‘Designing Strategies’ eNewsletter
September – October 2010 Volume 7 – Issue 35
Remember not long ago when job candidates were in control and employers were on the more challenging side of the equation? Candidates could play a number of potential employers against each other, trying to get the best deal. That was the norm then, but not so much now. The pendulum seems to have swung back to favoring those doing the hiring. Things have really changed in a short period of time, haven’t they? One thing that has not changed is the need to hire high quality employees to support your company’s goals and objectives.
An article in our local newspaper told about a retailer using a number of new interview levels to weed through the piles of applications for holiday sales clerks. According to Sue Stock, of the McClatchy Newspapers, job candidates are being put through a barrage of tests and evaluations. Even those processes won’t guarantee a position. So many eager applicants, so few positions available. When you consider that a big portion of retailers’ annual sales come during the year-end holidays, getting the very best sales personnel available will be critical this year. Every human resources manager has his radar fine tuned to hire the very best high quality employees for the company.
Even management positions in retail and hospitality are requiring a more in-depth approach to hiring. Personality and behavioral assessments are becoming the norm, as are other capability testing processes like role playing. DISC, Myers-Briggs and other analytical assessment tools are being used more than ever before. These types of filters help to put the best candidate in the job that matches them best. With limited funding available on all fronts, it is imperative that hiring and the HR process take a more serious, long term approach to hiring at all levels. High quality employees need to run from the top to the bottom of the organizational chart.
Anyone can find boat loads of people who can do basic data entry, answer phones and handle other routine day to day operations. The question is: what else can they do? How will they handle a situation beyond that routine task you hire them for today? Is there any future for this person at your firm? What else can you get from them? What can this candidate grow into or be trained for to increase their value in the operation of your firm? Every employee is critical in some way, large or small, for the success of your company. Are you hiring the best that you can find, or rushing to fill an empty desk?
It is in your firm’s best interests to take a big picture approach to hiring. What changes can you make to your HR processes to assure a constant stream of highly qualified employees? At the very least, have your senior staff sit down over coffee and discuss how you might improve your hiring regimen, then incorporate it in your plan and take action. Y our firm will only be as successful as the people you hire to be your foundation.
