Find the best staff for your business

Employees are one of your most important assets, to help you recruit the right people, it’s important to take advantage of the various techniques that are available…

Begin by writing a full job description

A job description is as much a selling document for candidates as a checklist for you. Define the skills and experience you require and any other personal attributes you’d like to see in a candidate.

It's also good to mention any additional skills such as foreign languages that are useful but not essential.

The right pay package is important to potential candidates. However, responsibility, autonomy and self-development or training opportunities are also significant elements of employment.

Find your candidate

The grapevine is often an effective (and cheap) way of finding the right staff, so tell contacts you are on the lookout. Alternatively, if it's junior staff you require, contact your Training and Enterprise Council (TEC) and ask people about Modern Apprenticeships.

Traditional methods also include advertising in the press, radio, trade magazines, job centres, recruitment agencies and so on. Make sure to sell the benefits of working for you but be prepared to spend a lot of time filtering responses. Don't be put off by recruitment agencies' high placement fees. Many agencies' fees are open to some degree of negotiation. Also think of the cost in the context of your time saved. Which is more valuable to you?

Shortlist

Be ruthless. It will save you a lot of wasted time. Choose only five candidates at most. Reject anyone who doesn't meet your full list of necessary skills and attributes, whatever else their attractions.

Interviewing techniques

Choose your degree of pressure, for example; a two-person, or more, interview panel is more demanding on a candidate – it tests reactions under stress.

Ask probing questions like, “Can you describe a typical day/week at your previous employment?” Give candidates the opportunity to present themselves in the best light and allow them to respond to questions without interruption.

Make no assumptions and ask for specific extra detail about previous jobs/school achievements. Things to look out for include any long gaps in their work record or if their CV doesn’t fit with the dates they describe to you. Don't hesitate to give practical tests to verify IT, bookkeeping, use of English and other verifiable essential skills.

Hire the right person for the job

It sounds obvious but sometimes people find themselves hiring just because they like the interviewee or have a lot in common with them. Look for people who compliment you or your team and bring new skills and don't make an offer conditional on references. Check the latter first to avoid embarrassment or worse.

Follow up references

Some referees feel easier talking on the phone than writing. Be aware that you can sue the previous employer if a reference, even a verbal one, fails to give a true, accurate and fair impression and if you can show you have suffered loss as a result. When you check a reference have the candidate's CV in front of you to confirm that information on it tallies with information from referees.

Questions to ask referees

Examples of the kinds of questions you need to ask include:

• What was the job title and exact role of the candidate when they left?
• How long did they work for you?
• What were their areas of responsibility?
• How good was their admin/time management?
• How good were their interpersonal or managerial skills?
• Do they have any strong characteristics?
• Do you remember any particular achievements or projects that stood out while they worked for you?
  
  

Remember the law

It is now a criminal offence to employ anyone, full- or part-time, aged 16 or over, who does not have leave to enter or remain in the UK and/or who is not entitled to work here. There are thirteen types of document that are acceptable as proof of entitlement. They include a documented P45, a P60, a birth certificate issued within the UK or the Republic of Ireland, a work permit, or a British passport showing the holder has the right of abode or re-admission to the UK.

Protect yourself by asking to see one of them. Temporary National Insurance numbers are not acceptable. Keep a copy of the document on file. Contracts of employment should be checked by a solicitor and in place from day one even if they are on a trial period.

Get a helping hand

Recruiting and employing staff can be a legislative minefield these days and you must be aware of anti-discriminatory regulations when going through the employment process. If it all seems a bit much and you’d like a helping hand, there are a number of employment compliance services that will do just that and more. If you’d like more information then visit our Business Manager pages, to find out more about the HR management service available as part of this essential business software and services package.