With the unemployment rate high, HireRight.com recently found that 34 percent of job seekers falsify information on their resumes to get ahead in the race for employment. That is just one problem hiring managers run into during the hiring process. Some businesses that have poorly screened employees have suffered much more than lack of productivity. From avoiding negligent hiring law-suits, to workplace violence and fraud prevention, an effective new hire screening process is becoming crucial.
All is not lost though. Below are some screening tips to help ensure your “round table only includes worthy knights.” Remember, the path to success is the ability to effectively implement every tip below.
Photo Credit: Center for Work Life
Knight screening tips for your round table:
1. Evaluate your recruitment method:
Attracting the right people is no easy task. It is important when creating job postings to be specific about what employees can expect. Don’t be afraid to list “dream qualifications.” This will help deter people that won’t fit your needs. Also, be sure when putting out ads and postings to use sites where you can categorize the position. LinkedIn and Glassdoor are great reliable resources for job seekers, so make sure you are present and likable on those websites.
2. Utilize new technology screening methods:
Screening applicants by method of social media investigation is becoming increasingly popular. This is not a violation of privacy, because the applicant made their social media public. This is a great way to determine personality details of the potential new hire and if they will be a good fit.
3. Perform thorough employment and academic verification:
As mentioned above, more and more applicants are lying on their resumes in order to secure jobs. Do not rely only on numbers the applicant listed for contacting previous employers and institutions. Take the time to look up some of these numbers so you don’t talk to the candidate’s cousin who agreed to lie for them. Call as many references as you can dig up over a long time span to speak with regarding the candidate. Be thorough with your questions in verifying the timeframe of employment, responsibilities and skills. Remember though that past employees sometimes have difficulty putting in a bad word when it is needed, so talk to many references.
4. Reform your interview process:
This may be the most crucial step of the hiring process. Even if you screened out the candidates who lacked the necessary skills and you feel confident the previous employers had good experiences with your potential new hire, that doesn’t mean they are right for your company. A two-step interview process is recommended so that you really have time to develop a sense of the candidate. This would mean fist scanning for the right candidates with a strong Applicant Tracking System, and designing a 360 Profile (through job design and pre-employment assessment), which then will empower the interviewer to ask the right questions. The entire process is only effective if the infrastructure supports the overall goal. Otherwise, the interviewer will be like a deer caught in headlights, without the real ability to look for indicators that really mean something. A common mistake is to only inquire about past jobs and candidate skills. Behavioral interviewing is a necessity as a part of all hiring decisions. Turnover is very costly, and emotionally challenging as well, safeguarding your human capital decisions will only strengthen your organization from the core.
Remember these tips as you go forth and recruit your knights!
*Refer to Hiring Success avoids a Work Place Mess for more advice on this topic. * We have posted some suggested interview questions.
