Hiring the right employees is essential for a company’s overall success. However, it can be challenging to ensure you are attracting and selecting the optimal candidates. Learn more about top hiring mistakes (and how to avoid them):
Not Sticking to a Timeline
Whether it’s an effort to be as thorough as possible when making a decision or simply not making efficiency a priority, having your hiring process take too long is a common, yet costly mistake. While you don’t want to rush, it’s crucial to develop a timeline and stick to it – particularly after interviewing. Otherwise, you risk losing top candidates to other employers who made quicker offers or because they felt disrespected or simply lost interest.
Not Addressing Unconscious Bias
If your company is committed to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), attracting a wide pool of candidates across demographics is crucial. Unfortunately, these efforts are often unintentionally hindered by a top hiring mistake: not addressing unconscious bias. People tend to be naturally drawn to others who are similar to them, which is counterproductive to building a diverse team. Therefore, taking steps to recognize and take action to limit unconscious bias, such as through training, can help overcome this issue.
Lacking Consistent Criteria
Subjective judgment calls tend to be among the main causes of bad hires. Standardize your hiring process as much as possible to have consistent criteria with which to evaluate candidates. Ensure you are asking candidates all the same questions and using a predefined set of qualifications or skills to score candidates on.
Being Rigid on Requirements
When writing job postings, many hiring managers include every qualification they would think would be preferable or nice to have but not truly necessary to be hired. Unfortunately, this can deter candidates who have what it takes to perform the job successfully from applying since they do not meet every listed requirement. Avoid being rigid on requirements and instead only include the actual qualifications needed to do the job.
Using the Same Candidate Sources
Posting to the same general online job sites not only makes it difficult to get noticed, but it also tends to attract a significant amount of completely unqualified applicants to filter through. Expand your reach by trying out different sources for candidates, such as industry-specific forums or working with a staffing firm.
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The Hire Firm is a leading temporary and direct hire staffing agency in New Mexico with over three decades of experience. Our professional recruiters in Albuquerque and Santa Fe will find qualified candidates that will be a successful fit for your company. Contact us today to learn more about our temp and direct hire staffing services.
