Working in the recruiting world means you see it all –the people that don’t bother to show up to interview, applicants who don’t have any of the required skills or experience and the superstars that are a great match for the job advertisement and hit the ground running in their newly appointed roles. So what are the recruiting hints and tips that some of our most experienced recruiters have picked up along the way?

Gut instinct accounts for a lot

When you are recruiting and you get that ‘something isn’t right’ feeling – recognise it and use it. When a candidate doesn’t show up when expected or can’t call you back because of low phone credit? That’s a sign. When a resume seems ‘gappy’ or inconsistent? That’s another sign. Quite often we try and rationalise some of these occurrences as we are keen to fill the role, however we might be better of to listen to our gut instinct and let that guide the outcome of the interview process. Unless there are clear reasons for some of these things, it might be best to search elsewhere for the right candidate for the role.

Employee referrals can be the best source of top-notch talent

It’s probably taken some time for your business to source the ‘best fit’, comprising of people with the right skills, experiences and attitude to make your business operate efficiently. So it just makes sense to approach your team when you are looking for new talent for your business. Sometimes offering an incentive can increase the likelihood of finding skilled candidates who will fit the business well. .

Put time into writing detailed job descriptions

Ever heard of the saying: ‘start how you mean to finish?’ – the best way to source high calibre people is to write a job description that packs a punch. Justin Cerilli, Managing Director of professional development firm Russell Reynolds and Associates, summed up an effective job description in an April 2014 CIO article: “The best job descriptions combine a little bit of marketing, the reality of the role, the necessary skills and competencies and the organisation’s culture. All those things put together are key to how to present an open role to the market,” he explained.

Ask the right questions

It can be challenging to know the right questions to ask in an interview to determine the candidates that align best to the scope of the role and the culture of your organisation. Here are our recommendations for getting the most out of your interviews:

What is your greatest achievement at work?

This tells you about what candidates consider an achievement and their levels of engagement in their role.

What prompted you to apply for this role?

This gives you a great insight into what the candidates values are. Is it the prestige of the role or the company reputation that they find appealing?

What would your first month in the role look like?

This is a great question to get an understanding of the mindset of the candidate. Have they considered how they might tackle the role if they were successful? How much do they know about the position? This also provides some clarity on their approach to the role and their planning style.

Decide early on how to rank candidates

Quite often, businesses jump into the recruitment process without fully understanding how they will rank and rate individuals when screening them. This is important as it can reduce reliance on personal preferences. Monster recommend a simple process for scoring candidates that can be employed across roles:

• Education or Training: Exceeds/Meets/Needs more/Doesn’t meet
• Relevant work experience: Extensive/Adequate/Not related but transferable/No
• Skills specific to the role: Exceeds/Meets/Needs more/Doesn’t meet
• Leadership skills: Exceeds/Meets/Needs more/Doesn’t meet
• Communication skills (written and spoken): Exceeds/Meets/Needs more/Doesn’t meet
• Teamwork: Exceeds/Meets/Needs more/Doesn’t meet
• Time Management: Exceeds/Meets/Needs more/Doesn’t meet
• Problem Solving: Exceeds/Meets/Needs more/Doesn’t meet
• Motivation: Exceeds/Meets/Needs more/Doesn’t meet
• Overall recommendation: Highly recommended/Recommended/Recommend with specific reservations or clarifications/Do not recommend

Are you thinking of recruiting or need recruitment support for your business? Speak to the team at Flexi Personnel.