As your business grows you have to add additional team members – the right team members. 

A clear hiring-and-recruitment process is well-documented. It has well-defined steps to follow each time a new team member needs to be hired. It’s designed to bring in the people who are a perfect fit for the company in general, and for the job in particular.

Recruitment is a component of the Discipline of People, along with leadership and talent development. Taken together, they create stability in your company. 

In recruitment, the perfect fit isn’t so much about technical skills as cultural fit. Skills can always be taught. What’s important is how well a candidate matches the company’s core values and meets the demands of today’s challenging business environment. Good recruitment increases stability because you show by your hiring that your employees aren’t just bodies filling seats, but people fulfilling dreams.

The recruiting process is mostly a test, with the company offering the job to the top scorer in all areas. Candidates respond to an ad by a given date, complete a communication style assessment, and then they answer questions that reveal whether they fit the position and the company’s culture. 

A great recruiting process follows these steps.

Step 1. Review the current position description so we are clear on the role we are looking to fill.

Step 2. Advertise for the position. Advertise like you are advertising for the company. Use the emotional connection to attract the right person. Specify minimum skill requirements and provide an application deadline date. 

Step 3. Review résumés. After the deadline passes, filter out the applicants who don’t meet the minimum experience requirement. 

Step 4. Screen hopefuls by phone. Confirm they possess the minimum skills for the position. Ask a few questions that reveal their fit with the company culture. Use the answers to narrow your list to the top two to four names. 

Step 5. Invite the top candidates to interview at a specific date and time.

Step 6. Ask interviewees to complete the communication assessment profile well in advance of their interview. We recommend the DISC profile. 

Step 7. It is now time for the interview. Here, you sell the applicant to your company first. Tell the company’s story, history, purpose, core values, and direction. Your objective is to wow them.

Step 8. Now that you have sold the applicants on your company, it is time for the applicants to sell themselves. Ask questions that are behavior-based. Avoid “what if” questions. Ask instead questions that start with, “Tell me about a time…” You are looking for a past example of how the candidate exemplified your core values or behavior that is needed for the candidate to be successful in the position they are applying for. 

Step 9. Next, rate the candidate. At least two other company people should be present at each interview. Take notes and rate their response to each question on a scale of one to five. After you’ve completed all the interviews, you’ll use this to review and rank the candidates. 

Step 10. Finally, do a reference check. This is a step most organizations skip. But this is critical in the hiring process. Ask the candidate to set up reference phone conversations.

To conclude, when employers take the time to carefully document their hiring and recruitment process, they create a stable and reliable framework for introducing new team members. This allows them to be confident that each employee is the perfect fit for both the company and the respective job. It’s vital for every business to define its recruitment process and make sure everyone involved understands it. Don’t miss out on opportunities; if your current recruitment process could use some refining or you don’t have one at all, contact us today. We will work with you to develop a comprehensive strategy so you can find and hire excellent employees who best fit your organization’s culture and mission. Don’t wait any longer — take control of your hiring process today!