How to hire the right employee part 1: how to recruit

School’s out for summer and hiring season is upon us.

Depending on the position you’re looking to fill and the size of your company, hiring the right employee can take anywhere from 30 to 90 days. We’re breaking this process down for you in a series of three blog posts:

1. How to Recruit
2. How to Interview
3. How to Select 

Follow along to ensure your hiring process goes as smoothly as possible. Remember, taking your time and hiring right the first time is beneficial to you and your company in the long run. The average cost of a bad hiring decision can equal 30 per cent of that employee’s first-year potential earnings.

How to Recruit

Step 1 – Determine the Need

Before you begin the hiring process, it’s important to determine the need for the position. This will help you write the job description.

Step 2 – Prepare a Job Description

Conduct a job analysis for the position. This will help you collect information about the duties, responsibilities, necessary skills, outcomes, and work environment for a particular job. Make sure to involve employees who know the job and what is needed for the position.
The information from the job analysis will help you develop the job description, which will assist you in planning your recruitment strategy for hiring the right person.

Step 3 – Schedule a Recruitment Meeting

This meeting provides an opportunity to collaborate with others who will be involved in the hiring process – it could include human resources, department managers, or other employees who might provide meaningful input regarding the new hire.

At the meeting, make sure to review the job description and make any necessary changes. As well, rank the qualities that everyone agrees are the most important for the new hire to possess – special qualifications, traits, characteristics, education, and experience. Ranking these qualities will be helpful when it comes time to prepare the job posting.

Step 4 – Post the Job

There are a number of different ways to advertise a job posting – determine the best ways based on the specific job opportunity and the candidates you’re looking to reach. Here are some options:

• Internal communications
• Company website
• Social media
• Employee referrals
• College and university job portals
• Job recruitment websites
• Professional associations
• Agency job boards
• Blogs

Try not to miss any opportunities to post where job seekers and recruiters are active – for example, social media networks like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter. As well, referrals can be one of the most useful ways to find prospective employees. Have your employees spread the word when networking with friends and associates. Job recruitment websites, like indeed.ca or workopolis.com, function as search engines for jobs that drive searchers directly to jobs on corporate websites, making them an effective tool.

After successfully posting your job opportunity, it’s time to wait for applications to come in.

Watch for Part 2 of this series tomorrow – How to Interview.