The job scenario today has become extremely competitive. There are several candidates graduating each year and picking the creamy layer from each lot is really no easy task. It is tough to find the ideal candidate from the lot. The number of resumes that rush in as soon as you post an ad, pose the first challenge of identifying the worthy candidates and calling them for the first round of interview.
After that, there are many rounds of interview and tests after which you can conclude who is the best candidate for the current vacancy. This whole process is not as easy as it seems and only people who put in efforts and analyze can become really good recruiters. Read to know the many different stages of the whole recruitment and selection process and the challenges faced in each stage by the recruiters. The following mentioned are few tips on hiring the right employee and they are.
Tips for Recruiting or Hiring the Right Employee:
Shortlisting Resume of Eligible Candidates:
This is really the toughest task in the recruiter’s job profile. This is because there are countless aspirants who drop their resume each day. Apart from that, there are also resumes from different job portals like Wisestep, Naukri, Careesma, Shine and Monster. When there are so many resumes that drop into your inbox, picking the most suitable one can really be tough.
In case of resumes from job portals, you may have all in the same format and picking the best one can really be tough. This is one challenge most recruiters do not know how to deal with. Here are some simple ways to deal with this challenge:
Create a checklist of what attributes you are looking for in the candidate. This may be a long checklist which includes factors and qualities of a good employee, like
- Leadership skills
- MBA
- Engineer
- Knowledge of Computer
- Active on Social Media
- Willing to travel
- Negotiator
- Team Player
- Loyal
- Reliable
- Good Learner
Now, you need to compare how many of the qualities mentioned in the checklist match with the candidate resumes. It will help you get rid of the most irrelevant resumes and pick just the close matches. This will reduce the number of resumes you have from a hundred to just ten.
How to Interview the Right Employee?
The following mentioned are few tips on how to interview employees and they are
Preparing an Interview Schedule for the Particular Job Position:
You are aware of the job position for which there is a vacancy. So you need to prepare an interview schedule for this job position. While preparing the interview schedule, make sure you keep in mind the number of candidates to be interviewed in a day. Once you know the count, you may allocate time accordingly.
You must also consider some extra time for any kind of emergency or any kind of unexpected delays.
You also need to decide the number of questions you are going to ask each candidate. This will help you allocate some specific time for each candidate to answer each of the questions. It will also help you plan the whole interview process properly.
Some interviewers enjoy taking a rapid fire round in the interview. In such cases, the time allocated to answer each question is much less than in other occasions.
Deciding the Interview Questions Be Asked in Different Rounds of the Interview:
This is another challenging task for most recruiting heads. They need to prepare an ideal questionnaire that will help to perfectly gauge the candidate and pick the most eligible candidate for the vacant position. The number of job portals and websites that give out the most probable questions for interviews and ways to answer them have made it really tough for recruiters to come up with some unique and tricky questions.
There are some questions that are commonly asked in all the interviews in some form or the other. These could be questions relating to your qualifications, your personal interests, your skills and your knowledge base. Here we have made a list of few common questions that every candidate should expect in his interview:
- Are you a good leader?
- Why do you wish to join our firm?
- Where do you see yourself in five years?
- Are you a good negotiator?
- What is your salary expectation and why?
- Are you a good team player?
- Do you think you are good at planning and organizing?
- Would you be willing to handle a traveling job profile?
- Are you ambitious?
- Would you be willing to work odd hours?
- What are your core competencies?
- What is your greatest strength?
- What is your one weakness that you wish to get over?
- What is your weakness that is not your strength?
Evaluate Answers of Each Candidate:
The job selection process does not end at just asking questions to candidates. In fact, that is really just the beginning. After you have asked the questions, you need to evaluate the potential of the candidate based on the answers they have provided. This will help you gauge whether the candidate is an ideal choice to take up the role that is vacant in your firm. There are many different factors based on which you can evaluate a candidate’s answer. Here are some simple tips to assist you with the ordeal.
Check whether the candidate is providing a genuine answer or a standard answer that he may have read in one of the job portals. You can make out this by the way he answers the question. A person who hears the question thinks for a while and then answers won’t be abrupt. His answer may not be perfectly well phrased. On the contrary, a person who has mugged answers to the most probable questions is sure to be quick, abrupt and perfectly worded. This is one great tip to help you evaluate answers by candidates.
You can also check whether the candidate is providing a general answer that suits any question of the sort or whether he is answering keeping himself in a picture. If he is providing a general answer, it may not be something he has thought of. People who think and answer usually keep themselves in the picture.
Check The Requirements of the Company:
Recruiters may pick the brightest candidate but if he is not a right fit for the company, it is really of no use. So, you need to clearly know what exactly the company is seeking. Then it will be easier for you to choose the ideal candidate for the firm or the organisation. The requirements could be different for different job positions. Here we have mentioned a few examples for your reference.
If the company is processing a hiring process for a sales candidate, they will look for someone who is ambitious, adheres to deadlines, has a good rapport with clients, targets higher profits and knows about the market trends. Such a candidate will be in a position to sell better and get more profits for the company. While a candidate who has good knowledge of computers is surely well qualified, he is not the ideal pick for such kind of role. It is thus important to understand what the company is seeking.
Another example is if an SEO company is looking for a web content writer, the ideal qualities in the candidate would be to come up with interesting ideas for content creation, develop content revolving around targeted keywords, knowledge of basic on-page SEO and ability to create unique content. While good negotiation skills could be a great ability, that is not what the companies seek in content writers.
Proper knowledge of what the company wants from the candidate helps you to pick the ideal candidate. If you pick a wrong candidate, the company will suffer a big loss. Hence, the role of a recruiter is really significant.
How to Select the Right Employee?
The following mentioned are few tips on how to hire employees and they are
Pick a Candidate:
The last and yet the toughest task is sure before hiring the right employee or best candidate. There is another vital factor you need to consider when you finally pick a candidate. It is the budget of the firm or the organization and the salary expectation of the candidate. At times, it can be difficult to strike a balance between these two vital factors.
You need to ensure that the candidate’s salary expectation is fulfilled so that the candidate is satisfied and stays longer with the firm. Yet, you also need to be aware of the company’s budget and make sure the salary is within the company’s affordability limits.
Candidates who seek a job also look for growth opportunities. If they do not find ample growth opportunity in your firm, they may seek better opportunities and you may just lose a valuable candidate. Hence make sure you pick a candidate who has a chance to grow in the firm.
The responsibility of a recruiter is very great. He handles the whole interview and employee selection process. The company has to bear the expenses of the whole employee recruitment process and hence it is always affordable to pick the right candidates in the beginning itself. Hiring the right employee is usually an art which few recruiters possess.