5 Crucial Hiring Tips for the New Year

Hiring and firing is something that needs to be done with tact and care. Hiring the wrong person can cause all kinds of serious issues within your company. And, it can be an expensive and lengthy process to do in quick succession. 

As a hiring manager, there are some guidelines you should make sure to follow to ensure you invest in the right candidates. This is especially true now, as workforce trends are evolving to meet the changing expectations of today’s hiring pool.

Here are some hiring tips for 2020 that can help you be more successful in your hiring efforts:

1. Refine Your Vision

If your business has been around for a while, then chances are your vision may have changed over time. If you are in the unique position of just starting up or launching early in the New Year, you can create a vision of success in advance. Either way, your vision should be clearly outlined and leave room for growth and change to your processes.

When you define your vision, be precise with the functions of each department and what your goals for growth are. Each member of your team now and in the future should have a blueprint that is easy to follow and contribute to. When each role in the plan is defined, people know where they stand and how they can move forward. The more detailed it is, the better. 

2. Own Your Mistakes

There will be times that you make a mistake in the hiring process. It can be distressing after looking over hundreds of resumes, choosing the most qualified candidate, and going through onboarding to discover that your new employee is missing the mark. But those mistakes will happen, and by owning them, you can learn from them. 

As you come to understand where you went wrong when you hired unfit candidates, you can improve your process and try new methods. Experimenting with different ways of approaching the hiring process will allow you to ultimately build successful hiring methods. When it comes to making mistakes, don’t forget the famous quote attributed to Thomas Edison —“I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.” 

3. Remember that Different Is Better

One of the best hiring tips you can follow in 2020 is to diversify your staff. As counter-intuitive as it may sound, it’s wisest to hire people who are unlike you—perhaps even completely opposite from you.

If you surround yourself with people who are the same as you, you will be working in a giant echo-chamber. There will be no fresh ideas, no contradicting opinions, and a lack of diverse skills. After all, if two people are saying the same thing, one of them isn’t necessary.

If you spend too long looking for people who fit a mold, you will miss out on the talent that could be incredible additions to your team. Look for different strengths and weaknesses, backgrounds, work methods, and experiences. Build a diverse and exciting team, and your brainstorming sessions and business will thrive because of it. 

4. Put Character First

There may be moments in an interview where you know that the person in front of you is highly qualified but just won’t fit in with the team and company culture. You have a choice: you can either hire them and risk damaging the culture you’ve worked hard to build, or you can wait for the right personality to come along—even if he or she doesn’t have all the skills you hoped for. 

Of course, in an ideal world, you will find someone who has both the necessary skills for the job and excellent character. But when it comes down to it, character always wins in the workplace. You can teach people skills, but it’s much harder to teach trust, loyalty, and honesty. There is more to people than their abilities, and you should always be looking for those who have a drive and passion to produce good work rather than do whatever it takes to climb the corporate ladder.

5. Stay Steady

We’ve all heard the tail of the rabbit and the hare—slow and steady wins the race. Before you rush to sign on a new hire, consider if he or she is the right person for the job long term. Do your research and conduct reliable employment screenings to ensure your candidate is stable, qualified, and trustworthy.

As you follow these hiring tips for 2020 and stay up-to-date on the latest workforce trends, you can ensure you build a team that is both loyal and talented. You can learn from errors that will inevitably arise in your process and develop stronger, better ways to seek the top candidates. You can make 2020 your best hiring year yet.