How To: hire the best hourly employee

1 Oct, 2007 By: Mel Kleiman Landscape Management

Finding reliable, quality, hourly employees can be the business equivalent of trying to climb Mount Fuji in flip-flops.

With government statistics showing that more than 50% of new employees leave their employers within six months, the hiring process is often an ongoing source of aggravation that wastes time, energy and money. The Labor Department reports that just one bad hourly hire can cost a business $5,000 to $7,000, and hiring bad managers or professionals at least 1½ times their annual salary. Now, more than ever, attracting, hiring and keeping the right people is critical to success and yet, studies show that more than 75% of hiring managers and business owners have little, if any, training in the skills and tools needed to do it right.

Here are some solutions for finding and hiring the best possible employees.

1. Develop your system — Before you hire someone, ask yourself, "Is there another way to do this job?" With unemployment low in many parts of the country, consider another way to solve the problem because applicants are getting harder to come by, and great applicants are almost impossible to find.

So ask yourself, can you automate all or part of the job? Could you divide up the job's duties among several people who only want to work part-time?

2. Write it down — Make an itemized list of what you need. If you go shopping for a new employee without a list, it's the same as going to the grocery store without a list. You don't get what you need, it takes more time, you spend more money, and, in the end, you just have to go back to get what you really needed to start with. An employee shopping list includes the person's duties and responsibilities, as well as the capacities, attitudes, personality traits and skills needed for the job.

The basic requirements are the physical and mental capacities required. How strong do they need to be, can they be at work every day on time? How smart do they need to be? Anyone with the right capacities and attitudes can be taught the required skills. It's easier to teach someone to operate a riding mower, handle chemicals or lay sprinkler pipe than it is to teach them to be a reliable team player. If you have the time to train them, don't turn away applicants just because they don't have the skills.

Don't neglect listing attitudes, such as dependability and safety-mindedness. Think about the two or three most desired attitudes the ideal candidate would have and seek those.

The more you move up through the ranks, the more important personality becomes. But remember, everyone has certain personality drivers. And the closer the applicant's personality fits the job, the manager and the company, the more likely it is the person will be successful.

3. Newspaper want ads? — The classifieds are probably at the bottom of my list of recommendations. Pay attention to your headline if you use them. It's got to speak to the person you've identified in the job description and convey a benefit. "Come grow with us!" appeals to entry-level employees who want a future. Something like "Fun in the sun" appeals to outdoor types.

Set up a 24-hour job hotline the reader can call. Make it easy for the applicant to connect with you. Most of the good people who want to work are already working and can't respond when it's convenient for you. Your hotline can be a sophisticated, interactive voice interview, pre-screening system or a simple answering machine that captures the person's name and number and the best time to call them back.

Be careful putting out "Now Hiring" signs. They convey two negative messages. They tell your customers you're shorthanded, and they imply just about any warm body will do.

1 2 3

Bookmark it: digg del.icio.us technorati yahoo facebook twitter

Add Comment