As your business grows, your client base and product offerings will grow as well. To manage resources, you will inevitably need to bring on more people to cope with the growth. However, many companies hire new employees without taking the time to think about this big decision.
Here are four things to consider before you hire that new employee.
1. Do You Need to Hire a New Employee? Do You Have the Means To?
Let’s say you have a task to complete but not enough resources to do it. You may consider bringing on extra help, but you have more options at your disposal regarding hiring assistance.
Before you put out an ad for a new hire, ask yourself: Do you need a full-time employee to complete this task? Or can you offload it to another existing employee, especially if it’s a short-term task? Consider the resources you already have before deciding to hire someone new.
If you have no way around your need of hiring a new employee, you should still consider if you have the means to afford it. New businesses may not have the financial means to support another employee, particularly when you include benefits, unemployment, paid time off, and more. Take the time to run numbers and confirm you won’t put yourself in a financial hole by hiring someone new.
2. Do You Have a Clear Job Description?
Vague job descriptions are an organization’s kryptonite. You’re attracting unqualified candidates because they have no idea what the job is. You’re also wasting company time sifting through resumes of people who aren’t qualified. Even if you assign the task of checking candidate resumes to someone else, it wastes their time and resources to send unqualified applicants your way. Wasted time = Wasted money.
Make sure your job description is crystal clear, so you’re attracting only the most qualified candidates. You don’t want to hire and spend time training someone only for them to quit because their expectations weren’t clear. If your job description is clear and transparent, you’ll attract qualified candidates that are worth the time and money.
3. Can You Weed Out Good & Bad Hires?
If you know you need a new employee, you should consider the difference between a good and a bad one. Before you start interviewing people, identify what makes or breaks the ideal candidate. Get second opinions from your management staff and others who will be working with them. You should also be checking references, even if you feel you don’t need to.
Of course, the obvious: Perform background checks on candidates, even if they won’t be handling sensitive information or you feel you don’t need to. If you’re hiring multiple new employees, it helps to get a bulk background to screen many potential employees at once. For instance, you can get bulk background checks at ScoutLogic for a discounted price. Take the time to perform a 360-degree check, so you know who you’ll be hiring before you hire them.
4. How Will You Onboard a New Employee?
Finally, once you’ve decided on a new hire, you need to consider the onboarding process. There are tools you can use to streamline the onboarding process. However, you still need a trainer to oversee and integrate the new employee.
Take the time to figure out who will be assisting the new hire with the onboarding process. Consider the onboarding method as well: Will the new hire watch videos, or will they have hands-on supervised experiences? Know how you’ll integrate and train the new employee before bringing them on for their first day.
Final Thoughts
Bringing on new employees can be intimidating, especially if you’re not sure what to expect. With these tips, you’ll evaluate your needs efficiently and confidently bring on new members of your team.