Small Biz Series: 10 Essentials in Hiring Reliable Employees

Hiring employees to be part of your business is like a drafting in NBA or even NFL. From strategic-thinking coaching staff to power players, the screening is ruthless.

For small to medium-scale businesses, finding very reliable employees can be very daunting and challenging at the same time. Because if given the chance, they would rather play for Spurs or Heat instead of LA Clippers. Because almost all fresh graduates and experienced professionals aims for big, multinational companies.

The idea of power and glamour of a corporate lifestyle as popularized in movies like Boiler Room, Devil’s Advocate, and even Godfather remains incredible appealing.

The idea of working for a small group of talented and dynamic individuals comes second. For this reason, small businesses must exert extra efforts if they want to get exceedingly reliable employees! Otherwise, it will surely be a waste of time and resources - two equally good reasons to consider.

There are 10 things I consider vital in hiring for small businesses.

1. Detailed job description. Know what you want and set your expectations as explicitly as possible. Create the impression that you mean business and assurance that they applicants come to the right place for their future. Learn to prioritize duties and responsibilities so you can easily screen and shortlist promising applicants.

2. Post ads to relevant sites/media. Once you have created a detailed job description, the next important consideration is the medium of communication – where you like to place your ads. In the early days, the job market section in newspapers is the mainstream channel. The advent of Internet has created more channels to communicate to your candidates like Monster.com and Craigslist.org. Mind the sections, locations, and segmentations in these Websites. If you are looking for writers, use the section called “writing jobs” and “marketing jobs” for marketing or sales-related application. If not, you will attract candidates not fit to fill up the much needed positions.

3. Screen, screen, and screen! In most cases, you will be overwhelmed with too much applications ranging from hundreds to even thousands. The problem, though, is you only need 2! Scrutinize each cover letter/resume thoroughly and match it with the qualifications you set in your description. At the end of the day, you will discard more than half of applications.

4. Interview like a vampire. A resume is just a starting point to get your qualified candidates. Now it’s time to grill them and test their potential and fit to your company. Some interviewers prefer hardball, intimidation method while others use a friendly approach. Learn to mix both methods so you can easily gauge quick thinking and poise under duress. As much possible, avoid cliché questions and focus more on results-orientation aspect.

5. Market your Small Company. Most small companies view themselves as highly attractive organizations and applicants will beg just to be part of their team. As mentioned above, this is not the case. Don’t make the same mistake by trying to be a walking PR agency for your company. Highlight what your company can offer vis-à-vis competition and other industries. It can be empowerment, better compensation (not always applicable), or cozy working environment where their opinion and insights are given attention all the time.

6. Conduct IQ and personality tests. Gauge their mental acuity and emotional psychology using different battery tests and role-playing situations. Some companies use this as their screening process while others to simply know more about a particular candidate. If you ask me, I prefer the latter because attitude is always better than aptitude.

7. Check references. Interviews and resumes are similar to dating – always best foot forward. You hype your strengths and hide your weaknesses. Some will even claim they invented Post It while others falsify transcript of records! Contacting these references is a good way to validate these claims and fully understand the behavior and role of a candidate in the accomplishment of tasks.

8. Background check. References, while valid, can also be somewhat biased. Of course, you will always use those people who see the good in you, no matter how incompetent or unprofessional a candidate is. Background check is a higher step to gain more knowledge about the candidate. Make this a standard for those highly sensitive positions like Accounting, finance, or strategic corporate planning department.

9. Outsource to HR agencies. Most owners of small businesses are not highly trained to be a HR recruiter and might be very subjective in their selection process, a costly mistake for the company. If neither have the expertise nor time to do it in-house, I suggest you team up with headhunters to help you find the reliable employees to fill your vacant positions. Remember, it is commission-based so be prepared to haggle with these agencies to get a better deal.

10. Be open to suggestions. In some cases you will find highly qualified candidates but disagree with your terms and salary package. Do not burn the negotiations right away and seek to compromise as long as reasonable. Hiring is like a game of poker, sometimes you have to bluff and sometimes you have to fold to get the most out of your bets. Who knows, these applicants may just be bluffing!