Hiring the Right Employee for the Job

If you are a business owner, then you know that having the right people in the right position is imperative to keep your business flowing smoothly. However, getting the right person can be tricky if you are not aware of what to look for. Fortunately, there are a few clues that you can look out for in order to prevent mistakes. Read on as your accountant in Billings, Montana helps you learn to make good hiring decisions.

How to Start Your Search

There are different approaches to finding the right person for the job. It all depends on who you are, what the position is, and a variety of other factors. Here are the most common methods.

Advertisement – You can put an ad in the paper, online, post it on a bulletin board, or create a TV or radio spot. Advertising for the job is the fastest way to get people to apply, and you will likely be flooded with applications in no time. The problem is that you will get a lot of applications for people not exactly fit for the job.

Word of Mouth – As a business owner you likely have a good network to bounce ideas off of. By telling those around you that you need an employee, they can come up with recommendations that might be a good fit. By using a pre-screen like this you weed out those simply looking for a job because they want more spending money, and get some better suited for the position.

Employment Service – There are a number of employment services that can help you find the right employee (Kelly Services is one of them that does a great job). These services do all the hard work for you; you just pay a small fee to have them pre-screen.

So now you have the search going for an employee… but how do you know that you’re hiring the right person?

Being Selective When Hiring Employees

The first rule of hiring is to never hire the only person you interview. The larger your pool of applicants is the better chances of not making a mistake. So here is what you need to watch out for.

Personality – Some people are quiet, some our outgoing, some are shy, some are thinkers, some are relational. There will be a wide variety of people that come through the door in order to interview for the job. Make sure the personality matches the job! A thinker or someone quiet won’t do well in a sales position; an outgoing relational person will dread a job where they are stuck behind a computer all day long. Pay attention and match the personality to the position.

Attitude – Education and experience are one thing, but attitude is often seen as more important. As the employer you can train a hard-worker to do just about any job, but someone who has all the experience in the world that only wants to slack off won’t last long.

Goals – Nobody wants an employee that only plans to stick around for a few months. But any employee worth hiring won’t tell you that they only plan to stick around for a few months. You will have to do your best to determine through your interview to find out their long term goals.

Test Them – Anyone can give the answers that you want to hear when you ask interview questions, it only takes a little bit of preparation work to do that. This is why you should never hire based on the interview alone. Create a smaller group of those that you think would be a good fit for the job, and have them return for a second interview. This interview will consist of little tests and problems they will come across on the job. Those that do well are a better fit.

Hiring Employees

An employee costs money to find and train, but ultimately they will make you more money.   Unless they are a bad fit for the company. By being extra selective and not hiring the first one that comes along you can make sure to minimize the risk of hiring a bad employee.

Practical Taxes is a full service accounting firm in Billings, Montana. When you do get the employee or employees on board, you will need to pay them. We specialize in payroll services that reduce the amount of work you have to do every week. Give us a call today at 406-894-2050 to learn more.