Finalize on an
answer to this single most important question before you start the
recruiting process- What do you want in the employee? Most start up
managers and new managers tend to dilly dally with this issue. You
might seek a single employee to do software development and want him
to also handle something completely unrelated to that, like manning
your customer service desk. Whatever chalk and cheese combination it
is, when you post a listing for this job, mention every
responsibility that you expect the employee to take up.
Set a
definite remuneration range.
definite remuneration range.
And don’t budge
from the range. Be realistic. You might have found the perfect
candidate on a job search site. You might be tempted to chuck the
budget constraint. But resist the temptation. You will regret the
decision later. While it is important to have an upper threshold to
the employee reuneration, it is equally important to have a lower
threshold. Don’t hire someone who promises to deliver a Merc on a
bicycle’s budget.
Don’t waste time.
Yours and the
candidate’s. Ask for sample, references and work history along with
their resumes. Screen these documents. Shortlist candidates who are
within the budget and satisfy your requirements. It makes no sense to
call someone for an interview when you know that he/she has a job
that pays twice as much as you are willing to pay.
A Skype call would do.
As a first round
of interview, hold a Skype call. It requires minimal effort from
either of you and it would help you narrow down your pool of
applicants. Meeting someone in person can be put off until later,
when you are really impressed with the person to take it forward.
Stay away from politically incorrect
questions.
questions.
A fair employer
does not ask questions that racist, sexist, mysoginistic or biased.
Even if you have biases, stay away from deciding based on these
biases and be a better, bigger person. You don’t become a
manager/boss with these small thoughts.
Most interviewers
make the mistake of asking sexist questions to prospective women
employees; it is imprudent, politically incorrect, intrusive and
downright rude to ask if a woman is a maternity risk.
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