Sticky subject time…
In my world, there is a TON of content out there on how best to respond to proposals, how to interview in the best way possible, what you should and should not do on an interview; the list goes on. But what I don’t see a lot of is when the shoe is on the other foot. What if you are the one doing the recruiting or interviewing for an opening or a new position? I am not going to venture down the road of human resources and interviewing tactics of companies, but rather, those that are hiring or recruiting for contractors or other service type people who are not necessarily employees.
Here are things to consider:
- Are you really hiring for talent? Over and over again I have seen some mouth watering positions that could be a potential good fit for an experienced person, for example, in my field a VA, only to find out that the position is paying barely over an entry level compensation. If you can only afford to pay entry level, the recommendation is that is who you should aim to hire. If you are hiring for “salary is commensurate with experience”, i’ts best to arm yourself with the latest salary statistics as a guideline for what/who you are hiring for.
- Making applicants jump through hoops. Traditional methods such as sending a resume, work samples or even filling out an application is not what I mean. Asking ridiculous questions, drawing out the hiring process for weeks on end and not being specific as to what materials are required up front are both time wasters for the applicant and your self.
- Test projects. There may be a time and place for these so I am not discounting those. But asking someone to work for free or questioning their abilities by asking them to work for free doesn’t sit high on the, “I can’t wait to be hired here” list. Just as applicants and job seekers will do their homework about you, the same should be of you. This is where asking for references, client testimonials and work samples come into play. If someone is great, there is a good chance that greatness will benefit you too!
- Crickets. Applicants have taken the time to respond in a timely manner according to the hiring guidelines, it also respectful to acknowledge receipt of materials received or when they can expect to contacted (or not). Autoresponders are a great way to handle that part of the communication process as is detailing response times at the time of interview or in the position description or the RFP.
Don’t let a good potential applicant get away by not being a good interviewer! On a lighter note, here are some interview horror stories worth sharing! For additional tips on interviewing, check out a recent article by CNN Money here. And for a quick self check before you interview, check out this article on Forbes.