Hire Right the First Time
Probably the most important decision that you make as a hiring manager is hiring the right person for the right job. The consequences of your decision are immediate and long-lasting. The right person makes money for your business and the wrong person costs your company, sometimes heavily.
We make hires to improve productivity and increase profitability, yet, based on studies, only 16 percent of employees actually make money for their hiring companies. How can you improve the odds that you make a good hire?
First, don’t hire the first person you interview right off the bat. It is important to find compare three to four finalists before making a decision. Doing due diligence increases the odds you’ll make a more appropriate hire. Having an appropriate interview process in place can improve your chances of ruling out those who may be less reliable, less motivated, or less productive. You want to avoid hiring the workplace survivor which is someone that just gets by with minimum effort. Someone like that is not worth the money you put out and in time, might cost your company 2 to 3 times your investment, in terms of training and replacements.
Here are some thoughts to remember before you extend an offer to a candidate you’re not feeling certain about.
- The turnover costs to your company will be around $10K for an entry-level position and up to $150K for an executive position, and that is for each person who quits or is terminated. You can avoid this payroll cost by hiring the right person the first time.
- Inept employees drain company resources such as time, energy, satisfaction, productivity, and more. This turns into a costly affair for the hiring company over a period of time.
- Hiring the wrong person can increase unnecessary lawsuits that the hiring company has to face. Your employee’s actions make you liable for a lawsuit, whether or not you had anything to do with it.
Not all wrong hiring decisions give rise to such drastic costs. Still, the effects of a wrong hire can linger for years and act as a slow poison in your organization and within your teams. If you struggle with your hiring and want to have a better selection of talent to choose from and professional guidance in making those critical decisions, you should consider enlisting a professional search firm. A strong recruitment partner can help determine the strategy required to deliver on the results you are looking for and help you prevent those costly hiring mistakes.
What has been the worst hiring decision you’ve ever made? No names here, but how did that decision impact you or your company?