How to recruit the right people

Now the festive period is over and we are settling into 2018, many business owners are thinking about how to grow their company over the next 12 months. It is not uncommon to see a rise in recruitment activity during the first quarter of the year as organisations focus on building their team and moving their business forward.

If you are looking at expanding your team this year, then put some time into the planning stage to ensure you recruit the right people.

Here are some of the things you need to consider before you start advertising your role. 

Carry out a role audit

It is a good idea to look at your existing team and understand what duties they are carrying out. This will help you identify skill gaps, crossover and tasks that need greater attention.

In many cases, employees adopt tasks that take them away from doing the work that they were originally employed to do. You can also find cases where employees have developed new skills and could easily take on additional tasks.

By carrying out an audit of roles, you can decide exactly what tasks each of your existing employees can take care of and which need to be covered. This can help you put together a clearer job description and ensure you recruit someone at the right level with the right experience.

Before you start recruiting new staff, conduct employee appraisals and ensure you are utilising your existing talent efficiently.

Identify who you are looking for

Once you understand what roles are needed within your team you can start putting together a clear role description. Understanding the role will make it easier to source the right candidates and make the right hiring decisions.

You may find that the role is too broad and employing two part-time employees with different skills sets is a more effective route. Alternatively, you may have underestimated or overestimated the level of the role.

As well as considering the experience and qualifications you will be looking for, you also need to think about the type of person you want. How will you ensure that you employ someone with the right values? Are you looking for an intrapreneur, an inspiring leader or an efficient manager? Will you focus on qualifications and experience or are you prepared to develop someone with the right attitude and willingness to learn?

Research salaries

If you want to attract quality candidates, you need to offer the right salary and benefits. That means taking a bit of time to research the average salary for the level of role you are recruiting. You should also think about the benefits you can offer; commission schemes, bonus structure, private health insurance, good pensions, staff discounts and so on. The more attractive you make the role, the better calibre of applicant you will attract.

Put a process in place

What will your recruitment process involve? How many applicants would you ideally like and how long do you need to advertise the vacancy to ensure you get a good selection? Will there be application questions or simply a request for CVs? Who will screen the CVs and what will the criteria be for moving applicants to the next stage?

Will you do initial telephone interviews or move directly to face to face interviews? Who will conduct the interviews and what kind of format will your interviews take? Will there be any role play, suitability tests or practical assessments? If there’s a second interview stage, who will conduct these and what format will they take?

When you make the offer, do you have a HR policy in place to ensure that contracts are in order, pensions and payroll are set up correctly and training is effective?

Planning the process in advance will ensure recruitment runs more smoothly and potential employees get a good impression of your company. The way candidates view your company and the way they are treated throughout the process is important if you want to attract and retain the best talent. 

Plan your advertising strategy

To attract the right candidates, you need to advertise your role in the right places. There are several places to advertise, including your own company website and social media pages. Online job sites vary; you may want to advertise on local job boards, industry-specific sites or the most well-known websites. These often have a cost, so do a bit of research to make sure you use your budget effectively.

Word of mouth can be a good way of getting applicants; make sure employees are spreading the word and get recommendations from your business connections.

How Key Appointments will help

There is a lot to think about if you want to be effective in your recruitment. Simply sticking a job description on your website, and hoping the right applicant sees it, is unlikely to generate the results you want.

At Key Appointments, we offer a variety of recruitment solutions depending on your needs. Our focus is on assisting you in the areas you need help with and finding the best candidates for your individual organisation.

Understanding your needs

We start our process with a free no-obligation discussion about your business and your vacancy. Then we suggest the most suitable solution for your needs. We offer three great recruitment options at different levels to suit your requirements and your budget.

• Key Start – Fixed fee packages that save you time and money when sourcing candidates
• Key Talent – A flat fee service designed to help you effectively source candidates and hire the right talent
• Key Executive – Search and selection solutions for businesses recruiting at senior and board level

Saving you time

The recruitment process can be very time consuming; managing adverts on various job boards, checking applicants, screening CVs, conducting telephone interviews, arranging interview dates and giving feedback. Working with us means that we take care of all of that for you.

Services we offer include:

• Role audit
• Writing optimised job adverts
• Salary surveys and research
• Advertising your role
• Managing your adverts
• CV searches
• CV screening
• Telephone interviews
• Candidate screening
• Arranging interviews
• Preparing interview questions
• Being part of your interview panel
• Giving feedback
• Negotiating job offers
• Liaising with new employee during transition period

Saving you money

We are experts in recruitment and we know how to do it effectively, freeing up your time to do the things that make you money. We already have accounts with major job sites, so you don’t have the costs of subscribing to these.

Making the right hiring decision the first time can save you money long-term. Recruiting and training a new employee only to find they are the wrong fit and having to start again, often works out more expensive than working with a professional recruitment consultant.

Personalised service

Unlike other recruitment companies, we don’t offer one-size fits all solutions. We can be as involved in the process as you need us to be. From simply taking care of advertising your role, to managing the entire process for you; we offer whatever support you need.

We are committed to building long-term relationships with our clients, so we focus on delivering results. After all, if we place the right people in your business then they will help your business grow. As your business grows, you need more people; your success is our success.

Contact us

If you are considering growing your team, or you have a vacancy you’d like to fill, then we’d love to hear from you.

Contact one of our friendly consultants on 0844 504 4666 to find out more about our exceptional recruitment solutions.