3 Ways To Hire, So That You Won't Later Need To Fire

At some point or another, you are going to need to put your feelers out for helpers to sort out the jobs that you just don't have the time to do in your current business. As an owner of a freelance writing business, for instance, you may want to expand and hire other writers, social media managers, website designers, and so forth to enable your business to grow and flourish. If it's your first time searching for new recruits or you want to improve your hiring process to avoid making the mistake of hiring someone who needs to be fired later on, here are three things for you to consider.

Informal and Formal Background Checks

Now, depending on the role you are hiring for, it will determine what kind of background checks you want to initiate and/or fund. Checkr.com, for instance, provides background checks on potential employees to assess their suitability for a role based on the business owners' criteria.

The report can show you anything from driving convictions, to proof of previous employment, to drug screening, etc. This might apply if, for instance, you own a writing business and you want to hire someone to launch a new blog in your name and talk about safe-driving. If some of the candidates who apply have driving convictions, they're probably not cut out for the role.

Informal background checks include Facebooking your potential employee. Are they the party socialite they claimed to be who will be a great addition to your office culture? Or does their social media seem quite subdued? Now it's essential not to rule everyone out based on their social media presence, of course, as some are avid over-sharers and others prefer to keep their antics private!

Look Beyond A Person's Experience And Education

Someone might look good on paper, but their personality may not fit the current workplace culture. With your current work environment, providing it's currently functioning well, you want to maintain that, or make it better! And so, it's crucial and considerate to think about how the other team members (if you have any) will gel with your new recruit to decide if they're the right fit. Or whether a few weeks in, there is likely to be a clash of personalities that could lead to a firing.

Put Them To The Test

Maybe you're on the fence with a particular candidate, or you want to keep your new recruit on their toes and see what they're made of before you commit to hiring them for the long-haul. This is where a trial-run could work out nicely. It's not as elongated as a probation period. However, it allows you to assess their writing, graphics design or marketing skills, confidence, enthusiasm, and of course, willingness to learn new things. A small trial could be what you need, to save yourself from firing someone three-six months down the line. Which would be much more painful for you and the newbie later on.

For most business owners, firing their employees is the last thing they want to do. Which is why many owners aim to get it right the first time by recruiting smartly. By using a few of the tips above, you can do that too!