Before you even post a job to hire

1. ENVISION YOUR IDEAL CANDIDATE

The most effective hiring employers are those who have a clearly defined idea of their ideal candidate. There’s no such thing as being too specific; list the education, experience, certifications, skills and personality you’d like to see in the person that would be joining your team or company.

2. PRIORITIZE

Consider organizing your list into three groups: Need, Want, Nice-to-Have. This will provide even more clarity for you and simplify the decision process.  This is the time to be realistic with your desires and your budget.

3. UNDERSTAND THE POSITION

Most people list job requirements without providing any insight into what will be done on a day-to-day basis. If you’re not sure, talk with your team about what this position will do most of the time. Providing framework for this position goes hand-in-hand with prioritizing your list, making sure you find people who are most skilled in the areas you need most.

4. KNOW THE MARKETPLACE INTIMATELY. 

What is the demand for this position? How much experience should you expect? Do skill sets transfer? What salary range should you consider? If you’re unsure about any of these items, let us shed some light based on similar positions, locations—even direct competitors.

5. KNOW WHAT RESOURCES YOU HAVE FOR ‘THE SEARCH’:

• Tap into your own network: Your friends and colleagues may already know you and possibly somebody that’s good for your team.
• Have an employee referral plan: Your existing team may not be thinking about their own network of people that may be good for your team.  You can also learn a great deal about your own organization by how willing employees are willing to help you with your recruiting efforts.
• Internal recruiting department: If you have an internal recruiting team, know their strengths and weaknesses and know how to work with them.  They may not be technologists so be patient with helping them understand - I'm certain they want to help you if they know how!
• Recruiting Agencies:  Take the time to develop relationships with firms you prefer working with.  An agency that understands your environment is that one that can consistently deliver quality people candidates for future searches.

6. KNOW HOW YOU WILL MAKE YOUR DECISION

Be prepared to pull the trigger when you find the right person. Identifying a great hire usually requires a lot of time, effort and expense and when you find a great person, the chances are that other companies are going to want that person too.  Don’t lose a great person because of indecision or an unnecessary need to comparison shop. 

7. TRUST YOUR INSTINCT

Listen to expert advice and do your homework, but always make the decision that you're confident in.

Not all recruiters are created equal - Know how to evaluate one

If you’ve been in the workforce for at least a couple of years, it’s more than likely that you already have a horror story about a shady recruiter or recruiting company that drove you crazy.  Unfortunately, you also know the benefits of having a really great recruiter but may not know how to find one.  This is to help you understand a little more about the who and how-to of finding and working with a really great recruiter and never have to experience the negative side of unethical recruiters again.

How to evaluate your recruiter:

1. Be open minded. It’s unfortunate to admit that our industry has many recruiters that forget that our industry involves people. You’re not a product and shouldn’t be treated that way.  You’re not the same as your peers and not all recruiters are the same.  Just like any new relationship, you have go in with an open mind that they could be an amazing person.
2. Are they honest? The most important trait in any relationship..  If they’re lying about one thing, you can be sure there are going to be more to follow—kick them to the curb immediately.
3. Are they win-win? Most bad recruiting experiences occur when a recruiter thinks win-IDONTCARE instead of win-win  They’re there to fill a job with a skillset and could care less about your goals, desires, or family.
4. How long have they been in the industry? A recruiter who has been in the industry for less than a year may have a lot of obstacles occur that more experienced recruiters would have been able to predict.  Be patient with recruiters that are trying their best to help as you can be certain that they’re getting help behind the scenes.

Things you can do :

1. Be Honest. Remember that this is a two way street and recruiters’ jobs are to evaluate people—experienced recruiters can sniff out the tiniest lies and may quickly rule you out for amazing opportunities.  I’ve heard many reasons why people will lie and I always say the same thing: “Is that really how you want to start off a relationship with your next potential employer?  Is that the person you want to be?”
2. Thoroughly explain your goals and objectives.  Work with your recruiter on a strategy to try and obtain what you want.  Experienced recruiters have more experience than you likely ever will in your career.  Let them help.
3. Don’t get desperate.  If you’re desperate for a job, a bad recruiter is not going to help.  Instead of wasting time interviewing at positions that you’re interested in, be proactive to seek out a recruiter that you want to work with.
4. Be proactive.  Have at least one good recruiter in your network.  They can keep you aware of opportunities in the marketplace, even if you’re not actively looking.  It’s not likely that the perfect opportunity for you comes up when you happen to be in the market.