By Annette Baron, PA, MBA, guest author
People are the energy that powers an organization. When the right workers are in the right positions and doing the right things, growth is inevitable. Managers cannot achieve greater levels of performance without a passion and talent for talent acquisition.
Does your organization follow this step-by-step roadmap to success?
Step 1 – Comprehensive job analysis and accurate job descriptions – These are the foundation to securing appropriate talent. A job analysis is the systematic process of determining what the job requires in terms of skills, duties and knowledge. A job description cannot be written without a thorough and complete job analysis. The job description should be a comprehensive and organized collection of essential tasks, duties and responsibilities of a job. It should include the specifications and qualifications needed, keeping in mind compliance and legal issues. Job analysis and job descriptions fluctuate with technology and company growth. They should ideally tie into performance appraisals.
Step 2 – Sourcing talent – Often referred to as “recruiting,” sourcing talent requires a deep dive into the available pool of candidates. Advertising and networking must be pinpointed and accurate, so time isn’t wasted culling through inappropriate candidates. Applicants must be collected, saved and documented, according to EEO guidelines. Sourcing is best done by a professional, either internally or externally, who has industry specific knowledge and can speak and market the company correctly, since sourcing can be viewed as an arm of marketing and advertising that positions the company as an “employer of choice.”
Step 3 – Qualifying – Now, the really hard part! Which candidate to choose! There are many tools used to qualify candidates for a particular job. Most important, however, is qualifying the candidate for the company’s culture. Studies show that employers base 50% of qualifying on the resume, skills and past experiences, and 50% on personality, chemistry and fit. Hit the basics; relocation, title compatibility, salary expectations motivation … then move on.
Step 4 – Interviewing, more qualifying – Have a plan…structured interview, unstructured interview, behavioral interview, assessments, multi-layered interviews, panel interviews or a combination approach. Have you considered offering the top two candidates a one or two day paid internship on-site to examine more closely?
Step 5 – Selecting – Missteps in hiring costs a company three times base salary to discharge and replace a wrong hire. What a waste of time, money and productivity! Selection must be made carefully. Rejection must also be handled properly and within EEO guidelines. Done incorrectly, both can result in costly legal battles.
Developing and executing a robust talent acquisition system is not intuitive. In our practice, we find that the most passionate and talented managers recognize this and embrace assistance with this complex human resource area. Uniformly, when this occurs, greater levels of performance and company growth follow.
For more information:
Annette Baron, PA, MBA
President – HR Advisor – Eagle Resources
973-628-7700
