The Top 5 Mistakes Employers Make During The Recruitment Process
Written by Nathan Morihovitis, HR Consultant
So, it’s time to hire a new employee. Whether this is your first time recruiting, or your 100th, bringing a new person into your organisation is a big deal.
And while it would be nice to simply snap your fingers and have a dream candidate appear in front of you, unfortunately, the recruitment process isn’t quite that simple.
In fact, finding the right hire requires a large time and resource investment – a luxury that many small and medium business owners simply don’t have. Instead, hiring new employees is commonly based on quick and rational decisions.
So rather than delve into a lengthy analysis of the perfect recruitment process, I want to share some of the common mistakes I see business owners make when hiring a new employee. And most importantly – I’ll show you how to avoid these mistakes and get the most out of your recruitment process, no matter the size of your organisation.
Top 5 Mistakes Business Owners Make When Hiring:
1- Overlooking the importance of reference checking
2- Not making sure the employee is the right cultural fit
3- Rushing the recruitment process
4- Not having a clear job description
5- Offering poor work incentives
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Mistake #1 – Overlooking the importance of reference checking
The first course of action is to understand the importance behind reference checking.
After finding the perfect candidate and interviewing them, I’ve seen many business owners rush to get offers out and quickly ‘seal the deal’. But this comes at a cost – reference checks are an important part of the recruitment process and should not be overlooked.
Why are reference checks so important? We have all been guilty of exaggerating a thing or two on our resume, however some candidates take this to extreme lengths. And whilst sometimes these lies/exaggerations clearly surface in an interview, other times, candidates can be quite clever in the way they falsely present their experiences, qualifications and education.
Reference checks help to validate this important information, ensuring that your new hire is exactly who they say they are. They can also give insight into other weaknesses, strengths, cultural issues and position discrepancies that hadn’t yet been uncovered in the recruitment process.
By skipping this important step, you are opening yourself up to the potential of hiring someone who is unskilled, unexperienced and the wrong fit for your company. It’s a mistake I see time and time again, and it can cost you much more than just time and money.
How to avoid this mistake?
Always conduct reference checks before making an offer and use this process to find red flags and validate important employee information.
I recommend reaching out to a third party, typically someone who has worked with the candidate for an extensive period and can provide context to their employment history and work ethic.
Mistake #2 - Not making sure the employee is the right cultural fit
When making a new hire, some business owners view the process through a black and white lens. Do they have the right qualification? Yes. Do they have experience leading a team? Yes.
But a common mistake I see employers make is not evaluating whether the person is a right cultural fit for the team.
“‘Cultural Fit’ can be defined as the company’s values and beliefs through the collective force of employees, their interactions with management and the overall working environment.”
Let’s break this down even more.
Employees see culture as the character and personality of a business that contributes to the overall ‘vibe’ of the workplace environment. When someone doesn’t fit within this culture, it can lead to feelings of exclusion and isolation – emotions that commonly correlate with new employees leaving their job within the first 12 months.
How to avoid this mistake?
The people you hire shape your culture – personalities, values, goals, experiences, and everyday behaviours, all have an active role to play in setting the tone for your workplace.
When making a new hire, look beyond the typical checklist and analyse whether they will be a good cultural fit for your organisation and goals. You will save yourself and your new employee a lot of grief later down the track.
Mistake #3 – Rushing the Recruitment Process
Let this scenario play out in your head – one of your star employees has just decided to hand in their resignation, totally out of the blue. You now have an unexpected hole in your business that you desperately need to fill. What do you do?
The typical response is to advertise and make a new hire as soon as possible. Corners are cut, but focus is placed on filling the open wound with whatever help is available. This period is seen as the most common time for business owners to make costly hire mistakes.
And while a new hire is made and the gap is ‘filled’, it doesn’t take long for the cost of a rushed recruitment process to surface.
How to avoid this mistake?
First of all, there’s no need to panic! Take your time and don’t let your desperation for a replacement overcome your need for a proper recruitment process.
Some handy steps to get you started:
1. Temporarily fill the role internally
2. Clearly define the role (ask yourself - do we really need this role in the business?)
3. Work with a recruiter
4. Interview more than once
5. Involve others in the process
Mistake #4 – Not having a clear Job Description
It’s not an unfamiliar scenario – you sign up for a new class, or order something online, and it turns out to be completely different to what you expected. How does that make you feel? Frustrated? Annoyed?
Well, that is exactly how new employees feel when they show up to their first day with the wrong expectations, or no clear role direction.
Have a job description ready before making a hiring decision
Many business owners make the mistake of not outlining the tasks and responsibilities for a job prior to hiring. These job descriptions act as a way of communicating performance standards and role expectations. Inaccurate descriptions may not only attract the wrong candidates, but also deter the perfect candidate from applying.
The impact of this is felt short-term and immediately – unclear direction ultimately leads to quick turnover.
How to avoid this mistake?
Take your time and develop a detailed job description prior to hiring. New employees should be clear on their responsibilities and performance expectations well before they start their role.
Don’t leave new starters uncertain or drowning in the deep end.
Mistake #5 – Offering poor work incentives
Ask any job seeker and they will say their number one priority at the moment is finding a job that offers a ‘a hybrid work model’. As touched on in our recent blog ‘HR Trends of 2022’, hybrid work gives the opportunity for employees to work from home for at least one day per week (where physically possible) – a work incentive that is fast becoming an employment deal breaker. If you as a business owner aren’t offering this as a work incentive, you are already falling behind the 8-ball.
Hybrid work isn’t the only incentive job seekers are chasing, and no longer is a steady pay check enough to keep people interested. Employees now want more from their jobs and are prepared to move businesses or disregard offers if their expectations aren’t met.
Examples of poor work incentives I’ve seen include:
No employee reward or recognition
Poor office / working environment
Lack of cultural and work activities
Not offering beneficial services I.e., EAP Services, Training.
How to avoid this mistake?
Work incentives not only keep employees in the business, but they also attract good ones.
Ensure you have valued and unique incentives that match employee expectations. And if you’re not sure what these are – take a look at other organisations within your industry and see what they are offering.
Nobody’s perfect, and everyone makes mistakes. But mistakes made during recruitment can have some pretty costly repercussions.
Don’t let your business end up on a list like this one.
Avoid these mistakes, and you’ll find yourself with a decrease in staff turnover and a collection of successful new hires. That’s a win-win!
CONTACT MELBOURNE HR
If you need assistance making your next hire, contact Melbourne HR for a free consultation and quote.
Nathan Morihovitis is a Full-Time HR Consultant with Melbourne HR
Edited by Nicole Torrington, Marketing Manager at Melbourne HR.