The hiring process is difficult, and even more difficult if you don’t plan it out. As a COO, a lot of that is your responsibility.
You need to hire the perfect people for your company, people that work hard, are passionate, are dedicated, etc, but sometimes the work it takes to do that seems overwhelming. That’s why it’s worthwhile to take a breath and then take the time to map out your hiring process beforehand.
The question is, how do you map out your hiring process in the best possible way?
Begin With These Two Questions
There are two questions you want to ask yourself right from the get-go.
They are:
- How many resumes do you think you need to get the amount of hires you want?
- Where do you plan to get all the resumes you need?
Those questions seem simple enough, but they can be rather difficult to answer, especially if you’re new to the hiring process. Regardless, you need to find yourself solid answers to these questions, even if it takes time to figure it out. It’s definitely worth it!
List All Your Steps
A very useful way to help wrap your brain around everything you need to do in the hiring process is to sit down and write a list of every step in your recruiting process.
It’ll probably look something like this:
- Applications
- Auto-reply
- An invitation to a group interview
- Pass from group interview
- The one-on-one interview
- Pass from the one-on-one interview
- Pass from reference checks
- “Sniff Test”
- Offer accepted and signed
- Finally, training
In each step of the process, a certain percentage of the applicants will drop out and not move to the next level. Knowing that, you might want to up the initial number of resumes you need. For example, if you’re hiring twelve people, to have enough options that you can choose the best of the best, you’re going to want over five hundred applicants to begin with.
Don’t Forget to Leave Time for Training
Training your successful applicants is still part of the hiring process. In your hiring timeline, you need to remember to leave time for training before your intended start date. It’s a good idea to give your new employees about two weeks of training and time to quit their current job.
“The length of your onboarding program can significantly impact how long your employees stay with your company. Our 2014 study on onboarding found that 31 percent of employees left a job within six months of starting, and 68 percent of those left within the first three months. Poor onboarding was a major factor in their decision to leave; a total of 23 percent of employees cited leaving because they wanted clearer responsibility guidelines and 21 percent because they wanted more effective training.” – Bamboo HR
Leaving time for proper training is absolutely essential in your hiring process. You can’t rush it. If you know you need people for a certain date, then you have to start hiring early!
The hiring process is long and it’s difficult, but if you give it the time and attention it needs, you’ll be sure to get truly amazing employees that fit your culture and will work hard to help your business succeed. If you rush it or don’t do all the work that is required, you’ll quickly regret it.
Do you have any tricks for your hiring process? Let us know in the comments below!
If you have questions or would like more information, I’d be happy to help. Please send us an email, and someone from my team will get in touch with you!
Editor’s Note: This post was originally published in April 2018 and has been edited for accuracy and comprehensiveness.
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