How to Improve the Hiring Process
Posted June 27th, 2016
The hiring process is a tricky thing for employers. They have to try and find the sweet spot between one that takes too long, and one that isn’t long enough. If they rush through the process, employers run the risk of hiring someone who is not the best person for the job, someone who may end up leaving after a short time. And that will result in lost time and money.
Taking Too Long
The other problem is taking too long. Some human resource experts argue that companies should take all the time they need to find the right person. But the conventional wisdom is that taking too long will cost the company the best people. They are the ones who are hired first. And they are the ones who don’t stick around if the hiring process drags out because they have other options.
The question is, what is too long? It is difficult to arrive at an exact time period because there are so many variables involved – the type of company, the job market, the economy, the type of job. And the time it takes to hire one person really doesn’t tell you much about the efficiency of the hiring process.
Metrics for The Hiring Process
Working from the idea that you cannot manage what you cannot measure, companies need to develop metrics for the hiring process itself. To judge how efficient the hiring process is, the company needs to keep records of the hiring process for everyone that it hires. This will provide the kind of aggregate data that will be useful in making some assessments. It will enable company officials, for example, to spot patterns – whether the time to hire is increasing or decreasing, how different departments compare in time to hire, and how time to hire compares to that of the industry as a whole.
The data collection should begin with job postings – how many there are, where they are posted, how many responses they receive. And data should be collected for all the steps that follow and the time it takes for each. This will show clearly if there are any problems or bottlenecks in the process that need to be addressed.
If your technology company is looking to improve its hiring process, Bayside Solutions can help by providing qualified, reliable people who can make an impact at your firm. We know the technology industry and how to staff it. Give Bayside a call today.
