6 Beliefs That Will Sabotage Your Recruitment Process

A couple of weeks ago, the owner of the restaurant below Amtec’s offices may have tried to sabotage his own business–and ours, indirectly. Rumor has it that he poured diesel fuel all over and lit it, hoping to burn down the building and get himself out of financial trouble. Fortunately for our recruiting company, the fire didn’t take off, and the only result for us was a lingering bad smell.

You may think that, as an owner or leader in your organization, you would never sabotage your own business. But it actually occurs quite often in the various stages of the hiring process. No, our clients aren’t burning down their buildings, but sometimes, they unintentionally sabotage their own recruitment efforts. If you want to be successful in hiring the right person in this candidate’s market, be aware of these 6 beliefs that will sabotage your recruitment process:

1. I read people so well, I don’t need a rigid hiring process. If you go with your gut instinct, you may end up with someone who attended your alma mater or enjoys the same sports team as you. But chances are, your gut can’t help you determine which of your candidates are the best fit for the specifics of your position profile. It definitely won’t tell you which one’s past performance is the best predictor of future behavior. For that, you need a comprehensive screening process that includes in-depth behavioral interview questions.

2. I’m going to wait for the perfect candidate because qualified candidates are a dime a dozen. Maybe deep down, you do know that good candidates are actually in short supply. And as the recruiting experts, we understand that it’s hard to settle for someone who is less than an exact fit in every area. But sometimes, you may have to compromise on your expectations. We never recommend settling for less in the areas of character or culture fit, but if you find an exceptional candidate who might need a little additional training, hiring him or her could be your best move. The “perfect” candidate may be a figment of your imagination.

3. The candidate I like the best will wait until I’m ready to hire. In spite of the fact that we’re in a candidate-driven market, it’s easy to forget that your candidates are in high demand. While your hiring team goes through an often lengthy decision-making process, your candidates are probably interviewing with other companies simultaneously and possibly already fielding other offers. They won’t put their careers on hold just because your budget or future workforce projections are still up in the air.

4. My candidate won’t simultaneously consider other job offers. Not to beat a dead horse, but today’s knowledge worker candidates are in increasingly short supply. It could be that two or three organizations are pursuing the very candidate that you want to hire. One of them might be the candidate’s current employer who is making a counteroffer in order to keep from losing a good employee.

5. My candidate will settle for less than the going wage because our company is special. You may feel that your organization has so much to offer that anyone would be lucky to work there for wages in the 50% range of the going wage. But in reality, you cannot attract exceptional candidates with just average pay.

6. I’m too busy to use a complicated on-boarding tool. There’s no doubt that it takes time to create an individual plan using a tool such as our Great Start Tool to help your employee start off well. But if you think you’ll save time now by expecting your new worker to jump in without all the help you can give him or her, stop and consider the cost of a failed employee–loss of time and money spent training, for starters. Plus, do you really want to have to stop your own work and start the time-consuming hiring process all over again?

Truth be told, we all have areas where we self-sabotage. But don’t let hiring be one of them! Now that you know these 6 beliefs that will sabotage your recruitment process, you can plan your hiring process and strategy, consider exceptional but not perfect candidates, and keep your hiring process moving. Be aware of the competition, offer a wage that values your candidate, and give all the help you can to set your new employee up for success. When he or she wins, so do you.

Do you need help acquiring top contract or direct hire professionals? Let Amtec find you the best candidates, set you up to successfully interview them, and assist with offer negotiations, reference checks, and background checks. Click here or call (714) 993-1900 to start your search.