Have you ever thought about things that could make the process of getting a suitable person for your company complicated? Maybe you have asked this question many times. Let’s have a look at some of the most common causes of complication, which can arise in the process of hunting and selecting future employees.

There are various ways of hunting for and selecting employees, such as doing it yourself, or using the services of.personnel advisory agencies. As you know, the starting point is being clear about the requirements for the person that should fill the vacant job posting. That means defining their future duties and the expectations you will have for the newly-hired employee. These consist of expertise and experience requirements, but also those of their personality, which should correspond with the business culture of your company.

It is the above mentioned requirements you need to be sure of, in order for the new employee to fulfill all your expectations. Infringing this principle can lead to serious complications – the candidates might fulfill all of your so far defined demands, but are nevertheless unsuitable for the job posting, and you need to make changes in the requirements in the course of the selection process. This unnecessarily prolongs the whole process. The situation may get even more complicated if you are using the services of a recruitment agency. If the requirements are not absolutely clear, the whole process might get troublesome, not only because of the prolongation of the search, but also because of the negative effect your changes in demands will have on the cost of the whole process.

Another frequently made mistake is letting the applicants wait too long before telling them the results of the selection process. This way, the recruiter can easily miss the chance to get the best employee. One has to remember that clever applicants have a wider choice of job offers, and they do not have to impatiently wait for your decision. If you don’t want to repeat the whole selection process, it is good to meet the deadlines, and in case of prolonging the decision-making, keep the candidates informed. Another fact is that people usually don’t react positively to uncertainty which comes hand in hand with a long wait for the results of the job interview. And in this time of uncertainty, your applicants may decide on a different job offer, which might not be as attractive as yours, but which is secure. In the worst case they will gain a negative opinion of your company and ‘thank’ you for your time.

Another common mistake is that sometimes, the employer hires the best, but not the most suitable candidate. In this case a situation can arise, in which the newly-hired employee realises that their capability is beyond their job posting, and they will leave for a better job offer before long. And that’s why making clear which competences are key for the job posting is of utmost importance. It may seem that it would be best to simply employ a person who is perfect at almost everything, but this scenario is rather unreal and it’s also not the best solution. That’s why it is essential to think the requirements through and decide which of them could be omitted, if needed. It is also important to coordinate the offered salary with the requirements, mainly when you need to employ people who are not available in the labour market in big numbers, because the demand after them surpasses the supply. In other words – it would be quite difficult to get a Superman for 20 cents.

Ing. Marta Vladárová
HR Konzultant

TRIGON Consulting
www.trigon-consulting.sk