6 Things to Consider When Hiring a New Employee

Hiring a new employee is a very important task and not one that should be taken lightly, especially if you are hiring due to your business expanding. Hiring the wrong person for a job can cost the company a lot of money in training hours and overhead if they are not the right fit for the job. Carefully consider what you need your new employee to do before even submitting the job advertisement.

Have they got a Driving License?

Having a driving licence shows responsibility and it is easy to send them out to run errands for the company. It is also a good way to find out if they have lost their licence due to any criminal activities like DUI or excessive rash driving. If the job involves an element of driving, or they will be in charge of company vehicles during their employment, it is your responsibility to conduct the appropriate driving license checks prior to them being employed.

Basic Skills Assessment

Make sure to give the person a basic skills assessment before they have interviewed for the job. Include word processing skills, basic math skills and the ability to use the programs that they have listed on their resume that are applicable to the office. People do lie on their resumes and it is best to find out before hiring them whether or not they have any basic skills.

Does their personality fit the culture?

One of the most important things in hiring a new employee is their personality. Skills can be taught, personality cannot. Are they respectful to the receptionist and other workers while they are waiting for their interview? Do they anger quickly in the interview if they don’t like the question? If you feel any bad vibes at all during the interview go with your gut and don’t hire the person because most people are on their best behavior during interviews. You don’t want to introduce a potentially volatile personality into your work culture.

Talk to all their references

Create a list of questions for calling references. Listen carefully to the answers that you receive and read between the lines. Former employers may not be able to give the reason why the person left the job but if you listen and probe carefully you can find out whether the person is reliable or not.

Check out their Social Media

People post their whole lives on sites like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Do a quick search to find out that the person checks out to whom they have come across in the interview. If you run into any red flags it is best not to hire that person.

Put effort into the Hiring Process

Create a job description for exactly what you think the job will entail. Assess what you will need your new employee to do. Create a list of questions that pertain to that job description. If you expect the person to do cold calling and they are not comfortable with that it is best to know beforehand. It is best to spend about twenty percent of your interview time asking questions and eighty percent of the interview allowing them to talk. Watch body language closely. Keep in mind that the person will be nervous but watch for any signs that they could be lying or angry about your question.