Hiring The Right Candidate Tips

Businesses worldwide spend a lot of time and resources searching for the right candidate to join their workforce. It’s easy to find an employee, but you are looking for more than that. You’re looking for someone to be a part of your company, someone who is dedicated, not just another number who mindlessly punches in and out each day. You want an employee who is invested in your company, a person who comes to work with passion and commitment every day. Is that even possible? We believe so.

5 Tips for Finding the Right Candidate

1. Focus on Accomplishments During the Interview

Just because an applicant’s work experience doesn’t show a direct relation to the job description doesn’t mean that they wouldn’t be an excellent fit for the role. Take the time to learn about his or her achievements at past companies and how they accomplished them. A person who can make a positive impact in their work environment can be more valuable than someone who may require less training.

2. Don’t Hold Biases From Past Employees

It’s easy to let your feelings about a previous worker influence your hiring decisions. A new candidate might remind you of an employee that didn’t work out very well, whether it was their poor work ethic or their personality didn’t quite fit with the company. Remember, this is an entirely different person with unique views and skillsets.

3. Look for Candidates Who Have Conquered Challenges

It’s hard to judge someone by glancing at a resume. For example, let’s look at two college students. Student A has a 4.0 GPA from a great university, but limited work experience. Student B graduated with a 3.5 GPA from a lesser-known school, but looking at their resume more, you find out that they worked two jobs while they were going to college. Student B has already proven that he or she is motivated and driven to succeed.

4. Look for Motivation, Attitude, and Work Ethic

There are not any three criteria more important than these. For your new hire and your current employees, these attributes can make or break a positive workplace. You are looking for motivated people; they will strive to succeed while bettering themselves and the company. Attitude is equally essential; good employees should get along with each other and with management. Candidates with a proud work ethic will show up on time and perform to the best of their abilities every day.

5. Add Screening Tests to Your Hiring Process

There is no one-size-fits-all application for finding the perfect match. Offering short tests during the interview process can help determine someone’s competency in the department that they want to work. This can weed out the “fake it ‘til you make it” applicants. Almost any role that you are hiring for can take advantage of this tip; imagine hiring a writer without knowing if they can write well, or hiring a computer programmer without knowing if they have adequate coding knowledge.

How Do Employers Choose the Right Candidate?

After pre-screening and interviewing hundreds of potential employees, how do you narrow the list down to a chosen few? It’s not an easy task, that’s for sure. There are a few things to look out for to help weed out bad fits for your company and find the good ones.

Are They Willing to Learn?

You want someone who not only wants to learn but loves to learn. The prospective employee should be curious and genuinely interested in the open role at your company. These candidates can quickly become valuable assets to your team by continually expanding their skillsets and knowledge. They will also gain the ability to grow within your company and fulfill future high-level positions. It is much more challenging to teach someone who is not looking to learn new things.

What Questions Do They Ask?

As a possible future member of your team, every candidate you consider should have an interest in your company. If they are truly enthusiastic about the opportunity that you have to offer, you can expect them to ask questions about your company, its culture, and a more in-depth description of the job to which they are applying. Questions like these can help you gauge their interest in working for you. It can also give you a small insight into the way that the person thinks.

How Do Your Current Employees Feel?

We are all well aware of the fact that the interview doesn’t actually begin or end with a potential candidate sitting in an office with the interviewer. It starts the moment an applicant sets foot on company property and finishes once they drive away. Talk to your employees and see what kind of impressions they got from interacting with them. Ask your receptionist how he or she was treated when the new candidate walked into the office. If they got a tour before or after the formal interview, how did they react to the environment? The applicant probably had brief interactions with many of your employees while they were on the property.

What Does Their Body Language Say?

It can be difficult to tell if a candidate is lying to your face during an interview, but it’s a lot harder for them to hide their body language. Every single body movement someone makes can give away information that you may never notice otherwise. Are they sitting up straight or lounging in their chair? Are their legs crossed or open? Is the candidate uncomfortable with eye contact or nervous about handshakes? Do they gesture with their arms and hands while talking or sit completely still? Does he or she fidget with their hair or glasses? All of these little things can help you learn more about someone’s personality.

What Are Their Passions?

The passion itself doesn’t matter too much most of the time; it’s more about the fact that the applicant shows that they can be passionate about the things that they enjoy. Work some casual conversation into the interview; this not only helps the candidate relax (just about everyone gets nervous during an interview), but can allow you to find out more about their personality. Keep an eye out for passionate people that aren’t afraid to speak up about their likes, dislikes, hopes, and dreams.

Job Requirements: How to Find the Right Candidate

Finding the right candidate requires time and dedication, and it is not usually an easy task. You want your new employee to be ambitious and knowledgeable. Most importantly, when hiring a new team member, you want someone who is invested in your company and wants to help you grow and much as they want to better themselves.

There’s no point in hiring a new employee if they aren’t willing to make a long-term commitment to your business. There are many jobs and even more potential workers in the world today. Are you ready to find the right candidate? Reach out to Markpointe now!