer. If the candidate is unemployed, you can always hire contingent on references checking out.
- Set an early start date. The longer the time between job offer and start date, the greater the risk of losing the chosen candidate to another employer.
- Do something special for special people. Encourage good performance by acknowledging it. Praise is often as good as a raise.
- Bestow new titles. Employees appreciate them, and they don't necessarily cost anything.
- Be kind and courteous.
- Be fair. Employees respect a well-managed tight ship as long as the basic rules and regulations apply to everyone.
- Establish and nurture that valuable team feeling, and reward teams as well as individual achievement.
- Be receptive to suggestions. Don't just wait for them to be offered. Actively encourage them every day.
- Reward risk as well as results. Applaud smart risk taking, even if it fails. Give employees enough latitude to achieve their full potential.
- Use in-house newsletters to boost morale. Look beyond the typical employee newsletter for ways to enhance the communications between management and staff.
- Make meetings meaningful. Schedule them only when there's a specific need. Holding meetings for the sake of holding meetings wastes everyone's time and particularly annoys achievers.
- Toot the company's horn. Employees like working for a winner. Be sure all employees are informed of the company's accomplishments. Your employees should be your first and primary audience for public relations and should be treated like a customer.
- Consider paying slightly above the prevailing salary range, if possible. When employees work for less than the job market is paying, it may cost your company more in the long run. Whatever extra it costs in the short run will pay handsome dividends later by encouraging employees to volunteer for extra work, and will keep them from jumping to competitors.
- Be flexible. No single compensation policy can meet the needs of all employees.
- Establish an equitable system of raises. In well-run companies, most people don't have to ask for raises. Their employees know what to expect--and when to expect it--because of their awareness that these companies value and reward performance, ingenuity, loyalty, and dedication.
- Say "no" with grace. Be willing to admit mistakes. Listen. Communicate. Encourage a sense of humor, even when the joke's on you.
Companies that have been successful in retaining good employees report the following factors, listed in order of importance, as playing a pivotal role in their success.
- Competitive salaries and benefits
- Open communication
- Good work environment
- Incentive programs
- Periodic review/counseling
- Promotions/better job in the department or another division
- Stock options
- Deferred compensation
- Management by objective programs
- A fair and meaningful employment contract
- Savings and matching programs
- Profit sharing
Here is a list of benefits that cost little or nothing:
- Praise
- Personal notes for achievements
- Desirable assignments
- Public recognition
- Titles
- Small gifts for special occasions (e.g., birthdays, weddings)
- Tickets to sporting events and shows
- Temporary help or assistance
- Free coffee and snacks
- Facilities for heating lunch
- A pleasant work environment
- There's a noticeable change in attitude, especially if it shifts from active to passive
- There's less communication
- Lunch hours become longer
- Absences increase
- There are more personal phone calls than usual
- Grooming and dress suddenly improve
- A desk becomes neater
- There's a change in vacation patterns
- Work is no longer taken home
- Be direct. Ask if the employee is looking to work elsewhere.
- Try to keep the good ones, but resist making a counteroffer; employees rarely stay more than a year after accepting one.
- Recognize that some turnover is positive; it weeds out the less competent and buoys the morale of others.
- Leave the door open. If the employee is valuable, extend the opportunity to return if the new position doesn't work out.
- Keep things amicable.
- Know that most employees who are fired expect it.
- Have adequate cause, and document it.
- Don't pass the buck. Termination should be handled directly by the highest authority the employee deals with on a regular basis and should be done in person, face-to-face-no pink slips in the mail, no phone calls.
- Analyze honestly what went wrong.
- Have all necessary separation information on hand.
