How to Hire the Best Person for the Job

Hiring isn’t easy. It’s complex, expensive and it can take a long time to get right. It takes many long hours of reviewing applications, scheduling, conversations and analysis. It takes thousands of dollars of advertising and recruiter fees. It also takes a significant investment of time and alignment from the hiring managers and all the key players involved in making these critical hiring decisions. 

We push forward because we want to hire the best person for the job. We want to create an effective, successful and exciting team that will go the distance. We know that we need to do everything possible to avoid attrition — that revolving door. 

So, what can we do to refine the hiring process and make the best decision for our team and organization as a whole? 

Know your role. 

Be aware of what your role is as a hiring manager. Before a job is posted, the hiring manager typically will be responsible for describing the needs that exist and assisting with the creation of a job description. Look at what strengths and weaknesses the last person in the role possessed and build from there. 

The hiring manager will help either with the vetting of incoming applicants or will at least play a key role on the interviewing panel at a crucial stage. They may also help to create the job offer and will be involved in onboarding and training of a new hire. 

Perfect the process. 

Know what the interview and selection process will look like before you advertise the opening. In person or virtual? Assessment before final decisions? Who will be involved? What questions do you want to ask? Have a thorough understanding of the position you need to fill, including the must-have skills and nice-to-have traits. 

A clear understanding of the organizational need, success factors for your team and an outline of how the process will run will help to create an equitable and positive overall candidate experience in conjunction with your recruiting team, interviewing panel and key decision makers. 

When you’re going deep with a candidate in interviews, you may realize that your search is off target. Keep in mind that it’s OK to pivot. If you need to amend your job description or the interview process to attract the right kinds of candidates, then do it. Being too stuck in what is familiar — especially if it’s not working — can be detrimental. 

Consider the facts. 

Before the interview, and later when making decisions on who to advance or even make a job offer to, be sure that you have reviewed all the details. Be consistent and carefully consider the résumés, work samples or completed assessments, interview notes and completed references of your finalists. Have conversations with the people who participated in the interview process to dig in further about their impressions. 

Think about the intangibles, too, such as the potential camaraderie between the applicant and your existing team, or the long-term goals that they have shared with you. Were they respectful to everyone they interacted with in your organization? Are they self-aware? Do they seem trustworthy? When it’s time to decide, you’ll have everything you need to confidently make the offer. 

It doesn’t stop at, “Yes.” 

You have kindly rejected the other applicants now that a decision was made because your top candidate accepted the job offer. Great news, of course! Your team is finally going to be complete with the addition of a talented professional with the skills and attitude that you have been seeking. You are already working with HR and your team to plan their onboarding, and everything is going accordingly. 

But remember, it doesn’t stop there. You made the candidate feel welcome, and now, they are your employee. Like a marriage, keeping talent takes consistent effort and an ongoing investment of time, training, opportunities and growth. 

The question becomes, “How can I support them, keep them engaged and make the hire successful long-term?”