How Do You Find Qualified Personnel?

Taking out an ad in the paper or calling up an employment agency are hardly guarantees that you will be interviewing the best applicant for your open position any time soon. Placing ads might bring a deluge of people wanting to apply for the job, leaving you feeling overwhelmed. You are going to need to take the necessary time to separate the best candidates from those that would never make it a day in your business.

The interview is the key to locating the qualified associates. Looking through piles of resumes will not yield you a qualified employee. You will have to dedicate up to an hour talking with people about their expectations, the requirements of the job, and the goals of the company.

Choosing a Resume

References and a personalized cover letter should be included with quality resumes. Some people hire professionals to craft their resumes so that they appear a perfect match for positions and companies while others try to hash them out by themselves and often fail to produce anything that will catch a hiring manager's eye. Who creates the resume will definitely affect how it looks and reads, but it not necessarily the best criteria by which to gauge potential candidates.

Look closely at their job history. Have they moved from job to job? Has the person stayed at a job longer then 5-years? Did they leave previous employers contact information as a job reference? What skills outside of your requirements do the individual posses?

So if you find yourself searching for a secretary with decent computer skills who likes to communicate with people, the resume of the right candidate should have experience in both the secretarial and customer service fields. Ideally, you want the talents of the right candidate to include skills and talents outside of the specific area that you need for the position so that they may grow with the company into more challenging positions. Anyone with some office management or accounting experience would be a definite bonus for you and the company. In fact, that would be a top flight resume and someone you definitely want to call in for an interview.

Don't dismiss the inexperienced. It is very possible that the better employee with be the one with less experience in your actual field. How? If the employee can be easily trained in your specific techniques, they may work out far better than an associate with the qualifications who may be set in their ways.

Holding the Interview

Let's assume that you choose the resume of Joe Blow. He has 10 years of administrative experience and 5 years of waiting tables down at a local restaurant. You need someone to answer phones, conduct themselves in a professional manner, and handle customer service. Is Joe the person you want? Joe definitely has the office skills you seek but he seems light on the customer service side of things. After talking with Joe in the interview, you learn that this guy has handled more customer complaints and issues in one week than most customer service associates handle in a month. It is not as easy as you might think working with the public in the food industry. Associates with restaurant experience can be great candidates for customer service positions.

Evaluation

The process can take more than a day, a week, or a month. Give yourself plenty of time to evaluate the applicant. Be fair and consider their body language. Did they look straight into your eyes as you talked? If not, you may be dealing with a dishonest person. Body language is important and shouldn't be overlooked when evaluating how well the interview went. A person can have all of the qualifications needed, but if they don't mix well with you or your staff, you're in for trouble.

A second interview is always advised if you are having trouble making a decision. Give them a questionnaire during this round. Maybe have them perform a simple task that will help you determine their skill level. Maybe you will want to ask Joe to draft a letter for you on a typewriter instead of a computer. Analyze his reaction and be prepared to tell him why you are making the request.

Locating the right people is not that hard if you have a good idea of the qualifications the right candidate should possess. You will want to retain resumes for future reference and just be honest and straightforward when interviewing. By the end of the long process, you should have an employee that is eager to contribute to the organization.

About the author: Ken Bidgood is the your host at <a href="http://www.advertisingxp.com">Advertising XP</a>, the #1 source on the internet when you're looking for fresh up to date advice and reviews to do with Business. For more articles on Business visit: http://www.advertisingxp.com/articles Come and find out about the cheapest and most profitable pay-per-click traffic on the net.

Back to Articles Page