January is our “Hiring” theme. Our goal this month to give you some great tips on recruiting and hiring to help to succeed in 2014. In our last post, we discussed attracting top talent. Today’s post we’re discussing the bad hire blunders and how to avoid them.
Bad hires happen. They just do. We’ve all made them, but it’s important to learn from those mistakes when it comes to recruiting and make sure they don’t happen again. Take a look at some of our recommendations for avoiding some of the worst hires:
- Evaluate Previous Hiring Blunders: What went wrong? Was it the employer, the manager, a change in job function? Take the time to uncover the hidden reasons and usually that little effort will go a long way in the future.
- Look for the tell-tale signs: Are there any red flags surrounding the candidate? It could be scheduling interviews, coordinating documents, being late. One minor hiccup is one thing, but if there are several, it could be a red flag. Watch and observe.
- Assess your Talent Pool: Is it possible your talent pool wasn’t producing the right candidates? If you’re consistently getting average or below hirers, it could be where you’re searching. Try using a partner to help cast a wider net when searching for candidates.
- Reassess Job Descriptions: Was the job description too broad or not specific enough? Was the criteria unrealistic but you ended up hiring a person anyway? Don’t fill a position just because it’s open. This happens way too often because the need to fill the position can outweigh common sense. If you’re hitting a wall, outsource a reputable recruiter to help.
- References: We can’t stress this one enough. Being thorough with checking references will not only weed out the wrong candidate, but can assure the right one. Make sure your process in requesting and checking references is up-to-date and consider social networking sites such as Linked In, Facebook etc… when researching.
In the end, it often comes down to using your gut to determine if the candidate can do the job. If there are any doubts, then chances are you should hold off making an offer.
Happy Recruiting!
