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Hiring for Your Small Business? 4 Things to Keep In Mind
Posted by
sarawellsme
,
08 August 2013
·
1,873 views
hiring for business employment for small business
Small businesses need talent as much as any other company but they don’t usually have the resources to spend on an elaborate headhunting programme.
This, however, does not mean that you should settle for the second best. Hiring should always be taken seriously as it’s the quality of your employees that will take your business forward.
Following are a few things a small business should lay good emphasis on when employing people.
You know the old saying you only get what you pay for?
Unfortunately, it is true. If you want the best talent, and you are thinking of poaching it from well-established companies, be prepared to pay well.
Anybody who is a good mix of talent and experience will want a competitive salary. If not, something is wrong and you should be wary of it. If they do agree to a salary that you know is below par for your market, it could be only a matter of time before this person jumps ship for a better opportunity elsewhere.
Everybody wants to save money, and taking on new personnel is a costly affair, but you have to weigh the costs against the benefits that a person with an impressive CV will bring to your small company.
Give them perks to join you
If you cannot beat a certain salary, make the prospect’s mind lean towards you by offering them perks they might not get elsewhere. Try to arrange a few meetings and gauge what would resonate the most with them. For example, for a married woman with children, the freedom to leave for home an hour early might stick.
For someone else, the freedom to be able to work from home on certain days might become the deciding factor.
Insist on a team fit
Small businesses operate in a close-knit environment and are usually not equipped to deal with the attitude of spoiled prima donnas. Make it very clear at the hiring stage that you expect team players (unless you aren’t). If a star candidate is also rather introverted chances are they will not mix with people much later on, which is fine, as long as they know how to get along with others in a professional capacity.
Do a background check on your employees
This all-important step is surprisingly often overlooked, or carried out rather perfunctorily.
A pre-employment screening can prevent many problems. Employees lying on their CV (even though it is legally a crime) is nothing new, but they know they will get away with it since the majority of the employers in this country do not bother to check the veracity of the claims made in the CV. They don’t even check the references provided by the hired candidates.
Sometimes people lie blatantly on their CVs, other times they embellish the truth. However they do it, you have been lied to.
Other than getting stuck with an incompetent person, there are also possible legal and financial implications of taking a candidate at face value. Having their employees’ backgrounds checked is one step that a small business should not skip in its own long-term interests.
