CQ Partners logo

The 5 Keys to Successful Hiring

Every business owner is excited about growth. You’ve cultivated and nurtured your practice well, have done all the right things and are ready to take it to the next level. This usually involves expanding your staff and that means investing in additional human capital – hiring.

Small business owners don’t hire new employees every day and the thought of screening, interviewing, and selecting employees can be daunting. But if you pay attention to these five keys, you will maximize your chances of attracting and developing the best new talent for your practice.

1. Know what you are looking for

Preparation is always a strong precursor to success. Invest the time to understand the role you’re looking to fill as it relates to the skills necessary to do the job (think of skills as the things we all learn—both through work experience and formal education) and think about how to test and vet those skills. In addition to skills, you should also consider a candidate’s attributes or traits. These are the qualities that are “hard-wired” into a person’s DNA. While most skills can be taught or developed it can be very difficult to develop a person’s attributes. Finally, think about the culture you have and how a candidate will fit into that culture.

2. Always be on the lookout for talent

Once you know what you need, you may find yourself assessing everyone you meet. That’s a good thing. Leverage relationships, chance encounters, and business meetings. You never know where you may find your next star employee.

3. Listen

You should not be doing most of the talking in an interview. Sometimes we concentrate too much on the information we want to provide and not enough on getting the information we need. Asking good questions becomes meaningless if we are not listening to the answers and asking good follow-up questions.

4. Think about WHY someone would want to come to work for you

Unemployment is as low as its been in a long time. Talented candidates will have multiple options. Be ready to promote your practice as an employer of choice. You should always have a great answer when a candidate asks, “Why should I come to work for you?”

5. Take the time to onboard

Even if you execute the above items flawlessly it won’t matter if you don’t take the time to onboard new employees. Remember to set expectations, model great behavior, provide a lot of feedback, and coach your employees.
Follow these guidelines and you’ll maximize your chances hiring and retaining the best talent out there!

Of course, if you need a partner in guiding you through the process, trust the experts in hearing healthcare recruiting—CQ’s recruiters!

About the Author

Ernie Paolini

Ernie Paolini is responsible for Human Resources and Recruiting Services at CQ Partners. He has more than 20 years of experience in building and managing technology-driven HR and recruitment organizations. His areas of expertise include behavioral interviewing, employee relations, compliance, and onboarding.