The Perfect Fit

Have you looked at your selection processes recently? What is your staff turnover like?

“Let's assume the average salary of employees in a given company is $50,000 per year. Taking the cost of turnover at 150% of salary, the cost of turnover is then $75,000 per employee who leaves the company. For the mid-sized company of 1,000 employees who has a 10% annual rate of turnover, the annual cost of turnover is $7.5 million!” *

So how do you go about ensuring you select the right staff, who will fit well with your organisation, and who will stay with you?

I support many clients in the recruitment process, and it is essential to be well prepared before the position is advertised. Think about the title of the job to be filled. Does it encompass all the responsibilities you expect of that staff member? Draw up a list of skills, expertise and experience required. What characteristics would best suit the role? Can you define the culture of the company in order to select the right person? They have to be able to fit in and work as a team player.

Measure all these requirements against the written applications, and check the supporting documentation, like CVs, for relevant experience. However, remember rarely will you see a bad CV, so the next step is crucial.

The interview.

I often sit on an interview panel, and act as facilitator, ensuring there is a good balance between interviewer, and interviewee. Before you conduct the interviews, draw up a set of questions. Ensure that the same questions are asked of each candidate, to maintain consistency. They can relate to the criteria already established in your preliminary planning – for instance asking about how they work in a team or discussing their leadership style. Keep the questions open ended, allowing the candidate the opportunity to provide evidence to back up their answers.

At this stage you are looking for the personality fit. For instance, if you are looking for a receptionist, the key to this role is customer service. So look at the body language of your candidate. Is her presentation good? Does she communicate well with you? She will be the front line for your customers, so she needs to represent your company well. Training her how to use your dedicated answering system is easy in comparison.

In the event you have two excellent candidates, and you are trying to determine their suitability, it may be beneficial to use more sophisticated tools, like the Harrison assessment criteria. To get to this stage you still need to have followed a vigorous selection procedure of your own. If a role is particularly complex, it may be necessary to go through more than one round of interviews. And if you are still unclear, you can always invite a candidate to spend half a day at work, where you will be able to observe them more closely.

If you are able to retain talented staff you will give your company the competitive edge.

* Taken from “COST OF EMPLOYEE TURNOVER” by William G. Bliss in The Advisor. For full article see http://www.isquare.com/turnover.cfm

William Bliss is President of Bliss & Associates Inc. USA.

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