5 Tips for Hiring the Right Employee the First Time

The cost of not hiring the right employee the first time can be devastating to a small business.

Although retraining a bad hire can be costly, it can cost even more if you choose to fire the employee and recruit someone new.

There are a lot of direct and indirect costs to hiring a new employee. Advertising for a position, reviewing resumes, interviewing potential candidates, and conducting background checks takes a lot of time and money.

Once you’ve hired a new employee, there are a lot of direct and indirect training costs. Each employee in a company usually costs about $1,200 per year for training, according to Bersin & Associates’ 2008 Corporate Learning Factbook.

That’s just the average employee. New hires cost more because they need orientation and on-the-job training.

It can take months to get an average employee up-to-speed. According to Investopedia, new employees only function at about 25 percent of productivity for about the first month. It takes the average employee about five months to reach full productivity.

If you’ve made a bad hire and the employee needs retraining, you could lose out on even more productivity and it could cost you greatly.

Take a proactive approach to ensure that you hire the right employee the first time around and you’ll save on retraining fees and lost productivity costs.

1. Take Your Time Hiring

Don’t rush to hire anyone just because the position is vacant. A position that remains vacant for a few months isn’t likely to cost you nearly as much as hiring a bad worker.

Take your time advertising for the position and waiting for applications to roll in. Then, review each candidate’s information carefully to ensure you have an adequate pool of potential employees to interview.

2. Check References Carefully

Sometimes employers view reference checks as a formality. Don’t overlook the importance of positive references.

Although it can be time consuming to connect with an applicant’s references, it is well worth the investment.

View it as an opportunity to really hear what past employers have to say about this person to help you decide if the candidate is a good fit for your company.

3. Involve More than One Person in Hiring Decision

Don’t make the hiring decision alone.

Have at least two people meet with a potential candidate before making the hiring decision. A team approach to hiring someone can help you consider any possible red flags that one of you might miss.

4. Consider a Candidate's Fit with the Office Culture

Someone could have the best skills in the world, but if they don’t fit in with the other employees, it can be a disaster. Hiring the wrong person can kill office morale and it isn’t likely to work out over the long-term.

Spend time considering how a person will likely fit in with the other employees. Consider having someone who will be directly working with a candidate on the interview committee to help decide if the person is going to be a good fit.

5. Verify Educational and Professional Experiences

It’s important to know that a candidate has the skills necessary to perform the job duties.

Unfortunately, people lie on their resumes and during the interviews. Check up on an employee’s history to make sure it’s accurate.

Avoid hiring an employee that is going to cost you valuable time and money retraining. Instead, hire the right employee for the job the first time around.