In order to a have a cohesive and well-functioning team, one has to develop their picking/hiring skills. This is a crucial skill for managers to master because without this skill, whatever business being managed is doomed for failure.
THE BASICS OF SMART HIRING
Two principles should govern your hiring practices. The first is always to hire with an eye toward your total staff and how they will work together. Having an entire staff of extremely talented people might not produce good results if the chemistry is not right.
The second is not to be afraid of hiring someone better than you. Keep in mind that the better your staff members perform, the better you look. Your best people, far from endangering your job, will help you get ahead because you will be judged as someone who knows how to get the most out of your people.
SETTING UP A RECRUITING CAMPAIGN
Your own job effectiveness is directly related to the quality of the people who work for you. As long as you keep this principle in mind, you can appreciate that whatever time and effort you put into hiring good people will always pay dividends in the long run.
However you go about setting up this campaign is personal preference, but one thing to keep in mind is to stay actively involved with the process. If the personnel department of your firm is going to be recruiting and screening candidates for you, you should set aside enough time to communicate your needs to the person you will be working with. If you are using an outside personnel recruiter, it is particularly important, once you begin interviewing candidates, that you give enough feedback after each interview to give the personnel professional you are working with an increasingly clearer idea of what sort of person you are looking for.
DEVELOPING SELECTION CRITERIA
When someone you have hired fails to work out, the tendency is to blame your own judgment. You figure that if you had been a better "judge of character," you would have recognized during the employment interview that this particular candidate was not right for the job.
Most hiring mistakes are rooted in decisions you make and steps you take long before you begin to conduct interviews. First and foremost, it is important to determine what sort of a person is really needed for the job opening. Drawing up the job description yourself will help establish the proper criteria required of potential candidates and avoid timely and costly hiring mistakes.
WRITING OUT THE JOB DESCRIPTION
Take the time to really think about what you need and you should have no trouble coming up with a job description that can serve as the basis of your hiring campaign.
The best way to begin is simply to list all the duties and responsibilities that you think the job you are seeking to fill requires. Try to be as specific as you can when you are compiling this list. Instead of writing down "administrative" duties, list the actual tasks you are expecting the person you hire to perform.
After you have completed this list, you are ready to prioritize it. Look at each task on your list and decide on its relative importance to the overall job function: very important, important, or not so important. Once you have divided your list into three categories, you are ready to take a closer look at your expectations and determine how realistic they are.
There are two key questions you need to ask yourself. First, is the job genuinely do-able? Second, how attractive is this job likely to be to prospective candidates?
What it comes down to is recognizing the "marketability" of the job you are offering, that is, the market of candidates who not only can perform the job, but more important are willing to do it for your company.
HOW TO READ A RESUME
If you are preparing to hire somebody, you are going to be reading dozens (maybe hundreds) of resumes. It is important to remember, however, that a resume is not necessarily a reflection of the accountant. It can still serve you well, providing you know what to look for. Here are some basic red flags:
- A functional resume: A functional resume is one that is not organized in chronological form. Accountants that are excessive job-jumpers frequently use these resumes.
- Excessive trivia: A resume heavy with hobbies and interests usually denotes weakness in experience and skill.
- A bitter tone: Signs of bitterness toward former employers can signal chronic discontent.
- Sloppiness: A carelessly written resume could be a reflection of their work ethic.
And on the other hand, here are some traits to look for:
- Willingness to work hard: That trait is not easy to detect on a resume, but you may be able to discern this quality by noting the accomplishments that went beyond the basics of the job.
- Profit-mindedness and efficiency: Look for comments in the resume in which the accountant mentions efficiency measures that helped increase earnings or helped improved the quality of the organization.
One other suggestion about reading a resume— start at the end. Most candidates put the least flattering information at the end of the resume. You may be able to save yourself some time that way.
HANDLING THE JOB INTERVIEW
It is crucial to conduct a job interview with a candidate before making the decision of whether or not to hire him/her. Here are eight questions that are particularly good at getting candidates to reveal important characteristics without necessarily being aware of what they are making known:
- Why are you giving up your current job? Be wary of accountants who bad-mouth their former employers. Remember, they could be malcontents and do the same thing to you a year or two down the road.
- What did you like best about your last job? Candidates who cannot give you a thoughtful answer to this question probably cannot think beyond the mechanics of the job. They may lack depth.
- If you could have made improvements in your last job, what would you have done? The answer to this question is a good reflection of creativity and sensitivity.
- Who was the most interesting client you had in your last job (or what was the most interesting job or project you've had so far in your career)? The answer to this question will give you an idea of whether the candidate likes challenges and is perceptive.
- How would you describe the best person who ever worked for you or with you? An accountant who has trouble answering this question could lack compassion.
- What kinds of people annoy you the most? Frequently, the traits mentioned by candidates do not apply to the candidates themselves.
- Can you describe some emergencies in some of your recent jobs in which you had to reschedule your time? This is the question you ask instead of, "Are you willing to work extra hours when the situation calls for it?"
- In what way would you like our company to assist you if you join us? Look for balance here, Be wary of accountants who indicate they may need a great deal of help and also of accountants who suggest that they may not want any help.
You can vary these questions in any number of ways, and not all of them may be appropriate for each interview. Your objective is not to get the best of the candidate, it is to single out the one candidate who is best for the job.
ENDING THE INTERVIEW
Most job interviews drag on too long. The reason they drag on is that many people do not know how to end them gracefully. Here are a few tips:
- Always set a time limit at the beginning of the interview. In most cases, a half-hour should be sufficient.
- Give clues to the candidate that suggest the interview is nearing its end. For instance, if you are using a pencil or pen, put it aside.
However you choose to end the interview, do so with respect and how good the candidate appears to you. If the candidate is somebody you definitely want, make sure the person knows you are actively interested. If the person is a "maybe," say that you are interested but that you want time to think it over. If the person is a definite "no," be polite but non-committal.
HOW TO HANDLE REFERENCES
The references provided by the candidate are helpful, but it could be more helpful to get references from people who were not mentioned by the candidate; while you are talking to a person listed as a reference, see if you can get still other names of people who know the candidate.
It is also recommended that references be checked by phone instead of writing, because many people are reluctant to put derogatory remarks down on paper.
GETTING THE PERSON YOU WANT
The better the candidates, the more likely they are to be in demand, so when you have an opportunity to hire good people, take action. Here are four guidelines:
- Don't delay the offer: If a candidate is right for the job, do not hesitate to make an offer. You can always hire someone contingent on his or her references checking out.
- Limit the number of decision makers: The more people involved in the hiring decision, the longer it will take to hire and the greater the chances the person you eventually choose will be a compromise candidate.
- Set an early starting date: The longer the time between the job offer and the starting date, the greater the risk of losing a good prospect. Losing a good prospect because of a delay happens more often than you might think. You think you have "hired" somebody, but, before the person starts, another company comes along and makes a better offer.
- Don't fall into the "first one interviewed" trap: Our studies show that the first person interviewed frequently does not get the job, even when that person may be the most qualified. Don't let this quirk cost you a good employee.
CONCLUSION
Hire smart by taking all the proper precautions before hiring, and you’ll have minimal to worry about in the future.
Image Source: Freepik.com
