As you look around your office at the employees you have hired over time, do they mostly bring smiles to your faces?
If the answer to that question is yes, you should feel pretty confident about what you have been doing up to this point.
In the event the answer to that question is no, then it is time to rethink the hiring process you have instituted, perhaps looking to spend more quality time looking over the resumes that are coming across your desk and/or the desk of your human resources person.
With that being the case, do most of the resumes you receive sink or swim?
Hiring the Best and Retaining Them
In order for your small business to stay on par and hopefully even pass the competition, it is important that you hire and retain the best workers out there.
Even though that is typically easier said than done, there are some tricks of the trade you can deploy to make sure you are interviewing only quality prospective employees.
These include:
- Sound resume reviews – Be honest; how much time do you truly spend looking at all those resumes that come across your desk? For many small business owners, the answer is little time. Depending on the size of your company, you may not do all that much hiring in the first place. When you do, however, you want it to be individuals who not only bring a certain skillset to your company, but will also mesh well with the employees you already have there. Prospective employees using a professional resume service tend to have resumes that stand out from the rest of the crowd;
- Sound first interviews – As important as the resume is, the interview is equally if not higher on the scale of importance. Someone can come to you with an impeccable resume, yet flub the interview. Conversely, a candidate can bring to you a resume that left you with a couple of question marks, yet he or she passes the first interview round with flying colors. During said interview, look at a number of features the person displays. First, do they seem confident in both their abilities and also how they present themselves to you and/or your team sitting in on the interview? Do they express an interest in wanting to know more about your small business? If so, what kinds of questions are they asking? Some candidates will come prepared with a list of questions; others will show little or no interest in wanting to learn more. As for that latter group, it doesn’t mean they are not interested in your company, in fact, it could mean they’ve done a fair amount of research about your brand prior to coming in for the interview. That said asking a few questions typically lets you know what their interest level is in your business;
- Sound skills – Lastly, is this someone you could see working for your company tomorrow, next week, next month, perhaps even being with you for years to come? Their skillset and how they present themselves during the interview will obviously go a long way in determining the answer to that question. One thing of note, what kind of digital skills are they offering you? Given the current emphasis on the Internet, along with where things will be down the road regarding the worldwide web, your business can’t afford to be bringing on employees who either lack Internet skills and/or have little desire to be on the worldwide web.
Hiring talent in 2016 and down the road is not the most difficult process in the world, but it does take some time and thought.
If you feel like some of the resumes crossing your desk these days are headed for the round file (aka the garbage can), does that say something about the candidates or what they think about your small business?
Either way, it is important as a business owner to always keep your eyes focused on hiring nothing but the best talent available.
When you do that, you enhance the chances of your brand being in business for a long time to come.
About the Author: Dave Thomas covers small business topics on the web.