Friday, October 9, 2015

Hiring Employees for Your Business

One of the hardest things I ever had to do when I owned a business was hiring and interviewing an employee. A lot will depend upon the type of job you are hiring someone to do, what qualifications they need, and how you feel they will fit into the position.

One of the things I found for the three types of businesses I owned were to hire, almost everyone who came through the door, and find out what type of employee they were after I hired them. I hired for general labor type position for the businesses I owned. Although, I have hired for corporate positions as well. You can’t tell from a resume or application what the person you are hiring is like. Everybody makes their resume look good and that is what a resume is supposed to do. Present you to a prospective employer like you will fit the position well, and make you look your best. An applications isn’t quite as easy to make yourself shine in, as in a resume, but it still does nothing but give minor details about you.

Interviewing an applicant will give you a better idea of what that person is like but it is still impossible to determine how they will fit your position, what kind of a worker they are, and whether they are really someone you want to have working for you.

Again, during an interview, they will obviously put their best foot forward in hopes of getting a job with you that is why; I always tell any prospective hire that there will be a probation period of at least one month. That way, you will have time to train them as to their duties and responsibilities, and hopefully,enough time to determine whether they are good dependable workers who are capable of learning to do the job. I seldom allowed their personality to play much of a part in their employment, as long as they were capable. And even if I found a personality clash between us, I could usually deal with it if they were good at their job. There were times however that personality did have a bearing on their employment. I often found that, if there were any personality traits I had trouble dealing with, it was in both of our best interests to go our separate ways. This was usually a mutually agreed upon course of action.

I have had an occasion to eliminate someone from employment who was not as open to the idea that he was not a good fit for the job, as I was sure he wasn’t. That is the probation period. A few problem employees have slipped by, but they were usually detected within the first 30-90 days.

So my suggestion is to hire a person and give them at least 30 days, if they pass muster during the interview. Less than thirty days may not give you enough time to train them and evaluate their work, their work ethic, and how their attendance may be.

Hiring people for any general labor job is pretty much a crap shoot unless specific talents or training are required. Often, it is better to hire in numbers if possible and keep the best of the new hires. You must decide how detailed their knowledge and dedication to their job must be. Are they looking for a temporary, long term job or career? Each type of job may require you to hire in a different way. Someone who is looking for a career will obviously have some training and likely some experience, or at least an education along those lines, whereas a day laborer would be someone with little or no training, and no plans to work beyond a short term.

Sometimes, setting requirements high will be beneficial. Sometimes, it may be detrimental to your cause. Determine the need before attempting to hire. It will make your job easier.

No comments:

Post a Comment