I once had a conversation with a business owner who told me that "it was fairly easy to fill positions.” Quite shocked, I asked him what his process was and he told me that he would just post a job and look at the resumes. Anyone that looked decent, he’d interview. And if they looked presentable, he’d probably hire them.
This wasn’t the first time or the last time I would hear this type of cavalier attitude towards hiring. After I asked him a few questions, I realized that he did not truly understand or appreciate the recruiting process or how to plan a recruitment strategy. Many businesses – both small and large – jump right into the recruitment function with minimal to zero planning.
Below, you will find the overall steps that a company should follow prior to recruiting employees.
Step 1: Understand your company/department and where they are heading.
- What are the immediate needs and future needs of the company/department?
- Evaluate your current talent. What are their strengths? Weaknesses?
- Is there a talent gap between current needs and future needs?
- What is the culture of the company/department?
Step 2: Sell the Company and Position to Talented Candidates
- What is the Employee Value Proposition (EVP)?
- How to create an EVP
- How to create a Manager’s Value Proposition
- Be transparent!
Step 3: Develop a Job Analysis/Job Description
- What are the job duties?
- What are the requirements (skills, knowledge, education, physical)?
- Will this position typically get promoted into another role? If yes, what are the requirements for that role?
- Compensation?
- Will this job’s duties/requirements change in the future? If yes, how so?
Step 4: Determine a Hiring Process
- Who brings value to the process?
- Who are the actual decision makers?
- How can we identify the candidates that possess the skills necessary to be effective at the job versus the candidates that know how to appear to have the skills?
Step 5: Find and Attract Talented Candidates
- Proactive approaches (e.g. employee referral program).
- Reactive approaches (e.g. job boards).
In the next few months, we will examine each step and provide some guidelines to achieve your goal of recruiting a sustainable workforce.