{"id":29585,"date":"2021-12-01T13:18:57","date_gmt":"2021-12-01T13:18:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.clearbooks.co.uk\/blog\/?p=29585"},"modified":"2021-12-01T13:18:58","modified_gmt":"2021-12-01T13:18:58","slug":"choosing-the-right-people-for-your-business","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.clearbooks.co.uk\/blog\/choosing-the-right-people-for-your-business\/","title":{"rendered":"How to choose the right people for your business"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Deciding to hire your first employees is equal parts exciting and daunting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You\u2019re positively giddy at the thought of no longer having to do every single thing in your business by yourself, at the thought of having actual support as you take your business to the next level.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But you know the risks. You know that hiring the wrong employee can be a costly mistake, and not just in terms of revenue, time, and effort. You know that entrusting your business to the wrong person could, at best, dent your confidence and set your progress back a stage, and could, at worst, ruin the reputation you\u2019ve worked so hard to build.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, how do you ensure you find the best person for the job?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

We\u2019ve put together six top tips to help you make the right hire (and we\u2019re even throwing in three bonus tips to make the whole onboarding process easier when you do find your perfect match!)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. Consider your company culture<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

What does your business stand for? What\u2019s your ethos, your values? What kind of workplace are you hoping to build?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You probably already have a fairly good idea of how to answer those questions but this is the perfect time to refine your picture of your company culture. Because you don\u2019t just want someone who has the technical skills to help you out, you want someone who truly understands your mission. Someone who understands what you\u2019re trying to achieve and who is fully on board with helping you get there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. Create a detailed job description<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

You might have a concrete idea of what you need help with\u2026or you could be spending so much time putting out fires that you haven\u2019t been able to figure out which tasks you should outsource and which you shouldn\u2019t.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If it\u2019s the latter (and no, it\u2019s not just you!), take a deep breath and give yourself a moment to consider what you really need from a new hire.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For example, perhaps you feel like you\u2019re drowning in admin so you\u2019ve decided to look for a virtual assistant or a PA to take care of everything for you. But, when you start thinking about it, you realise you don\u2019t actually mind much of the admin that\u2019s on your plate, it\u2019s just your financial record keeping that\u2019s driving you crazy. In which case, you don\u2019t need a general admin assistant, you need a bookkeeper.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Or maybe you just can\u2019t keep up with creating content for your social media platforms, in which case it would make sense to hire someone with specific content creation experience rather than a more general VA.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Whatever you need help with, the more specific you can be when creating your job ads, the more likely you are to attract people with the right skill set.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. Cast a wide net<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Unconscious bias often plays a role in the hiring process; despite our best intentions it\u2019s natural to gravitate towards the type of people we\u2019ve worked with in the past.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, by casting a wider net and opening your mind to a diverse talent pool, you\u2019re far more likely to find people with the unique skills, traits, experiences, and ideas you need to help your business grow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

4. Consider attitude vs. skills<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

When hiring employees, many people make the mistake of prioritising skills above all else. But, while it\u2019s incredibly convenient to find people who already have the technical know-how to hit the ground running, it\u2019s actually far more important to find people who have the right attitude towards their work, their career goals, and their own learning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Because it\u2019s far easier to teach someone to use your CRM or your accounting software than it is to foster a sense of curiosity, a commitment to life-long learning, and a dedication to a job well-done.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

5. Create a formal employee hiring process<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

We\u2019ve all experienced it: you meet someone new and you just get a sense of who they are. You innately and inexplicably believe that they\u2019re the right person for the given situation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, when it comes to taking a chance on someone who\u2019s going to represent your business, a gut feeling isn\u2019t enough. You need to have a rigorous hiring process to ensure you\u2019re ticking all of the necessary boxes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Of course a hiring process will (and should) look different for everyone, depending on the business and the role but there are a couple of things you could consider:<\/p>\n\n\n\n