Hiring is generally done in the context of pain.
We hire when someone quits or is fired. We hire when our team is drowning, pushed beyond internal capacity. We hire when we are in need and desperate.
When we are in pain, we will do anything to make it stop. The result is that most companies will compromise their hiring process by taking a shortcut. Maybe it's blindly trusting the word of a referrer or not doing a background check. While each of these steps might seem small, maybe insignificant, they do exist for a reason and provide critical value.
The majority of bad hires are not the result of hiring “bad” people but hiring the wrong person as a result of compromising the hiring process.
Can we change hiring from being something that we do when we're in pain to something that we do to improve? Can we change the context to hiring being an opportunity?
We can.
There are two major ways to change the context of hiring and turn it into an opportunity.
- The first step is to move from an on-demand recruiting strategy to a pre-demand strategy. On-demand means that you start recruiting when you have an opening, pre-demand means that you're recruiting all the time….for all roles, current and future (NOTE: you're not hiring all the time. Hire when you have the need to do so, but always be recruiting).
- The second step is to evaluate how the role can be improved to serve the organization better. Search for talent that will not just fit but ADD to the team. Don't recycle an old job spec but really drill down into the role. Hiring someone who will ADD to the team will be a blessing to all, new hire included.
Consider your current recruiting process and be honest about how it makes you feel. If you feel a sinking feeling in your gut, it's time to change. Adding new, top talent to your team should feel awesome and be an opportunity for the organization to grow as a whole.
Change the process and you will change the context.
To learn more about pre-demand recruiting and how it can change your organization, check out TalentCMO at www.TalentCMO.com.
Written by: Austin Meyermann, Founder and President of Hunter Crown, LLC
Let us help you find your next great opportunity.
Let us make an impact in your life.