How to identify the best candidate?

Think twice before employing someone and act faster when you want to fire them – there is some truth in this statement. We should take into consideration the fact that an improperly recruited employee can cost us even 30% of their yearly wages, not to mention that we end up sharing our know-how with a person who should not be allowed to know it in the first place. 

The trends in the work market in the last few years have been favourable to employees. Aspects such as finding the best candidate or meeting their expectations have posed a great challenge. Along with the upcoming crisis, the situation has become dynamic. This is probably a great opportunity to boost the recruitment processes and expand our business based on people who meet our standards. But how? First, let us think about

The actual costs one pays for an incompetent worker.

If we end up with a “bad apple”, problems might escalate in various ways: we may lose a customer and/or reputation, the sales or production may lose their momentum (experienced workers must supervise the newcomer and, as a result, perform badly in scope of their own duties), with conflicts within the team and increased financial costs. In the end, one might even struggle with legal costs and detrimental effects on their status as an employer. Only a few companies will be able to cope with such a situation. As the manager or business owners, we must ask ourselves whether

We have an actual recruitment process. If yes, how does it work?

Preferably, recruitment should be immaculate. Start with creating a profile of the correct candidate. Whom are we looking for? What are the values, skills and competencies of our potential employees? What are their personality and educational backgrounds? 

Pay attention to the general potential and dynamics of the group – will a new member and their habits from previous workplaces affect the team's performance? Ask yourself whether the methods applied by your competitors (because every good manager knows their natural enemies well, right?) would fit your agenda. Do you want to draw the attention of similar customers? What are the expected results and the target quality level?

Pinpointing the said aspects will be of key importance for proper communication in the future. Managers tend to “fall in love” with their candidates. A seemingly perfect choice becomes flawed and irrelevant after we specify the meaning of quality, hard work, dedication, etc. We might end up with a completely different picture in mind. Pay attention to the technical aspects, such as the number of recruitment stages and solutions for uncertainties. What do we do in case of any red flags? Will we include personality tests and profiling like, for example, the Harrison assessment? Who will the candidate meet at a particular stage of the recruitment?

 Sometimes, the managers' eagerness to encourage people to accept the job disrupts the whole interview. Instead of testing someone, they try to persuade. This might lead to serious problems in the future. Our candidate might assume a demanding position: “If they care so much, there must be a reason for it. I should probably raise my expectations.” The company should know and be able to present its advantages, benefits and distinctive features. At my company, we first invite the candidates to an interview. We do not mention the working conditions. Instead, we focus on the candidate's plans and dreams. We look at him or her as a human being and check whether there is any chemistry going on between us. We discuss each other's expectations and give additional tasks and tests during the later stages. Only then, once both sides decide to cooperate, we start the negotiations properly. By applying such a procedure, we can screen the candidates from various points of view. After a successful recruitment, you are only halfway through.

The new employee is here. What about onboarding?

The first weeks will mainly involve observation – to let our new employee assimilate with the new environment and familiarize with its dynamics. The most important thing is to show them the patterns they need to replicate. Many companies refrain from investing in a young person because his or her future remains uncertain. However, should such companies spend money on ill-educated, confused people who will represent them? With sufficient training, our young employee will be more likely to survive in the company and in the industry as such. Although there are no perfect recruitment proceedings to find the ideal candidate, one should not rely on random choices and incompetent representatives. That is why employers must focus on the correct and effective ways of finding new blood for their company.