Hiring can be complicated and stressful. A quick and easy way to narrow down that pile of CVs is to weed out the applicants with the fewest qualifications or the least experience. However, this might mean that you miss out on the perfect candidate for your company…
Of course, a lot depends on the role itself. If you’re recruiting a corporate lawyer or an orthopaedic surgeon, you need to know that your applicant has all the necessary credentials. But there’s more to finding the right person than the sum of their past experiences. Companies are now starting to understand the value of raw talent or a spark of something extra special.
Strong relationships are essential for good business and if the relationships inside your team aren’t working, the consequences can be disastrous. You need to hire someone who will click with your other employees, someone who’ll fit in with the approach and direction of your business. Looking at a candidate’s personality is a great way to judge this. Are they flexible and willing to learn? Do they have a positive attitude? Are they able to adapt and change or are they single-minded and committed to a very particular way of working?
It’s a good idea to ask yourself how similar or different they might be to your current employees. This isn’t to say that you should be searching for people who are all the same – a football team wouldn’t be much good if it was made up of entirely of attacking centre forwards – it’s more about compatibility and finding the right balance.
Also keep in mind that skills can be learned. You can teach someone how to operate a particular software application or manage data within your current system but it’s much harder to change someone’s attitude. Personal qualities are ingrained and you can’t force someone to have enthusiasm or a good work ethic. These are the kinds of attributes that are much harder to pin down and it can be difficult to find them in an application letter or CV.
A good example of this is Josh, one of the latest members of the SES Recruitment team.
Josh first came to us through the Job Centre with no previous office experience. He’d been working as waiter and volunteering at a museum with a view to eventually becoming an estate agent. We took him on as an intern to help him with his work experience.
He was very quiet at first but having to hold his own in the SES office meant that he soon lost his nerves and quickly grew in confidence. We spotted something special in him – a great eye for detail and an eagerness to learn. His attitude to work was very impressive and at the end of his internship, he expressed a desire to move into recruitment.
It was an easy decision for us to offer him a role as a resourcer. The talent we saw in him is developing week by week and he has a very bright future ahead of him. Had we followed the more traditional route, Josh wouldn’t have had the chance to shine and we would have missed out on a valued member of staff.
Personality is something that’s catching on in the business world. Richard Branson wrote on LinkedIn recently: ‘The first thing to look for when searching for a great employee is somebody with a personality that fits with your company culture. Most skills can be learned, but it is difficult to train people on their personality. If you can find people who are fun, friendly, caring and love helping others, you are on to a winner. Personality is the key.’
That’s one of the things that makes SES Recruitment different. We look at your whole business and work closely with you and our candidates to find the perfect match.
We’re always on hand for your recruitment needs so please get in touch if we can help.