The Hiring Process, Part I: What to Look for When Hiring

This post is part I of a three-part series about hiring. Over the coming weeks, we’ll cover several different aspects of the hiring process, from what to look for when hiring, to how hiring affects your business, and what an interviewee can do to stand out from the rest.

The hiring process may seem to be a tedious task on the surface, but having a driven, dependable team of workers is the best way to invest in your business. So how should you go about finding the right candidate for the job?

We’ve read it before: the top traits to look for in a potential employee; the questions to ask; and the key words to look for on resumes. These are all important things to keep in mind, but hopefully, you will have multiple candidates to choose from who all possess good traits, good skills, and know how to answer the tough interview questions. When this happens, how do you choose which candidate to hire?

Here are a few things to consider when hiring:

• Pay special attention to the first impression: Does the candidate present him/herself as a professional? Professionalism can be measured by the clothing a candidate wears, his/her handshake, and even the way a person stands and carries him/herself. Not only are these things a sign of professionalism, they are also an indicator of confidence. Looking for a confident, professional candidate, sounds basic, but it is overlooked; confidence ranks highest on the list of skills that companies think employees are missing most.
• Be specific with your questions: A good candidate will have researched your business before the interview, and will likely have a good idea of what typical questions to expect. Don’t be afraid to ask tougher, more targeted questions. You can always ask the candidate to be more specific with their answers. Nathanial Koloc has some excellent tips on how to uncover certain traits of your candidates by asking more pointed questions.
• Can you see this candidate as part of your business? This might be the toughest question you have to ask yourself. It’s hard to judge whether or not a candidate will fit in based solely on an interview, but that is crucial to the hiring process. Was the candidate sociable? As Victor Lipman suggests in an article on Forbes.com, the importance of a candidate’s cultural fit shouldn’t be underestimated. Talented people sometimes don’t work out simply because their personal style clashes with the business’ expectations.

Hiring can be a difficult process, but it’s important to remember the end goal: finding someone who will strengthen your business and will be an integral part of your team.

Be sure to check back next week for the second post in the series. Have any questions or comments about anything we discussed today? Feel free to contact us via the contact page of our site, or on Twitter or LinkedIn. We’d love to hear from you.

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