At the end of the day, there is one thing that truly sits at the heart of your business, and that’s your employees. No matter what, without your employees, your business simply couldn’t function. The right employees can take your ideas as the business owner and turn them into something real and tangible. The very best employees can even create something that you might never have been able even to imagine. The unfortunate flipside of this is that the wrong employees can take even the most promising and successful business and drive it straight into the ground. If your employees aren’t working with the best interests of the business as a whole at heart, then they’re never going to put in the right amount of effort. Not only is this going to do damage to the company but it’s also going to make life far more difficult for your other employees. If someone’s not pulling their weight, then everyone else has to spend that much more time picking up the slack. This means that productivity will take a serious hit and other, more hard-working employees will become angry and resentful. The right employees can make your business better than you’ve ever dreamed, but the wrong ones can end up turning it into a living nightmare. With that in mind, here is the ultimate guide to finding the perfect employees.
Skills
Skills will always be the first factor that most employers consider, and with good reason. Your number one priority should be finding someone who is actually capable of doing the job that they’re applying for. That means that you need to think carefully about what exactly will be required of your employee. Will they need to use any specialized equipment or software? Does this role require large volumes of technical skill? Knowing the answer to these questions will make it much easier to narrow down your list of candidates by eliminating those whose skills don’t meet the criteria. Don’t just think about specific skills, however, remember that a lot of people have a lot of transferable skills as well. If you come across a candidate who doesn’t have as much experience with the specific equipment that your company uses but has a lot of skills that apply to many different areas, consider giving them a chance, they just might surprise you.
Are they compatible with your existing team?
Don’t forget; you’re not just bringing someone into your company to work on their own. There’s a very good chance that anyone you hire will end up working as part of an existing team. This means that you’ve got to think about how well this person is going to fit with the team that you already have. Will their personalities match? Will this person bring something to the table that isn’t already there? You should also remember that your team includes you. Make sure to ask yourself, “how well does this person gel with your own personality?” After all, they’re going to need to be taking orders from you, and if they can’t do that, then there’s going to be a problem.
Do they have the potential for growth?
You don’t just want to hire someone who’s going to clock in, do the bare minimum and then walk away at the end of the day. For your business to be great, then your employees need to be able to give one-hundred percent. Part of that comes from people being ambitious and having the drive to grow and progress within their role. The right candidate should be someone who is interested in growing their skills and experience as part of your company. Ask candidates what their plans are for the next five to ten years. Try to figure out if you can see them as a part of your business and if their plan fits into that. It might seem like that’s looking too far into the future, but when you’re running a business, there’s no such thing as looking too far ahead. This is also a great way to figuring out how committed someone is going to be to your business. If you’re looking to invest time and money in your staff, then you don’t want to waste that time and money on someone who’s just passing through. Instead, you want to find people who you can mold and support as they develop.
Don’t take anyone at their word
This might seem like it’s not putting much trust in your employees, but it’s vital that you verify any information given to you. If you’re interviewing a candidate, then there’s a pretty good chance that they want the job you’re offering. And that means that there’s also a chance that they’ll say just about anything to make sure that they get it. People will often exaggerate things, hide others, and sometimes they’ll even downright lie. Before you offer anyone a position in your business, then you need to make sure to contact any previous employers to find out what they have to say. You should also use tracing agents to find out any information that your prospective employee may have tried to keep secret. Nine times out of ten, you’ll find that they were just as great a candidate as they appeared to be, but this extra bit of caution is well worth avoiding getting stuck with someone who’s going to be nothing but a drain on your business.
In the end, the responsibility for how hard they work comes down to the individual employees, but being able to choose the right people for the job will always come down to you. If you’re not careful when selecting the right people to become a part of your company, then you could well be in for a rather nasty surprise.
