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Hiring For The First Time? What You Need To Know
Hiring your first employee is a big responsibility. Sure, you’re hiring someone skilled enough for the position, and initiative is always valued in a business, but you’re still the one in charge here. You’re the one steering the ship, and that means you need to know how the hiring process really works. If you don’t, it’s easy to make mistakes and bring the wrong people on board – and that’s at the very least! And with that in mind, here are the most important basics of bringing in members of staff to your business.
Don’t Be Vague
The more vague you are in your job advert, the fewer responses you’re going to receive. And that means you won’t have very many candidates to choose from, which can be a PR disaster for a company like yours! Be honest and as factual as possible in all your job posts, and make sure people know what kind of salary they can expect as well. It never does a company a favor to withhold that kind of information.
Understand Your Candidate Needs
Before you start accepting applications, make sure you’re aware of the kind of candidate you need to hire. You know what skills they need to have, but what kind of person are they? What experience do they bring to the table? And what kind of soft skills do they need to get on in your workplace? The more you know now about your ideal hire, the easier it’s going to be to narrow down the applicant pool. These can be incredibly tricky to manage!
Training is Crucial
Bringing in new employees isn’t a one and done thing. You need to wrap up the process carefully, and that often means putting your new hire through a training program. This is especially true if you work in heavy industry, or have plans to expand that way.
For example, a crash course on something like machine safety and risk reduction won’t be enough – you’ll need to invest properly here. And when an employee is properly trained, they’ll stay with you for much longer, and become someone you can really rely on.
Set Out a Hiring Period
You’re not going to find someone overnight. You’re going to need at least two weeks to find someone remotely suitable, and preferably you’ll have longer. Most companies put around two months into the hiring process, and even then it can be hard to find the right person for the job.
So above all else, take your time. Make sure you know what you want and have the right job advert out there to attract that person. And make each interview personable; the people who come in to apply are all going to be different, and you need to respond to them in an adaptable way.
If you’re about to hire for the first time, take the process seriously. It can still be very easy to make mistakes in what seems like such a simple decision.
