You’re about to make your first hires for your business, but you’re worried about hiring the wrong people. Making incorrect hiring decisions can be extremely costly – worryingly so – which is why you need to get your hands on the ideal employee every single time.
How can you do this?
It starts by defining the ideal employee – what do they look like? Obviously, we’re not talking about their physical appearance, but rather their skills and approach to work. Here are a few traits that the perfect employee should have:
They possess relevant experience & skills
First and foremost, the perfect candidate will have all the necessary experience and skills to succeed in their role. No matter how great someone seems during an interview or application, if they haven’t got enough experience, it’s always a risk hiring them. You can take this risk – and it might pay off – but the ideal employee should possess the skills and experience you’re looking for.
They align with your EVP
What do we mean by this? Well, your Employee Value Proposition (EVP) defines the essence of your company. It shows what your company is about and what you stand for, demonstrating what employees will get out of working for you. A big part of the hiring process is showing this to potential employees. Let them know what they’ll gain from working for you, what’s valuable, and what you stand for. The perfect employees will align with all of this. They want what you’re putting down; they believe in what you stand for and fit the company culture to a tee. This is so important as it means you hire people who are actually eager to work for your company and join you on your journey.
They’re always punctual
Punctuality is such an important trait to have in employees. If someone can’t be on time for a job interview, can you trust them to be on time for work every day? Lateness eats into your bottom line as it reduces the working hours in a day. It doesn’t seem like much, but someone that’s 15 minutes late for work every day will waste over an hour per week of your time.
They respond well to negative feedback
Call it negative feedback or criticism; your employees need to be good at taking it. Nobody will be perfect 100% of the time, and you will have to tell people where they need to improve now and then. It’s a good idea to pick something from a candidate’s application and criticize it during the interview. See how they respond; do they get defensive and angry, or do they listen to what you say and provide ideas on how they can improve. The latter is precisely what you want from an employee. They don’t get annoyed; they help you find solutions.
When you start listing job adverts and taking applications, be sure to remember these key traits. If someone has them all, there’s a big chance they are the perfect employee for that specific role.
