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ABOUT THIS PODCAST EPISODE:

As employers, our hiring processes need to be revamped and, as job seekers, we need a major overhaul on how we search for and ultimately select the jobs we accept.

 

The rate of voluntary separations (employees quitting their jobs) according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics latest figures in July 2016, over 50% of the separations that occurred in June 2016 were voluntary.  A workplacetrends.com survey conducted in 2015 found that 1 in 3 workers had hoped to leave their current job within 6 months.   According to the Society for HR Management (SHRM) they calculate the average cost per hire to be $4,129 - we think it’s MUCH higher than this, and here’s why:

 

Every time we don’t hire the right person, for the right position for the right reason and in the right way…it costs both the employer and the new hire BIG TIME! There are many costs involved which include; direct costs such as recruiting for the position, salary, benefits, relocation, training, taxes and severance.  Then there are the indirect costs which include; the time used in the recruitment search and selection process, lost opportunities, client relationships, lost productivity, and the impact on employee morale.

 

What about the intangible cost of mindshare?  The stress the employer endures when they realize after all of the time spent on the hiring process, (not to mention the direct and indirect costs) they are frustrated and have to deal with the consequences of starting the process all over again.

 

Let’s not discount the effect of a bad hire on the cost of the morale of the existing team.  They’ve been waiting for a new hire to join the team and help with their workload.  So, every time a new hire starts, there is usually genuine excitement for the department/team and the enthusiasm for the new hire is palpable.  However, if it was a bad hire, and that new hire voluntarily leaves or gets fired, more time passes to find the next new addition/hire.  And, as this starts to occur over and over again, at some point a new hire isn’t fully welcomed into the department/team.  The desire to go out of one’s way to help someone who will most likely quit or get fired, based on previous experience, practically creates a self-fulfilling prophecy.  And, all the while, nobody is looking at the hiring process more scrupulously and more strategically!

 

Some statistics about the habits you will see when a bad hiring choice was made; 63% fail to produce the proper quality of work. 63% fail to work well with other employees because they have negative attitudes about where they are and what they are doing. 56% show immediate problems with attendance, and 49% cause customer complaints.

 

There is a massive need to fix the hiring “recipe for disaster”.  Employers must transform the hiring process from a reactive game into a proactive offensive strategy.  Typically, when an employer recognizes they have a hiring need, it’s too late.  They need to hire someone NOW!  Process isn’t defined, or followed. Often inundated with resumes from job seekers, the time needed to truly vet a candidate is limited, at best.  Here are some recommendations for employers to get proactive and strategic in their hiring processes:

 

• Employers should be defining and evaluating their goals, and trends in their industry in advance of starting a new hire search. Hiring well requires good planning.
• Employers should be in-tune with their unique business culture. Know who’s riding on your bus, today.  Who succeeds in your company, department and why do they succeed?  Use this data in your selection process.
• Bring science and objectivity into your hiring process by taking advantage of the many pre-employment assessments available to assess a wide array of traits and characteristics including; preferred environment, temperament, decision making style, motivational factors, behavior under stress and more.
• Use what you KNOW about who you have and what you need to drastically reduce potential turnover going forward with a potential bad hire.
• Establish, communicate & document your best practices in the hiring process and if your already have done that, when was the last time they were updated?
• Do your homework vis-à-vis comparative salaries; there is a lot of perceived talent available in today’s market, don’t fool yourself into thinking you can “get the best for less”.
• Don’t stray and get distracted when discovering things in common with the candidate you are interviewing.
• Let the candidate speak the majority of the time
• Develop reality based job descriptions – and have the people doing the job actually have input! Let them update the job descriptions – after all – who knows better?  You, the employer or the person actually doing the job?

 

And, here are some recommendations for job seekers:

 

• Don’t apply to jobs that you are over qualified for or under qualified for
• Know yourself! The more self-aware you are about who you are as a person…the better you will know what questions to ask about the culture of the company
• Ask very detailed and specific questions about the position you are applying for
• Don’t fool yourself that a position and/or company is right for you just because you need a job. Starting in the wrong place will have you looking for a new position soon thereafter!
• Don’t exaggerate your skills and/or experience. Doing so won’t help you if you do get hired!
• Come prepared with real questions about the culture of the organization. Is this a place that you are going to be happy in, and succeed in?

 

There’s so much more we can write about on this topic….and we probably will!  Let’s squash the cost of a bad hire and low employee engagement issues by starting with revamping our hiring processes and job search skills before we say “I do”.