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By: Corina Slay

There’s a common saying in business: Hire the right people and the company will run itself.

However, hiring the right people is easier said than done. Someone who has all the right credentials and an upbeat personality could turn out to be a bad communicator or unwilling to admit when they make a mistake.

When you hire the right person, it does more than just fill a position with someone who is productive. It also adds to your company culture, boosts morale, allows for better planning and generally increases organizational success.

If you’re currently looking to increase the chance that your company is hiring the right person, consider the following tips.

Write a Killer Job Description

Putting a lot of thought into crafting the right job description can go a long way to ensuring that you’re hiring the right people.

A good job description begins with an analysis that reveals the key duties, responsibilities and skills needed for the position. An analysis can also reveal the type of soft skills and personality traits common to the best employees for a position.

The results of the analysis can then be used to craft a job description that causes underqualified, would-be applicants to move on and perfectly-qualified professionals to submit an application.

Have a Targeted Recruiting Strategy

A well-written job description isn’t being used to its full potential if it isn’t getting in front of the right people. Is your ideal candidate regularly on LinkedIn? Are they checking local newspaper classified ads? Are they following your company on social media?

Answering these questions and others will increase the chances of sourcing the right candidates.

Screening Resumes

Resumes should be reviewed to identify candidates’ strengths and weaknesses. They should also be reviewed for inconsistencies and glaring omissions. Ultimately, resume screening should be guided by your well-written job description.

Use Non-Conventional Interview Techniques

Any candidate worth their salt will come into an interview prepared to answer stock questions like: What is your greatest weakness?

Rather than sit down for a standard interview, a more effective approach to hiring the right person for a job is to take a nonconventional approach. Standing up and getting away from your desk or a conference room table and walking around with your candidate is a unique way to get a better sense of who they are as a professional. When conducting a walking interview, pay attention to how much interest they take in the organization, what kinds of questions they ask and how they interact with your current employees.

Curveball questions like, “What animal would you be?” or “What is the biggest misperception about you,” can put your candidate off-balance and require them to think on their feet, both of which may happen if they are hired for your open position.

 

At Cornerstone, we help our clients locate the best-fit talent for their open positions so they can stay focused on meeting their organizational goals. If your company is currently looking for a talent acquisition partner, please contact us today.


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