Where Did All of the Employees Go?

My wife recently took our 9-year old, Ava, to Orlando for a National Dance Competition. 

One thing she wanted to make sure that I did (other than keep the other kids alive) was to water her flowers.  They have been struggling all summer and needed extra care.

I wanted to ease her worry and stress.

“Sarah, don’t even think about those flowers while you are gone.  Don’t let them stress you out one bit.  Because when you get back, they will most definitely be dead.”

And I held to my word too.

I wasn’t a very good “employee”.

Many of the small business owners I am working with have the same problem with finding and keeping good employees. 

I wish I had a magic wand, however, with the unemployment rate of approximately 4% nationwide and 2.8% locally, there’s not much to choose from.

With that in mind, here are a few recruiting and hiring tips you may not be using.

Job description
Write a super clear and non-buzzwordy job description.

Every job description out there says something about teamwork, communication skills, ability to prioritize, blah, blah, blah.

While those things are important, EVERY JOB DESCRIPTION says just that, whether it’s for a CEO or porta-potty guy (no offense porta-potty guy.) 

Make sure the job description clearly lays out what the employee will be doing on a daily basis and what goals you have for them.

Recruitment
Be willing to turn over some rocks.  There are a lot of really good under-employed people out there waiting for you to find them.

• Ask for referrals from existing employees
• Look at existing employees in the service sector (restaurants, customer service reps, etc.)
• Ask friends and family about folks that are looking for a change

Phone Interviews
This is the easiest thing in the world to do, to narrow your candidate pool.  You will be surprised, and not in a good way, at how many people can disqualify themselves here.

• Keep it short and sweet
• Discuss salary and hours
• Ask everyone the same questions

In-person Interview
After the phone interview, you should only have to interview 3-4 people.

Ask behavioral style questions, i.e. “tell me about a time when you handled a stressful situation at your last job”, not “how do you handle stress.”

And don’t ask the following:
• Are you married?
• Do you have kids?
• What’s your religion or do you celebrate religious holidays?
• Are you pregnant?
• What’s your race/nationality?
• What’s your sexual preference?
• How old are you?
• Do you have any disabilities or health problems?
• Do you use drugs, alcohol or smoke?

You can ask
• Reason for leaving prior employment
• Perceived strengths and weaknesses
• Reasons for wanting to be employed with the company
• Work attitude and work ethic
• Background training and experience
• References from prior employers and info on how to contact
• Prior Education
• Do you currently use illegal drugs?
• Meet work hours and schedule

On-boarding
Once you hire this new employee, be sure to train them for an appropriate amount of time and have a 30-day and 90-day review. 

Yes, there will be some folks who tell you that is not needed or opens the door to trouble later (you fire them after giving them a good review), however it helps you and the employee know what is working and what could be improved on now, instead of you blindsiding them later when they don’t meet expectations.

And if you have any flowers that you like to donate, please be sure to drop them off at the TSBDC:).