Another fellow Twitter friend @StarPS has kindly offered to write a guest blog offering you her top ten tips to recruitment:
Top Ten Tips When Recruiting a New Team Member
1. A CV is not a legally binding document!
Anyone can write a CV for anyone else. A CV can be tweaked, elaborated and downright fibbed on! Don’t just take that everything on that CV is correct and always question people from their CV at interview.
2. Thoroughly check education!
If someone has a degree listed on their CV, does it have dates and grade on? If there is no grade present, it could be they got a third or maybe didn’t even complete it. Always ask for dates if not present – again that could mean someone studied the degree but didn’t actually complete. A degree takes at least 3 years to complete, a HND/ONC etc two years then have to be topped up by a year at University to be converted to a degree. Check those A levels, GCSE’s etc as well. For anyone over the age of 38, an O Level is the equivalent of A, B or C at GCSE, a CSE 1 is the equivalent of a C at GCSE. Anything less than a CSE1 is equivalent to less than a GCSE C.
3. Investigate gaps in employment!
Any gaps should be explained at interview. Where the CV shows jobs listed in dates such as 2007 to 2009 question what months they started and finished those roles. There are 12 months in a year and if they started in 12/07 and left in 1/09 they didn’t do two years!
4. Question reasons for leaving jobs including redundancy!
Unfortunately due to the economic climate over the last few years, redundancy has been a common factor in people leaving jobs. However, a few people use redundancy as a cover up for reasons more sinister! Ask if they were already looking to leave, the reasons given for redundancy and whether other team members were also made redundant at the same time.
5. Hobbies and interests!
If your interviewee is less than forthcoming due to nerves during an interview, discussing their hobbies and interests out of work can be a good ice breaker. If they have listed reading for example; ask them the last good book they read and would they recommend it? It also gives a good indication of someone’s personality and that is very important when recruiting a new team member.
6. Spelling and grammar!
There is NO excuse for spelling and grammar mistakes on a CV produced on a computer these days – all software has spell check. Errors show a lack of professionalism, attention to detail and all-round carelessness. Not particularly the best start to finding a new role, whatever the post applied for.
7. Temp to Perm – advantages versus disadvantages!
Don’t be sold a temp to perm by an agency without questioning it. The thought of being able to “try before you buy” may seem appealing on the face of it however, there are serious drawbacks. Firstly, anyone working wouldn’t apply for a temp to perm role as the very nature of it doesn’t mean a guaranteed job, therefore your pool of candidates is instantly minimised. Secondly, as they would be paid hourly by the agency for the temp period, they wouldn’t actually be part of your workforce and may be seen as and worse – feel – ‘just a temp’. Thirdly, you cannot stop a temp looking for another permanent role so you could be in the position of looking for a replacement during the temporary period which is a waste of your time, resources and money. Instead, ask the agency for a guarantee period that would match the temp to perm period offered.
8. Advertise the salary bracket!
You will be inundated with lots of people unsuitable for your particular role if you don’t advertise a salary. Use circa e.g. “circa £25k” or a scale of salary e.g. £22 to £27k if you don’t want to limit yourself and be specific. If there is a bonus package offered, always put the basic AND the OTE on the advert.
9. Always check Right to Work ID!
A valid EU passport or outside of EU passport plus VISA and supporting paperwork is the best form of ID that proves someone can legally work in the UK. A UK full birth certificate (not a short copy) plus something from the Government to their home address that states their National Insurance number is acceptable. Please note – a driving license only proves you can drive in the UK – not that you can legally work here!
10 Always offer subject to references and make sure you do reference them!
If I had a pound for every time I ask clients if they reference their direct recruits and they said no, I would be typing this on a beach in the Bahamas. Sadly I’m not. It goes without saying really that every applicant should be able to offer references from previous employment going back at least 2 years. If they can’t – seriously reconsider hiring them.
For more down to earth advice please contact victoria@starpsltd.co.uk or go to http://www.starpsltd.co.uk/
