As one of the leading staffing agencies in South Florida, Future Force knows that one of the biggest reasons employers make hiring mistakes is because they approach the process in a rush. They’re typically under the gun to get candidates in the door and make a hiring decision.
However, a hasty methodology typically yields poor results. Instead, you need to take some time up front – before the interview process even begins – in order to ensure you hire right. To help you achieve that goal, here’s a look at 5 questions to ask yourself before interviewing job candidates:
What are the Job Responsibilities?
In other words, what will the new hire do each day? What kinds of skills are an “absolute must” and which would be “nice to have”? What kinds of results does the person in this position need to achieve?
When you take the time to think through goals, expectations, and responsibilities, you may find the position you’re looking to fill is different from what you originally thought you needed. For instance, you may start off thinking you need a web designer, but wind up realizing you need a developer with some design experience; therefore, a more technical background is needed.
What’s the Compensation?
Offering a competitive compensation package is essential to attracting the right candidates. So when considering yours, think about base salary, benefits, bonuses, commission and profit sharing – and how you will tie those variable incentives to performance. Do some research ahead of time so you’re not making offers that are well below the competition.
What Kind of Personality Will Fit Well Within the Culture?
Think about your top performers at the company and what some of their common personality traits are. Also, consider your culture and the type of person who thrives within it. Then, when assessing candidates, use personality profiles and behavioral testing to enable you to hire someone who is a good cultural fit.
What Interview Questions Will You Ask?
Ask a mix of questions to get the best results in a job interview. For instance, ask some traditional questions (like “why do you want to work for us?”), behavioral questions (“tell me about a time you had to work with a difficult boss or co-worker”), and cultural fit questions (“describe the work environment you work best in”).
How Will You Sell the Opportunity?
Despite what you think, the hiring process isn’t all about you. Just as you are evaluating a candidate, a candidate is evaluating the position and the company to see if it’s a good fit for them. That’s why it’s important for you to sell the opportunity. Explain what’s great about working there. Let candidates speak with existing employees. Give candidates a good sense of the perks and benefits.
The bottom line is that top talent is in demand. And if you want to win them over, you have to convince them as to why they’d want to work for you.
Ever use any of the tips above to filter out bad candidates and find good ones? If you have, we want to hear your stories and your own hiring tips. And if you’d like some help with hiring, give Future Force a call. As one of the leading staffing agencies in South Florida, we’re experts in the recruiting, interviewing and hiring process.
Contact us today to learn more about how we can help you.