In my work with SME businesses over more than 10 years been clear that getting the right person in the right role is the essential step in having an effective organisation.
But recruitment is often made under pressure to replace an unexpected vacancy or to support an increasing workload. In these circumstances, I have seen owners persuade themselves that the first person they see is ideal for the post. Or even worse fix on a good friend or family member that happens to be available. Neither approach works.
You need a clear recruitment process well before you need it – and then the self-discipline to follow it even under pressure. It could prove your instinctive judgement is right and justify the choice to your team. After all, they are going to have to live with it.
There are four things you should be reviewing in your recruitment process.
First, do they have the technical skills for the job? And in this, we need to think long and hard about what the actual requirements are. Too often we set unnecessary or irrelevant barriers for applicants to climb over.
Next -and most important – do they have the right attitude for the role? In a surgeon or an airline pilot, technical qualifications are essential. But attitude will trump qualifications every time!
Third, it is useful to establish the post will satisfy their personal expectations. If it doesn’t you won’t hold onto them and you’ll be going through all this again much sooner than you expected.
Finally, it’s good to identify their potential for future development. Could they grow into a leadership role as your business grows? Do they have the potential to lead future projects? Could they adapt to industry and market changes that may require drastic changes to your business model?
This might seem like a lot of work but remember, you’re selecting someone to work with you for years, in good times and bad.
And there is help available to develop your system. If you’d like to talk about what that might look like, please contact us on info@thirdphasecoaching.co.uk