Avoiding the Dreaded Crisis Call from your Team

For small-business owners, hiring the right person can be stressful and time-consuming, particularly if you wait until you really, really need another team member’s help to maintain and grow your productivity. But finding the right person makes a world of difference to the long-term health of your business.
Here’s a primer on how to ensure that your people strategy efforts are contributing to the long-term growth of your business.
The “Musts” of Hiring & Keeping Great People
Assuming you’ve already gone through the process of hiring your first team member (the federal government provides an outline of the nuts and bolts for those who haven’t yet), hiring additional people is more an art than a science.
In order to create a team that you consider a masterpiece, be sure to develop these skills.
• Invest your time upfront. Finding the perfect person will take some time (unless you’re very lucky!). Accept this at the beginning, and the process will go much more smoothly. Plus, you’ll avoid finding yourself in the situation of having hired the wrong person because you tried to rush the process.
• Write a job description with long-term goals in mind. Experts agree that “winging it” generally doesn’t work when it comes to employee recruitment. Writing a job description helps you clarify what you’re looking for and whittle the field of applicants to those who will fit the position. To really knock this one out of the park, imagine what this person will be doing in a year or more, so you can communicate the position’s likely future.
• Look to your team for recruitment help. This tip has the double effect of helping to recruit and retain good people. When your current team members feel as if they’re contributing to the greater good of the business, they’ll feel valued; plus, if you offer a monetary reward for their efforts, they’ll see the benefits of helping build a stronger team. Current team members know better than anyone what will make a good recruit, so encouraging them to recommend candidates will benefit everyone involved.
• Remember to train and provide reviews! Once you find the perfect fit, it’s important not to let him or her slip away! To ensure that your newest team member feels supported and engaged, make an effort to provide adequate training, communicate your expectations, and provide appropriate feedback. This may involve doing regular reviews or offering informal responses to regular assignments, and is crucial to letting a person know what’s expected and how he or she can expect to live up to those expectations.

Like most other parts of owning a business, finding and keeping good people is an ongoing process that you contribute to every day. The best way to attract and keep the best of the best is to take good care of the people you already have!