Hiring new talent can be a challenging process, but It’s an inevitable and crucial part of running a business. Hiring the wrong employee can be expensive, time-consuming, and costly to your work environment, therefore you want to have a good process in place to avoid a bad hire when you can. Setting up a process is more than just reviewing resumes and conducting interviews, in fact it starts well before candidates even begin applying; it starts with the job description.
Conduct a Job Analysis
Many companies will use generic job descriptions that list out responsibilities and requirements, without thinking about the person they want in the role. To write a description that attracts the right people, start by conducting a job analysis that collects information about the responsibilities, necessary skills, desired performance outcomes, and work environment of the job. This covers what you (the hiring manager) expect from the candidate and helps identify exactly what you want.
What Benefits Does this Role Bring the Candidate?
A truly fulfilling career is a two-way street. The candidate performs a service that betters the company, but the company should also be offering something in return to successful employees. Whether it’s career advancement or education opportunities, thinking about what you can bring the person in this role will attract more motivated candidates that better fit the type of person you’re looking for.
Don’t Ignore Company Culture
Culture fit is more important than you might think and should always be a consideration when hiring. Good company culture doesn’t just result in a workforce that enjoys hanging out with each other, but also increased talent, higher retention, increased efficiency and more innovative ideas. As a leader, it’s important to understand you play a vital role in molding the company’s culture with each hire. Consider preferences for the types of people you employ to foster a happy and more productive environment—include this in your job description.
Your job descriptions set the tone for the type of person you’re looking to hire, by describing a roadmap for potential employees. After reading your description candidates should fully understand what job they are applying for, get excited to learn about more opportunity within the company, and feel they will fit with the current culture set by the company.
If you are looking to upgrade your recruitment process with better job descriptions, reach out to Per Sé to get started.