Understanding the Requirement

Before the commencement of the recruitment process, a manager needs to have a clear picture on the type of candidates who would be a perfect fit to the working model of his company, and for the job profile they are getting recruited for. A manager should begin by considering and analyzing the post for which the recruitment process is being conducted, and what kind of a person is needed in the team.

During this analysis, it’s important for the manager to look at both functional skills and other prerequisites for the job. For instance, the manager must take into consideration the overall temperament and attitude of the candidate, and his strengths and weaknesses.

By having clear goals and objectives, and sticking to the plan, a manager will be able to hire the most eligible personnel for the job and as a reward, the manager will also get to avoid turnover, which is just as important a factor due to all the investments made in terms of money and time associated with the recruitment process and training.

Core Questions

Here is a list of some of the core questions that a HR manager must ponder over −

• Is this a new territory?
• If so, does it have any similarities with other territory?
• Has the territory opened due to turnover, promotion, or termination?
• What issues did the previous person who represented the territory face?
• Which kind of areas need improvement?
• What personal traits would best fit this territory?
• What variety of technical expertise, if any, is required?
• Is this an isolated territory where the person needs to independently self-start?
• Is this a territory where a person needs to work singlehandedly in this category?
• What kind of training will be required (whether immediate or long-term)?

With adequate planning, these and other questions can be easily addressed before the recruitment process.

Making a List of Specific Criteria

Managers without any pre-planning tend to develop a certain bias and commit the mistake of hiring candidates whom they perceive to be their own reflection. A recruitment is successful when needs at both ends are met. However, in these cases, it’s the manager’s loss who is not recruiting the deserving and desirable candidate.

Making a list of specific criteria definitely helps in the recruitment process. Once the list has been made, it is essential for the manager to stick to the list (assuming no major changes in the recruitment environment are taking place). Of course, It is unlikely that the manager will find all the “perfect” candidates with all the necessary skills and perfect mindset. In such case, the managers rank the criteria and weigh the categories correctly.

A manager looks for candidates who have the following Skills Set model (technical knowledge, communication skills, market experience, business acumen). In fact, those companies that are excellent in hiring today are looking more and more to hire candidates with a certain experience. If a candidate does not possess an experience period of X years doing a job Y, then it’s being increasingly perceived that he might not be a strong candidate.