Finding the right people to support your business is a difficult task. Applicants who seem like a perfect fit on paper may perform poorly once they’re in the role, and even more frustrating are team members who excel in the position but suddenly decide to leave your company after just a short time.
If this sounds like you, it’s time to change your interview process.
In last week’s blog, we looked at three interview techniques to find the right people for your company. This week, I’m covering more unique hiring methods to help you find and keep the best help for your business.
Use Behavioral Assessments to Find the Right Fit for the Role
No one has a crystal ball to know exactly how an applicant will fit in a role and within your company, but thanks to a number of online behavioral assessments, you can get a pretty good idea of whether they’ll be a good fit based on their personality profile.
If you think you’ve found a person or two who would be an excellent fit for the role, ask them to take the DISC profile assessment or Kolbe Index personality test. Each assessment only takes 30 minutes or less to complete and can provide you with a detailed analysis of the applicant’s personality, leadership style, communication style, and preferred types of work assignments. You would pay for these tests on their behalf.
Compare the applicant’s personality assessment against the role they’re applying for to see if they align. Is the candidate a bubbly people-person or a quiet math genius? Does their personality match that of someone who would excel on the phone or who would be better suited to project management in the background?
If you have multiple staff members, have each member complete an assessment to help you build a team that isn’t just compatible on the surface, but shares truly compatible personality traits deep within. You can also use these assessments to gauge where your team is lacking in certain beneficial traits such as someone with stronger leadership skills or someone who is more comfortable disagreeing with someone else’s ideas. Best of all, learning to adapt to each other’s preferred work and communication styles leads to a more harmonious work environment.
Give Them and Your Team a Trial Run
Let your team be the final judge. If you already have other employees, they’ll be the ones who will be working with the applicant most of the time.
Introduce the applicant to the team before their first day and let your team members give you their initial impressions of the applicant. If you’re hiring your very first employee, give the applicant a tour of your company to gauge their interest in the day-to-day operations of your business, even if it isn’t directly related to what they’ll be doing for you.
If all goes well, offer to hire the candidate on a trial basis. This trial could be 30 to 90 days depending on the learning curve necessary for the job and the amount of training you want to invest in the candidate before the trial period ends. Put the trial employment agreement in writing with clear terms that the position may end at any time if either side feels the working relationship isn’t a good fit.
By offering a trial period of employment, you give yourself a way to observe the applicant in the role over a period of time – time that’s needed in order to see their genuine personality on the job, how they interact with your team and your clients, and initial hints at their performance without investing too much expense at this stage.
This also gives the applicant a chance to try out the position for themselves and discover whether or not they truly enjoy the work once they’re in the role. You want to find someone you love for the job, but it’s just as important that you find a team member who is equally excited and fulfilled by the work they do for you.
If you find that the person you hired isn’t a good fit (and if you followed my process, this is unlikely!), you can simply notify them that you don’t believe they are the right match for the role and provide any reasons if you feel it necessary.
Get Trusted Business and Hiring Guidance
Hiring team members is the key to growing your business while allowing you to spend less time in your company and more time doing the things you love. But finding the right people can be a difficult challenge, and making the wrong hiring decision will cost you and your business significant time and money.
As your Creative Business Consultant, I know the challenges small business owners face when trying to hire. I also know that hiring an employee isn’t just about hiring another set of hands. The person you hire will essentially become a part of your company family, so you want to make sure the person you choose is aligned with your company goals and culture and can see themselves invested in the growth of your business for the long haul.
If you aren’t sure how to hire your next team member or are struggling to develop an interview system that matches you with your ideal candidates, let’s talk. Together, we can create a plan to find the help you need and build a lasting team that will feel like a second family.
To learn more, schedule a free 15-minute call at the link below.
