Hiring Top Performers in the New Year

If one of your business goals in 2004 is to improve your bottomline, it is time to think about hiring top performers. Although hiring top performers seems like a logical thing to do, it’s not as easy as it sounds. As a small-business owner, you have to take certain steps in order to find that top performer.

by Vicki Gerson

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Re-evaluate the job before hiring anyone. It doesn’t pay to try to push average performers to new levels. Before you tell anyone that you need a new employee consider doing the following. Think about the responsibilities that will be assigned to this position. Are you going to keep the responsibilities the same or add new ones?

It is also wise to look at your current employees and re-evaluate whether they are assigned to the most appropriate positions. If not, change them now before hiring a new individual.

When you hire someone, you should prioritize "must have" qualifications. For example, should this person have a winning personality that makes people want to be with this individual? Does the individual have a top sales record that can be verified? Has this individual managed at least 15 people in his or her department? You must decide what are the most important and least important qualifications for your small business.

Take other actions in addition to help wanted ads. Even though many employers will first go to help wanted ads or employment agencies as a way to find an employee, there are other steps you can take that are less expensive. Encourage current employees to mention the job opening to friends and make sure you offer a referral bonus if the individual is hired. Depending upon the job, consider placing a sign in front of the building advertising the job. For a tech position, consider advertising online. There are also sites on the Web that have career resumes. Access those sites.

Sort the resumes of those who apply. Throughout the entire hiring process, sort the resumes in categories that separate strong candidates, possible candidates and unqualified candidates. Quickly eliminate the weaker candidates. Now, take a closer look at your strongest candidates’ resumes and look at the differences between them.

Conduct phone interviews. Once you decide who your strongest candidates are, conduct initial phone interviews. It is up to you as to how long the interview takes. If you don’t like the potential employee’s responses, you can always end the interview with "Well, thank you for your time. If I have more questions, I’ll get back to you."

During the interview get answers to important questions: Does the candidate have a willingness to relocate or travel? What is his or her availability? What is his or her desired salary range? Don’t call the candidate in for an interview at the office if he or she isn’t willing to give a salary range.

Look beyond the references. Sometimes you have three or more candidates whose references look fantastic. It is important to look beyond the references. Too many times people are given references that aren’t as candid as they should be. That’s why it’s important to have the candidate in for an actual face-to-face interview. If you like the candidate, have the individual simulate the actual work. Create sales and management decision-making scenarios, mock technology problems, draft sales reports, computer program knowledge tests — do whatever is appropriate to find the top candidate for the specific job.

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