Recruiting That Works Requires a Recipe for Success
Anne Laguzza, CEO – The Works Consulting, Network Partner
Do you have a recruiting plan? I am not talking about a haphazard list of open positions. I am talking about a detailed recruiting plan. In our current talent shortage, having an actual detailed plan is now more important than ever.
Many leaders feel pressure to hire immediately, and while rushing to do so, don’t take the time to develop a plan. Even experienced leaders need a plan to ensure that the best person is hired for the position that they have.
Why have a recruiting plan?
In hiring, you want consistency. Consistency leads to high performing teams that match your values and generate the best results for your business. You want to follow the same recipe every single time.
Consider a recipe for muffins. In order to produce the same delicious, light and fluffy muffins every single time, you must follow the recipe exactly as listed. Any deviation from the list of ingredients and instructions will result in a completely different muffin. They could taste great or need to be tossed out.
THIS is why you need a recruiting plan. It is your “recipe” if you will, of how you will select new team members. You will follow the recruiting plan over and over again to ensure that you hire the best people for your position. You want to consistently hire the people that you need for your team to grow – not a “let’s see what happens” approach.
The benefits of a well thought out recruiting plan are:
- It saves time.
- It keeps you and others focused.
- It maintains organization and consistency.
Some components of a good recruiting plan:
- A job description or understanding of responsibilities.
- Identification of the non-negotiables for a position.
- Detailed behavioral characteristics and skills that are required for this position.
- An engaging job posting.
- Development of a job posting strategy – sources, timing, etc.
- Established interview questions.
- A defined process of who will be involved in interviews and when.
- A recruiting timeline with an estimated start date.
Developing an effective recruiting plan takes time up front to plan. The time invested up front will save you time later on in performance management and having to refill the position if the person selected doesn’t work out. Not to mention the cost your bad hiring decisions have on team morale.
Hiring is likely THE most important thing you’ll do as a leader. Every time you have an opening on your team, you have an opportunity to evaluate the current strengths and identify what skills and qualities you need to help your team grow.
Don’t throw this opportunity away. You have a very important job as a leader and your current people are counting on you to carry out that responsibility by finding and hiring only the best people. Every single time.
Anne Laguzza is the CEO of The Works Consulting, a CALSAGA Network Partner. As a seasoned business executive with human resources management, leadership development, and performance coaching experience, Anne works with clients from a variety of industries to develop better systems, maximize employee productivity, and enable management to focus on business growth. For more information, check out theworksconsulting.com or email anne@theworksconsulting.com. You can also find Anne on Instagram and LinkedIn.
