10 ways to recruit the right employees

When it comes to recruiting new employees for your not-for-profit organisation, there are many factors that are beyond your control, such as the economic climate and staff shortages. However, you can control the quality of your employees by choosing people who share your organisation’s values, complement its culture and add value to your organisation.

Here are ten useful recruitment tips to help your organisation achieve better outcomes by selecting the right employees:

1. Be clear about the role

This may seem basic but it’s important to carefully consider the position that needs to be filled before selecting a candidate. Start by constructing a job brief. What are the outcomes that you want from the role? How does this role fit in to the rest of the organisation? What skills are required to be successful in this position? What personality type would thrive in this role? You will build a better candidate brief once you’ve clearly scoped out the role you’re trying to fill.

Spending time planning at the beginning rather than rushing to the heart of the recruitment process will increase your chances of hiring the perfect employee for your organisation.

2. Research the market

In order to attract the best candidates, it is important to conduct market research. Find out what the current market salary is and what your competitors are offering. Consider the following:

• Where are similar roles being advertised?
• Are there a lot of these roles currently available?
• Who else is looking for an employee with the same skill set and experience?
• If you decide to work with a recruitment agency, which ones are hiring in your space?

3. Attract quality candidates

Before you start conducting interviews, analyse your recruitment strategy and how to best present this role and your business to attract the best candidates. Sometimes a proactive approach is more effective in getting the ideal candidates for the job. Remember, if you don’t ask you don’t get.

4. Be flexible

Candidates don’t all fit in to perfect square boxes, particularly the really good ones. We all have different needs, wants, desires and expectations, whether it be salary, working hours or flexibility around holidays. Consider what your organisation is willing to compromise on. What would you be willing to pay for an exceptional candidate? Do you really need that qualification or can you train the candidate to develop that skill once they are employed?

5. Favour attitude over experience

Have you ever hired someone who’s experienced but isn’t a great employee? Or someone who lacks experience but has turned out to be a loyal employee who outshines more experienced staff? I certainly have! This doesn’t mean you should always hire trainees, but rather hire on attitude and skill over experience alone. This one small tip could substantially increase the quality of your employees.

6. Ask quality questions and dig, dig, dig

It is important to ask questions that will allow you to determine if a candidate has the skills and competency you require. Don’t settle for ‘surface’ answers, dig deeper to develop an understanding of what the candidate has to offer so that you can determine if they can, and want, to do the job.

7. Take time to find the best

Take time to meet the candidates and really get to know them well, so you can determine if they are right for the role and organisation. Recruiting is a bit like dating in the sense that you have got to spend a decent amount of time with a candidate before you decide if they are the one for the job. Let’s face it, you are probably going to be spending more hours with some employees than you do with your partner so why would you think a
45–minute chat would be enough for you to determine if you they are the one (for the job)?

8. Keep the process moving

There’s nothing that puts prospective employees off more than a manager who can’t organise their time well enough to progress the recruitment process. We live in such a fast-paced world that 48 hours seems like a lifetime to wait to hear from a prospective employer. If you want to hire great people, keep the process moving and, most importantly, keep communicating.

9. Accept that it’s a two way process

Even though the candidate is the one in the hot seat, you and your organisation are also being interviewed. The candidate has got to want to work with you so it’s important to give them a good experience from their first point of contact right through to the final stages of the recruitment process. Highlight the benefits of working with your organisation and why they should choose to work with you. If you can’t think of anything, ask your existing staff why they chose your business and why they’ve stayed.

10. Give them the tools to succeed

Once you have hired a great candidate, ensure you give them the training and support they need, particularly in the first few months. Ensure they know exactly what is expected of them, have been given the tools to do the job properly and are given regular feedback on their performance.

You may have succeeded in hiring a great candidate but if you fail to follow through with the support and training they require, all your hard recruitment work may go to waste.

Finding great people who share your organisation’s culture, values and vision takes a lot of planning and effort. This can sometimes feel like an unconquerable challenge, but the benefits of doing so can’t be understated.