Write Down What You’re Looking For

Although this may seem obvious, it’s important to understand and document your expectations for the perfect candidate before you allow for applications. Setting expectations and defining what you need beforehand is crucial to finding the right person. Since you’ve already done the groundwork; defining the role, defining the person comes next!

Consider the following framework:

• Required and desired experience/education
• Success in this role for distinct time periods (First 3 months, First 6 months, etc.)
• An ideal timeline from posting the job to making an offer.
• Interview outline and areas of focus.

Plan For Past The Next Hire

Any experienced recruiter knows you don’t plan for hiring one person at a time - you plan to shape the company. With this in mind, you’ll need to think about this role and how it fits with the overall growth of the company. Keep growth and future goals in mind. You can expand your thought process by keeping these questions in mind:

• Will this role transition to something else in 6 months?
• What are some growth scenarios/opportunities this role could be a part of?
• What does an ideal candidate’s career path look like for this role?

The answers to these questions will help you to understand both how to build for the company’s future and for the future of your next hire. 

Create a Uniform (But Flexible) Interview Plan

The interview process can be a bit overwhelming, so it’s helpful to break it down into organized sections. You’ll want to establish an understanding of how to grade candidates in each of those sections to ensure you understand the value of each candidate both within the role and within the scope of the other candidates. It also helps to clarify a universal interviewing process for all members of your recruiting team. 

From a phone interview to the last in-person/video interview, it’s important to understand what you’re looking for at each stage. Establish a means of understanding what makes a candidate acceptable to move through to the next interview. Some simple examples of this are:

• Using an online application process to prune for those candidates who are the most qualified and fit the needs of the role.
• Using a phone interview to understand the mindset and career path of each candidate.
• Implementing a trial project or basic skills test to further prune your candidates.

By utilizing these tips, your recruiting team can develop a measurable recruitment strategy that helps your company find the talent it needs in order to achieve its goals - big or small!