You’ve been doing this entrepreneurship thing for a while now and (at the risk of jinxing it) things are going pretty well. You have a great team whom you trust implicitly. You know that their attitude and skills are on point and you know that you can leave your business in their capable hands when you have an important meeting or just plain need some work / life balance. You have a loyal following of satisfied customers. They’re loyal to your brand and (best of all, they’re vociferous about it on social media). All things considered, your business is primed and ready for growth… But you know that unless you have the infrastructure to contain it your growth could hobble your business rather than taking it to the next level.
In order to grow successfully, you know that you need to take on new employees and that means a rigorous recruitment process. This can be disruptive and costly, but you can lessen the expenditure of time, effort and capital if you know exactly what to look for in your candidates. We all think that we know a good employee from a great one but by the time someone’s already working for you, it’s already too late. Here are some things you should look for in the perfect candidate…
The three Cs
In order for a great candidate to become a great employee, they need to demonstrate the three Cs at interview stage. These are:
- Contacts: You know people who know the contacts and who can corroborate their resume.
- Credibility: People say great things about the candidate and you know that they’ll sail through their pre-employment background checks and the background check after employment. They have glowing references from former employers and were well liked and respected among colleagues.
- Competence: It’s clear just by talking to them that they know the job and the industry. They talk the talk and can prove how they will walk the walk when they start working for you.
Leadership qualities and independence
Nobody wants to employ a drone who’ll labor away at their daily duties without ever taking initiative or asserting themselves. Your candidate should have leadership qualities even if they don’t have leadership experience. They should be independently minded, be able to adapt and think on their feet and be able to form great working relationships with peers.
Honesty and integrity
It’s telling what candidates say about themselves at interview. While it’s perfectly expected for an employee to sell themselves, be wary of any candidates who try to make themselves out to be infallible superhumans. If they admit to their failings, areas for development and weaknesses as well as their strengths and accomplishments, this is a real sign of integrity.
You like them
Finally, it’s essential that you actually get along with the candidate. You’re a startup company with a closely knit team and as important as skills and experience may be, it’s also vital that you like the candidate and feel that your team will, too.