It may be your first time hiring someone, or you may have done this many times before. Whatever your experience level, the hiring process can be intimidating. Most people think hiring is hard on applicants – and it obviously is – but hiring is stressful for employers, too. There are things you can do to make hiring a little easier, though. By taking the right approach, you can minimize your stress and increase your odds of hiring someone that will work for your business needs. Furthermore, for companies with employees abroad, it would be necessary to partner up with an Employer of record to handle documentation, global payroll, taxes other local employment requirements on their behalf. Payroll accounting software also helps you keep track of salary and wage expenses. All this helps as you hire remote workers for your business.
Hiring Employees – What You Need To Know
1. Try To Get Clear On What You Really Want From Someone In The New Position.
Before you ever put out an ad, list the position on Craigslist or start bringing in people to interview, you need to be as sure as possible about what you want from the new employee. Most employers start with defining what the job requirements and job duties are – which is certainly a big part of defining what you want. But there is more to hiring than the basics of the job. You also need to think about your business and how the position fits within the business.
Maybe communication is really important. You might want someone who will maintain regular, clear communication with the team about what they are doing and what they need. Maybe you need someone with serious initiative, such as if you are hiring someone to make sales calls.
Do some brainstorming and don’t just do it alone – bring in other people to help you define what you need, like those that are going to work with the new hire.
2. Ask Around.
Putting up job listings is certainly a big part of finding potential candidates, but word of mouth can be just as useful. Let people know that you are hiring. Your friends, family and other employees may know someone who would be the perfect fit.
3. Know That You Are Unlikely To Find The Perfect Candidate.
Hiring can be a challenging emotional process because you work so hard deciding what you want – and then almost inevitably have to settle for something far less than ideal. The more detailed your desires for an individual to fill the position, the less likely it is that you will find someone who fits that mold. This problem is to be expected.
To avoid getting stuck in this situation, it is worth thinking about what is most important to you ahead of time. There are probably some critical must-haves and then many other preferences. Define what those are and keep them in mind when you interview candidates and weigh your options. If you find someone you really like and they have the critical skills you need, you are on the right path. Remember, most things can be taught to the right person.
4. Have Your Employees Help With The Hiring Process.
There are probably some other employees who are going to wind up working with the new employee you hire. In fact, those employees may actually have a lot more day-to-day contact with the new person than you will. It can be helpful to have them assist with the hiring process because they can give you a valuable perspective on what the company and the team need.
You can even bring in an employee on the interview process if you think it makes sense to do so. The further you are away from the day-to-day tasks required of the new position, the more likely it is that there is an employee that knows what your team needs and can help you find it.
5. Make Interviews Meaningful And Useful.
Once you have some applications on your desk it is time to conduct interviews. But you probably know that the old days of sitting across from one another and asking about job experiences are not how the most successful companies interview anymore. Sure, they may include such questions in the typical interview setting, but they also mix it up to get a better feel for the individuals seeking the job. Some ways you can get more out of interviews include:
. Eat Together.
Going out for a meal is a common practice in today’s interviews because it gives you so much information about a candidate. You get to see how they treat others, how they are to spend time with, how they deal with frustrations and problems that unexpectedly arise and how they interact with people (like looking others in the eyes).
. Ask Surprising Questions.
You want to see more of what someone is really like – not just how well they can practice the standard interview questions. Questions like, “If you were an animal, what kind would you be?” may seem weird at first, but they serve a purpose. They force people to consider what is important to them and think creatively to express their thoughts.
. Walk Them Around The Company.
Getting up out of the office and moving through the business will show you a lot about a person and stimulate different types of conversations. You can ask them what they think of your layout, if they have any knowledge of a certain section of the business you walkthrough and so on.
6. Don’t Try To Do It All In A Day.
Hiring someone new is time-consuming. Training them is expensive. Having to let them go is deflating for you and for them. It is important that you do the hard work now, before you hire someone, to minimize the chances of having to go through the whole process over again. One of the ways you make sure you are doing things right is to give yourself time to make sure every step is completed to the best of your ability.
Take time to write the job listing. Take even more time to interview potential candidates. The time you take now will save you significant time later on by helping you avoid hiring the wrong person.
