Ever hire the wrong person? If you have, you probably remember the pain involved. Among the most important tasks facing business owners is hiring the right team members to assist you in building your firm. When staff personnel do not work out, it costs the business—money, time, morale and more money. That’s why I developed a system for hiring that shaves away at hiring errors. Naturally, they will still happen, but with my system, not nearly so often.
Here’s what NOT to do: (According to My very first Employment Ad)
I had 150 applications that time, and I went through the whole thing without hiring ONE single person. I was so frustrated. In that ad, the title was the job, then I listed the description.
The next time, I put an ad in Craigslist. Here are the elements of that ad:
- The ad stated that they had to read all the way through the ad.
- I listed what the job was going to be.
- The title of the ad was the job title.
- The next title was exactly what the tactical duties were and what the strategic duties were.
- I listed exactly what experience or education would be required.
- Finally, I listed the most important part: I required them to answer five questions and do ONE thing.
This is the magic part. These questions and directive really make the difference.
- Why should we hire you?
- Why are you a superstar for this position?
- What are the top three things you think this position should do?
- What do you do if you have someone trying to reach me in an emergency?
- What do you expect to be paid for this position?
- I tell them the pay range and ask them are you willing to be paid $______?
There are very specific questions for them to answer. Plus, these questions must be answered in the body of the email. AND, I request a special subject line that they must list what I ask them to list, which is the position title.
The point is there are some very specific instructions. You include these instructions in clear, bold letters. This way, when you inspect their answers, if they paid attention, you would send them to the next round. If they did not, you hit DELETE.
I would put this in big capital letters about what they were supposed to do. Then I would look to see if they answered the five questions. If they did, they would make the next round. Then I would have somebody call them. And, I would quickly schedule an interview with them.
Hiring is a necessary function, and it’s important to the future of your business. Set the tone by asking that they pay attention to your rules of how to engage with your company. Your hiring snafus will hit a low with these rules.
Richard James
As a result of his track record for achieving what most describe as “phenomenal” growth rates for his clients, Richard James, CEO of Automated Business Results, LLC, is quickly gaining a national reputation as “the Legal Systems Expert.” His secret to success is simple. Richard has devised a seven step system for designing and implementing automated marketing systems that grow your business FAST. If you’re looking to develop a practice that supports your lifestyle rather than completely undermining it, call Richard James today.